GoKawiil
Tech News
Photographer Austin Mann published his annual deep-dive into the iPhone 18 Pro camera, testing the new variable aperture, Pro manual controls, and Photographic Styles 3. He praises the camera's automatic aperture selection, showcases low-light shots enabled by the wider f/1.48 aperture, and details how to separate focus from exposure for the first time on iPhone.
Apple's iPhone 18 Pro introduces a variable aperture camera with six blades controlled by a rotor, letting users choose between four settings from f/1.48 to f/4.0 directly in the Camera app. The update is paired with other imaging features including cinematic effects for standard video, Apple Reference Image, Photographic Styles 3, and an Audio Mix tool for music. According to early hands-on testing, the new aperture control produces more natural soft-focus effects than the phone's existing Portrait mode.
Apple's iOS 27 update introduces a new 'Siri' mode in the Camera app that uses AI to identify and act on what the camera sees, such as translating text or adding event details to a calendar. The update also lets users customize which controls appear in each camera mode, while iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max owners get exclusive tools including manual aperture, shutter speed, white balance, a histogram viewer, and upgraded Photographic Styles with texture and grain adjustments.
Developer pdfu found unreleased code in the iOS 27 beta's Camera app suggesting Apple is testing four professional-grade features, including histogram and waveform exposure scopes and focus peaking tools. These functions aren't currently active in any released beta but appear to be built into the app's underlying code, according to the discovery.