iPhone 13 And iPhone 13 Pro: The 7 Biggest New Camera Features
Bylast updated 16 September 2021
Our pick of the iPhone 13’s new snapping talents
The iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Pro have landed and as we’ve come to expect from new iPhones, some of their most intriguing features are built into those camera modules on the back.
Whether you prefer to shoot stills, video or a mixed diet of both, there are some fascinating new photographic features on this year’s iPhones, and we’ve rounded up the best ones in this helpful guide of their fresh snapping skills.
Naturally, both the iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Pro series have been equipped with new camera hardware, with the latter receiving the largest sensors seen on any Apple smartphone to date. But these days, it’s the computational software features that are driving the big changes in our pocket cameras, and Apple has again rustled up some new ones for us to take for a spin.
We’ve listed the most intriguing camera features below in rough order of our excitement about them, and given our thoughts on whether they’re as interesting as Apple claims they are or if it’s again spinning its famed reality-distortion field.
How Good Is The Camera On iPhone 12 Pro
The short answer: Its excellent. Every year, Apple goes above and beyond to top the camera on their previous model, and the iPhone 12 Pro is no exception. But its not just the camera specs that put this one so far ahead of older iPhones.
The camera on iPhone 12 Pro can leverage the other tech in this model. It uses features like the A14 Bionic Chip, next-gen neural engine, and an advanced LiDAR sensor to enhance the cameras performance and experience.
New Video Editing Tools
Do you shoot videos with your iPhone?
If so, youll be pleased to know that the built-in Photos app now has a set of video editor tools.
Almost every photo editing tool and effect can now be used on videos.
So you can adjust the color and exposure of your videos. And you can rotate and crop them too.
You May Like: iPhone 5s Remove Battery
Night Mode On All Cameras
Apple says the iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Mini will get an “improved Night mode”, but it’s the ‘Pro’ models that are again getting an additional treat in the form of Night mode across all three of their cameras.
For many people, this might actually be the biggest camera upgrade on the new iPhone Pros, given how versatile Night mode is. In our guide to taking professional portrait photos with your phone, pro photographer Damien Demolder said that “sometimes a night mode can be useful in normal conditions to reduce contrast with accentuated dynamic range”.
We’ve previously seen the Samsung Galaxy series offer night mode on their telephoto and selfie cameras, so it’s not a new concept. But the option of using Apple’s Night mode on the iPhone 13 Pro’s new 77mm equivalent telephoto camera is one we’re looking forward to trying out, particularly for low-light portraits.
iPhone 13 Pro And Pro Max Camera Specs
The iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max include a three-lens camera system with an f/2.8 Telephoto lens, an f/1.5 Wide lens, and an f/1.8 Ultra Wide lens.
The Wide and Ultra Wide lenses are upgraded compared to the lenses in the iPhone 13 models and should result in notably better performance in low light conditions. The Wide lens features a wider aperture that lets in 2.2x more light and the largest sensor in an iPhone yet.
The Ultra Wide lens captures up to 92 percent more light, which should bring a drastic improvement in quality.
The 77mm Telephoto lens features 3x optical zoom in, up from 2.5x in the 12 Pro Max, and with the addition of the Ultra Wide lens at 2x zoom out, there is a 6x optical zoom range and support for 15x digital zoom.
There’s also a LiDAR Scanner, which is not available on the iPhone 13 and 13 mini.
Read Also: How To Get iPhone Off Silent Mode
Why Does The iPhone Have 3 Cameras
Madalina Dinita November 11, 2021
Apples iPhone 11 Pro was the first iOS device to feature three rear cameras. The iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 Pro models followed the same design. But why does the iPhone have three cameras? What do the three cameras do? Head below to learn the answers.
Quick Note: The iPhone 13 Pro is a real photography monster. Check out the articles below to learn more about its camera capabilities:
Whats The Deal With Lidar
A bigger addition is the use of an additional LiDAR scanner to the camera module. It looks like a small black dot on the camera module and basically allows for superior autofocus in low-light situations. To see how much of a change it makes, we took the 12 Pro out into the near-pitch-black yesterday along with the iPhone 12 and the difference was, well, night and day. Even though the iPhone 12 has a pretty accomplished Night Mode that does a lot of work to brighten up your pictures in low light, it did end up leaning on flash in these really tricky circumstances. The 12 Pro didnt and ended up with a much better shot.
Because of LiDAR, you can also use this handsets portrait mode in low light as well. You know, the feature where a persons face appears in focus and you get that lovely soft bokeh background around them. While the effect isnt quite as accomplished as what youd get in broad daylight itll do a good job focusing on your subjects face but can miss hands and other body parts in the foreground the results are still pretty damn impressive.
In all honesty, I was surprised at just how much of a difference LiDAR made. Given itll also help with the fidelity of augmented reality experiences such as the awesome Just A Line doodling app it easily ranks as one of the Pros premier features.
You May Like: How To Screen Mirror iPhone 11 To Roku Tv
iPhone 13 Pro’s Camera Has This Pro Photographer Excited Here’s Why
From macro skills to ProRes video, there are some good reasons for photographers to crave the iPhone 13 Pro.
The iPhone 13 Pro cameras aren’t a total overhaul from those found on the iPhone 12, but there are some neat tweaks that make a pro photographer like me pretty excited. Here’s what’s got me popping.
Get the CNET Apple Report newsletter
I’ve used the iPhone 12 Pro Max since it launched, and I’m always impressed by the quality of the shots I can take with it. That’s especially true when I’m using ProRaw and editing my shots in apps like Adobe Lightroom. So I’m interested to hear that the main camera has an even larger image sensor with an f1.5 aperture. That’s going to allow it to capture a lot more light. And more light means better photos.
The telephoto zoom has been bumped from 2.5x to 3x, which is welcome too. I use the telephoto zoom a lot on my phone to find more interesting compositions in the landscape that might be lost if I just shot all the time with the wide-angle lens. Still, I’d have liked to have seen an even bigger zoom boost to put it closer to the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s amazing 10x optical zoom.
An example of macro, taken on the iPhone 13.
Why Trust Our Journalism
Founded in 2004, Trusted Reviews exists to give our readers thorough, unbiased and independent advice on what to buy.
Today, we have 9 million users a month around the world, and assess more than 1,000 products a year.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors code of practice to underpin these standards.
Also Check: How To Access Blocked Numbers On iPhone
iPhone 11 Pro & iPhone 11 Pro Max
The cameras on the iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max are identical.
The only difference between these two iPhones is the size of the screen .
You get the same Wide lens and Ultra Wide lens as the iPhone 11. But you also get a 2x Telephoto lens which lets you zoom in on your subject.
This triple-lens camera system offers ultimate flexibility and creativity when shooting.
If youre serious about iPhone photography its definitely worth buying one of the Pro models.
All you need to do is decide whether you want the smaller or larger screen!
Should You Buy An iPhone 13 Pro For Photography
The iPhone 13 Pro is one of the best smartphones for photography. Although the iPhone 13 Pro uses smaller sensors, so do all the other smartphones. Besides, having a 13mm, 26mm, and 77mm camera that fits in your pocket is worth a concession or two.
But if you are wondering whether the iPhone 13 Pro is a match for similar priced traditional cameras, it isnt. But thanks to modern computational photography, the gap is not as great as it could have been and I dare you to squeeze a Canon R5 into your jeans pocket.
However, if you shoot moving subjects, require low light performance, massive lens selection, and genuine background blur, a traditional camera remains a necessity.
Read Also: What Is Soundcheck
Improved Photo Editing Tools For More Precise Control
As well as a redesigned Camera app, the Photos app offers some great new editing tools.
When youre editing photos in the Photos app, you now have more control over your edits.
New tools let you control any adjustment or filter. So you can finetune your edits with more precision than before.
These new editing tools are available on all iPhone 11 models.
The Disadvantages Of Phone With Many Lens
- Fast power consumption
The camera is one of the most important pieces of hardware on a smart phone. It is a separate piece of hardware to drain the battery quite a bit. The vast majority of camera battery drain comes from display and processor usage. Your display is needed as a viewfinder and some OEMs even bump up the brightness of the display when in camera mode.
Additionally, every modern smartphone has at least some post-processing and that also requires extra processing power.
- Increase weight of phone
Manufacturers increase the quality of their photos by increasing the number of cameras on their phones, which undoubtedly makes the phone much heavier than single-camera phones. At the same time, they will also expand the screen size. Mobile phones dont seem to be small.
- Easy to scratch
The increase of the lens makes the back of the phone no longer smooth. We couldnt place the phone on desk smoothly, because the lens protrudes. In this case, the lens is more likely to be scratched and easily knocked. When the phone falls from a height, in addition to check phone screen, we are observing whether the cameras are damaged.
Read Also: How To Reset Carrier Settings iPhone
Why Does The iPhone Have Three Cameras
Smartphone cameras have always been pale in comparison to DSLR cameras in quality such as the Canon PowerShot SX530. The latter have larger sensors, which means they can gather more lightallowing you to take higher quality photos.
To compensate for what they lack, Apple introduced the multi-camera phonesthe iPhone 11 and the iPhone 11 Pro.
The purpose of those phones having three cameras, apart from providing you with more techniques and wider Field-Of-View , is to help your iPhone cameras collect more light.
The more light that enters the cameras, the better your photos will be.
In this case, its safe to say that the more the merrier.
New Camera Features For All iPhones
Apple introduced several new features that take advantage of the more advanced image signal processor included in the A15 chip.
- Cinematic Mode – Uses rack focus to seamlessly shift the focus from one subject to another when capturing video. It holds focus on the subject while blurring the background, and can automatically change the focus when a new subject is about to enter the scene. Blur and focus can be adjusted after capturing video as well through the app.
- Smart HDR 4 – Recognizes up to four people in a scene and optimizes contrast, lighting, and even skin tones for each person so everyone looks their best.
- – Photographic Styles are smart, adjustable filters that can do things like boost or mute colors without affecting skin tone. Styles apply selectively to an image, unlike a filter that’s applied to the entire image. Photographic Styles include Vibrant , Rich Contrast , Warm , or Cool . Tone and Warmth are customizable for each style, so you can get the exact look that you want.
Existing camera capabilities like Night Mode, Portrait Mode, Portrait Lighting, and Deep Fusion are also supported.
Also Check: Reset Carrier Settings iPhone
iPhone 13 Pro And iPhone 13 Pro Max
The two flagship devices in the iPhone 13 series have even more to offer when it comes to camera tech. Both iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max feature three 12MP lenses one telephoto, one wide, and one ultra wide. On top of the inclusion of an additional lens, theres also a LiDAR scanner on board, which enables Night portraits and faster autofocus after dark, so you can take beautiful headshots in low light.
This combination of hardware also allows you to record Macro video, thanks to the ultra wide lens which can focus from just 2mm away, granting you new perspective on everyday objects. Put 6x Optical zoom range to the test too, and capture the whorls of a fingerprint, or the precise grain of a leaf theres no end to the possibilities.
Just like iPhone 13 mini and iPhone 13, the Pro and Pro Max have Apples new Cinematic mode, and HDR video recording with Dolby Vision. This last feature records more details about a specific scene, to give you greater autonomy during the editing process with Dolby Vision, you can edit your footage at a granular level, frame by frame. Both of these flagships are rated IP68 water and dust resistant, so theres no need to worry about filming in the rain, and with Cinematic video stabilisation, you can bank on getting smooth video, even when youre on the move.
Night Mode For Incredible Low
Another game-changer is the brand new iPhone Night mode camera feature.
And the great news is that its available on all three iPhone 11 models.
Night photography and low-light photography can be challenging. The lack of light can lead to exposure problems and excessive grain. It can also result in blurry images caused by camera shake.
But iPhone 11 Night mode uses intelligent software to create beautifully detailed images in low light.
When you tap the shutter button, the camera takes multiple photos. The iPhones optical image stabilization steadies the lens, helping to eliminate blur.
The camera software then combines the best parts of the multiple images captured.
It automatically fine-tunes color and contrast. And it eliminates grain for a sharper image.
The result should be a sharp, grain-free photo with great color and detail.
Night mode comes on automatically in low light. So you dont even need to think about it when taking photos!
Whichever iPhone 11 model you decide to get, youll be able to take stunning low-light photos with Night mode.
Read Also: Mirror iPhone To Samsung
All Of The New iPhone 13 Camera Features: Macro Cinematic Mode Photographic Styles Sensor Improvements And More
With the launch of the iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro, and iPhone 13 Pro Max, Apple introduced several updated camera features, some of which are hardware based and some of which are software based.
Notably, the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max now have identical camera systems, a departure from the different cameras featured in the iPhone 12 Pro and the 12 Pro Max. As usual, the iPhone 13 Pro models have the best camera systems, while the more affordable iPhone 13 models have step-down cameras that lack some of the Pro capabilities.
Magsafe Accessories And Battery Life
Another standout feature coming to the iPhone 12 lineup is compatibility with Apple’s new MagSafe accessories, which as the name implies uses a magnetic system to snap on to the back of your iPhone seamlessly.
Among the first accessories Apple is launching are a wireless iPhone charger, a wireless charger meant to charge your iPhone and Apple Watch at the same time, and a wallet that sticks to the back of your iPhone.
The MagSafe wireless charger for the iPhone feels like an enlarged Apple Watch charger for your phone. When attaching it, your phone will make a sound to confirm its charging and display a graphic showing your battery level just like on the Apple Watch.
Third-party accessory makers will be able to create MagSafe add-ons as well, and there are already plenty of cases and charging docks to choose from that support the technology.
The iPhone 12 Pro can certainly last for a full day on a single charge, making it a solid choice for those who prioritize having a long-lasting battery. After almost 16 hours of use, the iPhone 12 Pro had 13% of its battery left. I’m usually able to get a little more than a day’s worth of use out of high-end smartphones, but I was also using more battery-intensive AR apps during the course of my testing.
You May Like: Why Is My iPhone Stuck On The Loading Screen