Lens Flare and Reflection Artifacts Appearing in Low-Light Photos on iPhone 17

Everyone who owns a camera, whether cell or dedicated DSLR, will see lens flare in low light situations while photographing bright lights. It's normal. But it can be avoided or minimized, by looking at your screen before you take the photo, where the flare would be plainly visible and angling the camera differently to the scene. You have more control than you think, but you have to take responsibility for composing your photo before you take your photo.

I did this for illustration:

In first photo, you'll see green dots above the lights on my deck, which are clearly lens flare:

Without moving my position, I angled the camera until the flares disappeared:

That’s normal in all cameras and lenses. Every iPhone since the first model and all of my digital cameras produce a similar optical phenomenon. Removing any protective covers you’ve applied, if any, will improve the flare.