{"id":11947,"date":"2026-10-15T05:03:02","date_gmt":"2026-10-15T03:03:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.brokenmount.com\/bm\/2026\/10\/15\/10-camera-features-dpreview-readers-wish-camera-makers-would-add\/"},"modified":"2026-10-15T05:03:02","modified_gmt":"2026-10-15T03:03:02","slug":"10-camera-features-dpreview-readers-wish-camera-makers-would-add","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.brokenmount.com\/bm\/2026\/10\/15\/10-camera-features-dpreview-readers-wish-camera-makers-would-add\/","title":{"rendered":"10 camera features DPReview readers wish camera makers would add"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\tWe asked our readers which camera features don\u2019t exist yet but should. Hundreds of ideas were proposed, ranging from the practical to the downright hilarious.<\/p>\n

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Last week\u2019s Question of the week<\/a> asked: what one camera feature that doesn\u2019t yet exist would you like to have? More than 100 DPReview readers responded with ideas ranging from practical improvements to hilarious and ambitious reimaginings of what a camera could do.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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Built-in GPS, a true raw histogram and smartphone-style computational photography came up repeatedly. So did requests for more durable travel cameras, universal flash triggering, sensor-based tilt control and a return to smart depth-of-field modes. Below, we\u2019ve gathered 10 of the most interesting suggestions \u2013 and a few wonderfully unconventional ones.<\/p>\n

#1 \u2013 Built-in GPS, and why it\u2019s harder than it sounds<\/h2>\n

GPS and geotagging were the most requested new camera features, with several posters adding location tracking and anti-theft locking to this bucket type. This makes sense. Who doesn\u2019t want to know where they and their gear are at all times\u2026 right?<\/p>\n

mach21photo<\/a> asked for \u201ca way to remotely brick your stolen camera.\u201d <\/p>\n

thielges<\/a> explained why in-camera GPS has been unpopular: \u201cit can take minutes to re-lock, and keeping it on drains the battery\u201d. His suggested fix is to tether the camera to a phone over Bluetooth and stamp the phone\u2019s location into the EXIF data. A winning solution.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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#2 \u2013 Computational photography, but on the photographer\u2019s terms<\/h2>\n

Several of you want smartphone-style processing in \u201creal\u201d cameras. Cameras and phones seem to be ever growing closer together, so you may actually get this wish someday.<\/p>\n

jande9 <\/a>wants a camera that constantly takes pictures in the background, so that pressing the shutter produces an image that averages each pixel to reduce noise, and that sends the result straight to the phone, much as a phone does today.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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Mario F.<\/a> described a very specific use case: an in-camera \u201cwindow pull\u201d HDR mode for real estate and interior photographers, who currently spend hours blending brackets for every property.<\/p>\n

jesbe<\/a> took that idea even further and asked for in-camera raw processing that runs while the camera is on standby or charging, using full Lightroom-level profiles, plus a compact with a real zoom, real flash and larger sensor but phone-level processing tricks.<\/p>\n

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Reshot film camera waist-level viewfinder.<\/figcaption>Getty Images<\/span><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n
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#3 \u2013 A true raw histogram<\/h2>\n

If computational photography isn\u2019t of interest, how about a real raw histogram, raw-based zebras and a waveform display tech?<\/p>\n

The community drilled down on a technical level as to why JPEG-based histograms mislead, with nobru1958<\/a> explaining the in-camera processing behind it and mcantsin <\/a>noting that digital cinema cameras already offer raw exposure tools.<\/p>\n

#4 \u2013 Cameras you can open up, lock down and trust<\/h2>\n

Franck Mee<\/a> had three \u201csimple\u201d requests: standard Bluetooth audio support, file encryption (\u201ca matter of life and death for reporters\u201d) and open-source firmware, so that poor operating behavior can be fixed and security updates can be applied.<\/p>\n

Others added their support, including patrol_taking_9j<\/a>, who put it in two words: \u201cOpen firmware.\u201d<\/p>\n

A very practical set of considerations.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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#5 \u2013 Designed for how people really shoot<\/h2>\n

IEBA1<\/a> wants more ruggedness in compact travel zooms. After, unfortunately, two of his had died, including one dropped while being pulled from a pocket (whoops), IEBA1 would happily accept a slightly larger body with a magnesium frame and a grip.<\/p>\n

Chris Cookson<\/a> wants a waterproof camera small enough for a rock pool or shallow creek, with at least a Micro Four Thirds sensor and strong macro capability, asking: \u201cMore of the earth is under water than in air, so why is it impossible to find a more capable go anywhere camera?\u201d Great point, Chris!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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#6 \u2013 Built-in wireless TTL flash triggering<\/h2>\n

Wireless flash control was a recurring wish, often accompanied by complaints about proprietary systems. psartman <\/a>kept it short: \u201cBuilt-in wireless TTL flash triggering.\u201d When a reply pointed to a Nikon body that does this through its pop-up flash, psartman answered that many advanced and professional bodies don\u2019t have a built-in flash.<\/p>\n

Phill L<\/a> wants to end the problem at the hot shoe, literally: \u201cThe end of proprietary hot shoes. Get with the game and have all brands\u2019 flashes work on all cameras, with at least most of the functionality. Just add a digital communication bus so each brand can add their own special features and communicate through it. Sort of like USB but for flashes.\u201d<\/p>\n

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#7 \u2013 In-camera back tilt movements capability<\/h2>\n

Several of you want the camera to do what a tilt lens does, using the sensor stabilization system. dan pv<\/a> had a good take on the idea:<\/p>\n

\u201cIn-camera back tilt movement capabilities. The sensor could be tilted for a close-to-far sharpness at any f-stop in landscape or product photography. It could be done by the camera IBIS, extended a bit. One could choose on the LCD screen 2-3 points of sharpness, and the processor could compute and automatically apply the needed sensor tilt.\u201d<\/p>\n

L Lenson<\/a> agreed and suggested where it could start: \u201cAt least medium format backs should have this capability. They are already expensive as it is, so adding the extra cost would perhaps not matter so much.\u201d L Lenson also noted that the closest thing available today is a lens with a defect in which one side focuses closer than the other.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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#8 \u2013 Borrowing tricks from astronomy<\/h2>\n

Perhaps the most \u2018out there\u2019 answer came from geekyrocketguy<\/a>, who wants cameras to read the sensor non-destructively during an exposure:<\/p>\n

\u201cMy background is astronomy, and this is a standard technique for the detectors there. It\u2019s called \u2018read up the ramp\u2019 or \u2018sample up the ramp.\u2019 Basically, the sensor gets read out many times during an exposure and is only reset at the start. This offers the potential to greatly reduce read noise.\u201d<\/p>\n

This is actually a big deal. If a bright object saturates after three of ten reads, its brightness can be extrapolated from those three reads, which greatly extends dynamic range. For night and landscape work, geekyrocketguy calls it \u201cgame-changing.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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#9 \u2013 Bringing back DEP\/A DEP<\/h2>\n

Not every idea was for something new. Several of you asked for the return of a feature that older Canon film and digital cameras already had: depth-of-field modes that work out the aperture for you, based on the nearest and farthest points you want sharp.<\/p>\n

The idea came up in more than one post, and the most developed version, which drew some of the most reactions in the thread, came from Tony Hall<\/a>, who would also like it updated for modern subject detection.<\/p>\n

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Bring back DEP (or A-DEP) in which the camera calculates depth of field for you.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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\u201cBring back DEP (or A-DEP) in which the camera calculates depth of field for you, either automatically or by defining a start and end point for your depth of field. Today, it would probably be called \u201csmart aperture\u201d. It could have various modes you could toggle by assigning a button to flip through them:<\/p>\n