The Right Tool for the Job

All our hobbies, our pastimes, all our chores or tasks involve the use of the right tools for the job. A wrench is not a hammer, a rake is not a spade, a sieve is not a colander. 

A cellphone is not a camera!

But I'm sure many people will disagree with me. 

In a pinch a wrench will bang a nail into a board, a rake break ground and a sieve will strain your noodles. But if you want the job done right, you use the right tool for the job!

Sure, you can take a quick photo with your cellphone, on occasion I certainly do. You see something interesting or memorable and a camera is not at the ready, so you use your cellphone. But, if you're going out with the intent to photograph something, you had better have a camera with you.

Let's address some of the reasons a cell phone is a poor substitute for a camera.
There are the obvious; a tiny sensor, even in comparison to the smallest of cameras; and an even tinier lens. There are no two ways about it, the lens and sensor in a phone are not equal to a camera.
Zoom, both optic and digital. How many opportunities are missed because our subject is just too far away?
Manual shutter speeds and aperture settings are vital to capturing a decent image. A cell phone gives you no control over freezing (or even blurring) the action. And there is even less chance of controlling your depth of field.
Manual metering and metering pattern selection. Even exposure control. 
Cell phones, by design, and aesthetics, do not lend themselves well to taking a properly composed photo. Were it not for "apps" and their edit tools, most cell phone photos are barely worth the time it took to take them.    



Don't get me wrong, cell phone cameras do have their place. 
Quick transfer of information and ideas. 
You see a product or display and want to quickly relay a visual of it to someone else. A quick shot, paste it into a text or email, and with the push of a button someone else has it.   
Visual memos, quick reminders or prompts, for yourself and others.
Accident reporting. No longer do you need to have a disposable camera in your vehicle's glove box. And your insurance adjuster gets the facts right after the incident!

Or in the worst of cases, not being prepared! A full memory card, a dead battery, or a damaged camera! All the images in this posting were taken with a cell phone, because I wasn't prepared!

A cellphone isn't necessarily a poor substitute for an inexpensive camera, but it is a substitute. A camera on a cellphone is simply an add-on, an "app" if you please. It's not much different than the games that come included on your new device.
Nobody has ever been heard to say,"Oh, my camera is ringing, would you answer that for me?"

Your cell phone is a tool. But, when you witness a spectacular sunset, when a loved one is looking their absolute best, when you catch that once in a lifetime fish, or are travelling on that exotic, far flung adventure, and the scene just must be captured, don't reach for your cell phone, reach for your camera. 

Because your camera is the right tool for the job!