That overlooks the reality of life. To many people, smartphones are the only camera they have.

That's fine, and it sucks that often there is not really a choice in which camera software to use either. It doesn't help that by choosing Android or IOS you almost inevitably get hooked into the clouds of Google and Apple.

I deliberately bought a Pixel 6 in order to install GrapheneOS (a degoogled Android) and leave out all links to Google except for the Play store for a handful of apps pushed by governments and banks. The built-in camera app works fine, and OpenCamera is a great alternative too now that it supports all cameras of the Pixel 6.

This is the correct answer. Use GrapheneOS and synchronize your photos to your NAS. Nobody needs to use Google or Apple "cloud" for photos.