The 8MP iPhone 4S bested my 12MP Canon SD780IS in low light. The iPhone’s physically smaller sensor had just the right number of pixels for its size to yield a photographically superior image.
However, the Canon is now back in the game since Apple crammed one third more pixels, (12.2 MP to be exact), into three quarters of the space. The iPhone 6S images may look good to the casual observer, but zoom in and you can see the over-sharpened, heavily processed results of an overcrowded sensor.
The iPhone is also just a tad too wide, unless you’re a dedicated 28mm shooter (it’s actually the equivalent of 29mm). So, objects are 18% smaller. This means that cropping to zoom in is even more troublesome. The SD780IS’s 33-100mm zoom lens gives it a significant advantage here too.
So, the verdict is, while the iPhone’s camera is quite competent, it’s not so much a photographer’s camera any more; it’s a camera for the masses. There are better options out there for aspiring lensmen.
