I will not be shopping for a Professional iPhone till Apple fixes this digital camera drawback

After I determined to improve from an iPhone 13 to an iPhone 16 Pro final fall, one of many main incentives was gaining a telephoto lens. There have been different causes, after all — similar to an always-on show, and Apple Intelligence compatibility for testing functions — however the telephoto was arguably extra essential. Coming from a professional images background, I’ve all the time bristled on the thought of being restricted to a 24mm principal lens or a 13mm ultra-wide, no less than with out shopping for into third-party add-on kits which will or might not be usable the subsequent time I improve.

I’ve to confess, although, I have been just a little disenchanted with the 16 Professional’s telephoto now that I’ve used for almost 10 months. I am glad I’ve it, and I proceed to make use of it sometimes — but it surely’s made me query the worth of shopping for Professional iPhones generally, particularly because the base iPhone 17could lastly get an always-on show too.

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What’s improper with the iPhone 16 Professional’s telephoto digital camera?

Guarantees versus apply

On paper, it needs to be glorious. It has a 120mm focal size, an f/2.8 aperture, and sensor-shifting optical picture stabilization (OIS) to scale back movement blur. It is true that plenty of professional digital camera lenses can have longer focal lengths, and/or adjustable zoom — my favourite Nikon lens was a Nikkor 80-200mm f/2.8 — however 120mm is a good size for portraits, in addition to some occasions if you happen to’re not within the nosebleeds.

In a short time, although, I realized that the sensor within the telephoto is considerably worse than the one in the principle digital camera. It is not about megapixel depend, though 12 megapixels will naturally produce much less element and room for cropping than the principle digital camera’s 48 megapixels. No, the actual points are mild sensitivity and stabilization, one or each of which should be higher.

In brilliant circumstances, principally noon solar, the telephoto does a good job. I’ve used it to take many a photograph of my son taking part in on the park. However the second issues transition from “brilliant” to only “well-lit,” seen noise begins to creep in. Photographs with purely indoor lighting could be a crapshoot — some end up wonderful, however others appear like I am taking pictures on a telephone a decade previous, even when the lighting is not that totally different. It is usually not possible to take an indoor motion shot — I’ve seen extreme movement blur that made me query whether or not OIS was working in any respect.

You may say it is unfair to count on prime quality from one thing less expensive and smaller than pro-level gear, however that argument falls aside once you have a look at photos from the 16 Professional’s principal digital camera. They’re roundly glorious, even in low mild — I’ve shot photographs at evening or in darkish rooms that my previous Nikon D300 may by no means have achieved. Clearly, Apple made an intentional resolution to make use of an inferior telephoto sensor. It nearly feels insulting when you think about that right here in Canada, a 16 Professional begins at $1,449 CAD. I might really feel legitimately ripped off if I might spent $1,749 CAD on a Professional Max.

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How Apple can repair its telephoto cameras

Apparent and not-so-obvious modifications

Apple ought to no less than improve its telephoto sensors to match its principal ones. A telephoto could be as essential as a main digital camera, if not moreso — it is not solely higher for portraits, however usually the one method of capturing a topic in any significant element. To illustrate you are at a marriage reception — the hole between a 24mm lens and a 120mm one may imply the distinction between filling the body with the couple or principally seeing the dance ground, and also you should not should go for the broader shot as a result of the solar is not immediately overhead. You additionally should not should cross your fingers {that a} telephoto shot can be utilized uncropped.

I might prefer to see enhancements to picture stabilization too, however that is likely to be a tall order within the design area smartphone cameras should work with. An important factor is a sensor with higher low-light sensitivity — any new OIS tech can be icing on the cake.

Because the iPhone 17 Professional is rumored to be sticking to the identical magnification because the 16 Professional, sooner or later, Apple’s going to should crack and transfer past 5x zoom. Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Ultra can produce a 10x “optical high quality” zoom, due to a 5x lens with a croppable 50-megapixel sensor. The leap between 5x and 10x is not trivial. I discover {that a} 200mm lens or longer is commonly wanted for eventualities like concert events and wildlife, so the 16 Professional’s 120mm can nonetheless fall nicely brief.

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The prospects for a telephoto improve

In the end…

asherdipps

I would not be stunned to see the iPhone 17 Professional bump its telephoto to the identical 48-megapixel sensor discovered within the 16 Professional’s principal digital camera. Apple loves recycling elements, particularly in a method that lets it spin them as an improve — simply have a look at the M3 chip within the iPad Air, or any given Apple TV 4K improve. It is also seemingly feeling strain to compete with Samsung, to not point out Google, which put a 48-megapixel 5x digital camera within the Pixel 9 Professional. The Pixel 10 Pro is correct across the nook, and it might look horrible if the IPhone 17 Professional was caught with 1 / 4 the decision for years operating.

I am stunned at what Apple will put up with, generally, so it is arduous to say a lot with confidence. What I’ll say is that Apple must wow me with real-world telephoto efficiency earlier than I will think about dropping cash on one other Professional iPhone — I could make 2x zoom work if I’ve to to be able to save a whole lot of {dollars}. That is cash that may very well be put in direction of a greater standalone digital camera.

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