As a photographer I’m such as snob when it comes to “iPhoneographers”, as if snapping photos on a phone makes you real photographers. I feel the same way about point and shoots. I feel that if you didn’t take the time like the rest of us to learn how to shoot in manual mode and manipulate aperture, shutter, ISO, white balance and even know what RAW capture is then you basically can’t sit with us. I understand that not everyone can afford a photographer, especially for a simple selfie or photo of your trendy dinner but when it counts knowing how to control the light around with a camera is a skill worth knowing.
That being said I’ve always been under the impression that iPhones are cute but real bloggers and business owners, or in my case, photographers use DSLRS. But with the recent release of the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, I’m starting to wonder if this new iPhone is the next entry-level DSLR. With new features such as a f/1.8 aperture opening, capturing photos in RAW instead of just JPEG and with the 7 Plus comes a dual-lens camera. It even has better zoom capabilities for getting those details shots which I think it great for showing different parts of outfits for bloggers or honing in on details for product or fashion based brands.
One of my main concerns was that RAW files take up a lot of space. We all have had that moment when we had to delete photos and apps because we only had a 2GB left and not enough space for Apple’s notorious space gouging upgrades. Of course Apple just fixed that by making the storage spaces larger. The new iPhones now start off at 32GB and go all the up to 256GB. Who will need the storage space of a hard drive for a simple phone? I will never know. Also RAW files need a specific processor to even be able to look at them once you take them to a computer such as Adobe Camera Raw. Without that you might as well stick to jpegs. But of course there are apps for that such as Snapseed.
All of these additions eliminate the need for SD or CF cards for storage captured photos, save you the trouble of lugging around a huge camera and make it even more easy to make photos that don’t remind you of the flip phone days. It’s making the point of entry into photography even easier for the average person to create images. Imagine shooting all of your product photos or outfit posts or even a full fledged ad campaign on an iPhone.
Needless to say, I’m starting to wonder if Apple is trying to put photographers like me out of business. But what Apple can’t do that professional photographers can is have creativity and a vision. At the end of the day the equipment isn’t what makes the photographer. It’s the skills and knowledge from years of perfecting their craft that makes them professionals. Needless to say, I’ve seen plenty of photographers get excited about the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus and how their new features make it the perfect travel camera. So this new iPhone can be the perfect tool for novices and professionals alike.