Are you looking for ways to improve your photos? The iPhone 14 Pro camera has some great features, with a 65% larger sensor than iPhone 13 Pro. Let’s take a look at how to get the most out of your new phone.
iPhone cameras have improved over time, but If you want to take better pictures, you should know how to optimize them. Several settings affect image quality like time-lapses, slow motion, portrait mode, and cinematic video. In this article, we’ll show you how to adjust these settings to get the best images possible from your new iPhone.
iPhone 14 Pro Camera Settings
Formats
To take full advantage of your new iPhone 14 Pro cameras, we’re going to go through the camera setting options where you can enable and deactivate many features. We’re first selecting formats. You can either choose to store your images in HEIF (High-Efficiency Image File) formats, which will help you conserve storage, or select the option that saves them in JPEG and videos in H.264 formats. Please note that cinematic video, 4K at 60 frames per second, 1080 at 240 frames per second, and HDR video require high efficiency, so those will be saved in that format. JPG images are compressed so they are of lower quality.
If you’d like to further edit your images in Adobe Photoshop or Lightroom, then you’ll probably need to enable Apple ProRaw. RAW files contain all the information about an image, including color depth, exposure, white balance, and other details. They also allow you to make adjustments after taking the picture. This makes it easier to tweak your images later on. You can save a photo taken on a wide-angle camera at either 12 megapixels or 48 megapixels. Night Mode, Macro Photos, and Flash photos will always be saved at 12 megapixels.
If you’re working with videos, you can also use ProRes for editing purposes. ProRes is supported for up to 30 frames per second at 4K and up to 60 frames per second at 1080p. You will need a lot of storage on your phone because the files will be enormous. For one minute of 10-bit HDR ProRes footage, you’ll need around 1.7GB of storage space. If you’re going to shoot in 4K, it’ll be roughly 6 GB.
Record Video
Let’s move on to the next setting which is recording videos. When you open the camera app, you can choose what resolution and frame rates you want to use by default. Remember that if you’re going to record using QuickTake, you will always capture at 1080p HD at 30 fps. So, if you want to shoot in 4K, choose video mode instead. You can use QuickTake to capture a video while taking photos — without switching modes. If you are in photo mode and long press the shutter button, it will start recording the video. Swiping to the right keeps recording. Press on hold and swipe to the left if you want to take pictures in burst mode.
Enhanced Stabilization is enabled by default. Stabilization has been improved for video and cinematic modes. However, there will be a crop as the video will zoom in a bit. If you are you are planning to use a gimbal then you need to turn this feature off. You can use the Action Mode feature to improve low-lighting performance by reducing the stabilization effect. You can capture up to 60 frames per second in a 10-bit dynamic range, including Dolby Vision using HDR video mode. You should always disable auto frames if you’re shooting in low light because the auto frame will reduce your frame rate to 24fps. So, if you are filming in 60 frames per second you want to keep that frame rate for later editing purposes.
Record Slo-mo
By selecting Slo-mo you can record slow motion by default at 120 or 240 frames per second in 1080p or 240 frames per second at 720p. Record cinematic will let you choose your preferred resolution and frame rate. You can shoot video in 1080p HD at 60 frames per second, 4K at 50 frames per second, and 4K at 60 frames per second. My preference is 4K at 24 frames per second. RecStereo sound recording is on by default.
Preserving Settings
Unless you opt to enable any setting your phone will automatically reset to default whenever you launch the camera app. By changing any of these settings you will be able to resume snapping pictures or making videos with the settings you used the last time you open the camera app.
For instance, if you last used video and then opened the camera app again, you would see the video rather than the photo that was set as the default. It is especially helpful if you plan to film in an area where you will be shooting a variety of clips. When shooting images or films that need the same filter, aspect ratio, lights, or depth settings, changing the creative controls will be very helpful. The same is valid for macro controls as well. The camera will keep the most recently used setting and display the exposure adjustment indicator if you have enabled exposure adjustment. Additionally, if you have night mode on, the camera won’t immediately reset night mode to auto and will remember the most recent settings. You should also have action mode enabled; otherwise, you would need to do so each time you fire.
Returning to the main settings panel, it is a good idea to use volume up for burst, which you could also enable. This is a huge assistance if you want to take pictures of moving subjects like kids running, animals, sports, etc. It will continue snapping pictures in burst mode if you press and hold the volume up button. You can then choose whatever pictures you want to retain in your gallery.
Let’s examine composition. Turning on the grid will help you maintain a straight horizon if you have trouble with composition. You can enable the front camera to mirror if necessary in certain circumstances. The image will essentially be vertically flipped. You can also modify the appearance of your images by applying an automatic preset under photographic styles. Standard, rich contrast, vibrant, warm, and cool styles are among the options available.
Prioritize faster shooting is enabled by default. It will adjust image quality if you push the shutter quickly. This implies that the quality may suffer. On the front and ultrawide cameras, lens correction helps lessen any lens distortion. Additionally, macro control is available. This demonstrates the camera’s automated move to the ultra-wide-angle lens for taking macro pictures and films.
iPhone 14 Pro Cameras
Main Lens
The main camera has a resolution of 48-Megapixels. The 24 mm focal length and F/1.78 aperture of this lens make it ideal for low-light conditions. It has second-generation sensor shift optical image stabilization, so this is that camera to use if you are on the go quickly snapping photos. This is the camera to use if you need to swiftly take images while on the go because it features a second-generation sensor shift optical image stabilization. When you record videos using this lens, you will notice a flower icon popping up. This indicates the macro mode. You can switch between the macro and ordinary camera lens modes in both photo and video when you have the flower icon.
Ultra-Wide Lens
A 120-degree field of view is available on the 12-megapixel ultra-wide lens. The aperture is F/2.2, and the focal length is 13 mm. Since anything near the lens will grow larger, ultra wide-angle lenses are utilized to take imaginative up-close shots or to capture broader areas. You may open the wheel where you can zoom in and out by pressing and holding the lens icon. Since it is a digital zoom, the quality decreases as you enlarge the image. For the finest quality, is better to use the lenses as they are rather than moving closer or further away.
Telephoto Lens
You can use telephoto lens for portrait photography and for getting closer to your subject. You may get 12-megapixel images, 2x telephoto at 48 millimeters and F/1.78 aperture as well as 12-megapixel images, 3x telephoto at 77 millimeters and f/2.8 aperture thanks to the quad pixel sensor. Optical image stabilization is available. You can get a 6 times optical zoom range, 3x optical in and 2x optical out, and digital zoom up to 15 times.
Selfie Camera
Turning the iPhone around, we can examine the 12-megapixel real-depth front-facing camera. F/1.9 is the aperture size. What is depth? It is the technology behind the phones’ emojis and Face ID capabilities. The camera technology is used to generate depth in portrait mode and can also automatically change settings like brightness and volume depending on whether you are paying attention to your phone.
Camera App
You can access the default camera app in four different ways. The app is easily accessible from the home screen. You can slide down to reveal the camera emblem in this location. After tapping the camera symbol while the screen is locked and holding it, the camera app will launch. You can also make the camera open by double-tapping the Apple logo on the back of the device. Go to settings, accessibility, touch, and turn on the back tap to activate this. Double tapping will activate the camera, and triple tapping will take a screenshot.
iPhone 14 Pro Shooting Modes
TIME-LAPSE
We’ve covered camera settings and lenses, so let’s look at shooting modes now. Starting from the left time-lapse is the first. Timelapse 12:25 produces a quick film by shooting your scene at 1 to 2 frames per second over an extended period. A 20-second video will be produced after 10 minutes of recording. Utilizing a tripod is strongly advised. Here, exposure is the only factor you have control over. Exposure and focus are locked when you tap and hold on to the screen. You can change the exposure by sliding down the sun next to it. To make sure nothing is overexposed is better to tone it down a little. The brightness and exposure will adjust automatically wherever you point if you don’t lock them. By pressing the exposure icon or the arrow in the center, you can bring up exposure controls if you only want to control exposure and don’t want to lock focus.
By just moving your fingertips up and down the screen, you can also slide out the controls. You can now change the brightness by sliding left or right to where you want it. When finished, close the control by touching plus or minus on either the circle icon or this icon at the top. You can use all of the lenses to capture time lapses. Telephoto, regular, and ultrawide. You can also produce a hyper-lapse in this mode, which is distinct from a timelapse. When the camera is set in one place, a timelapse occurs. Hyper lapse describes how you will be moving, such as while you are walking. Using a stabilizer will yield the greatest results. You can use any gimbal. Gimbal apps typically have adventurous time-lapses and motion lapses if you’ll be utilizing one.
SLO-MO
Either 120fps (frames per second) or even 240fps can be used to record slow motion. You have the option of shooting both in HD, which will result in greater quality, or 240fps at 720p if you only require a reduced file size. All three lenses are available for use, and you can also adjust exposure and switch on a light if necessary if you’re filming in low light.
CINEMATIC
The focus and digital aperture adjustments are crucial for producing cinematic video. We use the word “digital” because, unlike optical, it is produced by software. Additionally, you can improve digital stabilization with this setting. In addition to 1080p HD at 30fps, you can record 4K video at 24 or 30 fps. We typically shoot in 4K at a frame rate of 24fps, but if you want to give your footage a slightly dreamlike appearance, we can use 30fps and then slow it down 80% in the post. Music videos frequently adopt this approach. You can film using a selfie camera, telephoto lens, and regular lens. It’s crucial to choose the right exposure before you start filming. This can only be done in this mode using the exposure slider. If necessary, you can also turn on the video light.
Digital F Stop, often known as aperture, is a setting that may be altered both during and after filming. The background will either become clear or blurry depending on the quantity you choose. The background will appear more blurry the lower the number. The greater the number, the sharper or wider the background will appear to be in focus. Again, you don’t need to worry about it as much before filming because you can adjust the option after you hit edit on the footage. You can set the camera to adjust focus automatically while filming. The camera will automatically choose the target when you move it.
Selecting Autofocus Lock is another choice. This yellow square can be seen by simply tapping the screen. Pressing and holding will cause the focus to lock. You will notice this tracking signal if the camera detects a face. You can lock the focus by touching the screen if you’re filming a group of people but just want to keep the camera on one person at a time.
How are cinematic videos edited? You are completely free to decide what will be the focus, when it will occur, and where. You can keep or disable the autofocus lock if you activated it previously. It’s referred to as manual tracking. If you leave it on, the line below will turn yellow because it produced a keyframe at the start of the clip. The line will turn grey if you decide not to keep it. The F stop, which controls the aperture, is located just next to it. The sharpness of the image will increase as the number rises. If the face has too blurry edges, just increase the number a bit to see if it looks more natural. Simply tap on the object to switch the object’s attention at any time during the video. Thus, another keyframe will be produced.
VIDEO
Video mode is next. If you shoot in 4K, you will receive the best quality. You can shoot in 24fps or 30fps in 4K. Switch from 4K to 1080p HD if you want a movie with 60fps. You may also record in HD at 30fps. You can enable ProRes format in video mode, which is also an option if you plan to record in action mode. The maximum time is also displayed once you turn it on. You also have a video light and exposure control. With the arrow symbol in the center, all of these controls can be brought up or disabled.
PORTRAIT
Moving on to portrait mode. Similar to cinematic video mode in many ways. You can snap clear pictures of your subject while choosing how much or how little blur you want to appear in the background when using portrait mode. A regular lens that is two or three times telephoto can be used to take portrait-style pictures. You have control over the flash, night mode, exposure, timer, filters, and f-stop in portrait mode. This will let you choose a digital aperture just like in the video. You can set your aperture to f 1.4 and still get good results if you’re shooting sharp objects or people.
However, if you shoot someone, the hair’s margins might be blurry. You might wish to set the aperture to F/4 or greater in this situation. Fortunately, you don’t need to precisely choose the correct F stop before capturing the picture. Similar to cinematic video mode, you can change this after taking the picture. To view smoother borders, simply open the photo you took, choose f, zoom in, and then bring the f stop. Depending on the style you prefer, you can also choose one of the portrait modes. Natural light, studio light, control, light, stage lights, stage light mono, and high key light mono.
PANO
Panorama is the final feature. You can change the way you’re moving by just touching either side. This will change the Arrow direction. All lens types can take panoramic photos. Ultra-wide, wide, 2X, and 3X telephoto. Press the shutter release and then slowly move the camera in the arrow direction. Once you capture the frame you want, hit the shutter button again to stop.
Conclusion
The iPhone 14 Pro camera offers a lot of amazing features for those who love photography. What Apple has done with its new iPhone 14 Pro is a smartphone that performs in every way closer to a real camera than any phone ever has before. It takes pictures that look like they were shot by a professional photographer, not just an ordinary camera phone. If the camera is important to you, then you should consider buying an iPhone 14 Pro even if you already own an iPhone 13 Pro.