The Design, Perception, And Practice Of Tablet Photography

People taking photographs with their tablets is an increasingly common sight. While the design of hardware is larger and more cumbersome than the smaller and more often carried cameraphones, the underlying photographic software is essentially the same. At the same time, cameraphone hardware usually contains objectively better quality cameras with more megapixels, better lenses, and faster image processing. So why do people choose one over the other? In this paper we explore the experience of tablet photography and aim to compare it with camera phone photography. In a mixed-methods study, we use quantitative and qualitative data to explore perceptions of photo quality, factors influencing photo quality, and the affordances of tablet computers that lead users to prefer them over camera phones. Our results indicate that participants take photos with their camera phone for the convenience of the small device form factor, but prefer taking photos with their larger tablet for photos that require higher definition. We discuss the design implications of this research for the design of mobile cameras.