iPhone 12 Pro camera not focusing properly

For the 12ProMax this seems a physical limitation of the new lens system, resulting in an inability to focus inside of ~4 5/8”. No mention was made by Apple of this change, and all the “professional” camera writers/reviewers/bloggers were so mesmerized testing night mode that they failed to even notice this.

This means the min field of view is much larger, and as a result the effective macro resolution,and thus capability, is crippled vs past models.

And so, to summarize my own tests in simple terms:

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The iphone 12 pro max’s ability to take detailed close range photos is over 40% worse than last year’s 11 pro max. ‘’

All other 12’s including the 12 pro do not have this limitation. They can focus at just under 3” , in line w previous years’ models. There was a Camera software bug in 14.1 that made it extremely difficult to focus at that distance on the 12 pro, but that was largely was addressed in 14.2.

I tested it side by side with an iPhone 8 and a Samsung galaxy s10, the 12 pro was the only one of the 3 phones not focusing at such close range. Seems strange that a 2017 iPhone 8 would give a better focus than a $1000 2020 iPhone 12 pro tooting the best camera. If that is the case I’ll have to return this phone and stick to something that can handle the job such as a Samsung galaxy. I highly doubt that this is as close as I can get though because I’ve seen videos of people testing the focus with the iPhone 11 Pro and the 12 pro is definitely blurry and out of focus. Ive even see where someone said it’s a glitch in the software of SOME iPhone 12 pros and 12 pro max. Some people have gotten it to focus with multiple taps on the screen. See photo

Same here. Tested it with an iPhone 12 Pro Max and a 11 Pro Max. both with x1.0 setting and mounted to a tripod.

1: 12 Pro Max

2: 11 Pro Max

Apple support made a remote diagnosis but didn‘t find a hardware error.

I have an iPhone 12 pro and is experiencing the same issue (as well as many other folks when I did a quick google search). It is unable to focus when I open the app then get close or if I am already close to the object and open the camera app. I noticed it today when attempting to get an up close shot. This issue happens every single time. My software version is 14.2.1. It also happens when recording a video up close.

Interesting. Is this using the Pro Max? Because all the other iPhone 12 variants are fine for macro. They all perform consistently with previous generations. (There *was* a software macro focusing glitch for all iphone 12 devices , but which was fixed in iOS 14.2. )

The Pro Max is a completely different story unfortunately. It’s macro capabilities have been devastated. It is the only device where the minimum focus distance has increased very significantly, so this thread is really only now about the Max...

Hello Itsjojojoei,

It sounds like you are experiencing issues focusing your camera for up close shots. We understand how important this is for you and we're here to help.

First let's review this article regarding your camera features: About the Camera features on your iPhone

Specifically the section titled "Adjust your focus and exposure."

Are you opening your camera while your camera is already close to the subject? What is your exact iOS version? Does the issue persist every time you attempt to take a close up shot? Also, when did you first notice this?

Cheers!

Guys. Basically. Using 2.5x optical zoom (Not digital), is the way to get good close up shots on newer iPhones (12, Pro & Max). You don't need the phone really close at 1x like before.

Taken on a iPhone 12 Pro Max.

Left: 1X zoom.

Right: 2.5x zoom.

Max pro owners wishing they had 12pro and 12 pro owners wishing we had 11 pro or 12.

Theses were taken from the same spot, the Samsung can actually get even closer than this. This is unacceptable, why upgrade to a new phone if I can’t let go of the old one due to the camera? The iPhone focuses on the background no matter how many times I tap the image, the focus just bonuses all over until it eventually settles around here. My 12pro is running iOS 14.3

Are you sure you are not just at the minimum focus distance for the camera? All lenses have one.

(I've not been able to find any specification that tells us what minumum focus distance is)

Mine is also limited to about 8cm - I'm assuming that is just the technical limit.

Same question here. Maybe there’s hidden settings, but so far, wishing I had my 10 Max back. The closeup photos are unable to focus, the long shots seem to focusing everywhere but center. Is there a way to bring / set the focus to center focusing. Right now...Not impressed. Very disappointed.

I reported this issue to Apple as well. After two days of resetting my phone and discussion, they ended up saying this:

"The iPhone's 12 camera has a larger camera sensor and optics so the macro focus distance (MFD, or minimum focus distance). So due the quality of the camera sometimes could not focus up close , however Apple is working hard to find the  best resolution in order to fix that issue."

I've found an intermittent solution is using the 2.5 telephoto for macro photos. It's not perfect as, but until there's a software update or something it works. :/

Do you have the Max?

If you are closer than about 11” from the subject, and you hit the “2.5x Tele” button, the software is fooling you into thinking you are using the telephoto lens, but it’s not. It is using the 1x lens with a ton of artificial digital zoom. So the viewfinder image seems better but it’s an illusion. It may seem like a fix, but the resolution, detail and image quality remains poor compared to literally any other modern iPhone sold at any price. That’s a very bad trade off for many and it wasn’t made clear. It also cripples the native Magnifier app, which depends on this capability, so they should have removed the Magnifier.

At 11” or more, you can use the real telephoto lens. It can focus at ~11” or more, but not any less. But if you use it, the 2.5x zoom you get is entirely negated by the fact you have had to pull back so far, and since it is a lower quality lens overall, the results end up worse !

Thanks. Unfortunately on the 12 Pro Max, these settings changes did not improve the minimum focus distance. it is still almost double what it used to be, which limits the resolution proportionally , making its macro capabilities 40 to 50 percent worse than every other iPhone model for almost the past decade.

i experienced this as well and quickly returned my iPhone 12 pro max. What a huge mistake they made with this phone. My 11pro max allows me to get the close shots I need for my business. They really should address this issue because it’s not even really an upgrade but a downgrade.

I bought a pro max for my mom and I and we both have this same issue. We are coming from 7+ models, and a 4+ year old phone was able to do far better at far closer distances, so we're both frustrated with this issue. After calling support and speaking to a rep + an assistant supervisor, they were both unaware of the problem, and the rep acted as though the problem didn't exist and was 'user error'. I'm hoping this can be updated through software, as it seems it's just those models using the new Lidar sensor that have the problem (Pro models). I don't want to return the phone and go to an Android, but I did buy the phone for camera abilities and this is certainly frustrating for both of us.