AT&T's LG Optimus G camera at work (pictures)

AT&T's version of the LG Optimus G loves the San Diego sun, where I took the device around downtown to check out its 8-megapixel camera. Not all photos looked this good, especially shots of people and indoor scenes.

Note that the Sprint version of the phone has a 13-megapixel shooter that gave up clearer, crisper images. Still, this photo outside a t-shirt shop looks terrific, with colors that pop and plenty of edge clarity.

Unless otherwise stated, all photos have been resized and/or cropped to fit this slideshow. Besides that, they're untouched.

This waiter gamely posed for a photo test. Although the picture was taken outdoors in natural lighting, his facial features aren't quite as sharp as they should be.

Bright sun brings out vivacious reds and yellows in this restaurant awning, and writing looks crisp.

This sample from the full-resolution image looks pretty good, too. This photo and other full resolution samples like it, is cropped, but otherwise untouched.

I crouched in close to take a photo of these succulents. The Optimus G autofocused in the center of the screen, so I tapped to manually focus on the succulent cluster to the left. As you can see, the results are less focused than I wanted.

Both carrier versions of the Optimus G produced photos with terrific color balance. Although the green leaf plant looks oversaturated, the bright green hues are true to life.

This landscape shot of the historic downtown San Diego sign came out well.

I'm pretty satisfied with this photo of hanging flowers.

This outdoor picture seems to fight the light. The pepper shaker and silver water pot aren't sharply defined, and the straws blend into one another. I think other cameras would bring out more detail.

Something about these cute stuffed animals looks a little too fuzzy, especially the plushy on the left. The owl looks the sharpest, which could also have something to do with its more solid coloring. By comparison, Sprint's 13-megapixel Optimus G camera took a much richer shot.

The indoor lighting is awful to begin with, but the Optimus G's powerful flash filled in the otherwise very dark room. Still, Lynn's features aren't very sharp.

Back outside, this table is nice and colorful, but I see pockets of noise on the wooden edges.

The Optimus G captured these light fixtures in a dark interior. I can't complain about the edges on the starfish lamp, but the water glasses are out of focus.

Lighting plays a huge role in the eventual quality of a picture, and in this photo of a pair of reflective doors, the Optimus G really did capture the scene. Colors were correct, the edges are fairly defined, and the camera captured it all -- even my reflection.

We'll continue to test the LG Optimus G's camera, so keep your eyes on CNET for more comparisons and shots.