This hidden setting turned my iPhone 16 Professional into an expert photograph studio

Certain, I would’ve been emotionally connected to my iPhone 12 Pro (despite the fact that it was hanging on by a thread), however I used to be by no means so completely satisfied to see the digital camera go. After I first obtained it again in 2020, like all new telephones, I felt like I had the latest, baddest digital camera on the block. I do not know if it was age, being left within the solar too lengthy (a couple of instances) or the conspiracy that Apple deliberately degrades older iPhone fashions, however now in 2025, the digital camera high quality had develop into borderline embarrassing.

I am not kidding — my mates would seize my cellphone to take an image and instantly ask what was unsuitable with it. However then different instances, so long as the lighting was completely good, it will gaslight me into pondering it was the most effective digital camera round once more. I used to be achieved questioning whether or not or not a photograph would prove a couple of weeks in the past once I lastly upgraded to an iPhone 16 Pro.

Now that I have been capturing my pictures with the for the final two weeks, here is what I discovered stark (and never so insane) concerning the soar up 4 generations.

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I traded in my iPhone 12 Professional and walked right into a tech identification disaster.

The starkest distinction

Lighting did not should be on its greatest conduct

First, let’s discuss specs. The iPhone 12 Professional has a 12-megapixel digital camera whereas the 16 Professional has a 48-megapixel digital camera — that is actually 4 instances the megapixels 4 generations later. I’ve already seen the distinction once I’m zooming in or cropping my pictures from my new digital camera, and it brings me nice pleasure as a social media supervisor who’s all the time reducing, cropping, and pasting all whereas my fingers are crossed on the standard aspect of issues.

Now, let’s transfer to aperture, which is how a lot mild a lens permits right into a digital camera. The 12 Professional has ƒ/1.6 aperture on its predominant digital camera whereas the 16 Professional has ƒ/1.78. On the floor, aperture going up is not all the time the most effective factor — it does let in additional mild. Nonetheless, that was the principle difficulty I used to be operating into with my dusty 12 Professional — all the pieces was simply manner too darkish. Mix that barely “worse” aperture on the 16 Professional with 4 instances the megapixels and the opposite improved processing powers it possesses? I am going to take the 16 Professional successful the specs battle each day of the week.

Pay attention, I used to be anticipating to be blown away by the iPhone 16 Professional’s digital camera high quality in comparison with the dinosaur I used to be taking photos on the 5 years prior. However after tooling round for a short time, I spotted that even after 4 generations, Apple did such an excellent job with the iPhone 12 Professional’s lenses that every one the upgrades that got here after have been really simply fine-tuning tweaks to optimize an already good digital camera. I wasn’t as overwhelmed with image high quality as I believed I’d be.

Granted, my Snapchats have been noticeably increased high quality — I even had a pal ask me what I had achieved otherwise within the final week. I am not saying I appeared higher. Quite the opposite, you might really see each single pore on my face (which I did not love, clearly). However what I did discover proper off the bat was that beneath any lighting, good or pitch black, my new iPhone 16 Professional obtained an excellent shot in it. My iPhone 12 Professional would utterly freak out in any type of lighting — and I could not even take into consideration taking a selfie outdoors for the sake of sunshine stripes that utterly dominated any facial options, not to mention posting any photos I took to my Instagram.

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Spare {hardware}, good sir?

I suppose my 12 Professional gave me just a little photograph PTSD, as a result of I discovered myself hesitating to take photos I knew it could not take even once I already upgraded to the 16 Professional. Nonetheless, I overcame that feature-fear and was delighted to search out that I had image freedom as soon as extra with the brand new cellphone. Lighting certain helps any image, but it surely did not make or break my image high quality within the slightest.

New images options

Howdy Photographic Types

Keep in mind how Portrait Mode took the world by storm again in 2016? Properly, I used to be not impressed. I thought of myself a Lightroom Cellular skilled on the ripe age of 17, and I most popular to edit my photos after I took them — not throughout — thanks very a lot. Through the years, increasingly modes got here out, however I wasn’t one to leap on that bandwagon. It was all the time the worst once I would ask a stranger to take an image on my cellphone out in public solely to undergo my digital camera later and see that they selected to make use of Portrait Mode. They virtually all the time did it to be thoughtful, so I’d scream into the theoretical pillow once I obtained dwelling so they would not assume I used to be ungrateful.

However a brand new function has lastly had the gall to strike my fancy this time: Photographic Types. Granted, it helps to work at a tech web site — Patrick O’Rourke, Pocket-lint’s Editor-in-Chief, put me onto this explicit setting. Mainly, it makes use of scene understanding to regulate explicit colours in numerous components of your pictures. Folks usually use it to personalize how they need their pores and skin tones to seem all the way down to the pixel. I used to be intrigued by how nuanced it may get.

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Get that “Excessive Effectivity” out of my face.

To begin, it’s important to select 4 of your favourite photos — the catch is that they needed to be taken on the brand new cellphone. After you select them, they will act as mediums to check totally different Types. You possibly can choose between:

• Normal
• Amber
• Gold
• Rose Gold
• Impartial
• Cool Rose

Since I’ve hotter undertones, the latter three made me look completely insane and straight out of a 2014 Tumblr selfie captioned: Listening to Sweater Climate #theneighbourhood. So, I opted for Amber, after which obtained to taking part in round with the depth of the tone and coloration. Like all Apple options, it was extremely intuitive — so long as you’ve got used any type of fundamental photograph editor ever in your life.

You possibly can return and edit this setting any time, however from there on out, the images you are taking will mechanically be edited in that fashion. I prefer it as a result of it is extremely delicate — not in your face just like the notorious Portrait Mode. Now, my photos are simply ever-so-slightly hotter in the best way I’d often edit them anyway.

Digicam Management

I actually could not care much less about it

Sure, we all know — there is a enjoyable new button on the iPhone 16 fashions that successfully flip your iPhone right into a digital camera. Nonetheless, I fairly actually have not used it since I arrange the cellphone, thought, “Oh yeah, there’s this new factor,” tried it as soon as, and mentioned out loud, “I’m by no means going to make use of this factor.”

Nonetheless, I do should acknowledge it, because it’s the latest piece of {hardware} on the iPhone for the reason that Motion Button, and I’m neck-deep into the images division right here. In looking for an excellent use for the brand new button (and to throw Apple a bone right here), I tweaked a fast setting to create an precise use for Digicam Management: clicking it as I decide up my locked iPhone to instantly open the digital camera app with out having to unlock or get up the display within the first place.

The iPhone 16 Professional’s default is to require the display to be on to launch digital camera management. To alter this:

1. Open Settings.
2. Choose Digicam Management.
3. Scroll to the underside and toggle off “Require Display On.”

And there you have got it — now you may deal with your iPhone just like the point-and-shoot Apple needs you to. Tremendous-computer capabilities tagged on, in fact.