How iPhone XR And Pixel 3 XL Take Great Low-Light Pics, Despite Having Just One Camera Lens

Nowadays, where every good camera phone sports at least two or more camera lens on its back panel, it's almost inconceivable to imagine a phone that's great in smartphone photography to have only one camera lens on its back. It's almost the end of 2018, and we have not one but two such phones.

The Apple iPhone XR and the Google Pixel 3 XL.

Both phones have excelled in the camera department this year, taking point and click photography on a phone to a whole new level. And all through a single camera lens.

Let's try and unpack some of the secrets behind the camera prowess of both the iPhone XR and Pixel 3 XL.

Sunset on the beach shot on iPhone XR (click to enlarge)

iPhone XR and Pixel 3 XL's camera lens are almost identical

The iPhone XR may be billed as this year's most inexpensive iPhone, but it's still a premium phone by the industry standard. And it still packs a mighty punch with its single rear camera.

Pixel 3 XL and iPhone XR

The iPhone XR may have just one rear camera, but it features the same 12-megapixel, f/1.8, 26mm wide-angle lens, with a higher 1.4 micron pixel size, found on the iPhone XS and XS Max. Therefore, the XR's rear camera supports latest camera features like optical image stabilization, portrait mode (only for human faces), and Smart HDR, to name a few.

Similarly, the Pixel 3 XL and Pixel 3 sport the same single camera lens on their rear panel - a 12.2MP, f/1.8, 28mm wide-angle lens, with a 1.4 micron pixel size, with optical image stabilization, and other bells and whistles similar to the camera on the iPhone XR.

Coconut shot on Pixel 3 XL (click to enlarge)

Portrait Mode shot on the iPhone XR (click to enlarge)

iPhone XR and Pixel 3 XL's camera have unmatched hardware-software blend

Both with the iPhone XR and Pixel 3 XL, camera lens is just half the story. Apple and Google have invested heavily in custom hardware and software, bringing the combination to its best possible result on the iPhone XR and Pixel 3 XL, respectively.

Toy car shot on the iPhone XR (click to enlarge)

Toy car shot on Pixel 3 XL (click to enlarge)

A big reason why the iPhone XR is able to take great pictures, especially low-light portrait shots, is thanks to A12 Bionic chip beating at the heart of the device. It's the world's first 7-nanometre chip that Apple produces in-house, equipped with a neural engine that's trained on taking true-to-source photos of people's faces in the XR's enhanced Portrait Mode -- from up close, too. The result is quite magical, especially coming from a single camera sensor.

Before sunrise on iPhone XR (click to enlarge)

Like Apple, Google has equipped the Pixel 3 XL with some unique hardware-software combination as well -- not to be found on any other smartphone. Apart from the single rear camera lens on the Pixel 3 XL, Google has fitted a custom-built Pixel Visual Core -- their very own advanced image processor -- and artificial intelligence for making every image as sharp and rich with details as possible, in a variety of lighting conditions.

Diwali lamps shot on iPhone XR (click to enlarge)

Diwali lamps shot on Pixel 3 XL (click to enlarge)

All of this is great recipe for low-light photos, especially for Diwali

Both the iPhone XR and Pixel 3 XL excel at low light photos, capturing sharpness and detail in images that you otherwise wouldn't see in a smartphone photo before.

iPhone XR portrait mode (click to enlarge)

Low light photo on iPhone XR (click to enlarge)

Low light photo on Pixel 3 XL (click to enlarge)

Obviously, shooting pics in low light conditions is tricky, ensuring your hands are especially steady to capture the right shot. One way to do that -- both on the iPhone XR and Pixel 3 XL -- is to focus on the bright spots of the subject in frame and locking the camera's AE/AF on that area. This will ensure your images appear better lit and not as grainy with noise.

iPhone XR low light photo (click to enlarge)

Pixel 3 XL low light photo (click to enlarge)

It's amazing that the Apple iPhone XR and Google Pixel 3 XL are able to capture such beautiful photos, despite sporting just a single camera lens. We are truly living in exciting times.