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

Positive, I would’ve been emotionally connected to my iPhone 12 Pro (though it was hanging on by a thread), however I used to be by no means so blissful to see the digital camera go. After I first received 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 associates would seize my telephone 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 could gaslight me into pondering it was the most effective digital camera round once more. I used to be completed questioning whether or not or not a photograph would end up a couple of weeks in the past after I lastly upgraded to an iPhone 16 Pro.

Now that I have been taking pictures my pictures with the for the final two weeks, here is what I discovered stark (and never so insane) concerning the bounce 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 need to be on its finest habits

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 after I’m zooming in or cropping my photographs from my new digital camera, and it brings me nice pleasure as a social media supervisor who’s at all times slicing, 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 gentle a lens permits right into a digital camera. The 12 Professional has ƒ/1.6 aperture on its important digital camera whereas the 16 Professional has ƒ/1.78. On the floor, aperture going up is not at all times the most effective factor — it does let in additional gentle. Nevertheless, that was the principle difficulty I used to be operating into with my dusty 12 Professional — every little thing 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 profitable the specs warfare every single day of the week.

Hear, 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 footage on the 5 years prior. However after tooling round for a short time, I noticed that even after 4 generations, Apple did such a great job with the iPhone 12 Professional’s lenses that each one the upgrades that got here after had been actually simply fine-tuning tweaks to optimize an already good digital camera. I wasn’t as overwhelmed with image high quality as I believed I might be.

Granted, my Snapchats had been noticeably larger high quality — I even had a pal ask me what I had completed otherwise within the final week. I am not saying I regarded higher. Quite the opposite, you might truly 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 received a great shot in it. My iPhone 12 Professional would fully freak out in any type of lighting — and I could not even take into consideration taking a selfie exterior for the sake of sunshine stripes that fully dominated any facial options, not to mention posting any footage I took to my Instagram.

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Spare {hardware}, good sir?

I suppose my 12 Professional gave me a bit picture PTSD, as a result of I discovered myself hesitating to take footage I knew it could not take even after I already upgraded to the 16 Professional. Nevertheless, I overcame that feature-fear and was delighted to search out that I had image freedom as soon as extra with the brand new telephone. Lighting positive helps any image, however it did not make or break my image high quality within the slightest.

New images options

Hey 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 Cell skilled on the ripe age of 17, and I most popular to edit my footage after I took them — not throughout — thanks very a lot. Over time, increasingly more modes got here out, however I wasn’t one to leap on that bandwagon. It was at all times the worst after I would ask a stranger to take an image on my telephone out in public solely to undergo my digital camera later and see that they selected to make use of Portrait Mode. They nearly at all times did it to be thoughtful, so I might scream into the theoretical pillow after I received dwelling so they would not suppose 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 website — Patrick O’Rourke, Pocket-lint’s Editor-in-Chief, put me onto this specific setting. Mainly, it makes use of scene understanding to regulate specific colours in numerous elements of your photographs. Individuals typically 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, you need to select 4 of your favourite footage — the catch is that they needed to be taken on the brand new telephone. After you select them, they will act as mediums to match totally different Types. You may choose between:

• Commonplace
• 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 received 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 have used any type of fundamental picture editor ever in your life.

You may return and edit this setting any time, however from there on out, the images you’re taking will routinely be edited in that model. I prefer it as a result of it is extremely delicate — not in your face just like the notorious Portrait Mode. Now, my footage are simply ever-so-slightly hotter in the way in which I might normally 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. Nevertheless, I fairly actually have not used it since I arrange the telephone, 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.”

Nevertheless, I do need to 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 trying to find a great 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 vary this:

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

And there you could have it — now you possibly can deal with your iPhone just like the point-and-shoot Apple desires you to. Tremendous-computer capabilities tagged on, after all.