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2015 Moto G camera image samples

How good can the camera on a $189 smartphone be? Pretty good if it's the new Moto G with an image sensor from the much higher priced Nexus 6.
By Kevin Tofel, Contributor
2015-moto-g-bushkill-falls-water.jpg
1 of 11 Kevin Tofel/ZDNET

Bushkill falls

Just a nice, fairly balanced image of the falls, some foliage and a bit of blue sky.

f/2, 1/990 shutter speed, 3.64mm focal length, ISO 50

2015-moto-g-falls-and-bridge.jpg
2 of 11 Kevin Tofel/ZDNET

People at the falls

Standing in the shadows, the Moto G snapped a nice shot of the falls, along with people on the bridge.

f/2, 1/461 shutter speed, 3.64mm focal length, ISO 50

2015-moto-g-candle-dark.jpg
3 of 11 Kevin Tofel/ZDNET

A light in the dark

Using manual focus, the Moto G easily captured this lit candle clearly. Note the pillow at the top left in the chair behind the candle because I retook this shot later using manual exposure

f/2, 1/60 shutter speed, 3.64mm, focal length, ISO 50

2015-moto-g-candle.jpg
4 of 11 Kevin Tofel/ZDNET

Candle and pillow

Here's a similar shot to the prior candle image but this time, it's far easier to make out the pillow on the chair thanks to the manual exposure tweak I made when taking the shot.

f/2, 1/30 shutter speed, 3.64mm focal length, ISO200

2015-moto-g-cat-indoors.jpg
5 of 11 Kevin Tofel/ZDNET

Cat in the house

Lighting wasn't great for this shot but the Moto G turned out to get a reasonably nice pic. Not great, but not bad.

f/2, 1/30 shutter speed, 3.64mm focal length, ISO 320

2015-moto-g-converse-near.jpg
6 of 11 Kevin Tofel/ZDNET

Converse up close

This is where I started testing the manual focus, choosing to key in the Converse logo. The background is a bit too bright but I can live with it.

f/2, 1/15 shutter speed, 3.64mm focal length, ISO 640

2015-moto-g-converse-far.jpg
7 of 11 Kevin Tofel/ZDNET

Converse far

This is essentially the same shot but by using the manual focus tool, the background is now clearer but a bit grainy.

f/2, 1/20 shutter speed, 3.64mm focal length, ISO500

2015-moto-g-japanese-maple.jpg
8 of 11 Kevin Tofel/ZDNET

Japanese maple

The detail and color look great in this close-up, while the background has a proper amount of blurring to provide depth.

f/2, 1/60 shutter speed, 3.64mm focal length, ISO 64

2015-moto-g-oudoor-landscape.jpg
9 of 11 Kevin Tofel/ZDNET

The old farm out back

While this picture isn't bad, it's not spectacular. The sky and clouds are a bit blown out compared to the foreground.

f/2, 1/1754 shutter speed, 3.64mm focal length, ISO 50

2015-moto-g-rose.jpg
10 of 11 Kevin Tofel/ZDNET

A rose in the sun

Color quality is quite true to life in this close-up of our rosebush outdoors. Nicely detailed too.

f/2, 1/943 shutter speed, 3.64mm focal length, ISO 50

2015-moto-g-selfie.jpg
11 of 11 Kevin Tofel/ZDNET

Bushkill Falls selfie

I almost forgot the Moto G has a 5 megapixel front-facing camera with f/2.2 aperture. I snapped this selfie with my daughter holding the camera out at arm's length. The waterfall looks less sharper than I had hoped but it's not a terrible pic for this memory.

f/2.2, 1 /30 shutter speed, 2.471mm focal length, ISO 80

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