Its likely the S25 did well because it knows what the moon looks like so it fakes the details.
Since the Galaxy S21 series, Scene Optimiser has had the capacity to recognise the moon as an object. This means that the detail enhancement engine, a key feature of Scene Optimiser, is applied to photos of the moon.
When you take a photo of the moon with your Galaxy device, the camera system uses deep learning-based AI, along with multi-frame processing, to enhance details.
Doesn't Samsung use AI models to fill in images of the moon with higher resolution detail? Not sure if this comparison makes sense given that the astrophotography device almost certainly won't be doing that.
Gonna be some wild conspiracies some day in the future, when humanity has altered the moon visibly but 'good old phones from way back in the day' take photos that "clearly" show no change to the moon.
Slightly off-topic but as a fairly serious backyard astronomer I almost never look at the full moon with my telescope because it's boring. Full moons are like cloudy skies: The viewing will be shitty tonight so best not to even set up the 'scope.
But looking at the terminator during a partial moon -- especially a new moon -- is quite spectacular.
I fully agree! But at least this shot with the Seestar 50 motivates me to try to get a more sharp shot on the full moon with my telescope. Just to prove to myself that I can do that.
What's the point of taking your own highly detailed photos of the moon? You can find much higher resolution images elsewhere. I usually only want to take a photo of the moon as part of a moonlit scene.
I love observing the moon, whether that's taking a picture with a telephoto or peeping through telescope.
There's something special about seeing the craters with your own eyes and then sharing that with friends. The framing & cropping, zoom, color of the sky are all unique to that experience.
Plus the moon is always looking slightly different each time, with different areas shadowed; fuzzy details one day are sharp the next.
And it's a skill like any other, which feels great to improve day after day.
Most people take photos of DSO's, but while you've got the gear, why not photograph the moon. It's also technically fun. Using a cooled camera, I video the moon/Jupiter at 20fps at 3000x3000. Then using software, I only take the frames where there is minimal atmospheric distortion. With the remaining frames, you stack them to get a very detailed image of the moon/planets.
Look up the other gear from ZWO the maker of the seestar.
Its likely the S25 did well because it knows what the moon looks like so it fakes the details.
Since the Galaxy S21 series, Scene Optimiser has had the capacity to recognise the moon as an object. This means that the detail enhancement engine, a key feature of Scene Optimiser, is applied to photos of the moon.
When you take a photo of the moon with your Galaxy device, the camera system uses deep learning-based AI, along with multi-frame processing, to enhance details.
https://www.samsung.com/uk/support/mobile-devices/how-galaxy...
The OP has not said anything about turning the relevant options off.
Pointless article really.
Casual shots of the moon, a phone is fine (duh). High quality shots of the moon you need a telescope (duh).
Doesn't Samsung use AI models to fill in images of the moon with higher resolution detail? Not sure if this comparison makes sense given that the astrophotography device almost certainly won't be doing that.
Some technical detail from an older thread: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35172190
You can stop that by turning scene optimiser off.
https://www.samsung.com/uk/support/mobile-devices/how-galaxy...
Or just generate the thing with AI in the first place. Almost as romantic and you don't get cold.
Gonna be some wild conspiracies some day in the future, when humanity has altered the moon visibly but 'good old phones from way back in the day' take photos that "clearly" show no change to the moon.
Those phones will be long dead at that point, as well as the cloud services they depend on.
Slightly off-topic but as a fairly serious backyard astronomer I almost never look at the full moon with my telescope because it's boring. Full moons are like cloudy skies: The viewing will be shitty tonight so best not to even set up the 'scope.
But looking at the terminator during a partial moon -- especially a new moon -- is quite spectacular.
I fully agree! But at least this shot with the Seestar 50 motivates me to try to get a more sharp shot on the full moon with my telescope. Just to prove to myself that I can do that.
What's the point of taking your own highly detailed photos of the moon? You can find much higher resolution images elsewhere. I usually only want to take a photo of the moon as part of a moonlit scene.
I love observing the moon, whether that's taking a picture with a telephoto or peeping through telescope.
There's something special about seeing the craters with your own eyes and then sharing that with friends. The framing & cropping, zoom, color of the sky are all unique to that experience.
Plus the moon is always looking slightly different each time, with different areas shadowed; fuzzy details one day are sharp the next.
And it's a skill like any other, which feels great to improve day after day.
You can also find much higher resolution images in the phone's generative AI "image enhancement" model.
What's the point of taking a photo of Big Ben? I can get much better photos elsewhere.
Most people take photos of DSO's, but while you've got the gear, why not photograph the moon. It's also technically fun. Using a cooled camera, I video the moon/Jupiter at 20fps at 3000x3000. Then using software, I only take the frames where there is minimal atmospheric distortion. With the remaining frames, you stack them to get a very detailed image of the moon/planets.
Look up the other gear from ZWO the maker of the seestar.
How do you cool them? Dry ice?
Also how do the batteries hold up, or are you powering it off a cable then?
The author asks, "So... do you need a telescope?" then politely and politically answers the question.
I, however, looking at the side-by-side comparison, would answer, "hell yes."
NASA PDF guide to create good photos with smartphones:
https://spacemath.gsfc.nasa.gov/SMBooks/AstrophotographyV1.p...
Incidentaly, the S25 has an astrophotography mode which can be used to take a picture of Milky Way and such (in a low light-pollution zone).
Does the Samsung have night mode?
Yes, but it's irrelevant here.
Samsung phones use pre baked images of the moon. This is not a great test.
They do, but not in Pro mode: (S23U) https://ibb.co/B2hN7jwZ
Honestly the main thing I notice is how awful the color balance is on the telescope.