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My Favorite Shots From the Galaxy S24 Ultra's Camera

The Galaxy S24 Ultra has a new 50-megapixel telephoto camera that can take crisper photos at 5x.

Lisa Eadicicco
Lisa Eadicicco is a senior editor for CNET covering mobile devices. She has been writing about technology for almost a decade. Prior to joining CNET, Lisa served as a senior tech correspondent at Insider covering Apple and the broader consumer tech industry. She was also previously a tech columnist for Time Magazine and got her start as a staff writer for Laptop Mag and Tom's Guide.
Lisa Eadicicco
The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra's cameras
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Galaxy S24 Ultra: 5x zoom

The biggest change to the Galaxy S24 Ultra's camera is its 50-megapixel telephoto camera with a 5x optical zoom, which replaces the 10-megapixel, 10x telephoto lens on the S23 Ultra. 

Washington Square Park shot on the Galaxy S24 Ultra
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Galaxy S24 Ultra: Main camera

Otherwise, the Galaxy S24 Ultra's camera specifications are largely the same as the S23 Ultra's. There's a 200-megapixel main camera, another telephoto camera with a 10-megapixel sensor and 3x optical zoom and a 12-megapixel ultrawide camera. 

I've mostly been using the default 12-megapixel resolution since it provides plenty of detail for viewing on a phone-sized screen.

The inside of an arcade bar taken on the Galaxy S24 Ultra
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Galaxy S24 Ultra: Main camera, low light

The Galaxy S24 Ultra's sensor also has larger pixels compared to last year's S23 Ultra, meaning it can preserve a good amount of detail in low lighting.

A houseplant
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Galaxy S24 Ultra: 5x zoom

This photo was taken at 4x zoom.

A houseplant
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Galaxy S24 Ultra: 5x zoom, cropped in

Overall, the Galaxy S24 Ultra was able to preserve more detail than the Galaxy S23 Ultra and iPhone 15 Pro Max when zooming at 5x, although its photo wasn't the brightest of the bunch. 

But you can really only see the difference when cropping in really closely, as I've done in this image. 

A houseplant
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Galaxy S23 Ultra: 5x zoom, cropped in

And here's that same photo taken on last year's Galaxy S23 Ultra. Notice there isn't quite as much detail in the leaves.

A houseplant
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iPhone 15 Pro Max: 5x zoom, cropped in

And here's the iPhone 15 Pro's version.

A houseplant
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Pixel 8 Pro: 5x zoom, cropped in

And finally, the Pixel 8 Pro's version, which I thought was the most detailed of the bunch. 

A photo of CNET's Lisa Eadicicco taken on the Galaxy S24 Ultra in portrait mode
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Galaxy S24 Ultra: Portrait mode

The Galaxy S24 Ultra takes crisp and colorful photos in portrait mode.

A photos of a plate of mole chicken and rice taken on the Galaxy S24 Ultra
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Galaxy S24 Ultra: Main camera

Here's an example of the Galaxy S24 Ultra's camera at work in relatively bright indoor lighting.

A 2x zoomed photo of a cathedral taken on the Galaxy S24 Ultra
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Galaxy S24 Ultra: 2x zoom, night

Here's a photo taken at a 2x zoom in the evening. The street light has a bit of a halo around it, but the cathedral otherwise looks clear.

A photo of a cathedral taken at a 5x zoom on the Galaxy S24 Ultra
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Galaxy S24 Ultra: 5x zoom, night

And here's that same photo taken at a 5x zoom. Other than the glare coming from the street light, it looks pretty sharp.

A photo of a bush taken on the Galaxy S23 Ultra
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Galaxy S24 Ultra: 3x zoom

Here's an example of a shot taken at 3x. 

A photo of a dog sleeping on a couch.
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Galaxy S24 Ultra: Main camera

Another example of the Galaxy S24 Ultra taking a clear photo in low to medium indoor lighting. Mason the pup is too deep into his nap to even know this photo was being taken. 

A photo of a tower zoomed in at 10x taken on the Galaxy S24 Ultra.
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Galaxy S24 Ultra: 10x zoom

Even though the 5x zoom quality has improved on the Galaxy S24 Ultra, Samsung's high-end phone offers a wide range of zoom options. This one was taken at 10x.

A photo of a tower taken at 30x on the Galaxy S24 Ultra
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Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra: 30x

And here's the same photo shot at a 30x digital zoom.

A photo of a tower taken at 100x on the Galaxy S24 Ultra
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Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra: 100x

And finally, here's the Galaxy S24 Ultra's 100x digital zoom. It gets a bit difficult to focus when zooming in this closely.

A photo of a street corner taken on the Galaxy S24 Ultra.
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Galaxy S24 Ultra: Ultrawide

This photo was taken on the Galaxy S24 Ultra's 12-megapixel ultrawide camera. 

A photo of a bush taken on the Galaxy S24 Ultra
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Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra: Main camera

The Galaxy S24 Ultra made the green in this shrubbery really pop on a gloomy day in New York's Washington Square Park. 

A photo of a latte taken on the Galaxy S24 Ultra.
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Galaxy S24 Ultra: Main

I did my best to snap this quick photo of a latte at La Colombe Coffee without holding up the line. You can see the subtle bubbles in the top of the foam if you look closely.

Check out my full review for more details about the Galaxy S24 Ultra. 

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