iPhone cameras are extremely powerful and feature-rich.
Uncovering your iPhone camera’s hidden tricks can help you take stunning photos and videos that will last a lifetime.
In this post, we’ll look at some of the lesser-known ways to make the most of your iPhone camera so you can take amazing photos every time.
Let’s investigate these setting tricks together!
1) Turn on the Rule-of-Thirds Grid
You can easily take good pictures with the iPhone’s excellent camera, but by turning on the camera grid, you can use the rule of thirds to take great pictures every time!
According to the Rule-of-Thirds composition guideline, an image should be divided into nine equal parts by two equally spaced horizontal lines and two equally spaced vertical lines, with your main compositional elements placed along these lines or their intersections.
Fortunately, you can turn on a Rule-of-Thirds Grid on your iPhone to help you follow this compositional guideline.
You won’t find a setting to enable camera grid lines in the Camera app; instead, go to…
Settings > Camera > Turn on the Grid
That’s all it takes to enable the feature! Now, when you take a photo, remember to align your main subject along the lines for a more pleasing composition.
The sweet spot is where two grid lines intersect. Try it out and see how your photo compositions improve!
2) Turn on the ProRAW Setting
ProRAW is an image format. Like JPEG and PNG image formats, ProRAW is another image file format you can use.
Shooting RAW photos on the iPhone means saving a picture exactly as the iPhone’s image sensor “sees” it, with no automatic processing. When compared to a JPEG image, shooting in RAW format yields better results during post-processing.
The downside is that your photo file will be very large with all this additional information. So, if you don’t plan on post-processing your photo, you may want to save storage space, and not use the RAW format.
To take photos with ProRAW, go to…
Settings > Camera > Formats, > Photo Capture > Turn on Apple ProRAW
Then in your Camera app, Tap RAW to take a ProRAW photo.
Compatibility
Apple ProRAW feature is available in the following iPhone models:
- iPhone 12 Pro
- iPhone 12 Pro Max
- iPhone 13 Pro
- iPhone 13 Pro Max
- iPhone 14 Pro
- iPhone 14 Pro Max
You can use this feature on all cameras, including the front camera. Apple ProRAW isn’t supported in Portrait mode.
3) Turn on the Mirrored Image Setting
When you take a selfie with your iPhone’s stock Camera app, the image is automatically flipped or mirrored to the opposite of the mirror image you saw in the preview before you took the shot.
Having the image flipped can be perplexing and potentially irritating, especially since most third-party social media apps take mirrored selfies, so you’re more likely to be accustomed to the mirroring functionality than the flipped selfies taken by your iPhone.
Fortunately, Apple has enabled users to change the default behavior of the Camera app in iOS 14 and later, which means you can get the mirrored selfie you’re probably more used to seeing.
To switch your front camera to default to a Mirrored image, go to…
Settings > Camera > Turn on Mirror Front Camera
Conclusion
In conclusion, with these three hidden tricks in your arsenal, you can unlock the full potential of your iPhone’s camera and take stunning photos every time.
You’ll be able to get excellent results with a little bit of practice.
You don’t need fancy equipment or expensive software – all you need is an iPhone and knowledge of how to use its built-in features!
So grab your phone, and let’s create some beautiful memories.
Happy snapping!
Help your friends take better photos by using the Share Buttons below. I really appreciate you helping to spread the word about my Free Daily Tech Tips for Non-Techies! 🙂
Thanks so much!