Why the iPhone 12 Pro Max’s camera is so exciting for professional photographers

As a professional photographer, I was blown away by how iPhone 11 Pro was able to replace my DSLR on photo shoots. But Apple has since introduced the iPhone 12 range which includes the iPhone 12 Mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max, and the camera tech is even better this time around. The The camera of the iPhone 12 Pro Max the updates especially, both in hardware and software, made me want to run around with this thing. Here is why I am so excited.

More zoom with the 2.5x telephoto lens

I love the iPhone 11 Pro’s telephoto zoom, but at just 2x it doesn’t always provide the zoom level I want. I often find myself digitally zooming in more to get the exact composition I want. The iPhone 12 Pro Max goes a step further, at 2.5x which may not seem like a huge upgrade, but I think it will be noticeable for many photos.

Would I have liked 5x or 10x? Of course, I like the greater zoom on phones like the Galaxy s20 ultra (and the new The Galaxy S21 Ultra even has a huge 100x zoom), but since they’re so big, I don’t use them as often as the 2x on the iPhone. Maybe 3x would have been a good compromise, but I still think upgrading from the 12 Pro Max will make a big difference for a lot of my photos.

Read more: The best phone to buy for 2021

Larger image sensor

Apple already manages to squeeze incredible image quality out of the phone’s tiny camera sensors, and its great software enables the great night mode photos we’ve seen before. But a 47% larger sensor captures more light, allowing for brighter shots with less noise and better dynamic range. This is why my professional camera (a Canon 5D Mark IV) uses a much larger full frame sensor.

I’m very keen to see what a difference this larger sensor could make not only for my night shots, but for capturing fine detail in landscapes, or up close when shooting macro images of flowers. A larger sensor paired with Apple’s image processing software is likely to be a powerful combination.

Improved and faster lens for better night mode

It’s not just the sensor that can pick up more light – the lens itself can let in more light than before thanks to its wider f / 1.6 aperture. This number basically means that the hole that the light passes through is larger than before, allowing more light to pass in the same amount of time. With the larger sensor, Apple estimates that the 12 Pro Max saw an 87% improvement in low-light images from the iPhone 11, which was already one of the best for low-light photos.

The redesigned goal isn’t just to let in more light. Apple also explained in its launch presentation that it has improved the optical clarity of the lens, reducing the amount of image distortion, especially at the edges of the image on the larger lens. All of this means better looking and more professional images. Beautiful things.

Apple ProRaw

Many of my best images that I have taken with the iPhone have been taken in raw format, using third-party applications. Raw images do not record data such as color information or sharpness, which allows for better control when editing in mobile apps like Adobe Lightroom Mobile. However, the downside to raw shooting in third-party apps is that you can’t take advantage of the image processing that Apple uses in its own camera app. Deep Fusion processing for incredible HDR, for example, is just something you’ll get when shooting with the iPhone’s native camera.

To please the pros more, Apple introduced Apple ProRaw in its camera app, which takes advantage of many of its image processing capabilities, but doesn’t permanently embed data like white balance, so you can always make those changes in post -production. Apple says it’s the best of both worlds, and on paper I’m tempted to agree, but I’ll have to reserve my final judgment until I can not only shoot in this new format, but also edit the images.

It should be noted that Google has done much the same with its Pixel Phones Computational Raw Feature, which CNET editor-in-chief Stephen Shankland calls “formidable.”

HDR video and improved stabilization

It’s not just still images that have seen an improvement. The phone also now offers HDR with Dolby Vision up to 60 fps, which Apple says is the first time this has been offered on a device. In theory, this would help control bright reflections and lift dark shadows, much like HDR when you shoot still images.

Optical image stabilization has also been improved by moving the image sensor to counteract movement and vibration, rather than moving the heavier lens as was the case before. It remains to be seen what a difference it makes when I can get the phones out for a proper test, but with better picture quality and better stabilization I’m really excited about the types of videos I will be able to produce with this phone. .

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