Like so many great inventions, Expert RAW was a group effort — driven by Samsung’s experts and Galaxy users’ valuable feedback. To learn more about the Expert RAW experience, Samsung Newsroom spoke with the experts at Samsung Research² who collaborated on the app.

Read on to see what Hamid Sheikh, Head of the Intelligent Imaging Team at Samsung Research America’s (SRA) Mobile Processor Innovation (MPI) Lab, and Girish Kulkarni, Head of the Camera Solutions Group at the Samsung R&D Institute India-Bangalore (SRI-B), had to say about this innovative camera collaboration.

Q: What does the Expert RAW app do? What are the main benefits for users?

Hamid: Expert RAW really gives users the ability to take full control of their mobile photography experience much like a professional photographer would. The app captures much more comprehensive data for each image, which can be used to both improve photos and artistically enhance them with editing software like Adobe Lightroom — the go-to app for professional photographers.

To improve the overall camera experience, we worked closely with Adobe to tightly couple Expert RAW with Lightroom. The result is that photographers have full control over their creative experience. Novice photographers can also utilize automatic set points for camera controls, and then use the Samsung-specific default values in Lightroom. In both cases, the tight integration of the two apps makes for an enjoyable experience.

Girish: Expert RAW is an epic leap forward for photography. It essentially places a professional studio in your pocket. Whether you are a pro photographer or you’re just a user who wants to capture amazing content, anyone can take full advantage of the Galaxy S22’s pro-grade camera with Expert RAW. It captures high-quality, high dynamic range pictures in the multi-frame RAW format that enables precise post-capture editing and professional results.

With Expert RAW, people can capture much more information in a single picture — from dark details to bright highlights. It also drastically reduces noise and increases sharpness and detail. If you’re looking for the ultimate creative controls, you can choose your own settings for aspects like ISO, shutter speed, white balance, EV and focus, and even choose which lenses you want to use for the subject and the scene. Finally, because both JPEG and DNG files are saved when shooting, you can hop right into the Adobe Lightroom app on your smartphone or PC and edit with ease.

Q: What was the original inspiration for Expert RAW?

Hamid: Samsung camera technologies have always relied on sophisticated computational photography algorithms to produce the best picture quality. However, the standard camera app makes many decisions about how the image will be rendered in terms of color, tone, detail and noise. The user has very limited say in these decisions.

Our inspiration came from the confluence of user experience limitations and the leaps in computational and AI capabilities of today’s mobile processors. We asked ourselves, “How can we make the photography experience more inspiring for users?” So really, our inspiration came from the expert and enthusiast photography community, which yearned for an easier mobile photography experience, without sacrificing the creative control that DSLR and post-capture editing allows. Expert RAW was born out of a desire to transform that inspiration into reality.

Girish: As we heard the input of professional photographers who were mostly utilizing DSLR cameras, they wanted to achieve a pro-grade experience with smartphones. Our consumer research also showed that after using their smartphone’s auto camera for a long time, typical users were very passionate about exploring Samsung’s pro-grade camera capabilities in-depth to become better photographers.

The more we talked to professional and amateur photographers, the more we understood their needs in terms of RAW image capturing, camera controls, the post-editing experience, creative capabilities and more. That’s when we set out to create a new pro-grade experience based around RAW capturing so that every level of photographer could merge our camera controls and their creativity to enjoy professional-looking photos.

Q: What makes Expert RAW such an important release for mobile photography in general?

Hamid: The camera experience is one of the most important experiences that a user has with his or her smartphone. Samsung has been at the cutting edge of camera quality, and the gap between consumers and professional/enthusiast photographers has always been a tempting one to bridge.

I think with the release of Expert RAW, users will find that their photography experience will take a quantum leap in terms of creative control and artistic expression. I expect more and more people will find this new experience rewarding because it lets them personalize their camera based on their tastes — exactly how they want them — and not based on what some other engineers chose for them.

Girish: As an app, this platform has simplified the RAW capturing process with precise camera and lens controls and post-editing with Adobe Lightroom. It’s for every user who is willing to go beyond — to unleash the true power of an Expert RAW camera, and explore their creative side.

Q: What role did the MPI Lab play in Expert RAW’s development?

Hamid: Any time we are creating a brand-new user experience, we have to consider and overcome many tough engineering challenges. The MPI Lab developed the main idea behind Expert RAW and its technologies, and we knew it was challenge worth pursuing.

We developed a brand-new computational photography pipeline that can produce both DNG as well as processed JPEG files. Developing a complex computational photography pipeline from scratch was not easy. We no longer had the benefit of an older, mature technology base to build upon. But our team successfully developed this new, AI-based 3DISP technology to produce raw data that looks very natural when users load it in editing apps like Adobe Lightroom.

Q: What role did SRI-B play in Expert RAW’s development? What were the team’s main areas of focus?

Girish: Expert RAW was a complex R&D project, and SRI-B’s role was to think in terms of end-to-end for the best consumer experience. This required multi-domain expertise and deep collaboration among multiple teams.

SRI-B is equipped with strong multi-domain expertise teams, so we formed a task force of talented experts. They all worked together as a single team within SRI-B and also worked with a larger team of experts based in Korea and at the MPI Lab.

The multi-domain expertise and close collaboration with all key stakeholders helped SRI-B continuously focus on improving Expert RAW’s product experience, end-to-end pipeline, etc.

Q: Could you offer more details on your collaboration with one another?

Hamid: The MPI Lab has been working with SRI-B throughout our entire history at Samsung. SRI-B contributed its amazing skillset and resources towards the development of the software technologies, as well as key AI blocks for the Expert RAW pipeline. They also owned the UI piece of the Expert RAW application and provided many innovation points on the Expert RAW experience. It’s always fun working with them.

Girish: The MPI Lab has world-class expertise in computational imaging domain, and has a proven record of developing successful IPs for Samsung flagship products. That expertise was one of the key requirements for Expert RAW’s development. The MPI Lab came up with the multi-frame pipeline building blocks implementation, which helped SRI-B integrate and enhance the same for the end-to-end architecture and pipeline.

One of the major expectations for Expert RAW was that it would enable the best image quality in different lighting conditions, which requires the tuning of the multi-frame processing pipeline. MPI’s strong expertise in this area helped us continuously improve image quality before the commercial launch. In summary, MPI’s expertise in computational imaging and SRI-B’s breadth of knowledge in multiple subdomains helped SRI-B prepare Expert RAW’s end-to-end experience for commercial launch.

SRI-B and the MPI Lab used their 12-hour time zone difference effectively to plan and collaborate on Expert RAW. SRI-B’s day was MPI’s night, and vice versa. It helped to have 24/7 development to finish this complex feature in record time. We are proud of Samsung’s culture that enables respectful collaboration among different overseas R&D centers and we always enjoy working with MPI Lab.

Q: How do the MPI Lab and SRI-B plan to build on this collaboration to develop even more innovative camera technologies?

Hamid: Our journey with the new RAW camera experience is just beginning. I am excited to think about what new improvements and enhancements we can make. One of the best parts of the Expert RAW experience is that the photographer is front and center. We’ll preserve that as we actively look into the experiences of different users and continuously implement improvements to make Expert RAW even better than before.

Girish: The MPI Lab and SRI-B have been working together for the last few years developing the world’s best night mode for Samsung flagship smartphones. This collaboration helped lead us to the success story that is Expert RAW on the Galaxy S22. We’re excited to continue that momentum for the next innovative products to come.

In the future, we would like to continuously enhance Expert RAW with a focus on creating a new ecosystem for pro photography that fully utilizes pro-grade camera capabilities.

Collaborating for Creativity 

Features like Expert RAW underline Samsung’s commitment to developing tools that empower users to unleash their creativity.

Going forward, the company will continue to strengthen collaborations that leverage the knowledge and capabilities of its world-class network of R&D centers. Doing so will help unlock technologies that change the way we live, work and create.

¹ Expert RAW must be downloaded separately from the Galaxy Store, for free, before use. Expert RAW app availability is currently limited to the Galaxy S21 Ultra and S22 series. Samsung Members notified Expert RAW will become available on Galaxy Z Fold3 in April 2022 and Galaxy S20 Ultra, Galaxy Note20 Ultra and Galaxy Z Fold2 later this year.

² Samsung Electronics’ advanced R&D hub, which leads the development of future technologies for its Device eXperience division

Once a common sight in areas all around the world, tigers have unfortunately now become a first-class endangered species, with the habitats they once thrived in and the ecosystems they once dominated increasingly at risk, too.

In order to raise awareness of the pressing need to protect tigers, as well as their habitats, Samsung Electronics teamed up with Discovery and Project C.A.T. (Conserving Acres for Tigers) to produce a documentary called ‘Eye to Eye With a Tiger’ shot using the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G.

Taking Initiative To Protect the Tiger’s Habitat

Tigers are the top predators of their food chain. They play a key role in maintaining healthy ecosystems, but due to illegal hunting and extensive habitat destruction, these majestic creatures are now being threatened with the danger of becoming extinct – a loss that stands to affect entire ecosystems.

Project C.A.T, started by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Discovery, is an initiative that promotes the preservation of remaining tiger populations’ natural habitats. This project currently supports nearly six million acres of tiger habitat across India, Bhutan and Russia, as well as providing support to local economies and climate justice for these marginalized communities. Understanding the importance of Project C.A.T.’s mission, Samsung has joined hands with Discovery to help raise awareness of this meaningful initiative.

As part of their partnership, Samsung and Discovery worked together with passionate local filmmakers to produce the remarkable collaborative documentary ‘Eye to Eye With a Tiger’ in order to bring these astounding creatures to viewers all over the world and shine a spotlight on the work these organizations are doing.

Eye to Eye With a Tiger, Captured by the Galaxy S21 Ultra

‘Eye to Eye With a Tiger’ was shot in Jaipur, India, and throughout the course of the documentary we follow wildlife photographer Yashas Narayan as he sets out on his journey to capture the most elusive big cat on the planet – the tiger. The documentary follows Narayan as he puts his experience in tracking and photographing tigers to use with help from his Galaxy S21 Ultra as he ventures deep into the wilderness of Ranthambore National Park in order to catch sight of this elusive creature – and provide viewers with some top tips for wildlife photography along the way.

Narayan, one of India’s foremost wildlife photographers, is not only united with the documentary’s award-winning director Vikram Singh through their passion for capturing their native country’s beauty, but also in their passions for nature, conservation and connecting with people. As showcased in the documentary, the pair enthusiastically took on the challenge of tracking tigers in Ranthambore National Park – notoriously a time-extensive process – harnessing the Galaxy S21 Ultra to capture some of the other brilliant wildlife they encountered along the way.

The documentary comes to a close as the pair finally manage to encounter a wild tiger and capture it in all its glory using the Galaxy S21 Ultra, an experience that is well worth all the challenges tracking the animal bring about. As well as being a fascinating look into tigers in the wild, ‘Eye to Eye With a Tiger’ not only showcases the quality camera experiences and flexibility offered to the filmmakers by the Galaxy S21 Ultra as they went about their journey, but also the scarcity of tigers in the wild these days, and the need to protect these creatures and the habitats they occupy.

Master Shooting Like a Pro With the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s Camera

Eagle-eyed viewers will be quick to spot that, throughout the course of the documentary, Narayan’s Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G comes in extra helpful for capturing not only the beauty of the tigers the team manage to encounter, but the other wildlife they come across along the way, too.

Not only is the Galaxy S21 Ultra a smartphone capable of capturing high-quality videos, such as the ‘Eye to Eye With a Tiger’ documentary, but is also the perfect tool for capturing those special moments in everyday life – in top quality.

Take a look at some of the top tips for subject photography as showcased in the ‘Eye to Eye With a Tiger’ film below.

1. Bring Faraway Subjects Right in Front of Your Eyes: Dual-tele Zoom & Space Zoom

With the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s powerful zoom functionality, you can zoom in on your subject to get that close-up shot either 3x, 10x or even 100x,¹ meaning that you’ll never miss a detail even when capturing objects in the distance.

2. Never Miss a Moment When Recording: 8K Video Snap

Thanks to the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s 8K Video Snap feature, you can make sure that unmissable moment you’re recording is captured in both video and picture film for ultimate shareability. While recording, 8K Video Snap lets you capture the scene in front of you in both video and ultra-high-definition photo formats.

3. Adjust Every Detail Your Way: Pro Mode

The Galaxy S21 Ultra’s next-level camera comes with a function that helps even the most amateur of photographers produce high-quality shots – Pro Mode. Pro Mode lets you calibrate your camera’s shutter speed, contrast, saturation, ISO value and more manually, meaning that you can capture near-professional-level photos, all without the need for any external professional help or other equipment.

4. Capture Quality Video Like the Pros – With Just a Smartphone: Pro Video Mode

Not only does the Galaxy S21 Ultra offer a Pro Mode to those looking to capture high-quality photos, it also features the Pro Video function. Pro Video lets you adjust your camera’s resolution to a stunning 8K, as well as manage the camera’s focus to be on your desired subject when shooting and even choose which direction you are recording sound from as you go, so you can be sure that your video recording is as high-quality as Narayan’s during his journey to document the glorious tiger.

¹ 100X Space Zoom includes 10x Hybrid Optic Zoom and 100x digital zoom with AI Super Resolution technology. Zooming in past 10x may cause some image deterioration.

“We are committed to giving everyone access to the best mobile experiences possible, as soon as possible,” said Janghyun Yoon, Executive Vice President and Head of Software Platform Team at Mobile Communications Business, Samsung Electronics. “One UI 4 delivers on that promise, equipping Galaxy smartphone users with the latest customization and privacy features. But we won’t stop there. Soon, other smartphone and tablet users will also be able to benefit from this software update, enabling a more seamless experience across our entire ecosystem.”

Your Galaxy, Your Way

One UI 4 enables you to create a customized mobile experience to meet your unique needs and express your individuality. With a whole host of new Color Palettes to choose from, you can alter the look and feel of everything from your home screen to icons, menu, button and background. And with reimagined widgets that offer even deeper customization, it’s never been easier to put your own personal stamp on your smartphone experience. You can even more effortlessly express yourself with a wider variety of emoji features, GIFs and stickers available directly from your keyboard.

Protect What Matters Most

There’s no privacy without strong security. That’s why, with One UI 4, Samsung is bringing the latest privacy and security features, so you can choose exactly what you want to share or keep private. From alerting you to when an app is attempting to access your camera or microphone, to a new privacy dashboard that brings all your settings and controls into one convenient place, with One UI 4, monitoring and controlling your privacy settings is simple.

Connecting You to an Extended Ecosystem

One UI 4 helps you to get the most out of Samsung’s incredible extended ecosystem of devices and third-party apps, unlocking a more powerful mobile experience.

Samsung’s partnerships with other industry-leaders, like Google, ensure seamless experience when using your favorite third-party apps and services. This means you can enjoy apps like Google Duo, which provides high-quality video calls with friends and family.

And whether you’re using a Galaxy Z Series, Galaxy Watch or Galaxy Tab, you’ll get the uniformed look and feel across your devices, and will be able to seamlessly sync them.

Availability

One UI 4 will be available on the Galaxy S21 series starting November 15^th and will soon become available on previous Galaxy S and Note series as well as Galaxy Z series, A series and tablets.¹ This announcement comes alongside a new software update for the Galaxy Watch series² that, starting today, enables users to enjoy enhanced health features and new watch faces.

¹ At a later date the update will also be available on the Galaxy S20, S20+, S20 Ultra, S20 FE, Note20, Note20 Ultra, S10, S10e, S10+, S10 5G, Note10, Note 10+, Galaxy Fold, Z Fold3, Z Flip3, Z Fold2, Z Flip, Z Flip 5G, Galaxy A82 5G, A72, A52, A52 5G, A52s 5G, A42 5G, and Galaxy Tab S7 and Tab S7+. Availability may vary by region.

² Galaxy Watch, Galaxy Watch Active, Galaxy Watch Active2 and Galaxy Watch3

But the beauty of Jeju doesn’t stop at its coastline. In commemoration of the United Nations’ World Ocean Day this June 8, a day set to appreciate and advocate for our globe’s oceans, Samsung Global Newsroom is taking a dive into the pristine waters surrounding Jeju along with the help of Dong-sik Kim, an acclaimed underwater documentary director, and the Galaxy S21 Ultra. This year’s World Ocean Day theme is “The Ocean: Life and Livelihoods,” and so Kim headed underwater to capture the multifarious marine life that lies beneath the waves of Jeju.

Meet Dong-sik Kim, Seasoned Underwater Documentary Director of 39 Years

Dong-sik Kim is a professional underwater documentary director who has been bringing the diverse marine life of the world’s oceans to viewers for the past 39 years in order to help people answer the question, what is life really like beneath the waves?

Kim has devoted his life to making ocean documentaries that capture both the mystery and the beauty of the nature that thrives beneath the surface of our oceans in order to raise awareness of preserving our oceans. Kim is currently working on his latest documentary focusing on Jeju’s diverse marine life, including the island’s famous ‘hanyeo’ (female divers) and its dolphins, all the while highlighting the co-existence of human and marine life.

Given the nature of the subjects he is capturing, reducing the size of his shooting gear is important to Kim. “Instead of weighty gear, a slim and compact smartphone used to capture marine life can help close the distance with my subjects, reduce undue stress on marine life and help protect the environment,” noted Kim. “Shooting a documentary using the Galaxy S21 Ultra is definitely a new challenge for me!”

How to Film Underwater With the Galaxy S21 Ultra

The Galaxy S21 Ultra is an IP68-rated smartphone with outstanding dust and water-resistant functionality for use in everyday life. When diving deep, however, a separate waterproof cover is required in order to most effectively harness the S21 Ultra’s camera while keeping the device safe from water exposure at great depths.

Once you’ve fitted your Galaxy S21 Ultra with its extra layer of protection, the ‘record’ and ‘stop recording’ functions become the only settings available for use, meaning that you will need to arrange your camera settings before commencing shooting underwater. For this shoot, Kim set his camera to wide-angled mode in order to properly capture those more active marine creatures like dolphins. Kim also opted for 8K resolution at standard-angled mode in order to take brilliant up-close shots of coral.

Fine-tuning your lighting levels is crucial to getting the best videos with your smartphone. If you are shooting using just natural lighting, you may end up with different results depending on what time of day it is. For underwater photography, early morning and late afternoon are considered the best times of day to shoot, and if low-light situations occur or you encounter ocean sediment, getting closer to the subject can help with the shot.

Online Aquarium Part 1: Jeju’s Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphins

As many as 100 Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins are estimated to live off of Jeju Island, living in groups that are generally around 5 to 15 in size but that can number up to 70. For these dolphins, enjoying acrobatic feats in the blue waters or harnessing a stray piece of seaweed as a toy is the best way to have fun.

Take a look at the powerful yet graceful movements of Jeju’s dolphins below, captured on the Galaxy S21 Ultra.

Online Aquarium Part 2: Uncovering a Hidden World

The water temperature off of Jeju is around 1-2℃ higher than other mainland coastal regions, and with its clear water allowing sunlight to penetrate thoroughly, Jeju’s waters make the ideal habitat for a whole range of creatures to live harmoniously, including some tropical species.

Underneath the waters of Jeju lies a colorful and truly beautiful hidden world of life. Take a look at some of these fascinating creatures and their unique underwater lives in the shots below.

Here, a Jeju Balloonfish goes about its way unperturbed. Unlike other pufferfish, the Jeju Balloonfish is not poisonous – but it is almost completely covered in spikes, with the exception of its fins and tail.

In the above, a camera-shy octopus tries to hide between the rocks. Thanks to its excellent camouflage and mimicry capabilities, this creature is well-known as being the chameleon of the sea.

Found at a depth of 50m beneath the surface of the waves, the wide-eyed Scorpion Fish is found at a variety of rocky coastal areas around Korea, including the seas off of Jeju.

A Luna Lionfish shows off its dynamic fins and bold stripes. Known for its awe-inspiring patterns, this lionfish immediately captures attention with its imposing posture.

In Korean, the Spotted-Tail Morwong is known as ‘ahopdonggari,’ or ‘9 pieces,’ in reference to the nine vertical stripes that cover its body.

These Cocktail Wrasse inhabit rocky areas underwater covered with seaweed – the fish will wedge itself between a piece of rock or seaweed in order to get a good night’s sleep. The male of this species has a black-purple body coloring, while the female has a red-brown coloring.

Online Aquarium Part 3: Exploring an Underwater Tropical Rainforest

On the underwater cliff faces of Jeju’s sea sit breathtakingly beautiful corals, a sight that takes the aquatic landscape to the next level thanks to their vibrant color palettes. Over 160 species of corals can be found in the waters around Korea, and of the 126 found in Jeju, 90 of them are native just to the island.

The colorful colony that emerges when a coral reef forms almost resemble the birds-eye-view of a tropical rainforest found on land; take a look at some of these stunning underwater vistas, captured with the Galaxy S21 Ultra.

These delicate red soft coral colonies are known as the cherry blossoms of the sea, and are one of the most common types of soft-type corals found in the waters off of Jeju. They can be spotted with a range of red and yellow colorings, including light yellow, reddish yellow, orange and even pink.

Another common soft coral that can be spotted in the Jeju seas is the giant sea anemone, which comes together to form lumpy colonies.

These plant-like corals may not have flashy coloring, but the array of shapes they come in and the way they sway gently with the tides is certainly eye-catching. They might seem frail, but be careful – they contain poison that can cause burns to human skin.

These broccoli-like members of the Dendronephthya castanea species of coral come together to build a colony that resembles the springtime blossoming of flowers, complete with stems.

The flower sea fan is one of the most well-known fan-shaped corals. While they may appear thin and flexible, the sea fan’s protruding stems are surprisingly strong.

The Euplexaura crassa coral boasts the most vivid yellow color among all the corals found in Korea – while its rounded edges make it seem soft, it is in fact very resilient to breaking.

Ready to dive in and discover more about the astonishing marine life found beneath the waters of Jeju Island? Take a look at Kim’s video below, captured on the Galaxy S21 Ultra, to see more.

But the capabilities of the Galaxy S21 series’ camera go beyond just making everyday moments epic. In order to showcase the creative heights that users can reach with their Galaxy S21 series device’s cameras, Samsung has been collaborating with a diverse and exciting range of content creators – and the results have been astonishing.

In the first part of this two-part series documenting the true potential of the Galaxy S21 series’ camera, Samsung Newsroom has compiled just some of the examples of how leading content creators around the world have been harnessing the camera’s pro-grade functionalities across all kinds of mediums.

Read on to see more.

Making Movie Magic

An homage to the late Portuguese writer Fernando Pessoa, the Samsung Portugal team collaborated with local creatives to produce one of the late writer’s screenplays. Filmed entirely on the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G, the resulting film ‘O Ídolo’, or ‘The Idol’, has resonated with literary fans and Portuguese speakers the world over.

Get a behind-the-scenes look at the production of ‘The Idol’ at Samsung Newsroom Brazil.

Taking Music Videos to the Next Level

March of this year saw the groundbreaking Galaxy S21 series’ camera mark another first in the creative industry, as the music video for Spanish artist Aron Piper’s single ‘Mufasa’ became the first music video to be recorded entirely with the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G.

See more about how the portability and pro-grade functionality offered by the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G helped bring Piper’s vision to life over at Samsung Newsroom Spain.

That same month saw Ukrainian singer and artist Lida Lee of the MONATIK Corporation collaborate with Samsung Electronics Ukraine to create a unique video project captured entirely on the Galaxy S21 Ultra.

See more about how the project went down on Samsung Newsroom Ukraine.

Over in Poland, singer Rosalie and director duo Andiamo harnessed the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G to create a 90s-themed music video for the song ‘Come, come, come’, making use of the extensive range of camera modes and functionalities to evoke the iconic lighting style of the era.

Hear more from those who worked on the project over at Samsung Newsroom Poland.

Marking a fresh new age of music marketing, Samsung Electronics worked with Thailand’s AIS and GMM Grammy to produce a revolutionary interactive music video for fan-beloved group Three Man Down, shot using the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G.

Learn more about this unique project and how Samsung brought it to life at Samsung Newsroom Thailand.

Taking Pictorials to New Heights

This April, GQ South Africa harnessed the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G to shoot dynamic dual covers for its May/June issue cover. What’s more, the fascinating behind-the-scenes content behind this unique pictorial was also captured on the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G.

Hear more about bringing this project to life from photographer Austin Malema and GQ editor Molife Kumona over at Samsung Newsroom South Africa.

National Geographic photographer and explorer Prasenjeet Yadav switched out his usual hefty wildlife photography setup for a Galaxy S21 Ultra when shooting in Western Ghats, India, producing a pictorial that went on to make National Geographics Traveler India Edition’s March issue.

Hear more from Yadav and how the Galaxy S21 Ultra allowed for him to take flawless shots with seamless mobility over at Samsung Newsroom India, and take a look at the #UncoverTheEpic campaign hosted by Samsung, Yadav and National Geographic Traveler magazine that saw a high-definition cut from an 8K video make the cover for the first time in the magazine’s history here.

Earlier this year, world-famous British photographer Rankin harnessed the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G to capture photoshoots with rapper Stefflon Don that combined the spirit of the 1980s with the creativity of today’s social media.

Featuring still shots, videos and social-friendly content cuts, the collaboration harnesses the variety of pro-grade camera functionalities available on the Galaxy S21 series; hear more about how the shoot went down from Rankin and Stefflon Don themselves on Samsung Newsroom U.K.

Putting Budding Photographers to the Test

In order to elevate the epic moments being realized through the missions on Chilean reality show ‘Epic Mode’, 12 famous contestants were handed Galaxy S21 devices to capture the final moments of their achievements over the 6 episodes of the show.

Take a look at the winning shots over at Samsung Newsroom Chile.

Finally, streaming on Hulu in the United States, ambitious mobile photographers are putting their skills to the test on the reality show ‘Exposure’. A testament to the pro-grade power of today’s smartphone cameras, ‘Exposure’ sees contestants compete in weekly themed challenges which they have to complete with the help of the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G’s advanced camera system.

Catch the first glimpse of ‘Exposure’ and learn more about the first-of-its-kind mobile photography competition series over at Samsung Newsroom U.S.

Stay tuned to Samsung Global Newsroom for more best practice tips and tricks on how to make the most out of your Galaxy S21 series camera, and for the second part in this series highlighting the photography prowess of the latest flagship’s camera.

From birth through their first encounters with their owners and up until their retirement, training a single guide dog requires the dedicated efforts of not just one, but a large group of people – not to mention the dogs themselves. Socialization training, for example, is a must in many countries for guide dogs.¹

In order to celebrate the efforts of guide dogs and the people who work with them, Samsung Newsroom visited the Samsung Guide Dog School, which has been training up guide dogs since 1993. Take a look at the photos below to learn more about the stories of these special companions.

* The following photos and videos have been captured using the Galaxy S21 Ultra

① Birth

Over 90 percent of guide dogs currently serving are retrievers, a breed that has been recognized for their disposition, affinity, and health. Amongst them, Labrador retrievers account for the largest number of guide dogs by merit of their adaptive, gentle and loyal natures.

▲ Three-week-old guide dog training candidates.

▲ At this young age, it’s especially important that the puppies eat and sleep well. They spend most of their time with their mother and are constantly growing.

We filmed three-week-old puppies and soon-to-be guide dogs with the Galaxy S21 Ultra. The device’s camera vividly captures the soft fur of these adorable puppies – it is almost as if you can hear their calm breathing right from the photos. Of course, eating and sleeping are of utmost priority for these animals at this stage of their lives.

② Puppy Walking

Once they have grown somewhat, the next stage of their guide dog lives commences: puppy walking. At around seven weeks of age, the puppies are entrusted to volunteers and undergo various different socialization activities. The puppies’ walkers care for them for around a year and help with the different training procedures at home and at nearby parks, as well as at local restaurants and cafes.

“Puppies normally learn to interact with people at about three to 15 weeks of age,” explained Taejin Park, Director of the Samsung Guide Dog School. “The new experiences they gain during this period play an important role in determining their lifelong personalities.”

▲ Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance’s Samsung Guide Dog School offers basic training related to puppy walking, such as how to form a bond, how to get your pup to concentrate and sit down, and how to take a walk with a leash.

We were able to capture some puppy walkers and their companions, aged eight weeks old, on a visit to the School for a training session. The puppies captured below are just one week into their extensive training process.

▲ Activities like resting in one spot and even sleeping are all part of the guide dogs’ socialization training.

The Galaxy S21 Ultra’s Portrait Mode is the perfect way to capture these puppies enjoying life much as children do, as if they have no cares in the world. The AI-powered camera not only analyzes the direction and angle of the scene’s lighting, but also measures the depth of field, allowing you to capture precious photos that have a professional feel to them. What’s more, you can then edit the background and other effects in the Gallery to suit your tastes.

▲ “Whose smile is the biggest?” This school is always full of smiles!

* A Super Slow-mo video taken with the Galaxy S21 Ultra.

Once they have finished the entire training process, the puppies will undergo a test to ascertain whether or not they are fit to become guide dogs. But don’t be disheartened: puppies that fail the test then go on to become regular companions or work as ‘demonstrators’ within the guide school.

▲ This guide dog candidate is excelling at various tasks, including going upstairs, avoiding obstacles, and staying on the sidewalk.

“Truly, there’s no such thing as ‘success’ or ‘failure’ when it comes to undertaking guide dog training,” noted Park. “All the puppies ultimately live long, happy lives thanks to their kind natures and adaptive personalities.”

④ First Encounter with a New Family

Becoming a new member of the family they are to serve is an important step in any guide dog’s life, which is why the dog-to-owner matching process is extensive and rigorous. Factors such as the owners’ personality, vocation, walking pace and health condition are all taken into account when matching guide dogs to potential owners.

We paid a visit to a family to learn more about the life of a guide dog. Suhkjong Yu and his wife, Myeongji Sun, are both visually impaired and currently live with two guide dogs named Haedal and Jigu, as well as their two lovely daughters.

▲ Guide dogs, like any other dogs, require constant care from their owners. Owners should feed their guide dog breakfast every morning, take them out so they can relieve themselves upon request, walk them, and check to make sure that they’re feeling well. It goes without saying that owners should spend a large portion of their day dedicated to their guide dog.

▲ Seated comfortably under the dining table, guide dogs Jigu and Haedal join their family for dinner time.

“It is the responsibility of the visually impaired to take utmost care of the guide dogs who support them so much,” said Yoo. “The chemistry between the owner and the guide dog is really important, as they are the ones guiding us to our target destinations in the safest way possible, avoiding every obstacle along the way.”

▲ Cute and playful at home, guide dog Haedal is a very reliable and helpful partner during Mr. Yoo’s commute to work.

▲ Haedal and Mr. Yoo go for walks together every day. “The average life span of guide dogs is about one year longer than other retrievers. That goes to show you that guide dogs live happy, fulfilling lives,” said Tae-jin Park, Director of Samsung Guide Dog School

Guide dogs that retire after seven to eight years of service become rehomed with volunteers and go on to happily enjoy the rest of their lives.

▲ A retired guide dog who was adopted by a volunteer goes for a walk.

¹ Conditions may vary by country or region.

But exactly how do these dogs go from being ordinary puppies to becoming ‘eyes’ for those who cannot see for themselves? Captured on the Galaxy S21 Ultra, this short film documents some of the guide dogs at Samsung Guide Dog School, showcasing the process a guide dog goes through from birth all the way through to retirement.

Take a look at the video below to learn more.

While DSLRs have long been viewed as some of the best cameras for taking high-quality photos, even their staunchest fans would admit that there are some downsides. DSLRs can be bulky and heavy, and they require a variety of lenses – from wide angle to telephoto – to capture various scenes. It’s important to keep that in mind when using a DSLR because the scene you’re capturing will look different depending on the angle of your lens.

The Galaxy S21 Ultra’s camera combines four different lenses – Ultra Wide, Wide-angle, and 3x and 10x telephoto zoom – into one powerful, highly portable package. How does the smartphone’s feature-packed shooter compare to a DSLR? To answer that question, Samsung Newsroom enlisted the help of a professional photographer. Read on to find out how the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s landscape photos compared to those taken with both full-frame and APS-C crop sensor DSLRs.

Picking the Perfect Lens for the Scene

As mentioned above, even when photographing the same subject, different lenses can produce completely different results. If you understand the characteristics and field of view of each lens and utilize them appropriately, it becomes easy to get the photos you want. By combining four of the most frequently used lenses out there, the Galaxy S21 Ultra adds new levels of ease and convenience to mobile photography.

Once you launch the smartphone’s camera, you’ll see four tree-themed lens icons at the bottom of the screen. The one on the far left is the 13mm Ultra Wide lens. It features a 120-degree field of view, which places an exceptionally large area in the camera’s frame. To its right is the default 24mm Wide-angle lens, which is great for capturing vast landscapes and wide objects.

Next up are the camera’s telephoto lenses, which are perfect for capturing subjects that are far away. With a narrower field of view than their wide-angle counterparts, they allow you to zoom in on subjects and snap stunning shots. The 3x telephoto lens is ideal for focusing on a specific part of a given scene, while the 10x telephoto lens captures a level of detail that highlights objects in the scene that you may not have noticed before.

The Ultra Wide Lens: Fit Everything Into a Single Shot

To test out the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s Ultra Wide lens, the photographer chose to photograph a merry-go-round in a local park. The lens allowed them to fit the entire ride in one shot – from its elaborate gold decorations to its majestic white horses.

The Galaxy S21 Ultra’s Ultra Wide lens easily captured the periphery of the space with a field of view that was comparable to a DSLR.

Ultra-wide-angle lenses allow us to capture images that offer a fuller view of a scene without looking cramped. Whereas photos taken with conventional ultra-wide-angle lenses often feature distortion at their edges, the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s lens addresses this issue with a function that automatically reduces distortion to ensure a high-quality photo.

The Galaxy S21 Ultra’s Ultra Wide lens (left) captures more area than its wide-angle lens (right).

The Wide-Angle Lens: Capture the Scene as You See It

The Galaxy S21 Ultra’s Wide-angle lens is optimized to capture spacious scenes with minimal distortion.

A comparison of photos taken with the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s Wide-angle lens, a full-frame DSLR, and a crop-sensor DSLR with a wide-angle (24-70mm) lens.

As you can see in the images above, the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s Wide-angle lens offers a field of view that’s as wide as a DSLR. Its 108MP sensor allowed the photographer to snap a sharper, more detailed image. It’s an image that captures this ride’s true colors thanks to the camera’s ability to optimize key settings like exposure and light sensitivity.

Speaking of optimizing settings, the Galaxy S21 Ultra also makes it easy to find the best possible composition for your scene with convenient features like ‘Shot suggestions’. When you turn on the function, a circle indicating the optimal point upon which to center your photo instantly appears on the screen to help you snap the perfect picture.

A comparison of photos taken with the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s Ultra Wide (left) and Wide-angle lenses.

3x and 10x Telephoto Lenses: Crystal Clear Close-Ups

Wide-angle lenses widen the camera’s field of view to capture more aspects of a given scene. Telephoto lenses, on the other hand, do the opposite – narrowing the camera’s field of view to make faraway objects appear closer.

A comparison of photos taken with the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s 3x telephoto lens, a full-frame DSLR, and a crop-sensor DSLR with a telephoto (70-200mm) lens.

How did the Galaxy S21 Ultra stack up when photographing subjects that were farther away? Once its angle was adjusted to focus on the subject, the smartphone’s 3x telephoto lens produced a photo that boasted considerably more depth than those that were taken with the DSLRs. The fact that the 3x telephoto lens featured a deeper depth of field than the other cameras enabled it to fully focus on its subject. This allowed the lens to capture the colors of the park in a way that was crisp and clear.

A comparison of photos taken with the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s 10x telephoto lens, a full-frame DSLR camera, and a crop-sensor DSLR with a telephoto (200mm) lens.

The photographer found that the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s 10x telephoto lens was perfect for capturing the quiet beauty of these colorful steps. Both the writing on the steps and the cracks in the rocks were captured in exquisite detail. The 10x lens features a narrower field of view than its 3x counterpart, which allows you to photograph small, distant subjects as if they were right in front of you.

(From left) Photos taken with the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s telephoto lens, both with and without a tripod.

If you’ve tried taking photos with a telephoto lens on a DSLR, you’ll know that the higher the magnification of your telephoto lens, the more unstable it becomes as you zoom in. A tripod can help address this issue, but if you don’t have one, your pictures are likely to come out blurry. With the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s telephoto lenses, you don’t need a tripod to snap a stable shot. That’s because the lenses feature a built-in image stabilization function that ensures that images remain sharp when photographing faraway objects.

A remarkable camera – including four lenses, a 108MP sensor, 10x optical zoom, and image stabilization – is but one of the many innovations that make the Galaxy S21 Ultra a phone worth falling for. Click here to learn everything you need to know about the Galaxy S21 Ultra and the other devices in the Galaxy S21 series.

Samsung, India’s most trusted brand, teamed up with National Geographic Traveller India for an adventure like never before to #UncoverTheEpic. National Geographic Explorer and Photographer Prasanjeet Yadav captured the unexplored sky islands of the Western Ghats using Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G, Samsung’s power-packed flagship smartphone.

“We are delighted to partner with National Geographic Traveller India for an epic adventure. At Samsung, we believe in providing consumers with innovations that enable them to do more. A first-of-its-kind camera with pro-grade 108MP lens and 8K video recording, Galaxy S21 Ultra changes the way you shoot. The next time something epic happens out of nowhere, you won’t miss the moment choosing between camera and video. With industry first 8K Video Snap feature, photography enthusiasts now have the power to extract high-resolution stills from every second of an 8K video. The stunning beauty of the Western Ghats has been beautifully captured by Prasenjeet using 8K Video Snap and we are thrilled to see it on the magazine cover,” said Aditya Babbar, Senior Director and Head, Mobile Marketing, Samsung India.

“National Geographic Traveller India has always championed excellence in exploration and this collaboration with Samsung India is one of our most exciting and adventurous projects in recent times. Our story will uncover and showcase the beauty of sky islands in the Western Ghats, one of India’s rarest natural habitats, rich in biodiversity. What was particularly exhilarating about this story was the 8K Video Snap technology that was used to capture our stunning cover shot for the March-April edition of the magazine. At National Geographic, we uphold the highest standards of still photography and for the first time, a still shot from a mobile phone 8K video delivered that. As a sheer storytelling mode, this endeavour was truly unique. We are thrilled with the result and look forward to many more exciting projects in collaboration with Samsung India,” said Preeti Vyas, President and CEO, ACK Media, publisher of National Geographic Traveller India.

#UncoverTheEpic

As part of campaign, explorer and photographer Prasenjeet Yadav headed to the forests of the Western Ghats to shoot videos of the biodiversity and the stunning scenes with the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G. Using the incredible camera capabilities of the flagship smartphone, he captured the beauty in 8K and extracted high-resolution stills from the video, one of which served as the cover of the March edition. The video footage collected by Prasenjeet on the expedition will also be released to give viewers an insight into what it takes to capture that elusive cover shot.

“Using a phone camera for an assignment was a challenge, but the fact that I could get high-quality pictures of a tiny frog to a large landscape and get one of them printed on the cover of National Geographic Traveller magazine is really impressive,” said Prasenjeet Yadav, National Geographic Explorer and Photographer.

This will be the first time that the cover shot of a travel magazine is generated from a high resolution still from an 8K video, a milestone for the role of camera phones in story-telling, especially in the nature and travel spaces. The cover and the journey video can be viewed on:

www.samsung.com/in/microsite/uncover-the-epic/

Samsung’s Best-in-Class Camera Experience

With the most advanced pro-grade camera system, Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G users can capture stunning, studio-quality photos in various lightings and settings. The combination of anti-shake technology, 10x optical zoom and both laser and dual-pixel autofocus enables the cameras to produce results that rival those of high-end DSLRs. Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G has a quad rear camera that features an upgraded 108MP pro sensor, from which users can capture 12 bit HDR photos with 64 times richer colour data and more than three times wider dynamic range. For the first time on a Galaxy smartphone, users can shoot in 4K at 60fps across all lenses including the front and the four rear four lenses.

Equipped with the latest Exynos 2100 chipset, advanced pro-grade camera, and a stunning adaptive display, the flagship series redefine what a premium smartphone can do. Content creators can capture stunning, studio-quality photos under any lighting conditions in just one click.

India’s leading tech journalists experienced the smartphone and its prowess. Take a look at what some of them have to say about the stylish design, the brilliant camera and the power of Galaxy S21 series:

What makes #GalaxyS21 Series truly Epic? We spoke to some of India’s top tech journalists to find the answer. Take a look:https://t.co/v2sDvWUDnL #Samsung pic.twitter.com/IzN2yOXRVJ

— SamsungNewsroomIN (@SamsungNewsIN) March 4, 2021