User profile for user: tallt1m
tallt1m Author
User level: Level 1
6 points

iPhone 17 Pro randomly changes resolution when capturing photo

I’ve tried changing every setting I can think of to make it actually keep the resolution I want, but it seems to literally randomly decide whether it’s going to take a 48 megapixel, 24 megapixel, or 12 megapixel still. I have literally told it exactly what resolution to use, and tried to take the exact same picture of a person standing in front of me, and it never seems to take the same resolution twice in a row, and almost never even stick sticks with the same resolution that it chose. It’s extremely frustrating.


I’m outdoors in bright sunlight, and I’ve made sure to turn off portrait mode, night mode, flash, macro, and anything else that should cause it to default to 12 megapixels. It’s borderline unusable because there is zero consistency.

iPhone 13 Pro, iOS 18

Posted on Sep 20, 2025 11:05 AM

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User profile for user: Jeff Donald
Jeff Donald
Community+ 2026
User level: Level 8
48,494 points

Posted on Oct 3, 2025 4:25 PM

Yes, the native Apple Camera app is an all automatic camera. It’s just like setting a Nikon, Sony, Canon, Fuji etc. to Program. The camera will pick focus, ISO, shutter speed and f/number all by itself.


If you want more specific control over the settings please choose a third party camera app. I use both Reeflex and Halide the most. In my opinion they’ll give you the most control, but Apple doesn’t give total control.


For example in low light the camera algorithm will determine when to shoot in 12 megapixels even though 48 MP is selected by the user. The algorithm has final say over resolution.

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User profile for user: Jeff Donald
Jeff Donald
Community+ 2026
User level: Level 8
48,494 points

Oct 3, 2025 4:25 PM in response to tallt1m

Yes, the native Apple Camera app is an all automatic camera. It’s just like setting a Nikon, Sony, Canon, Fuji etc. to Program. The camera will pick focus, ISO, shutter speed and f/number all by itself.


If you want more specific control over the settings please choose a third party camera app. I use both Reeflex and Halide the most. In my opinion they’ll give you the most control, but Apple doesn’t give total control.


For example in low light the camera algorithm will determine when to shoot in 12 megapixels even though 48 MP is selected by the user. The algorithm has final say over resolution.

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iPhone 17 Pro randomly changes resolution when capturing photo

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