iPhone 12 Pro Max minimum focus distance is very long

I talked to Apple support (Japan) this morning and they verified that the iPhone 12 Pro Max cannot take macro photos (eg of things like insects or of labels or serial numbers in a confined space such as when you stick your phone behind the TV to take a photo of what cable is going into which hole). It is a hardware issue and Apple designed it like that and do not plan to change it so it won't be "fixed" with upcoming software updates. My choices were to send it back and get an iPhone 12 Pro or to use a third party macro lens. The Apple expert agreed that the autofocus function might not work as intended so the workaround is to leave your finger on the object you want to focus on for a couple of seconds and the camea will go into manual focus mode. I couldn't see that being possible with my phone behind a TV so have opted to return the phone and get a 12 Pro instead. Hope this post helps someone.

Yes, Tom... 4 inches seems to be roughly the new minimum focusing distance. (Of course, it would be wonderful if Apple would actually tell us the spec... but no.) And for a shot like this, that's a close as you need to get. But if the photos you shoot a lot require something more like macro close-ups of flowers, food, coins, jewelry, etc., the 12 Max can no longer get close enough to give you those frame-filling shots of your subject. The work arounds are to shoot from further away, and then enlarge, which degrades quality, or to shoot "macro" with the zoom lens, which involves other compromises that make it less than ideal. With my iPhone 11 Max, I regularly printed 13"x19" images of flower close-ups of astonishing quality... same for food macros that I also shoot a lot. Can't do either of those things any longer... not prints at that size, anyway.

I found out that „Macro as in 11 pro“ works!

Well - I would call it “Makro - like”

The iPhone 12 Pro Max uses the main wide angle lens for it. You can check that while covering the lens with your finger tip.

Therefore it is digital Zoom x2,5 at 8cm Focus distance

Essential is to go on x2,5 Magnification first and then approach to 8 cm of your object.

Image quality is good- blur only of the background

I don’t know why this Information isn’t easier accessible here. I found out by myself.

Happy to share.

I've noticed this too, very disappointing, not mentioned in any reviews or write up's.

It can be slightly overcome by using the camera's 2,5x telephoto lens it but would be much better if the f1.6 lens could be used.

Hopefully Apple will address the problem before too long, but as SergioRZ points out in his posting they may be constrained by the optics and larger sensor.

Huge disappointment that the 12 Pro Max does NOT take macros anywhere near as well as my 8 Plus... and when you purchase an extenal lens, well, there goes the pocket-ability of your very expensive new phone. Going to return the Pro Max for a 12 Pro. Just went to local Verizon stoe and took macro shots with their 12, 12 Pro and 12 Pro Max; 12 Pro is DEFINITELY better. Sheesh... wish I'd have known about the macro issue. Just purchaed the 12 Pro Max for the battery life but the guy at the Verizon store said his wife can't see any dif in battery life with the 12 Pro Max.

Yes, very disappointed to discover this limitation in a very expensive phone. Transparency from Apple is something we should expect...not have to beg for. Though clearly it is possible to get a close-up that, on the phone screen at least, is about 1:1.2 macro, I am purchasing a third-party macro lens to resolve this issue, but I should not have to when previous iPhones could get in much closer.

The focus issue is not in any way limited to shooting in confined spaces. The 12 Pro Max will not focus as closely to subjects as all previous iPhones, period. Whether the space is confined or open, or whether light is bright or dim, it doesn't matter. Also: manual focus does nothing to solve the issue. A number of "pro" iPhone camera apps, a couple of which I have, offer user controlled manual focus and this doesn't change a thing: the inability of the camera to focus closely remains the same.

Very helpful. As a stills photographer for 54 years I've become comfortable with the permanent fact that no camera has every feature nailed perfectly, and I'm not aware of it before I buy, it's my fault. "Adapt and survive." My solution to the close-focus issue is to buy ultrasharp lenses and ensure that my camera's sensor has sufficient pixel density to be highly croppable. Thus if I don't currently have a macro lens I'm still assured that I can take photos as close as my lens reasonably allows and then crop like crazy without losing a lot of resolution. An example is a Canon 6D full-frame body with the 135mm F/2 L lens. Those images are deeply croppable, which is very useful especially for photos of moving subjects - dance, etc.

Translated to the iPhone, in particular the 12 Pro Max, I find that the images are surprisingly croppable. Thus, I can take advantage of the many, many things the cameras can do extremely well, and make closeup photos, too. I do this all the time and am extremely pleased that the grain doesn't fall apart too quickly despite the cameras' itty-bitty sensors. Perfect solution? Maybe not, but in the rough-and-tumble world of utility photography you work with what you got. And yes, the 12 Pro Max focuses close enough that extreme crops are rarely needed. Of course, if you're into bugs and watch faces you'll want an add-on macro lens or a "real" camera and macro lens.

At the very least, it WAS an issue with the 12 Pro, but now debated as to whether the focus issue was fixed in an iOS update or not. I have a 12 Pro Max, not a Pro, so I'm not the one to say, but I've read it both ways from owners who've posted--some say it was fixed, some not.

What I do know, for a fact, is that the main lens/sensor system on the 12 Pro Max is totally different, and there is an optical science-based reason to explain why the move to a larger sensor and faster lens would have resulted in the increase in minimum focusing distance that exists vs previous iPhones. The fact that this exact issue cropped up with Samsung when it moved to a larger sensor supports this reasoning. I wish Apple would have just said it--or would say it now--so we would know for certain that this was the compromise Apple decided to make in its move to the new hardware that in most ways IS an improvement over previous iPhones.

I just went to the Local Verizon store and took macros with the 12, 12 Pro and 12 Pro Max. 12 Pro definitely took better shots. I wish I had brought my 8 Plus to compare its photos as well. Returning the Pro Max and getting the Pro.

CVal321, to be fair to your ATT sales rep, this change in min focusing distance spec for the 12 Pro Max has gotten zero mention online outside of several message boards like this one. It's nowhere in the Apple-focused media, and none of the reviews that were done at the time of the 12 Pro Max's release mention it either, including those by pro photographers. I think I've seen one video review done on YouTube where it was mentioned by a guy who sold watches online, and he had to use workarounds to get the kind of macro close-ups of watch faces that were easy with previous iPhones. (It's worth mentioning that in his video, he decided to keep the 12 Pro Max anyway because he felt other improvements in the camera system outweighed the compromises he had to make to get macro shots.)

And... get ready for the problem to be even WORSE with the 13 Pro Max. From what I've read, Apple is rumored to be bumping up the sensor size again, which is the most likely reason that minimum focusing distance changed on the 12 Pro Max. The 12 Pro, which does not have the larger sensor of the Pro Max, shoots macro just fine.

I have consulted multiple people who is using the phone and technicians, everyone is telling that is how it is manufactured and since the lens is an upgraded lens, the focal distance for this particular lens is nearly 2x than other macro lens used in Iphones so far. I have checked multiple phones and its the same.... So there is nothin to be done on this from apple jus need to get acquainted I guess...

That this issue exists isn't in question, and it would be very helpful if Apple would let 12 Pro Max owners know whether this close focus limitation can be addressed or not. If the new camera hardware is the cause, and it simply is what it is--not as a defect, but as the new spec for min focusing distance on the Pro Max model--I'd at least like to know that. Conversely, if it's something that can be addressed in an iOS update at some future TBD date, it would be helpful to know that, too. For anyone who uses their iPhone camera for close-up photography--food and flowers are generally my subjects--the significantly greater distance now needed to focus with the 12 Pro Max makes the camera system near useless for that kind of shooting. What's ironic is how excited I was for the new camera hardware, imagining that the combination of LiDar, larger sensor, faster lens and sensor shift stabilization would give me the best lower light, close-up images ever... only to find that they're no longer possible at all, except for compromised workarounds like shooting with the telephoto lens. Please Apple, let the photographer's who invested in the 12 Pro Max specifically for the new camera hardware know what's going on.

Sure, but with a macro lens you’ll get a macro shot which will be much closer than shots taken with earlier closer focusing iPhones. For just close up’s as opposed to macro shots it’s probably better to use the native 2.5x iPhone lens.

I don’t know if you’ve used a macro lens on your iPhone before, apologies if you have, if not, a macro lens can be fiddly to use, hand held focusing can be difficult and with the lens so close to the subject the field of view is very small. Unless the subject is almost flat, for example a watch face, the depth of field will be very shallow.

When using the macro lens over the 2.5x telephoto lens you will need a 3rd party app to switch lenses, as the native Apple app does not support true lens switching. When fitted over the 2.5x lens the macro lens blocks light to the main 1x camera lens, this activates night mode which in turn deactivates the 2.5x lens, the 3rd party app overrides this.

Don’t get me wrong I really love my macro lens, using it is my favourite aspect of photography, I hope you will be happy with yours.

Just out of interest I find I get much better images using my macro lens over the main 1x camera lens and zooming in if required by using the digital zoom wheel (up to 2.4x zoom before lens tries to switch to the 2.5x tele lens) than using the lens over the 2.5x telephoto lens in conjunction with a 3rd party app. Even when using the digital zoom the images are far clearer, brighter and sharper using the native Apple processing and stabilisation programs than those obtained using the macro lens over the 2.5x lens with a 3rd party app and no digital zooming.

Hopefully Apple will resolve the close up focusing issues and maybe even introduce a dedicated lens switching upgrade before too long.

Purchased the iPhone 12 Pro Max to replace my "bendgate" model 6S pro mainly for the camera so I could take good macro shots I had hoped. After a couple of weeks of trying to take in-focus macro photos I stumbled upon these posts and realize I have bought a dud again. Choices: return my 12 Pro Max and get a 12 Pro instead, find a macro lens add-on for the 12 Pro Max? Did you find a good third-party macro lens or does the IR rangefinder mess things up re focus?