Amateur Photographer - UK (2021-11-27)

48 http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk

Testbench SMARTPHONE TEST

ALTHOUGH not dramatically

different, the image quality from

iPhone 13 Pro is better than that

from the iPhone 12 Pro as the

contrast is managed slightly

better so there’s less of an ‘HDR

look’ to some shots.

The new Cinematic mode can

work well, but it needs to be used

with care as any mistakes in the

selection of the subject and the

transition to blur are more

obvious in a moving image than

they are in a still. However, it’s an

interesting development that I’m

sure will improve with time.

When shooting stills, the

iPhone 13 Pro does a great job of

identifying the subject and

focusing on it quickly even in very

low light. It also manages to

create natural-looking shallow

depth of field effects in many

instances, even dealing well with

fuzzy subjects like fur and hair.

It’s hard to justify upgrading

from the iPhone 12 Pro to the 13

Pro, but if you’re an iPhone fan

and you want the best image

quality, the iPhone 13 Pro (or

iPhone 13 Pro Max if you’re

looking for something bigger), is

the one to go for.

Verdict

Price

£949 128GB

£1,049 256GB

£1,249 512GB

£1,449 1TB

Cameras

13mm equiv f/1.8

26mm equiv f/1.5

77mmequiv f/2.8

Operating System

iOS15

Display

6.1in Super Retina

XDR OLED with

ProMotion, 2532 x

1170 px, 10- 12 0Hz

Dimensions

146 .7 x 71.5 x

7.65mm

Weight

203g

Data file

swiping them left or right to
select the one you want. In
Time-Lapse, Photo and Portrait
mode there’s a small arrow at
the top of the screen that allows
access to other settings with a
tap. It’s very easy to get to grips
with it all.
If Apple ProRAW is selected
via the phone’s Setting menu,
there’s the option to turn on
DNG raw file shooting in Photo
mode. However, using that
option rules out using one of
new introductions brought by the
iPhone 13, Photographic Styles.
These are essentially the picture
styles we’re used to seeing on
cameras and they can’t be
applied post-capture. They’re
more subtle in effect than the
filters and there’s control
available over the Tone and
Warmth of each.
The Cinematic mode is like
Portrait mode for video, it
enables the computational
aperture and depth of field to be
adjusted for Full HD video. You
tap on the screen where you
want the focus to be and set an
aperture setting that gives the
degree of blur that you want.
Then, once you start recording,
you can shift the focus with a
second tap.

In Photo and Portrait mode the

iPhone 13 Pro activates Night

mode automatically when it

detects low light levels, showing

a yellow icon in the top left of

the screen. This triggers the

camera to take a series of

exposures over a longer period

(typically 1 or 2 seconds but it

can be longer) and then

composite them into one image.

Image quality

The 26mm wide camera is the

default unit on the iPhone 13

Pro and it delivers impressively

good results with plenty of

impact and attractive colours

that don’t look too saturated but

are still vibrant. In the absence

of a white balance control in the

native camera app, I often use

the Warm Photographic Style

and it delivers nice results in

many instances.

It only takes a tap on the

screen to slip between the three

cameras and aside from the

change in framing, the images

are a great match for each other

on the iPhone screen. Examining

images in more detail on a

computer monitor reveals that

the wide camera is the best of

the bunch, capturing the most

natural detail, but none of them

really disappoint. The raw files

also look a little more natural

when examined on a computer

screen, and have more scope for

adjustment, but don’t expect to

pull back high amounts of

highlight detail. It will be

interesting to see how much

flexibility ProRes recording brings

for video when it comes later

this year.

On the subject of highlights,

these are lost a bit quicker than

with a DSLR or mirrorless

camera, and very bright areas of

a blue sky can cause problems,

but overall the iPhone 13 Pro

balances the exposure well and

has decent dynamic range.

Thanks to the large apertures

and Deep Fusion technology that

carries out pixel-by-pixel analysis,

the iPhone 13 Pro usually

produces very good results in low

light and the stabilisation does

an excellent job of compensating

for shake from hand-

holding the phone.

Here the camera has
done a fine job of
balancing highlight
and shadow detail
Apple iPhone 13 Pro, 26mm,
1/ 1150 sec at f/ 1. 7 , ISO 50

Recommended

‘It delivers impressively good results with

plenty of impact and attractive colours’