Photographers Austin Mann and Tyler Stalman have both published their iPhone 18 Pro camera reviews. The variable aperture, the new film-style Photographic Styles and Focus Tracking get most of the attention in each one.
Mann tested the iPhone 18 Pro for a week at Dunton River Camp in southwest Colorado and shared the results in a written review with full-resolution photos. Stalman, a Calgary-based photographer and YouTuber, posted his video review on the day the review embargo lifted. The wider reaction to the phone is in the iPhone 18 Pro reviews roundup.
Stalman compares the phone mostly against the iPhone 15 Pro, since he says many Pro owners keep their phones for around three years. Mann frames his upgrade advice around the iPhone 17 Pro.
The f/1.48 variable aperture is the upgrade both reviewers lead with
The main camera now opens to f/1.48, faster than the f/1.8 lens it replaces, and stops down to f/1.8, f/2.8 and f/4. Mann says the new aperture brings 50% better light gathering in low light. He tested it under a new moon sky at Dunton, including Milky Way shots.
Stalman says the extra light helps keep ISO lower and reduces how often Night mode has to step in. He also sees slightly more natural background blur, though he says the difference is not dramatic. He points out that Apple places the aperture blades above the primary lens element, where traditional camera lenses put them deeper inside.
Mann shares a few practical points on using it.
- He leaves the aperture on Auto, which picks f/1.48 indoors and a higher f-stop outdoors when more of the scene needs to be sharp.
- He switches out of Auto only for shallow depth of field, motion blur or a starburst.
- His favorite setting for a sun starburst is f/1.8.
- He says the starburst comes from the lens itself and involves no software simulation.
The 48MP sensor and the rest of the hardware changes are covered in our iPhone 18 Pro camera features breakdown.
Manual focus and shutter controls cover what photographers used to need Halide for
The Camera app now has manual focus with focus peaking. Mann calls separate control of focus and exposure one of the most requested features from photographers. Set focus by hand, then tap where the exposure should be metered.
He used it to focus on a mountain reflection in a store window while autofocus kept locking onto the glass. Shutter control is the other addition. The default shutter speed is very fast, which makes motion blur hard to get in the stock app, and Mann says that was a main reason he reached for Halide.
For a waterfall shot he closed the aperture to f/4 and dragged the shutter to 1/15 of a second. He also panned along with horseback riders at 1/60 of a second for a second motion blur image.
Mann says Focus Tracking works better than he expected. Double-tap a subject to lock focus, and it stays locked while the camera or the subject moves. He found it most useful for close-up flowers in the wind and for shooting a distant subject through foreground leaves.
The extra options come with a learning curve. Mann says there are so many controls that it is hard to remember where everything sits. He wants a dedicated Pro Camera app for photographers, similar to Final Cut Camera for filmmakers.
The film look in Photographic Styles is convincing, but real Portra 400 still wins on color
The new Photographic Styles add film texture, grain and halation controls, plus Soft Skin and Glow options. Mann says the grain is chunkier in the shadows than in the midtones and highlights, like real film. Halation shows up around very bright highlights and can be dialed with the Film slider.
Stalman shot photos side by side with a film SLR loaded with Kodak Portra 400. He found Apple’s grain and halation convincing, but says overall color and contrast still do not fully match real film. He describes Soft Skin as a subtle reduction in skin detail that avoids simple blurring, and Glow as a diffused highlight effect similar to a black mist filter.
Both reviewers want more control over the grain. Mann would like to dial it up and down for a subtle polish, and Stalman wishes Apple offered more control over the amount.
Mann shares a set of settings for the strongest film look.
- Underexpose to -1.0 and shoot wide open at f/1.48.
- Use manual focus, which makes the image slightly softer.
- Shoot HEIF so Photographic Styles can apply.
- In post, move the dot on the D-Pad to the lower right to reduce tone mapping.
- Dial back the Film effect if the halation goes too far.
The two differ on file format, mann shoots HEIF for most things and uses ProRAW mainly for stars and low light. Stalman still prefers Apple ProRAW and editing in Lightroom.
Apple Reference Image, 4K time-lapse and Apple Log round out the camera changes
Mann explains the difference between a RAW file and a signed Apple Reference Image with a paper contract analogy. The drawer copy is probably genuine, the notarized copy is provably genuine.
Apple Reference Image is turned on under Settings > Camera > Reference Image > Add Reference Mode. It gets its own mode next to Photo and works on the main camera at 1x and 2x, but not on the 0.5x, 4x or 8x lenses. Mann sees uses in insurance claims for vehicle damage, move-in photos for landlords and online listings, if Apple opens it to third-party apps.
Stalman also covers Apple Reference Image, he says Clean Up, Extend and Reframe are technically impressive and convincing, but they can change a photo so much that it no longer feels authentic.
Time-lapse now records in 4K in the native Camera app, up from 1080p. Mann says that finally matches the resolution of his video, and he was able to export a full-resolution frame from a finished time-lapse. He has not figured out how the new Adaptive time-lapse works, which slows down when it detects motion, and he wants speed presets such as Fast, Faster and Fastest.
On video, Stalman says Cinematic mode can now be applied after recording and 60 fps capture has been added. He still recommends Apple Log for the best video quality, and he also covers the new Apple Log 2.
Upgrade advice depends on whether you own an iPhone 17 Pro or an iPhone 15 Pro
- iPhone 17 Pro owners. Mann says the reasons to upgrade are the variable aperture, Focus Tracking and the film styles with grain control. Our iPhone 18 Pro vs iPhone 17 Pro comparison covers the rest.
- iPhone 15 Pro owners. Stalman says the ultrawide and telephoto cameras already received major upgrades over the past few generations, so this year’s biggest camera change sits on the main lens. He describes the update as a set of smaller improvements rather than one massive leap.
- Lenses. Mann calls the lens lineup perfect, with a 4x telephoto at 100mm and 48MP. Stalman says the 4x zoom is a nice improvement over the 5x on the iPhone 16 Pro, which could feel too tight.
- iPhone 18 Pro Max. Mann says the camera systems match on the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. He suggests the iPhone 18 Pro Max for anyone who often runs low on battery.
- Battery. Apple rates the iPhone 18 Pro for 36 hours of video playback, compared with 23 hours on the iPhone 15 Pro. Stalman says he had not yet tested battery life fully. Our coverage of iPhone 18 Pro Max charging times also helps with decision making when it comes to battery and chanring.
- Color. Stalman says Cosmic Orange on his iPhone 17 Pro tended to show up in window reflections. He suggests Burgundy or Black for professionals.
- Cases. Mann says iPhone 17 Pro cases and accessories still work on the iPhone 18 Pro. Apple has said otherwise, but they fit anyway.
Mann also spent time with the iPhone Duo at Apple Park. He likes SmartTake, which fires the camera when everyone in a group is ready, and Kid Cue, which uses the outer screen to get children’s attention. He wishes SmartTake came to the iPhone 18 Pro.
The iPhone Duo has 48MP Ultra Wide and Wide cameras but no telephoto. Mann uses the 4x lens constantly, so he would not make it his daily phone. His advice is that professionals who rely on their iPhone for work should pick the iPhone 18 Pro, while the iPhone Duo camera is more than enough for most people.
Our Take
I think the manual controls matter more than the aperture for anyone who shoots often. Mann named blur control as a main reason for using Halide, and the stock Camera app now covers it. Separating focus from exposure removes another.
The film styles are the fun part, and Stalman’s Portra 400 test is a useful reality check. Apple gets grain and halation right. Color and contrast still lean on real editing, which fits Stalman’s ProRAW and Lightroom workflow.
For iPhone 17 Pro owners, the upgrade list is the aperture, Focus Tracking and the film styles. That list matters most to photographers who shoot manually or in low light. Everyone else gets a camera that looks much like last year’s.
