Exactly.
"Main/Config_MWP8.4/" that's where you have to paste the files.

I just prepared a little test scene to compare the three setups:

  • Graphene OS Stock Camera Version 45
  • Gcam 8.4.3 Beta 4 by MWP + my low light config
  • Original Gcam 8.6

Scene A:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XQBlPpBe32U7WyX0DTt5cPt_x01NukfT/view?usp=sharing

Stock GOS cam is the softest with lowest contrast and broad noise across the image.
My version is much clearer, has some decent HDR, much lower noise and no serious filtering artifacts.
Stock Gcam has much deeper blacks and looks a little crisper due to stronger HDR. Too artificial for my personal taste.

Scene B:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pYm2EIz5B2yt4zqMNzbMMKKM2MvIC7cg/view?usp=sharing

GOS cam is partially blurry and loosing detail. Noise performance is mostly ok though.
My config boosts much more detail out of the image without looking too crisp. Noise performance is showing some artifacts in the upper area of this shot - I'm working on it.
Original Gcam is again a bit too boosted in texture and contrast. Noise performance is showing some artifacts, as well. However, since it has stronger black boost, the artifacts do not shine through that much. Raising the black level would probably equal what we can see in the middle image.

I'm still trying to improve the noise suppression a little. However, tweaking the one thing does usally come at the cost of degrading the other. The raw images of those tiny sensors are usually very noisy and low dynamic. That's why there's always a bottleneck at some point, even in bright sunlight.

Other than that I'm pretty happy with the results. I think my config hits just the middleground between too much contrast and HDR versus too blurry and washed out.

Let me know what you think.

Regards,
SquirrelMaster

    • [deleted]

    • Edited

    The GrapheneOS photo application has a better image quality. The gcam application has a bit of a pixelated look. It's very easy to be fooled by the misleading videos saying that Google has the best photo application that abound on the internet

    4 days later

    SquirrelMaster
    Hello – Good experiments you have going on there. As I am going to upgrade from 3a to 6 series soon, camera performance is of some interest as I take the security and privacy of GOS for granted these days.
    I too would be pleased with these eminently practical results from experimentation or tinkering with settings. What clinched it for me was Scene B where the area between the pile of the green towel shows no detail at all with stock GOS yet renders some detail in the Gcam.
    I am very surprised by this as it would seem that I am getting super detail from my P-3a such as facial and body hairs on a butterfly – hand held shot with butterfly on a flower waving in the breeze – with saturated natural colours and detail giving effect of texture.
    This is not at all a scientific or experimental image and I would need to duplicate your scenes with a tripod or other fixed phone-camera mount. As I said I am surprised just how soft and lacking in detail the GOS app is. Keep up the good work – very interesting.
    As a marker in time; here are links to my Pixel 3a GOS butterfly photos – I use a different crop for my wallpaper.

    https://imgur.com/a/7xJyIQv

    https://imgur.com/a/72pF9l6

    really liking the modded app with the custom configurations.

    however, now I am having a pretty significant lag between shutter press and photo taken... long delay of 3, 4 5 seconds...?

      SquirrelMaster

      SquirrelMaster GOS cam is partially blurry and loosing detail

      How did you get a GOS cam photo this poor...?

      Hello again – I’m still struggling to get a photo anywhere near as bad with my 3a Stock GOS as your Scene B photo taken with a 6 Pro Stock GOS. Can you help – please – any suggestions….?
      I have set up an indoor shot with towel, rule and seriously black Faraday pouch for you to examine. The 3a camera Stock GOS was set to lowest quality (latency) setting. The full picture will be automatically reduced to 1Mb size by Imgur so I have also cropped, in camera gallery, to give a tiny file size for you to examine pixels. Any suggestions?

      https://imgur.com/a/7rqJwwW

      https://imgur.com/a/vpcoioD

      SquirrelMaster Let me know what you think.

        lcalamar I notice that stock gcam does not have HDR settings... can someone explain these settings?

        @SquirrelMaster - I have downloaded your Scene B Photoshopped image montage, then cropped out a portion to focus – excuse the pun – focus the mind on an area of gross disparity. GOS cam on the left – your Gcam on the right. See link below.

        https://imgur.com/a/gEFxEPO

        To avoid “ Photoshopped” effects could you simply publish your original photos?

        Thanks - Andy.

        Andy Hello again – I’m still struggling to get a photo anywhere near as bad with my 3a Stock GOS as your Scene B photo taken with a 6 Pro Stock GOS. Can you help – please – any suggestions….?

        The GrapheneOS Camera had a few updates since those sample images were posted -- that may be related?

        • Andy replied to this.

          caturday - Thanks for your reply :) You are of course correct that the 3a’s camera app has been updated many times over the 2+ years I have owned it.
          However my silent notifications tell me daily that my system is up to date and separately that all my apps are up to date. Therefore those images which include a towel and a rule taken yesterday are to 3a GOS latest update. They were of course specially taken to emulate SquirrelMaster’s Scene B towel and rule(r) photos.
          Whereas the old butterfly photo in previous post was to show just how good the bottom of the range – cheapest – Pixel 3a with Graphene-OS was from day one! Did you notice that you can even see the butterfly’s eyelashes?
          I hope you agree that my 3a GOS photos are way better in all aspects than those of SquirrelMaster’s 6-Pro GOS cam?
          As I have written many times – I am at a loss to know just how you can take such a poor picture with any Pixel phone let alone the latest 6-Pro.

          Hey Guys I’m onto a winner here – was easily able to do this with Gimp….

          https://imgur.com/a/23mQZbU

          Could have been far more subtle using a brush but I wanted to emphasize my cheating – never believe any photos especially where the exif and metadata are conveniently missing.
          Could have said I now own a Pixel 6-Pro and added whatever text I wanted to each image.
          Simple – so easy these days with cheap (Affinity) or even free FOSS software (Gimp)
          Select an area or apply to whole image then add blur filter, noise filter whatever. Freely add text anywhere.

          I'm confused following this thread…

          Are the posted photos - photoshopped or not?

          Where do things stand regarding photo quality - is there a conclusion (e.g.: GOS Cam, vs Google Stock CAM vs Modded Google Stock CAM (8.4).?

          • Andy replied to this.

            lcalamar
            I thought I had made it crystal clear “I wanted to emphasize my cheating” to make it crystal clear that anyone with a photo editor can alter any photo and then make whatever claims about them whether true or false. This as I said is especially true if the metadata and exif data are missing.
            It should be clear that my picture of the butterfly https://imgur.com/a/7xJyIQv and picture https://imgur.com/a/7rqJwwW are simple crops of a larger picture.
            As for other poster’s pictures I have no idea and still do not know how you can take such a poor quality photo with any Pixel GOS camera. IMHO my Pixel 3a GOS photos are far better quality than the 6a GOS posted – what is your opinion?

            All that aside; as there is a lens and a sensor so there should be no difference in basic quality all you can change is the app.
            I have no problem with Graphene-OS clear statement:-

            GrapheneOS has the same camera capabilities and quality as the stock OS. It will match the stock OS when comparing the same app on each OS.

            https://grapheneos.org/usage#camera

            I hope that you too have no problem with this clear statement by GrapheneOS org?

              Andy Very clear - fair.

              So it seems the only thing I'm missing with GOS cam is the optical zoom (P6P) - so very easy to just keep both cameras and I'm gtg

              • Andy replied to this.

                lcalamar

                lcalamar Very clear - fair.

                Great - Sorted..!

                Again from the same clear statement by GrapheneOS org:-

                Zooming via pinch to zoom or the zoom slider will automatically make use of the wide angle and telephoto cameras on Pixels. 5th and 6th generation Pixels (4a (5G), 5, 5a, 6, 6 Pro) have a wide angle camera for zooming out to under 1x to capture a much wider field of view. Images taken with the wide angle lens won't match the quality of the normal camera, especially with 6th generation Pixels. Flagship 4th generation Pixels (4, 4 XL) have a telephoto camera providing 2x optical zoom and the Pixel 6 Pro has one providing 4x optical zoom.

                You say:

                lcalamar So it seems the only thing I'm missing with GOS cam is the optical zoom (P6P)

                Are you saying this optical zoom is missing from GOS Pixel 6 Pro? (I do not have this phone)

                  Andy Correct - the GOS camera does not provide the 4x optical zoom feature that the P6P has.

                    lcalamar it should...

                    It's certainly drastically improved for both daytime pictures and low light vs. AOSP Camera though. It's very easy to see the difference. Our new app can fully leverage the hardware like telephoto lens on 4 / 4 XL / 6 Pro and wide angle on 4a (5G) / 5 / 5a / 6, etc. too.

                    Also to clarify: 4, 4 XL, 6 Pro have telephoto and 4a (5G), 5, 5a, 6, 6 Pro have wide angle, 6 Pro includes both. Camera hardware on 6 / 6 Pro is dramatically improved to the point that lightweight HDR+ may look almost as good as full Google Camera HDR+.

                    Source: https://nitter.net/GrapheneOS/status/1456306522124963853

                      MetropleX Phew, thanks for giving an authoritative statement on this.
                      At 72 I thought that I was loosing the plot for trusting GrapheneOS org’s many highly detailed web pages. A simple mistake or a typo yes, but deliberate misleading information – No!
                      It should be clear to all that after buying an expensive Pixel 6 Pro and flashing Graphene-OS that if the native 4x telephoto feature did not work the web would be awash with complaints as would this forum.
                      It seems to me that there are posters here who are trying to undermine Graphene-OS with false pictures and false information on GOS’s camera app.

                      Now that a moderator has stepped in I do hope this tacky ploy will stop and I can take a well deserved nap :) Zzzzzzzzzz

                        Andy I hope I haven't been mis-understood?

                        I think the GOS camera app is great.

                        But I don't see where I can use the GOS camera app to enable my hardware-optical zoom feature on my p6p.

                        Or - am I missing something? I believe the zoom 'slider' is only a software zoom - and doesn't use the hardware 4x zoom on the p6p?

                        That said - again - I use the GOS camera app and like it- but I have the modded google camera app available if I need to use the optical zoom on my P6P?

                        (o