With only a cell phone, you get great shots at parties and concerts — your cell phone is always there, and you look nerdy in some venues with a camera around your neck. Cell phones allow most of us to capture images that, in many cases, are pretty good. I recently attended a workshop wherein photographer Sylvester Garza, demonstrated high quality smartphone photos, including one iPhone panorama, easily equaling the quality of highly sought-after commercial photography.

From my European vacation, my favorite shots were taken with both camera and smartphone. However, cameras, in my opinion, give you many more options. I trust those who say that out of 100 photos taken with both phone and camera, there will be more fuzzy photos taken with a smartphone.

Especially for important events or trips — cameras have better lenses; meaning shots that usually result in better prints; and I love to zoom in and frame images. With the camera, I can click over and over, turn the frame horizontally or vertically, focus through the eyepiece and get ready for the shot.

In Europe, my fellow travelers depended on their smartphones for snapshots, taking fewer shots than I did, fearing that they’d drain their batteries and need their phones for GPS or emergency calls. With an extra camera battery ready to go, I shot as much as I wanted, without worrying about my phone battery.

If you just can’t bring yourself to wear a camera around your neck, consider the wrist strap that I use on my light-weight Sony, and the fact that my camera (lens cap intact) fits comfortably in my medium- to small-sized purse.

In this discussion, though, we should also consider the eye of the photographer. One of my mentors told me that when interviewing photographers, I should look to their portfolio, weeding out those who tried to impress with talk of cameras or equipment. A good friend and photographer, Perry Cozzen, equates someone who admires a photograph and then asks the photographer what camera was used, to someone eating a delicious pie and asking the baker what oven he used for cooking.

So, smartphone or camera, it sometimes doesn’t make any difference. However, over time, in varied conditions, and with the desire for post-shoot options, I would prefer a camera over a smartphone. This shot was taken with my new Sony at Buckingham Palace. We were there early, before the official “changing of the guard.” I shot through the fence, got an eight megapixel image that I brought home.

Then, I examined options for cropping it, and they were numerous. The 281KB close-up below has sharp detail and is suitable for prints and framing.