iPhone 13 Camera is blurry

Take the phone to your Apple Store Genius Bar for evaluation. This is a user to user only forum. It doesn't matter what anyone else thinks. If you're not pleased, let Apple see your phone.

[Edited by Moderator]

The two photos look identical in resolution/clarity but the photo from the 13 seems to have a little more processing done to lighten shadows/increase overall brightness.

Or, I don't see an issue at all but ultimately take it in and see what your local Apple Store has to say about it.

Me as well… I’m noticing that when I touch the screen to get it to focus on a certain point, it will adjust focus and I can see it get that point it focus but then it will settle in/lock into a different spot in the frame meaning the point I touched is blurry… I can fill +75% of the screen with the subject/depth/distance I want in focus and it will still settle to focus on a small section away from the center of the screen… Distance from subject, .5/1/3 lens, hand held, setting the camera down/tripod, and nothing effects where it end up focusing…

Someone mentioned turning off the lens correction but I haven’t seen a difference after doing that… No screen protector, Apple case, no magnets, updated and battery fully charged… I’m comparing photos of the same plant, taken in the same location, various lighting conditions (pot lights, halogen, incandescent, a mix), and nothing seems to effect the focusing…

Comparing the iPhone 13 Pro photos to my iPhone 8 and while the iPhone 8 doesn’t produce as crisp an image (comparing in focus to in focus), it focused on what I wanted it to and did so quickly… The length of time it takes the 13 Pro to focus is long enough that it’s noticeable and effects me being able to take pictures as I go about my day - I can’t just point, touch focus, and click… I need to stop, try and get it to focus, and find a way to keep the camera still - handholding it just adds time…

I can’t believe it’s this bad and am sure I’m doing something wrong or missing a trick… I’ve watched a bunch of videos and don’t see others having this same issue… Any one else experiencing this, or has an idea about what might be causing the problem?

Tapping on the screen tells the camera to focus on that spot momentarily, but to lock focus there you have to tap and hold.

No issues whatsoever with the iPhone 13's cameras.

For whatever reason this same complaint about the front camera is made every time a new model is released; people made the same complaint about the front camera on the iPhone 11 and 12.

That's simply not accurate.

I've examined the photos on Macs using Photoshop and Preview and they are as good as if not better than photos taken with older iPhones.

Independent reviews agree:

https://www.dxomark.com/apple-iphone-13-pro-camera-review-outstanding-video/

However, if you're with 14 days of purchase, feel free to return your phone for any reason; not every phone is right for every person.

I'm having this problem also just always blurry when you zoom in even after focusing which means the focus on the camera is not working as it should be. I also noticed in the camera settings that smart HDR toggle is missing therefore the phone is forcing HDR in certain situations which could be the cause of the focus and image blur issues. I don't understand why they took away this feature to manually control HDR! another thing I noticed with this camera is the lens auto switching when getting up close to a subject is awful its very annoying and just ruins any shot I'm trying to get with the standard lens again why would apple not allow us to simply turn the auto switching off as you are able to do it when recording videos. I think these two major issues are resulting in poor camera performance. when I'm up close to a subject the sharpness is great in good lighting but far away its just a blur any picture I take has no sharpness. night mode shots up close look great but again just a normal snap on the main lens just suffers so much. The front facing camera in low light is horrendous makes me look like I have a skin disease and doesn't focus and in good lighting again not sharp at all unless I have a bright light source shined on my face constantly. Apple really need to address this issue and offer a fix to customers as these phones are supposed to be pro and premium but the camera is bad from my experience so far it urgently needs a software update unless its not hardware of course. I'm seeing an Apple specialist at the store on Friday I will report back here with the results. You have to remember these handsets are mass produced so almost certain there will be some defects as several people are having these issues in the first week or so of release.

It's your expectations that are wrong, not the phone.

If you go out and buy a "professional" $6000 DSLR and $6000 lens… you will have many of these same issues.

Note the front camera has an aperture of ƒ/2.2 compared to the back "1x" wide camera's ƒ/1.5, meaning it's less sensitive to light than the back camera is.

If you find these issues unacceptable and it's been fewer than 14 days, return your phone for a full refund.

I have, and they are by far the best photos made by any iPhone released, comparable in many ways to those taken by my Nikon D850 DSLR.

Far from being blurry, the detail is incredibly sharp and impressive.

Of course I've compared the photos, and they are slightly better than those taken by my 12 Pro Max and noticeably better than those taken by my 11 Pro Max.

As mentioned above, you don't have to take my word for it; several review sites have come to the same conclusions.

iPhone 11 took really good photos. But to suggest an iPhone 11 is demonstrably better than iPhone 13 Pro is way off the mark. I've owned iPhone 3G, 4, 5, 6, 7, X, XS Max, 12 Pro Max and now 13 Pro Max. My iPhone 11 photos don't hold a candle to the photos I'm getting with my 13 Pro Max.

But then, if you are as you say, a Professional Photographer, you know well that the eye behind the camera is what makes the most difference. A Pro should know how to use the tools available to them far more than someone with no photographic skills other than point and shoot.

Dash was selected on both as I wanted to test the sharpness of the dash text up close again was perfectly locked in focus in the viewfinder therefore the focus is not working properly as reported by several people. You may not be having issues but other people are its obvious some handsets are suffering and this could be software or just down to poor build quality. I think its unfair to blame the user and their expectations when I have just given you a clear example of the focus working in a certain mode then not at all in another but the camera simply choosing it for you afterwards. all we are doing is tapping a screen to focus and when we have it the results this camera is producing are different. the normal shot should be as clear as the portrait shot and I think its down to Apple removing the Smart HDR toggle in camera settings which means the camera is forcing it in some situations especially for landscape pictures they all look blown out because of HDR.

cbh1972 wrote:

I truly want my 11 pro back. This camera is horrible. Night pictures are back to looking like I have an old 6.

If you've had your phone less than 14 days, you can return it for full refund if you're that unhappy with it.

It's also like that when you use the cinematic video. What the heck has gone wrong. If I take a picture into the sunlight it comes out black. Never did that before. and I don't believe it is a setting

https://www.tomsguide.com/news/iphone-13-problems

"iPhone 13 Pros automatically switch between wide and ultrawide cameras

This one's not so much a bug, but a feature. The iPhone 13 Pro models feature a new macro mode that uses the phone's 12MP ultrawide camera. Try to shoot an object that's within 5.5 inches of the lens, and the phone will shift from the main wide lens to the ultrawide shooter. Apple says this approach is better for capturing close-up details.

Not everyone agrees. Review Raymond Wong of Input says the switching messes with the framing of the shot, with the camera capturing a different frame from what appears on the view finder.

How to fix it: Apple says a future software update will allow iPhone 13 Pro owners to turn off this feature if they prefer that their phones not automatically switch to the ultrawide angle camera when taking macro shots."

That quote is completely wrong.

Yes, it switches lenses, and yes, it can mess with framing when it does so, but at no time is the photo captured not what is seen on-screen.

The lens switch is fast, so you may already have your finger headed for the shutter button when it switches, but the switch is always visible.

The remote photo doesn’t surprise me; the aperture of the 13 Pro Max’s camera is ƒ/1.5, the 12 Pro Max is ƒ/1.6.

The focus point is on the couch and the remote is far enough away that’s a depth of field difference between the two, not a bug.

A rough calculation shows that the 13 Pro Max’s lens should have about 1.2” less depth of focus to the front, and given how the remote is already beginning to blur in the 12 Pro Max photo, that seems just about right.