Picture perfect
With the assistance of AI, the P20 Pro can see what you see
The most impressive aspect of the Huawei P20 Pro is by far its camera capabilities. With a whole host of features, settings and modes, the P20’s cameras can accommodate any user’s photography needs. The Pro is equipped with a rear-facing Leica Triple Camera consisting of an 8MP telephoto lens, 20MP monochrome lens and the main 40MP RGB lens, as well as the front-facing 24MP camera.
As the first system of its kind on a smartphone, the trio of rear-facing cameras can work together or individually with help from the supporting Kirin 970 AI hardware. When it comes to the camera, the P20’s AI acts as a second pair of eyes on what you want to capture. Through the lens, the P20 Pro is able to recognise 19 different categories of objects or scenes such as food, portraits and waterfalls. In doing so, it will then change the camera setting to suit what you are shooting, such as adjusting the exposure or colour balance. It will even identify the horizon and display a line guide when capturing landscapes to help make sure that your shot remains straight. We thought the most professional-looking photo autocorrect is the Pro’s ability to produce a pixel-perfect ‘bokeh’ background blur in a portrait shot.
The built-in AI assist also works as a stabiliser for long-exposure shots. Smartphones aren’t known as the best method of taking images in low light. To take the perfect picture of a night-time scene, the camera sensors need an extended exposure. In order to not be affected by shaky hands, camera shutters are typically only open for less than a second. This reduces the amount of light entering the lens and thus reduces the quality of the image.
In night mode, the P20 Pro can open the camera shutter for up to six seconds at different exposures. These exposures are married together to form the best-quality image. In order to maintain a focus image for that length of time the built-in AI works to compensate for any shakes in the photographer’s hands.
“The P20’s AI acts like a second pair of eyes on what you want to capture”