iPHONE 13
The theory behind Smart HDR –
Smart HDR 3 on the iPhone 12 and
12 Pro, and the new Smart HDR 4
algorithm on the iPhone 13 mini – is
that it captures multiple exposures
and intelligently combines them to
find the optimal settings for each
section of the image. That way it can
bring out the detail of your shadowy
subject without overexposing the
sunny sky.
The results were counter-intuitive,
with my own personal preferences
running in exactly the wrong order. All
three did a decent job – you can easily
make out detail on the subject’s face
and clothing, despite the challenge
of the backlighting – but the 13 mini
felt the weakest overall. Whereas the
12 and 12 Pro both brought out vividcolours from the scene, the blue sky
and pink dress in particular, the 13
mini added a noticeable grey cast.
Perhaps this was more realistic (I
don’t remember it being this gloomy,
however); but it’s certainly a less
pleasing outcome artistically.
I will add that the 13 mini
captured a bigger image than the
others (4,032x3,024, rather than
2,048x1,536, so it’s capable of deeper
cropping before you lose clarity.
Bizarrely, the 12 handled skin
tones best of the three. But this may
have been the lucky result of changes
in conditions between shots, so let’s
try another.
All three phones maintain an
impressive level of detail on the near
surface of the tree, which in realitySmart HDR camera test 1.