We Shot 900+ Photos with the Nothing Phone (3a) Pro and Its Camera Will Surprise You!

Nothing’s new Phone (3a) Pro packs a promising camera setup at the price of just $459. So once we got the phone at the Beebom office, we went on a clicking spree, and before we knew it, over 900 samples were sitting in the gallery. After going through each of the samples, I think there’s a lot to talk about these cameras, which is what we’re doing in this Nothing Phone (3a) Pro camera review.

Nothing Phone (3a) Pro: Camera Specifications

Before we go through the photo samples from the Nothing Phone (3a) Pro, here’s a spec sheet of its cameras. If you want to learn about the device itself, then check at our combined Nothing Phone (3a) and Phone (3a) Pro review.

Nothing Phone (3a) Pro: Daylight Photos

Let’s start with the daylight shots from the main camera. Nothing has bundled a capable 50MP primary shooter with the Phone (3a) Pro that has 2x in sensor zoom. The images from this lens are pleasing to look at. Sure, it boosts the colors here and there, but preserves the natural vibrancy.

It captures the tranquility of Delhi’s cultural history on a sunny Sunday morning, as you can see. Just take a look at how successfully it has managed to control every aspect of the subject. The tree in front of the Lotus temple is an excellent illustration of these close-ups.

The Phone (3a) Pro captured most of the lovely small details of the crimson leaves on the ground. Now take a look at the shot of the Red Fort picture with the flag on the right. It was able to pause that moment flawlessly without making a mistake of boosting any particular hue.

However, I have to comment on how the device struggles with harsh sunlight. As per Sagnik, who helped take most of these samples:

It can have some trouble handling stronger light sources. You can see them blowing out.

This is evident if you take a look at the image with the Lotus temple in focus, and the sun right above it. The result is too overblown, and there is a severe lack of contrast.

Nothing Phone (3a) Pro: Night Photos

While the Phone (3a) Pro showed off its prowess in day shots, things don’t turn out that well at night. The smartphone requires you to take a moment, and have still hands to click some good photos, and if you don’t have a lot of patience or have a moving object then you will notice random artifacts in the images.

Another problem that becomes prominent at night is the overblown photos as a result of lamps, streetlights, or neon signs. As you can see, in one of the images, the headlight of the car behind Sagnik completely botched the entire image, filling the frame with a bright white light. This is also noticeable in the image with the barely readable storefront signs.

This is one issue of the Nothing Phone (3a) Pro which I wanted to highlight in this camera review. However, some images can come out looking good, like the suburban street, or the ones with human subjects. But you need to be cautious about having lamps or other bright objects in the frame. The camera app also struggles at times, mostly at night, requiring you to hit the shutter multiple times.

Phone (3a) Pro: Black and White Photos

With the Phone (3a) series, Nothing has added new preset effects to the camera app that you can access by swiping up from the bottom. One of the effects that we particularly enjoyed is the B&W Film. This allows the phone to take some of the most stunning black-and-white photos I have ever seen.

These are rich in detail and have enough contrast that felt missing in regular shots. Whether it’s the bustling streets of Chandni Chowk, the moody expression of the rickshaw puller, or just Sagnik and Ishaan making the most out of the day. This filter adds a cinematic appeal to every shot, evoking the nostalgia noir of a simpler time.

However, you may have noticed that some of these shots are missing watermarks. That’s because, for some odd reason, the camera turns off watermarks every time you select a preset. Some people may find it useful, to not hurt their perfect B&W image. But we personally found it annoying to activate it in-between shots.

Nothing Phone (3a) Pro: Periscope Shots

Taking a look at the periscope photos, you’d have a hard time believing they were taken from a sub-$500 phone. I have iterated this before in my review of the Phone (3a) Pro periscope camera, that it can get you some crisp-looking results. It goes from 3x up to 60x. The images are drooling with details even at 240mm focal length. However, pushing it further will result in a drop in quality.

Another perk of this periscope sensor is are exceptional macro photos. As someone who loves to capture nature’s geometry, I found the Phone (3a) Pro the most reliable option for macros. I was so impressed with it, that I compared it with other flagship phones sporting a periscope setup, and Nothing pushed out quite comparable results there too.

Nothing Phone (3a) Pro: Ultra-wide Photos

Coming to the ultra-wide, Nothing has only offered an 8-megapixel shooter here. Despite the measly sensor size, this camera with its 120-degree field of view can take some decent results. It shines, especially in daylight, where you can get some pretty good larger-than-life photos.

The colors are on point, and the fringing effect doesn’t happen too often. That is not to say the images are perfect as they lack a lot of details which I praised the main and periscope camera for. This issue becomes worse at night when a good amount of noise creeps into the images. Still, the post-processing kicks in to save some of your shots.

Nothing Phone (3a) Pro: Selfies and Portraits

The 50MP front shooter on the Phone (3a) Pro is no slouch either. It can take some good selfies when plenty of light is available. Even in indoor or low light conditions, I could get some detailed captures out of the selfie camera. These photos are definitely social media-ready, and you can easily upload them without applying further filters.

I mean, you can make out the texture of clothing, strands of hair, and other finer imprints in these photos without a flaw. However, I am not a fan of how Nothing adds a reddish hue to everyone’s face in the results. This is another area they can improve via future updates. The portrait mode can also be inconsistent at times, with patchy edges in some images.

Nothing Phone (3a) Pro: Videos

Talking about videos, the Nothing Phone (3a) Pro can only capture them in 4K resolution at 30FPS. This is more of a limitation with the processor they used. So what kind of videos can you expect from this midrange device? Well, for starters they push out quite nice-looking videos, with decent stabilization, thanks to the presence of OIS.

There’s also something for up-and-coming bloggers here, as this midrange phone can shoot in 4K from the front camera as well. But for some odd reason, you are capped to 1080p 30FPS for the ultra-wide and periscope lens. They could add 4K support later in the future, but I can’t say for sure.

As for the footage, it’s what you’d expect from a phone from this price segment. It won’t blow you away like the camera samples, but won’t disappoint either, which is what matters here.

Nothing Phone (3a) Pro Camera Review: A Compelling Package

In a market where Apple is shipping a single camera phone for $600, this is a much better deal to go with. Don’t believe me? Then let’s hear it from Ishaan, the handsome-looking fella who featured in most of our samples, and who also happens to be our in-house cinematographer. Here are his final thoughts on the Phone (3a) Pro’s camera:

Ishaan’s Bite: The Nothing Phone (3a) Pro clicks some crazy photos, and you can get pretty sexy black-and-white captures out of it, that don’t even require further tampering. However, it suffers from color discrepancy when switching between lenses, and sometimes faces infuriating shutter lag.

As we conclude this camera review of the Nothing Phone (3a) Pro, I have got just one thing to say, this is one of the better camera experiences in this segment. It punches above its weight, bringing some of the best-looking photos you would expect from a smartphone that costs less than $500. It has its issues, but Nothing is known to be quick on its feet and fix such errors with consistent updates.