Many smartphones include periscopic lenses in their cameras to improve the zooming range. A periscope lens has optical zoom qualities that a smartphone camera does not have, enabling 5x and even 10x optical zoom. A periscope lens allows someone to look around a barrier without being seen.

In this article, you will understand the definition of a periscopic lens and everything you need to know about it. Let’s get started.

What is Periscope Lens?

A periscope camera gets its name from the same equipment used in submarines or ships to observe items above the water’s surface and something other than is not within the direct path of sight. A periscope lens is an optical tool that allows people to view obstacles without being seen.

It has typically included reflective mirrors or prisms that refract the light at correct angles, letting individuals perceive what is above or below their real line of sight. Smartphone manufacturers have utilized the same technique to develop periscope modules for cameras to improve zooming range.

How does Periscope Lens work?

A periscope camera functions in the same way that submarine periscopes do. In which the lens would have existed, a mirror system is built. A periscope lens is a combination of two lenses and two 45° angle lenses at both ends of a lengthy tube. This helps to reflect the picture from the initial 45-degree lens across all of the additional lenses between another 45-degree lens positioned on the viewer’s end inside a straight line.

Rather than allowing light to enter the camera straight through the lens and then into the sensor, the periscope system redirects entering light 90 ° through the lens array toward the sensor.

Smartphone with Periscope Lenses

You’d think it’d be hard to create a gadget with a 100x telephoto lens while remaining tiny. However, smartphone manufacturers like Samsung and Huawei have lately introduced telephoto lenses with increased magnification capabilities. So, how does this work?

The mechanism’s periscope is an angled mirror that permits the lens and sensor to be positioned flat all along the smartphone. This allows the lens and sensor to be positioned closer together without the lens projects. As a result, a greater focal length may be achieved with a device that is only a few millimeters thick.

Advantages of Periscope Lens

Their primary benefit is that they enable you to record a faraway item or scenery on a level with such a point-and-shoot camera with no lens motion.

When contrasted to a smartphone with a standard 2X telephoto camera with the lens components installed vertically, the greatest optical zoom range afforded by periscope design is greater.

A phone with a periscope telephoto lens can deliver a hybrid zoom capability of 10X or greater based on tunnel size and lens component layout. A phone with a tiled specific range telephoto lens, on the other hand, will have a lesser optical and hybrid zoom power.

Disadvantages of Periscope Lenses

Although periscopic zoom cameras allow you to zoom in on items considerably closer than digital zoom, they do have certain limits. The most difficult aspect of a periscopic telephoto arrangement is that, as it allows you to visually zoom in on distant things or close in on a tiny item, its focal length — and hence zooming capabilities — are limited.

The lens array cannot move around too much due to the restricted space within the lens arrangement. The motion can only help with focusing and not zooming in or out. As a result, it doesn’t allow you to zoom in and out as easily as a movable zoom lens linked to a point-and-shoot, DSLR, or mirrorless camera.

Because the periscope camera is meant to take up space horizontally inside the phone rather than protruding out from the rear, it may take up a significant amount of room within the phone’s body. This means that to gain higher zoom magnification on the periscope camera, phone makers would have to compromise some components and functionalities.

Telephoto Vs. Periscope Lens

The size of periscope and telephoto cameras differs. A periscope lens has a narrower field of vision and fewer pixels. Its sensor is typically mounted horizontally.

Periscope lenses are also ideal for landscape photographers in terms of optical zooming. They offer several benefits. It is not the same as a standard telephoto lens. It has a higher zooming potential than a telephoto lens. Including sensors can require extra room. The periscope lens is significantly more costly. However, it has more advantages.

Why It Became So Important?

Due to the high optical zoom provided by periscope cameras, smartphone makers are competing to see who can give the finest optical zoom on their smartphone’s camera. There are only so many marketing words that can win the contest to deliver the greatest optical zoom. Many marketing buzzwords, such as “Super Zoom,” “Ultra Zoom,” and “Space Zoom,” have been misused by smartphone manufacturers to advertise their products.

These phrases, however, may not necessarily tell the whole story. In actuality, mounting a periscope camera on a smartphone is too costly. As a result, they may be seen on high-end smartphones. The price is determined by the length of the periscope camera.

Future of Periscope Lens for iPhones

The iPhone 13 Pro can only provide up to 3x zoom lens. The iPhone 14 model includes a 48 MP widescreen sensor, 8K video capture, as well as an upgraded 7-element telephoto lens in the year.

The iPhone 15 Pro Max will be released in 2023, and the iPhone 16 Pro and its variants in 2024. They will have improved zoom capabilities thanks to the inclusion of a periscope lens. Apple’s version will have a 1/3-inch 12 MP f/2.8 sensor with 5-6x optical zoom and sensor-shift image stabilization. These specs are likely to carry over to the iPhone 15 Pro Max and iPhone 16 Pro versions.

Conclusion

Despite the fact that the smartphone camera periscope innovation is still in its early stages, it appears that a growing number of smartphone manufacturers are incorporating it into their popular flagship devices. Maybe this implies it will continue to improve as the smartphone giants compete to have the finest smartphone camera in the industry.

A last piece of advice when dealing with any type of zoom mechanism is to maintain your device as stable as you can. This is important because even with OIS activated, the further you zoom in, the more the camera movement appears. This might result in fuzzy photographs. There are several methods for keeping your phone steady, such as holding it or your arms even against hard objects.

When taking a photograph with a camera, optical zoom is employed to capture a close-up look at the target without practically getting closer.

On the other hand, digital zoom is a feature of camcorders and digital cameras that allows you to crop the entire picture and then digitally enhance the size of the viewfinder of the region you want to zoom in on.

Considering and differentiating these two technologies is so critical. In this post, you will learn everything you need to know about digital vs optical zoom. Let’s get started!

What Is Optical Zoom?

The zoom qualities of cameras are referred to as optical zoom. All digital cameras provide optical zoom, which may be changed by physically rotating the lens. When you change the lens, you are modifying the focal distance of your camera’s sensor, which affects how much of a picture is caught in focus.

Optical lenses, on the other hand, often employ a fixed element, such as a glass or plastic lens filter, and cannot be altered during a picture shoot. Some cameras offer an electrical zoom option that allows you to modify your image after each exposure. However, they are often more expensive than their optical equivalents.

How Does Optical Zoom Work?

The focal length of a camera is changed by physically shifting the lenses. To enlarge the subject matter in question, optical zoom lenses physically stretch. A motor moves the lens in response to the user’s commands. When a particular button is rotated, or a switch is pressed, the subject is either enlarged or shrunk in size.

In a higher-rated optical zoom camera, the user can take a shot of the object from a long range and still receive a crisp, close-up picture. The optical zoom principle is much like the zoom on a non-digital camera. Each optical zoom lens has a range and a changeable focal length.

What Is Digital Zoom?

Many digital cameras and camcorders include a digital camera. Digital zoom can be used to increase the scale of a scene. It can crop the whole image. The image may be cropped to a central region using digital zoom. The digital zoom ratio is nearly identical to the original.

Digital zoom has the property of interpolating the output back up towards the pixel dimension of the original scene, and because the approach requires cropping, the resolution and picture quality is low and lower. After cropping the image, digital zoom enlarges it to its original size. The image quality generated is not exclusively determined by the camera’s megapixel count.

How Does Digital Zoom Work

Digital zoom is a technique for reducing or narrowing an image’s apparent angle of view. It is performed by cropping the image to a central region with the same aspect ratio as the original and then expanding the result back up to the original’s pixel size. This is accomplished electrically, with no adjustments to the camera’s optics.

Enlarging the image affects the original pixel pattern obtained by the camera’s image sensor. As a result, the visual quality suffers. Photographers utilize digital zoom to designate an area of a shot by using built-in software in the camera.

Digital vs Optical Zoom: Resolution

Image Source: LifeHack.org

Optical zooming permits the lens to adjust the prisms therein, which affects how light is transmitted—and hence the picture you’re attempting to capture—when it reaches the camera’s sensors. This enlarges the image before taking a snapshot, allowing you to capture excellent quality from a distance.

Digital zoom does not use optics to get your sensors closer to the image; instead, it just zooms in on the image to expand whatever the topic is. This effectively crops the shot before it is taken, lowering the resolution. If you have a 1080p phone camera, digital zooming can drop the resolution to 480p (or lower) for the end output, with no option to adjust it once the shot is taken.

Digital vs Optical Zoom: Usage

If you want more than a 2x optical zoom lens, you’ll need to plan ahead of time for dragging it about. You will need a camera equipment case, and bags may be pricey. It takes a little time to learn and change the focus on an optical camera lens. Therefore, there is a learning curve.

Digital zooming requires no expertise or understanding of how lenses function. You can zoom in on an image using your camera app, and it’s quite simple to do. If you have your smartphone camera set to auto mode, it will attempt to focus as far as necessary. When in manual mode, you may adjust the focus based on ISO settings.

Digital vs Optical Zoom: Clarity

When you use an optical lens to zoom in, you are not distorting the image; rather, you are improving your focus (This can improve image quality by increasing sharpness, contrast, and white light neutrality).

The clarity suffers as a result of the resolution change. Zooming into an image (digitally) exposes all of the white light and degrades the definition.

Digital vs Optical Zoom: Image Quality

Resolution is related to picture quality, but it also affects the sharpness and how light enters the image. With optical lenses, light is refracted off of the inner optics, which maintains the image crisp.

Because digital zooming does not affect the physical camera, you’re stuck with it if you’re at an awkward angle or the light is annoying. You can only change the image quality by going closer to it or adjusting your viewpoint.

Conclusion

Both optical and digital zoom has multiple benefits and limitations, as you may be aware of by now. Generally, optical zooms do not require electronics, and they are often lighter and smaller than digital zooms. Because they employ electronics to enlarge the image, digital zooms can be slightly bigger.

But what about the cost? Digital zoom cameras are often less expensive than optical zoom cameras. However, this varies depending on your finances and how much you intend to invest in a new camera.

The most crucial thing is to select a camera that meets your requirements. The easiest method to do so is to test out several models in shops and buy one that will increase the quality of your work but isn’t heavy on your pocket as well.

Many modern cameras and lenses include an image stabilization feature, which is intended to eliminate camera shaking. So, how do you maintain the sharpness of the image? Well, you’ve got three possibilities, and these are:

• Increase the shutter speed.
• Use a tripod.
• Turn on image stabilization.

In this article, we will discuss the following topics: What is image stabilization? How image stabilization systems work, and what are the rules of shutter speed.

What is Image Stabilization?

Vibration reduction, vibration correction and optical stabilization are all terms used to describe image stabilization. The basic definition of image stabilization relates to how steady a camera’s optical system is during image capture.

Without image stabilization, the final image will seem hazy if the camera is not steady, especially if you have no experience with photography.

There are several other causes of hazy or blurred images, including poor lighting, the use of long lens lengths, and slow shutter speeds combined with camera motion from a handheld camera.

If you regularly use quick shutter speeds, image stabilization technology is usually unnecessary.

How Do Image Stabilization Systems Work?

In the mid-1990s, camera makers began investigating image stabilization technologies. It has become better with each generation of digital cameras. The stabilization system can be included inside the lens or the camera. It might also be in both.

A system of gyros and microcomputers attached to a floating lens element or sensor is used for image stabilization. Your camera’s gyros detect even the smallest motions. To compensate for it, the information is passed to the microprocessor, which shifts the components in the opposite direction. All of this is happening behind the scenes without your knowledge.

The menu system allows you to regulate camera-body image stabilization devices. Image stabilization lenses may contain a switch to toggle them on and off.

Rules of Shutter Speed

To begin, while shooting handheld, you should operate a shutter speed that is at least 1/the length of your lens to eliminate camera movement. So, if you are using a 50 mm lens, the shutter speed should be 1/50. The reciprocal rule states that a 200mm lens requires a minimum shutter speed of 1/200, a 40mm lens requires a minimum shutter speed of 1/400, and so on.

Secondly, camera shaking and motion blur are not the same things. The shaking of the photographer or camcorder causes the camera to shake. Motion blur occurs when the subject moves too quickly for the shutter speed. These will cause blur or softness in your photographs, but they are not the same problem.

What Is Digital Image Stabilization?

Some cameras employ digital image stabilization, sometimes known as electronic image stabilization, mainly for video. Digital image stabilization detects movement in each frame and moves it pixel by pixel to generate a steady video.

This method can eliminate camera shaking and produce steadier footage. Post-processing software, such as Adobe Premiere Pro’s Warp Stabilizer, can also be used to stabilize digital images.

One downside of this approach is that it necessitates cropping since pixels beyond the frame must be utilized as a buffer and must be clipped out to allow for stabilization. In general, the more shaking there is in the camera, the more cropping there is.

What is Optical Image Stabilization (OIS)

Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) is a technique used in cameras and phones that helps balance the photo-taking parts of your camera or phone to reduce or eliminate image’ shake.’ This allows you to capture sharper photos with your smartphone even while it’s in your hand.

OIS is especially useful when taking photos at night or in low-light situations because it stabilizes your camera for longer, allowing it to take in light when used in a darkened setting. This results in clearer and more pleasing photos.

Lens-Based Stabilization

Lens-based stabilization employs a floating lens element that is electronically controlled and adjusted in the opposite direction of any camera shake detected. Smoother performance when employing longer focal length lenses is one of the benefits of in-lens image stabilization.

The disadvantage of lens-based image stabilization is that it is not available as an option for all lenses and adds to the lens’s cost. However, if you don’t require IS, you may be able to get a non-IS version of the lens or something comparable.

In-Camera vs Lens Stabilization

Nikon and Canon have always preferred lens-based stabilization technologies. Each lens’ image stabilization mechanism is tuned somewhat differently. Lens manufacturers may provide both image stabilization and non-image stabilization lenses.

Lens stabilization is, as you can expect, more costly. Sometimes significantly more costly. When you buy a lens, you also buy the stabilization system. With in-camera picture stabilization, you just need to purchase the system once. It is compatible with all of your lenses.

When to Turn Image Stabilization Off

Image stabilization sounds wonderful. It will assist you in capturing crisper photographs at slower shutter speeds. However, it is not always the best setting to utilize. It is sometimes preferable to locate the off switch.

• If you intend to move the camera, disable the stabilization option. When you pan your camera, you are following a moving subject. This maintains the object in focus while blurring the backdrop. This is countered by picture stabilization.
• Your tripod is the ultimate picture stabilization device. When using a tripod, turn off picture stabilization. This may appear to be paradoxical. If your camera is already stabilized by a tripod, you will anticipate the image stabilization feature to be inactive.

Conclusion

Image stabilization refers to how steady a camera’s optical system is during capture. Images will seem fuzzy and degrade overall image quality if the system is not steady.

Image quality can be improved by utilizing a tripod, an optical stabilizer, or sensor-shift optical image stabilization. It is still necessary to examine the picture stabilization capabilities of the camera.

That’s the question that drives people since the first megapixel digital camera hit the market back in the stone age, in 1989 respectively, when Fujifilm released the legendary FUJIX DS-X, the first commercially available digital camera for the masses.

But we’re digressing. The absolute truth of marketing is that tech companies, just like the automotive industry, love to wave fancy-sounding words and big numbers in their ads. Obviously, digital camera manufactures are pretty good at this too; even if the buzzword megapixel is not obsessively used nowadays, at least as bad as it was back in 2015 for example, it’s still a metric for a lot of “noobs” seeking for the ultimate high-tech thrill.

Back in the day, a digital camera only had something like 1.2 megapixels, which is now normal for a low-end laptop webcam. “In the current year”, a premium smartphone or consumer-level DSLR has something like 15 megapixels or more. For example, the “ancient” (2013) Nokia Lumia 1020 boasted 41 megapixels stuffed inside its relatively tiny body.

Does it mean it can compete to a DSLR camera? If not, are megapixels just an urban myth? Okay then, let’s be smart and define the terms first.

Image Source: Cashify

What Does Megapixels Mean?

To make it really simple for non-tech savvy readers, the megapixel rating will give you the total number of pixels captured by the camera’s sensor. See, a digital picture is composed of thousands and thousands of little dots, also known as pixels, and to get the total number of pixels, you multiply the number of horizontal pixels by vertical pixels.

That’s pretty easy, right? One million pixels equal 1 megapixel, which means a 15-megapixel sensor will produce an image composed of 15 million pixels or tiny dots. However, the number of pixels is not the only metric for evaluating the quality of a camera sensor. Size also comes into play; do you remember the “bigger, better, faster, more” thing in the preamble?

The bigger the sensor (and the lens by the way, bigger is almost always better, go ask your girlfriend), the more light it can absorb, and that translates into generally better pictures, regardless of the megapixel count. That’s why a15 megapixel DSLR will provide you better pictures than a 20 megapixels smartphone. Bigger sensor, bigger (and better) lens, faster shutter speed and so on and so forth.

This is important to understand, especially if you’re shopping for the best digital camera, and you compare two devices with different megapixel counts, but similar sensor and lens sizes. Which brings us to the next issue.

Why More Megapixels Is Better

As we already explained, a digital image is made of millions of pixels. Now, professional-quality photos are printed generally speaking at 300 dpi, or dots (pixels) per inch. The higher the resolution of a given camera, the better, as in you will be able to make larger prints. This is an obvious advantage of a sensor with more megapixels, as it produces a greater amount of detail.

However, if the respective images are viewed on a tiny screen, such as a smartphone display or on your laptop, this metric may not matter much. The biggest impact of a higher megapixel count on a camera sensor is when you’re looking to actually print the respective images out. Before you ask, the 300-dpi thing is considered to be the best print resolution due to our own limitations.

See, the human eye can only see so much detail at a standard viewing distance, and 300 dpi is the best we can do. The lesson to be taken home is that if you require large prints, you’ll have to choose a very high megapixel sensor. As in, high megapixel sensors are ideal for studio or fashion photographers who want to capture every single detail, and to print larger photos.

As an interesting factoid, back in the day, Apple proved that you can actually make billboards from 12MP smartphone images. So, there you have it.

Image Source: Dailybillboardblog

Finally, high megapixel sensors are great if you’re going to use the “digital zoom” thing often, i.e. you’ll end up with a high level of detail when you’re “zooming in” stuff.

When High Megapixel Sensors Suck

The main disadvantage of having a camera with lots of megapixels is that the image file size will be rather large, so you’ll require more storage space and more processing power to edit the images properly.

Another thing to contemplate is that the more pixels you have onto a camera sensor, the less light the respective sensor will see for each pixel due to “crowding”. And that translates into less performance when taking pictures/videos in low-light conditions.

In bright light, a high megapixel sensor, let’s say s 15 MP variety, will do better than an 8 MP one, but in low lighting conditions, the latter will generally deliver more detailed pictures. To drive it home, always remember that low light performance is generally better with low-res sensors.

Also, if you’re shooting a video, a lower resolution sensor will translate into faster image processing i.e. more FPS (frames per second).

What Is the Sweet Spot Then?

Okay, so what have we learned so far? The main thing to remember is that modern cameras and smartphones are designed to have enough megapixels for basically anything you want to throw at them. The megapixel metric is no longer the “deal-breaker” that once was, and as soon as you go beyond a certain threshold, let’s say 12 MP, other factors become more important, like sensor size, as we already explained.

A 12 MP sensor in a premium smartphone will allow you to get an image which is big enough for basically anything (we’re not talking movie editing here), while a 24 MP DSLR is more than enough for most of you reading this article. Okay, full frame DSLRs have very big sensors, which can handle more megapixels, so you can buy super-high res 50 MP cameras, but those are niche tools for specialists.

The point being, you don’t need a huge MP rating to make awesome photos for Instagram, so we would advise you to not buy into the megapixel hype; look at other factors, like lens quality, the autofocus parameters, the technology behind the sensor (very important in stand-alone cameras) and things of that nature. All these factors are important in how your device works, so always look further than just megapixels.

Final word

The lesson to be taken home is this: it all depends on what kind of tool you require for your specific needs. If you’re a Facebook/Instagram kind of photographer, you don’t really need a super-high megapixel camera, or to spend thousands of dollars on a whim.

On the other hand, if you’re going to shoot commercial and fashion photography, including architecture, landscape and things of that nature, it’s the other way around. Basically, if you’re making money with your camera, it makes total sense to go full Godzilla.

What is shutter speed? One of the fundamental and most crucial aspects of photography, be it on a mirrorless camera or a compact (although, of course, the differences in ability between the best compact camera and the best DSLR will wildly differ).

Shutter speed thusly joins ISO and aperture to make up the holy trinity of how to take the photographs you want. This article focuses on explaining camera shutter speed, tying it together with how ISO and aperture complete the cycle in taking the perfect photo.

What Is A Camera Shutter?

It’s better to start from an understanding of what a shutter is before we can understand what shutter speed is.

The shutter is made of a mirror box and two doors, top, and bottom. The camera captures an image “through” the light allowed in by the shutter – think of it like curtains being pulled back to allow light in for a certain amount of time and then quickly being closed back again – when the shutter is clicked, opening up those doors, letting the light in that allows the picture to be taken.

You might very well wonder why a shutter is even necessary anymore; surely, smartphones have very powerful cameras that are point-and-shoot and deliver stunning results, but the devil is in the details.

Even some digital cameras merely have an “electronic” camera shutter, wherein the sensor just turns itself on and off for the amount of time needed. The pictures that are taken from these or, more commonly, from a phone are inevitably grainier, even with the latest technology, as compared to the average quality of a DSLR or even some of the best mirrorless cameras out there – more power is sent to the sensor to take the picture, and according to the rules of ISO, this equals more noise.

What Is Shutter Speed?

A standard DSLR camera can handle around a hundred thousand actuations (the entire process of the mirrors flipping up and down) – the actuations explain why your viewfinder goes black for a second when taking a picture since the mirrors flip upwards to allow light to the sensor, a small door exposes the sensor underneath it by moving from top to bottom, and a door covers up the entire sensor by falling, closing to let the mirror fall back into its place.

These actuations can be so fast to make it such that a camera sensor might not even be completely exposed at any given time. A fast shutter speed might be averaged around 1/1000 (of a second), with some of the best SLRs boasting a shutter speed of 1/8000 or even as much as 1/16000.

What does a fast shutter speed achieve, however?

Slow vs. Fast Camera Shutter Speed

Unlike most things, this isn’t a question of either/or – slow versus fast doesn’t mean better versus worse. Slow shutter speed means that the camera shutter is kept open for a longer amount of time, meaning that the image is captured on the film/sensor in multiple places as long as the shutter stays open, resulting in a blurry image. Fast shutter speed means capturing objects in motion much easier.

Slow shutter speeds can also result in overexposed images; the film/sensor “captures” more light, making the image much brighter. Of course, this can be just what you need, such as for night shooting.

Shutter speed can be adjusted using either on-screen settings on most modern cameras or a switch or dial on older models. Combining this with what we learned earlier, let’s say you change your settings from 1/8000 to 1/1000 – eight times less light will now hit the sensor compared to before.

Largely, striking the right balance is a strong combination of experience and knowing what you want to achieve.

Still, there are some rules of thumb that we can rely on. Some of them we’ve brought up before and some we’ll now get a little deeper into.

Generally speaking, faster shutter speeds result in pictures that are crisp, clear, and exact, but only in ideal lighting conditions. Slower shutter speed is more preferable for, say, a gorgeous portrait or a nature shot on a moonlit night – something stationary somewhere with refined and low light and subtly defined shadows. This should ideally be done with utilizing stabilization features in the camera or using a tripod, otherwise, as you’ll already remember, the longer shutter exposure results in blurrier pictures.

Of course, this can also be used to artistic effect with blurred backgrounds, dynamic movement, and certain “trick” or special effect shots – let’s say light painting, or using an external flash to highlight an object by making it appear more brightly and prominently than the background to achieve a striking effect.

Camera Shutter Speed and ISO and Aperture

In conclusion, let’s tie together our understanding of camera shutter speed with the other two fundamentals, the aperture, and the ISO settings.

In simple words, the aperture is the opening that allows light into the camera and ISO settings determine how sensitive the film/sensor is to the light.

In case you struggle with faster shutter speeds messing up the clarity of your photos, the aperture can be opened up a little more, the ISO set a little higher, but of course, this means the settings are thrown off-balance and you need to twiddle around a bit more to find your ideal shot.

This faster shutter speed also helps in capturing objects in motion, as we’ve said before, but again, it’s preferable to use a flash or know your way around lighting settings.

Understanding how the “exposure triangle” truly works might require a bit more work, of course, but understanding the place of the shutter speed in the mechanism is a great place to start, and now you’re ready to move towards a much deeper understanding of how to take the perfect photos that you want.

Waterproof vs. Water Resistant: The Actual Terms

The terms ‘waterproof’ and ‘water-resistant’ are often used interchangeably and as generic terms, but in terms of actually protecting your device from water, they both mean different things. Knowing this is the first step to understanding IPX ratings.

Waterproof means something that is impervious to water, and water-resistant means something that is not as affected by water exposure. A water-resistant smartphone won’t be damaged if it is, say, splashed accidentally, but it won’t work underwater the way a waterproof one might.

Other terms like ‘hydrophobic’ and ‘water repellent’ are also thrown around a lot in this regard. Water repellant or hydrophobic substances, as the name indicates, will repel water thanks to their artificially added properties, but there is no definitive scale to rate how water repellent something is.

It is important to understand that not even a waterproof device claims to be impervious to water infinitely. Water resistance has certain levels, with each level bringing the device closer to being completely waterproof. IPX ratings help you understand the degree of water protection your device claims to have.

Remember that devices may not necessarily be waterproof and water-resistant at the same time. Just because a device can survive immersion in water doesn’t mean it can survive water splashes or sprays as well, and vice versa.

IPX Ratings: What Are They Exactly?

IP stands for International Protection or Ingress Protection. You’ve probably already come across ratings in an ‘IPX7’ format or such if you’ve been looking into waterproof-ness. IP ratings tell you the degree of protection that the enclosure of your device offers from environmental hazards.

This means that IP marks the level of protection your device has not only from water but also from factors like dust and any other fluids. The general format of an IPX rating is ‘IPXXX’, where the first X indicates dust resistance and the second X indicates water resistance. The last X indicates any additional protection available.

Some devices offer water resistance but not dust resistance. In this case, the first X which represents dust resistance either becomes 0 (which means no resistance is offered whatsoever) or, more commonly, remains an X (which means there is no information available for that factor). For instance, in IPX4, there is definite water resistance available, but we can’t say about dust resistance.

Each IPX Rating Explained

There a total of 9 IPX levels. Everything that has IPX7 and above is considered waterproof. As you know already, the fact that all these ratings have that first X means that none of the devices having them are dustproof, but we are here to discuss water proof-ness anyway.

You will notice that most IPX ratings are very oddly specific, and improvements at each level are small at first, but more effective as we go higher.

IPX0

This goes without saying, and you probably won’t even see an IPX0 rating anywhere, but an IPX0 rating basically means that a device is not waterproof at all. An IPX0 device might as well be made of paper because it will not hold up to water exposure at all.

IPX1

An IPX1 rating means your device is safe from vertically falling water droplets. So if you were to, say, leave your IPX1 device outside during a light drizzle, it would be protected for about ten minutes.

IPX2

IPX2 also offers protection from vertical drops of water, but with an added 15-degree angle tilt. When IPX2 devices are tested, they are sprayed from four positions to ensure the 15-degree angle condition.

IPX3

IPX3 devices have a bit more water protection to offer; the 15-degree angle now expands to a 60-degree angle, but only from a vertical axis. So if you were to spray water on the top of your IPX3 device from an exact 60-degree angle, you would still be good to go.

IPX4

A device with an IPX4 rating will be able to resist damage from water splashes from any direction. Most outdoor gear and speakers have at least an IPX4 rating (although higher as well, obviously). IPX4 devices are generally considered splash-proof. IPX3 and IPX4 devices are tested the same way.

IPX5

IPX5 also offers protection from water splashes from any direction, but it also accommodates for added water pressure. Technically, IPX5 devices can resist damage even after being sprayed with water jets (because that is how they are tested) from any direction.

This is a good starting point for devices like pool or shower speakers. IPX5 vs IPX7 is a common dilemma for such devices, but it all depends on your needs. If your speakers are on a beach, then go for an IP67 device (fully dustproof, fully waterproof).

IPX6

IPX6 ratings mean, like IPX5, protection from water splashes that have a lot of pressure to them, but IPX6 offers protection from greater water pressure. Both IPX5 and IPX6 are considered water-resistant.

IPX7

IPX7 ratings are for fully waterproof devices, which means they can survive complete immersion in water. But there are still limits in the world, and so IPX7 devices will only be protected from water damage as long as they aren’t immersed in water deeper than 3 meters, and for longer than 30 minutes. (Still, IPX7 smartphones are good for underwater selfies).

IPX8

IPX8 protection improves on IPX7 features by expanding the safe water depth for immersion to 3 meters, but there is no definitive time period for how long an IPX8 device can be immersed. This is because the testing time depends on the manufacturer, and you might be able to get this information from them directly if you really need to.

IPX9K

IPX9K rated devices can survive water sprays at very strong pressures, and the added plus point they have (indicated by the K at the end of the rating) is that they can also survive in water at higher temperatures. The temperature used for testing is about 80 degrees Celsius, and testing is done for about 15 minutes. IPXK is an elite rating, and hence only available on certain devices, which do not include audio equipment.

If you’re just getting into photography, the DSLR vs mirrorless camera question is probably the first in your mind. In this article, we’re going to take a quick look at each type of camera and its pros and cons, to help you decide which might suit you more.

How DSLR Cameras Work

DSLR stands for digital single-lens reflex, because, simply put, a DSLR is a digital camera that uses a single lens rather than relying on photographic film. The design is the same as older cameras that used this film, but DSLRs use a mirror inside the body of the camera that reflects light onto a prism. The light reaches the mirror through the camera lens. The prism then reflects the light into the viewfinder so you can see what your shot looks like.

When it comes to actually taking a picture, all you have to do is press the shutter button. This flips the mirror up to open a shutter, which allows light to fall onto the image sensor, hence capturing the image. The image sensor is what acts like the film in DSLRs.

This is just a basic explanation, however, and features can vary in different DSLR cameras. Getting the right one for you will help improve the quality of your work.

How Mirrorless Cameras Work

As the name implies, mirrorless cameras don’t use the mirror that functions as an intermediary in DSLR cameras. In mirrorless cameras, the light hits the image sensor directly after passing through the lens. Mirrorless cameras don’t always have viewfinders because you can see a preview on the screen itself, but some models do offer a second screen inside a viewfinder so that using the camera feels more like a professional experience.

Most smartphone cameras are mirrorless. Using a mirrorless camera is like using a DSLR in ‘Live View’ mode rather than through the viewfinder. As with DSLRs, mirrorless cameras also have different models to feature the diverse needs of users, and choosing the right one is important.

Mirrorless Cameras vs DSLR Cameras: Pros and Cons

Here is a comparison of both camera types in terms of a few key factors that might affect your decision ultimately.

Size and Build

DSLR cameras are obviously bulkier in comparison because they need to fit both a mirror and a prism. Recent DSLR models have been lighter than their predecessors though. For instance, the Nikon D3500 is smaller than the last model, but it’s still about three inches before it gets to the actual lens. If you’re using a kit lens (18 to 55 mm) then it would weigh around 1.5 pounds.

Compared to these, mirrorless cameras are much lighter and more compact. For example, a Sony A6300 is comparable to the Nikon model we just mentioned, but is only about 1.6 inches thick and weighs around 1.75 pounds with a kit lens (16-50 mm). For this reason, mirrorless cameras are easier to carry around, and you can fit more gear with them in a camera bag.

Autofocus Speed

DSLR cameras use phase detection; a technology that is quick at measuring the convergence of two light beams. In the beginning, this gave DSLRs a better autofocus speed than mirrorless cameras, because mirrorless cameras used contrast detection. Contrast detection means slower autofocus speed because it limits performance to high contrast images (so it doesn’t work as well in low light either).

This is no longer the case because mirrorless cameras now use both phase and contrast detection. These sensors are built into the image sensors in each type of camera. This new development for mirrorless cameras does not necessarily make them superior though. Both cameras have pretty good autofocus speed now, the only difference is that mirrorless cameras offer hybrid sensors.

Image Quality for Previews

One of the most important parts of the mirrorless vs DSLR debate is image quality. This in itself has a few components, so let’s look into those. Firstly, the image quality when it comes to previews. In a DSLR, the viewfinder shows you exactly what the camera will capture, whereas in a mirrorless camera you will see a preview on the screen, with the exception of mirrorless cameras that offer an EVF (electronic viewfinder) to mimic a DSLR.

Outside or in good lighting, the EVF of a mirrorless camera will give you a preview that is pretty close to the image it captures. But in more challenging situations, such as low light or subjects that move quickly (like in wildlife photography), the preview in an EVF gets duller and grainy. A DSLR will not have this problem even in low lighting.

If you’re using a DSLR in ‘Live View’ to mimic a mirrorless camera, the preview can take longer to focus. Additionally, an advantage that EVFs have is that they show you a preview according to the shutter speed, etc. that you’ve set. Whereas with DSLRs you might have to depend more on experience to be able to predict the exact final results you’ll get.

So in good light, both are good options, but if you shoot mostly in low light then you should go for a DSLR.

Mirrorless vs. DSLR Image Quality

Next in the mirrorless vs DSLR debate for image quality is the quality of the final captured images. In general, both types of cameras can take high-quality images. In the past, mirrorless cameras had lower resolutions but that is clearly no longer the case because many mirrorless cameras now use the same APS-C sensors as DSLRs.

With full-frame mirrorless cameras especially, the results are more or less indistinguishable from DSLRs. Both Canon and Nikon now make such cameras.

Image Stabilization Efficiency

And last but not least in the mirrorless vs DSLR debate is image stabilization, a lesser-known but equally important factor. This is again especially important for fast-moving subjects or people with shaky hands. Both types of cameras have stabilizing mechanisms; the camera shifts the lens or image sensor slightly when needed to counter instability. However, some mirrorless cameras can shift both at the same time for greater stability.

In general, the difference here is minimal, and the stabilization technology works with all lenses. A couple of the higher-end mirrorless cameras such as Sony A7 Mark II offer five-axis stabilization, which DSLRs do not have. Such cameras can be better for videography, but they are also really pricey.

DSLR vs. Mirrorless for Video Quality

The second most important part of the DSLR vs mirrorless debate is which is better for videos. Putting aside the expensive models we’ve already talked about (which the average user can’t afford) let’s talk about how this plays out in more mainstream cameras.

DSLRs sometimes have blurred parts in the middle of a video where the camera is looking for focus. This happens because they can’t use phase detection during videos and hence use contrast detection, which is slower. But most filmmakers do prefer DSLRs if they’re going to use a still-image camera, because of the greater lens range.

Mirrorless cameras can capture 4K or Ultra HD videos, a feature that only the higher-end DSLRs have (such as Nikon D7500). But again, if you’re a professional then you can just focus in advance (rather than using autofocus) and stick to a good DSLR.

Playback Quality for Images and Video

There’s really not much difference here; both camera types can display results either on the screen they have or on a larger screen using an HDMI output. Some cameras also allow using WiFi to share images directly to smartphones and such.

Shooting Speed

Since both mirrorless and DSLR cameras are used professionally, both have high shutter speeds and can capture many images in a single burst. But the physical shutter in mirrorless cameras gives them an edge because it allows them to achieve better results.

You can also use the electronic shutter in mirrorless cameras to shoot at higher shutter speeds and more silently.

Battery Life and Overall Durability

DSLRs can have better battery life if you use them without the electronic viewfinder and LCD screen because both of these consume a lot of battery. If you need to preview often and also use the LCD screen when shooting, then both camera types will have similar battery life. Both also come with removable batteries, so it’s always a good idea to keep a spare in your bag.

Durability, again, is more or less same across the board. Both camera types also have the option of adding an extra level of protection (such as waterproof alloy bodies) that prevent weather damage, so you might want to look into this if you work mostly outdoors.

Lenses and Accessories

DSLRs have an edge here because you have more lenses to choose from for them. DSLR lenses range from cheap but sufficient and professional but expensive, with every other niche in between. Mirrorless cameras are far more limited when it comes to lenses, and you can usually only choose ones made by the camera maker.

This is changing though, with many camera makers producing more and more lenses for mirrorless cameras as they grow in popularity. Mirrorless cameras that have been around longer tend to have more lenses available for them as well.

Another thing you can do is use an adaptor to fit DSLR lenses onto your mirrorless camera, provided that the lens and camera are from the same manufacturer. The problem with this, however, is that you might have to change your focal length and zoom settings, and in some cases, you may even have to disable features such as autofocus.

So, What Should You Pick?

Ultimately, the type of camera you pick will depend on the kind of work you do and your budget. Both DSLR and mirrorless cameras can provide optimum results, even if it is under different circumstances at times.

Mirrorless cameras are better suited for video and are lighter, but don’t offer as many options with lenses. DSLRs work better in low light and have more lens options, but can be bulky. If you pick a type where the pros outweigh the cons, then that is the right choice for you.