The iPhone 16 series comes with Physical Camera Control button which you can tap to take a photo or video, tap to reveal different settings, and slide to adjust exposure and other factors. However, the controls can be difficult, especially if you’re used to swiping and tapping on-screen settings to take photos.
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I’ve been trying out Camera Control for the past few weeks, using it to take photos and videos all over the place. There’s definitely a learning curve. You have to figure out how to access each setting and apply a tap or right tap to activate it. You also need to understand how adjusting exposure, depth of field, style, and tone will affect your photo — and which of these you should use and when.
I’m still trying to get used to the controls to determine whether I like it better than the standard on-screen camera setting. If you are also having difficulty with the controls, here are 12 tips to help you use them more easily.
How to use Camera Control on iPhone 16
By default, a single tap on Camera Control opens the Camera app. It’s a quick and easy way to take photos. But you might accidentally press the control button when you don’t want to use the camera. In that case, you can change the action to double click.
Go to Settings, select Camera, then tap Camera Control. In the Camera Launch section, select the Double Click option and then see if double tapping the control works better for you.
Lightly tapping or double-tapping Camera Controls when the Camera app is open lets you cycle through the various settings and adjust them as desired. But when you do this, the on-screen settings in the Camera app disappear due to the Clean Preview option. The goal is to give you a clear and unobstructed view of your subject. However, you may want to have access to the settings on that screen to adjust them in the usual way. In that case, just turn off Clean Preview.
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Go to Settings, select Camera, then tap Camera Control. In the Light Press section, turn off the Clean Preview switch. The next time you use Camera Control, note that the on-screen settings are still visible.
By default, Camera Control activates the built-in Camera app. It’s OK. But maybe you want to activate another application. Perhaps you use a third-party camera app that you like or like to take photos through a social networking app like Instagram or Snapchat. Nothing.
Again, go to Settings, select Camera, then tap Camera Control. The bottom shows a list of camera programs and related apps installed on your iPhone. Click on the one you want to use. The next time you press the Camera control button, the app you selected will pop up.
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The settings that appear when you tap or double-tap a control vary by app. On my iPhone, obscure The camera app gives me access to settings for exposure, zoom, filters, focus, and format. the ProCamera The app allows me to control exposure and zoom. And halide the app provides access to lock, exposure, and focus settings.
With the Camera app open, tapping Camera Controls once will take you to the last setting you used, such as exposure or depth of field. Gently tapping it twice takes you to a list of all the settings — Exposure, Depth of Field, Zoom, Style and Tone. Once you stop at a particular setting, pressing the control button again will allow you to adjust that setting. But if you’re having trouble getting the gentle press to work properly, you may want to adjust the pressure.
Go to Settings and select Accessibility. In the Physics and Engine section, tap Camera Controls. The Camera Control screen offers three pressure levels — Lighter, Default and Normal. Initially, I found that even the default option failed to register many of my light taps, which is why I changed it to Lighter. Your mileage may vary, so try looking at the three levels to see which one works best for you.
Gently tapping Camera Controls twice brings up all the settings you can adjust. But that’s another action that may not always register correctly. In that case, you can modify the pressure.
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Go to Settings, select Accessibility, and tap Camera Control. Swipe down to the bottom of the screen to the Double Light-Press Speed section. Change the level from Default to Slow or Slower to see if pressing the double light is more accurate. Switching it from Default to Slow helped me.
Pressing Camera Controls once while the Camera app is open will take a still photo. But you can also use the remote to record video. Simply press the control down until the red shutter button appears at the bottom and the timer appears at the top. When you’re done, release the controls and your video will be saved to the gallery.
You use exposure settings to lighten or darken a scene. EV, or exposure value, is a number that represents shutter speed and aperture to determine the amount of light reaching the lens. The more light, the brighter the scene; The less light, the darker the scene.
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To access this feature when the Camera app is open, double-tap Camera Controls and swipe up on the control until you see Exposure. Tap once to adjust exposure, then slide your finger up and down on the control, moving between -2 EV to darken the scene and 2 EV to brighten it. In addition to increasing exposure to compensate for low-light scenes, consider keeping some photos darker to make them more interesting or mysterious.
Use the depth of field setting to determine how sharp the area around the scene is relative to the subject of the photo. The higher the depth of field, the more the entire scene is in focus. The lower the depth of field, the more the background or surrounding area is out of focus compared to the subject. Here, you’re actually adjusting the F-stop to increase or decrease the aperture of the lens.
In the Camera app, double-tap the Camera control then swipe up until you see Depth. Press once and then slide your finger on the remote. In dark environments, you may need to use a lower depth of field to keep the subject of your photo in focus. In scenes with lots of light, depth of field may automatically be set to a higher number. However, you may find a photo with a lower depth of field and a slightly blurred background to be more interesting than a photo that is completely in focus.
Zoom settings simply zoom in and out on the subject. You will need to zoom in to capture a distant subject or scene and zoom out to capture a larger area. Again, double-tap the Camera control and swipe until you see Zoom. Tap once and slide your finger along the control to zoom in and out.
Style settings apply a specific color temperature to your photo. You can choose from styles like pure black and white, muted black and white, ethereal, cozy, quite, dramatic, bright, natural, vibrant, standard, amber, gold, rose gold, medium cool and rosy.
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Double-tap the Camera control and swipe until you see Style. Tap once and slide your finger along the control to see how different styles affect the look and mood of your photo.
The tint setting controls the amount of shadow in your photo, another way to lighten or darken a scene. Double-tap the Camera control and swipe down to the bottom until you see Color Tone. Tap once and slide your finger on the controller to explore different levels. Switching from 1 to -1, you can add or remove shadows on the screen to create a dramatic effect.
Finally, if you decide you don’t like Camera Control, you can easily turn it off. Go to Settings, select Accessibility, and tap Camera Control. To disable the ability to adjust settings by lightly pressing the control, turn off the Show Adjustment switch. To turn off Camera Control completely, turn off the Camera Control switch.
