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This link is not for all the purist photographers who think phoneography is not "real" photography, but rather for those of you who are open minded and can appreciate art in it's many forms. Some of the images are of nature and many are not.

http://iphonephotographyschool.com/best ... usrc=email

Each of these 100 iPhone images have merit either photographically or artistically.  And most are very well composed. Each was a favorite in a weekly competition. So, it brings to mind the old saying, "it's not the camera, but who's behind the camera that matters." There is no doubt in my mind, for example, that Art Wolfe could use an iPhone to create stunning images.  I started off shooting transparency film and embraced digital technology as soon it arrived.  So shooting with SLRs and DSLRs defines "photography" as I know it today. That is not to say, however, that I don't recognize there are millions of folks around the world making some great images with iPhones.  So, it is "real" photography to me, it's just different.

Of course those are photographs. Image quality is overrated. Anyone who thinks otherwise have been misled

 I would not have even entertained the thought that a cell phone took these photos. They are stunning! I enjoyed viewing them as much as viewing a photo taken by a 'real' camera.  Thanks for sharing that great link.

I acquired a Samsung s7 a few months ago strictly to use the camera. I'm extremely impressed with the quality and detail rendition of the images. Many prefer it over the iPhone 7. The RAW files, when using that setting, are much larger than JPEGs. The panorama mode, when used with a Reticam tripod mount and the RRS pano mount on a solid tripod are impressive, albeit a JPEG only image. Those files are huge, even wider than 360degree (with overlap) and the detail rendered is great up to an extreme magnification (my opinion only). Stitching is quick in camera. HDR and low light images stand out. The fact that you can use a 256GB card is nice for shooting video. Using micro SD cards is something you can't do with an iPhone. That makes it easy to download images with a fast card reader. I know it will be a while before they will come close to 35mm and larger images (or even P&S images for that matter), but I see much potential. Samsung even has a decent quality lens cover case with interchangeable wide and telephoto lenses. Zeiss has add on lenses for iPhones and some others that are of high quality. If you need a long telephoto or something for fast action, they are obviously not your tool, but for the niche they fill, the new high-quality phone cameras are impressive. The link I posted above shows what can be done, artistically, in the right hands with a good eye.

Joe

Thing is many people don't need image quality of that from a "true" camera the way they use their images. I recently have a chance to look at some images from Google Pixel. I thought they were from some compact cameras until I checked the info. I don't think it's even a niche there but rather the way millions of people shoot and share their images these days.

A good photograph is a good photograph, whatever the capturing device was used. Often the images from the phone I come across are overcooked with PP, as with a few here. But then so are many of the ones made with conventional camera. It's only one of the many tools available today.