The return of telephoto lenses (also on smartphones)

In a not too distant time, the camera bag was an indispensable baggage. Whether you went on holiday in the Dolomites, on a cruise in the Norwegian fjords or to visit the imperial cities of Morocco, you filled your bag (or backpack) with the camera body of your reflex camera and some lenses, perhaps a 35 millimeter for landscapes, a 50 for portraits and a 210 for distance photos.

Those who are passionate about sports or nature photos would not have given up a 400mm. Then came the low-cost airlines with increasingly cheaper tickets and increasingly expensive luggage and above all smartphones with increasingly high-performance cameras. And the camera bag ended up in the cellar, often with all the equipment.

The amount of images shared has increased exponentially thanks to social media (sending even the exasperating evenings spent looking at the holiday slides of the most boring of friends) but it is the look that has changed.

Digital enlargements have progressively expanded the possibilities offered by smartphones, but they cannot completely replace the features of a dedicated optical system. For this reason, the choice of vivo – one of the smartphone manufacturers that is an absolute protagonist in the Asian market and has returned to Italy after an absence of three years – of develop external teleconverters represents an interesting step: instead of entrusting the task of bringing a subject closer exclusively to the software, we also intervene on the optical component.

The ZEISS Gen 2 and Gen 2 Ultra vivo teleconverters enable equivalent focal lengths of 200 and 400 millimeters respectively, expanding the possibilities of telephoto lens integrated into the smartphone.

To understand its usefulness there is no need to go into the details of photographic optics. An equivalent focal length of 400 millimeters allows you to frame a much smaller portion of the scene than the main camera of a smartphone. It’s what can make the difference when you want it photograph a wild animal without getting closeisolate a detail of the facade of a building or shoot a distant subject during a journey.

A telephoto lens of this type also allows you to experiment with a different construction of the image, isolating details and modifying the perspective relationship perceived between the elements of the scene.

It doesn’t mean, of course, transforming a smartphone into a professional reflex or mirrorless camera. The size of the sensors, the lighting conditions, the stability when shooting and the possibilities of control continue to make the difference. But the use of dedicated optical accessories allows you to deal with situations in which digital magnification alone can show its limits.

The collaboration with ZEISS and the 200 megapixel telephoto lens

The starting point of the X500 Pro Max’s photographic system is a 200 megapixel ZEISS APO telephoto lens, with an equivalent focal length of 85 millimeters. The acronym APO indicates an optical design aimed at control of chromatic aberrationsi.e. those alterations that can cause unwanted colored contours and compromise sharpness, especially in images characterized by strong contrasts.

The telephoto lens is flanked by a 50 megapixel ZEISS TrueDynamic main camera, developed around a vivo-Sony LYTIA L910 sensor, and by an ultra-wide angle also 50 megapixel.

The collaboration with ZEISS is therefore not limited to teleconverters, but it affects the entire photographic systemfrom optical design to image rendering.

It is a choice that reflects an increasingly evident trend in the premium segment: the search for specialized skills to improve photographic quality, in a market in which the simple growth in the number of megapixels is no longer sufficient to distinguish a product from the competition.

Photographing while traveling, among landscapes and moving subjects

However, a powerful telephoto lens would be of little use if it were not accompanied by systems capable of maintaining the image stable and to follow the subjects during the movement.

For this reason, vivo has combined the optical sector with a series of technologies dedicated to stabilization and focusing. X500 Pro Max features a CIPA 7.0 rated professional optical stabilization system, while the tracking functions they allow you to follow moving subjects and, in certain modes, to recover focus even when they temporarily leave the frame.

The Long-Range Motion Snapshot function also allows you to photograph moving subjects at a distance with magnifications of up to 30x on the Pro Max model and up to 20x on the X500 Pro.

These are characteristics that find application especially in situations in which the photographer cannot control the scene: an animal that suddenly moves, an athlete during a competition, a boat at sea or an artist who moves on a concert stage.

For those who travel, the potential advantage is that of having a greater variety of photographic possibilities without necessarily having to resort to multiple devices. Naturally, it remains to be considered that the use of teleconverters requires bring along and fit additional accessorieswith a loss of that immediacy which constitutes one of the greatest strengths of smartphone photography.

From landscape to cinema, video becomes the protagonist

Alongside long-distance photography, vivo has also invested in video recording, a sector in which high-end smartphones are progressively approaching the tools used by professional content producers.

Both models of the X500 series support 4K recording at 240 frames per second, a particularly interesting function for making slow motion shots while maintaining high resolution.

The ZEISS TrueDynamic main camera also allows you to use Log recording modes, which offer greater flexibility in managing colors and contrasts during post-production: a possibility aimed especially at those who wish to subsequently intervene on the visual performance of the clip.

For less experienced users they are available cinematic modes which allow you to apply different color interpretations directly to the shots, from the warm light of the sunset to shades inspired by the film.

Particular attention was also paid to video portraits, with tools designed to manage complex situations like the strong contrasts between a face in the foreground and a very bright background.

It is an evolution that reflects the changing habits of those who use smartphones not only to preserve memories, but also to construct visual stories of their travels and experiences.

Two models, with a different interpretation of mobile photography

The new series arrives in Italy in two versions that share much of the photographic technologies, but are aimed at different needs.

X500 Pro Max, with a 6.85-inch screen and a 6,750 mAh battery, represents the most complete proposal, especially for those who intend to use teleconverters and take advantage of the greater possibilities offered by the telephoto lens from 200 megapixel.

X500 Pro, however, maintains a more compact format, with a 6.36-inch screen and a weight which, depending on the version, remains under 200 grams. The 64-megapixel APO ZEISS telephoto lens retains the equivalent focal length of 85 millimeters, while the main camera uses the same 50-megapixel sensor as the higher model.

Both have the MediaTek Dimensity 9600 Pro processor, the OriginOS 7 operating system and 90 watt fast charging, alongside 40 watt wireless charging.

These are important features especially when the device comes used intensively during a day of travelalternating navigation, photographs, video recordings and content sharing.

High-end prices, but the concept of a photographic smartphone changes

The choice to focus on a modular photographic system is also reflected in the commercial positioning. An important investment, which places the product in a market segment in which photographic quality must represent a concrete value and not just a commercial topic.

The comparison with traditional cameras is inevitable, but it must be addressed taking into account the differences between tools designed exclusively for photography and devices that must concentrate multiple functions in relatively small dimensions.

For those who travel a lot and consider photography an important part of the experience, the advantage is clear: having more versatile tools without necessarily having to carry a complete kit.