I used the Oppo Find X8 Pro to shoot a Champions League football match — here’s what I learned

Some months ago, I was invited to test the new Sony A1 II camera at a live Premier League football match. I travelled up to Manchester, and worked side-by-side with the City photography team to capture all of the action.

The images were fantastic – as you'd probably expect from a setup which would cost over £12,000. But could you do the same with a common or garden Android phone?

Well, that's what I set out to discover. Armed with an Oppo Find X8 Pro and a can do attitude, I headed back up north – this time to Anfield for the Liverpool v Lille Champions League tie – and got snapping.

Oppo Find X8 Pro: camera specs

Let's kick off with a quick refresher of what you can expect from the Find X8 Pro's camera. That features a quartet of 50mm sensors, covering everything from 15-135mm equivalent focal lengths.

The two telephoto lenses even include glass elements as part of their construction, while the wide and ultra-wide sensors feature all-plastic lenses with more complex constructions.

Lots of customisation

Before I even left for the match, I found myself seriously impressed with the camera on the Find X8 Pro. That wasn't even necessarily down to the image quality, but was more about the customisation on offer.

It's the first handset I've ever used which offered a choice of focal lengths for the main camera. I could choose between 24mm, 28mm or 35mm equivalents, achieved by zooming – 1x, 1.2x or 1.4x respectively.

To me, that's fantastic. When I'm using my cameras, 35mm is my favoured focal length, and shooting with that on the phone instantly felt more creative. I had an eye for composition which I rarely ever have with the wider 24mm focal lengths common on phones.

Effortless lens changes

Actually following on from that, I was delighted with how easy it was to flip between different focal lengths on the go. Seeing options like 0.5x, 1x, 3x and 5x, for example, is not uncommon these days, as manufacturers put the different lenses at the fingertips of users.

But Oppo takes this one step further. Tapping on some of the different focal lengths actually changes them, giving you even more native options, without needing to pinch zoom.

I particularly enjoy it on the telephoto lenses, where 73mm, 85mm, 135mm and 300mm equivalents are all on offer pretty much instantly. It's a fantastic creative tool, ensuring a wealth of options are available to you.

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Surprising detail retention

It's also worth talking about the fidelity of these sensors. When I shot the City v Forest match, one of my biggest takeaways was how impressive the Sony camera was for cropping in post, allowing you to create a new image from a fraction of the original frame.

I didn't think that was going to be possible from a phone, but there's a lot more cropping potential than I'd imagined. Okay, it's nowhere near what the dedicated camera can offer, but it offers a little more optionality if you'd like to get a little tighter than you could in the moment.

The only real exception to that was the 300mm setting. At an effective zoom of 13.3x, that was already pretty much at the limit of what could be achieved without faces starting to look like the abstract paintings of a mind in a fever dream. Even the 135mm, though, could handle a fair amount of crop without losing quality – as the gallery above demonstrates.

Is the Oppo Find X8 Pro camera worth the cash?

The most interesting part of this experience is that, for most of it, I forgot I was actually reviewing a phone. The camera on this device is seriously strong – so much so that it could really stand up as that kind of device all on its own.

Given the current excitement around compact cameras – and the prices they're commanding – it's useful to think that this Oppo could do that job and double up as a phone. All of that for around £1,000 (approx. $1,260 / AU$2,030) is seriously impressive.