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

As a professional photographer, I was impressed with how iPhone 11 Pro was able to replace my DSLR in photo shoots. But since then, Apple launched the iPhone 12 line that includes the iPhone 12 Mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max, and the camera technology is even better this time. The iPhone 12 Pro Max camera updates especially, both in hardware and software, made me anxious about going to shoot with this thing. This is where I’m so excited.

Zoom in with the 2.5x telephoto lens

I love the telephoto zoom lens on the iPhone 11 Pro, but with just 2x, it doesn’t always provide the zoom level I want. I often find myself enlarging the digital zoom even further to get the exact composition I want. The iPhone 12 Pro Max takes this further, to 2.5x, which may not seem like a major update, but I think it will be noticeable in many photos.

Would I have liked 5x or 10x? Sure, I love the bigger zoom on phones like the Galaxy S20 Ultra (is the new The Galaxy S21 Ultra still has a large 100x zoom), but because they’re so big, I don’t use them as often as 2x on the iPhone. Maybe 3x would be a good compromise, but I still think the 12 Pro Max update will make a big difference in many of my photos.

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Larger image sensor

Apple is already able to extract incredible image quality from the tiny sensors of the phone’s camera, and its excellent software allows for the amazing photos in night mode we’ve seen. But a 47% larger sensor captures more light, allowing for brighter pictures with less noise and a better dynamic range. That’s why my professional camera (a Canon 5D Mark IV) uses a much larger full-frame sensor.

I am very excited to see the difference that this larger sensor can make not only for my night shots, but for capturing small details in landscapes, or at close range when taking macro images of flowers. A larger sensor paired with Apple’s image processing software is likely to be a potent combination.

Improved and faster lens for better night mode

It’s not just the sensor that can capture more light – the lens itself can let in more light than before, thanks to its wider aperture, f / 1.6. This number basically means that the hole through which the light passes is larger than before, allowing more light to pass through in the same period of time. Along with the larger sensor, Apple calculates that the 12 Pro Max had an 87% improvement in low light images on the iPhone 11, which was already one of the best in low light photos.

The redesigned lens is not just about letting more light in. Apple also explained in its launch presentation that it improved the optical clarity of the lenses by reducing the amount of image distortion, especially at the edges of the image on the wider lens. All of this means more professional and better looking images. Lovely things.

Apple ProRaw

Many of my best images I took with the iPhone were taken raw, using third-party applications. Raw images do not save data such as color or sharpness information, allowing greater control when editing in mobile applications such as Adobe Lightroom Mobile. However, the disadvantage of photographing raw in third-party applications is that you are unable to take advantage of the image processing that Apple uses in its own camera application. The incredible Deep Fusion processing for HDR, for example, is just something you get when shooting with the iPhone’s native camera.

To attract more professionals, Apple released the Apple ProRaw in your camera application, which takes advantage of many of its image processing features, but does not permanently incorporate data such as white balance, allowing you to still make these changes in post-production. Apple says it is the best of both worlds and, on paper, I am tempted to agree, but I will have to reserve my final judgment until I can not only shoot images in this new format, but also edit the images as well.

It is important to note that Google has already done almost the same with its Pixel computing “raw computing” feature, which CNET senior editor Stephen Shankland calls “tremendous”.

HDR video and enhanced stabilization

It wasn’t just the photos that improved. The phone now also offers HDR with Dolby Vision at up to 60fps, which Apple says is the first time this has been offered on any device. In theory, this would help control bright highlights and eliminate dark shadows, just like HDR does when you take pictures.

Optical image stabilization has also been improved by moving the image sensor to counteract movement and vibration, instead of moving the heavier lenses, as was the case before. How much difference it makes is yet to be seen when I can take the phones for a proper test, but with better image quality and better stabilization, I am very excited about the types of videos I can produce with this phone.