iPhone 16 Pro VS. A Professional Photographer (eye opening camera test and review)

[@RanftEvan]

Hope y'all enjoy this one even though its out a few weeks after launch. It takes a while to get all these examples and get an accurate outlook/opinion on these smartphone camera. Always appreciate you watching!

[@chromegator482]

I like how many examples you put in these videos. Easier to trust opinions after seeing so many situations

[@RanftEvan]

Means a lot, I put a lot of work into these!

[@jonbo77]

I just got the iPhone 16 Pro Max, and as a photographer, I’m thrilled with the quality. It’s definitely an amazing upgrade from the 13 Pro Max and will serve as a great B-cam for both video and photography moving forward. One thing I wish they would add for creators is the ability to customize the dedicated photo button. It would be great to choose which functions to have readily accessible, allowing me to eliminate ones I rarely use and arrange others for quicker access. This kind of software update would give users more control, letting us tailor the experience to fit our personal workflow, no matter what we’re using the device for.

[@Skylda]

You're the first to say what I was thinking. Finally, the photos are a bit sharper and not as soft as before. Everyone sees that as criticism, but I think it's great.

[@mdenizguven]

So, next year will they improve fotolens(zoom) to 42mp ? 🤔

[@FieldingSmith]

Coming from the 12pro, the 16pro has been a big upgrade for me. I’m trying to use it more for both photo and video to complement my normal camera setup, though video is a struggle for me in general. Thankfully mine didn’t have the blue streaks in the main sensor for nightmode shots (there are several people reporting this now, mainly in the smartphone astro groups). And hopefully they can make the camera button a better/more useful feature… for now I’ve turned it off.

[@TheDailyQuack]

I gotta ask... if you turn off camera control, can you still click that button to open the camera, or is that function also gone when you turn it off? Thanks!

[@FieldingSmith]

@@TheDailyQuack so you can set it so that it does nothing, launch a camera app, or turn on/off the “clean preview” which are the controls/adjustments. I have it just launching the camera… but honestly don’t think I even use that feature.

[@alphapapa4446]

Going from the 13 Pro to a 16 pro, and hoping it’ll be a noticeable upgrade

[@Tinito1984]

Im upgrading my iphone, switching from iphone 8 plus to 16 pro, haha, 8 years with the same phone wowww

[@101realtor]

@@alphapapa4446you should. I did. I hesitated for weeks and don’t regret it at all now

[@Elcheeno1]

on what computer do you edit your pictures and can i do it on a lap top and if so do you recommend any that i can check out. Thank you

[@onlyonelens]

I use Lightroom and a GRiiix, so would like to use ProRaw/Raw on an iPhone ideally as a more wide angle alternative to my GR 40mm. Other differences aside and if you’re really not bothered about the ultra wide and tele lens, would you just go for the iPhone 16 and something like Halide to shoot raw, or is ProRaw a better format for maximising the capabilities of the iPhone camera/software, and therefore worth upgrading for? Anyone's thoughts appreciated!

[@TheRyanMaybee]

You’ve made some really great points, Evan. Your reasonings were essentially the same things I had in mind before I upgraded the other day. I’ve now gone from three generations of the “Pro” lineup (11, 13, and now 16). I might have stretched another year of my 13 Pro, but I’m satisfied with the new features and overall performance of having a new device to take full advantage of. The photo quality is great so far, I just have to learn how to have fun with mobile photography; iPhones lack the creative connection that something with buttons and knobs has.

[@nayyuuuuuuiu853]

along with steven divish, this is the channel i appreciate a lot fpr photography. love from india ❤

[@lookforbeauty1964]

Things I miss on the iPhone: 1/ Manual control like the Samsung app has. A true manual mode. Being able to take real long exposure photos 2/ "Real" focal lengths on the lenses, not cropping 3/ More user-friendly focus and exposure dissociation. I find it very uncomfortable to focus and expose 4/ 48 megapixels on all lenses

[@kevinj834]

Loved this video, can’t wait to see your comparison video between iPhone and pixel

[@unstoppable5504]

Hi, Evan. I was waiting for your video cause i loved the previous iPhone videos and the photos you took. I have a few workflow related questions for you, if you can share. 1. When you edit, is your True Tone on or off? 2. When you edit, at what level you keep your iphone screen brightness 3. when you took pics with the 16 pro max, did you went with the exposure at -0.3 or less or you left it on 0? Thanks a lot. Again, great video!

[@WillNewcomb]

Thanks. I have been planning to upgrade my i12pm to an i16pm but have held off because many reviewers say it's not better than the 15pm in many cases. I think your video says otherwise.

[@YouTubeFan1970]

Thanks Evan, really enjoyed your video. I would like to know 1. Is there a quality difference when using ProRaw j-peg XL lossy? 2. For non-ProRaw photos, how does 24MP compare to 12MP in terms of actual resolution/sharpness and low light performance (main & ultra wide lenses)? 3. For ultra-wide is it better to keep the camera at 12MP for better low light performance? Thanks!

[@kunze50]

Also finding the processing to be much warmer in the 16pro over the 14pro. Do you prefer ProRaw over Raw from a third party app. I find the over sharpening and pastel look from denoising to be present in Apples ProRaws still..

[@nipunsharma5351]

I agree there is some over sharpening evident. But it’s not as bad as a Samsung.

[@insomnia224]

Great vid as always! Can’t wait to see your pixel vs iPhone video 🤘🏻

[@RanftEvan]

Thanks for watching! And yeah I’m excited to see what the results are!

[@earnmarks3383]

I know it could be an unfair comparison but would you put the Sony A6700 photo and video capabilities over the IPhone 16 Pro Max?

[@RiceCubeTech]

Fuck no. I don’t even have a 16pro max or an a6700, but you can’t substitute real control over the image and real glass. The fake cinematic mode still can’t touch a decent 24mm 35mm, 55, or a an85 1.8 lens on an a6700. Even some of the worst Sony glass would look better than the 16 pro max simply because you can actually control what the camera is shooting, control your exposure better, and pull focus on whatever you want. If you’re considering a smartphone upgrade over getting a dedicated a camera, you don’t need a camera in the slightest

[@earnmarks3383]

@@RiceCubeTech I agree! Was having that argument with a coworker and thought if it came from an actual professional he would understand.

[@WARVIATION]

im getting iphone 16 pro and im excited, thank you for this video.

[@gmccmemberk]

How would you rate it in comparison with the P9Pro?

[@craigcarlson4022]

Nice job with your review. I’m really close to buying it. Currently have a 13 Mini and i much prefer its small size. I may opt for a pocketable ‘real’ camera like one of the Sony x100Va and stick with my 13 for a while longer.

[@davechia4049]

Great comparison and learn a lot from your presentation. Thank you!

[@Chinookman]

On the 16 Pro, in fact downloading the iOS 18.1 beta right as I type this. Wondering if you have an opinion of whether or not a glass lens protector can deteriorate the photography? I have a glass one on right now. It's definitely clear and definitely will protect my exposed lenses. It might be a good subject for a video?! Thank you for this one, enjoyed watching it.

[@danielanderson5482]

Hi Evan, I love all the posts on your channel. They’re so valuable and I’ve learned so much in a really short time span. What I’d really love to see is a video where you talk about editing pro raw right off the iPhone. I shoot a on lumix s5ii and edit those images on my Mac, but since the iPhone wins out on the convenience factor, I’d love to improve my photo editing game in-phone.

[@csilt]

Thanks for explaining about RAW on an iPhone. Also, those zoom images look really nice. Its crazy that you can take professional looking photos on an iPhone these days. Crazy times in so many ways..

[@shezzbeckstowers7923]

Thanks so much for an honest review. I have a iPhone 13 Pro Max. I was gonna get a iPhone 15 Pro Max and I didn’t wanna spend the money for the 16 so you help me make my decision. I’m gonna get the iPhone 15 Pro Max. I’m also just do KZbin TikTok videos fitness videos

[@lukestarplayz142]

Just wanted to ask, but have you used the JPEG-XL format on the iPhone. Just wanted to know how much storage it saves compared to a regular raw file. Also I saw some KZbinrs talking about being able to take raw photos significantly faster than the 15 pro, so have you noticed that as well?

[@jaimeemoses]

Looking forward to the video between the Google pixel vs iPhone video. Would like to know if Apple is still the best smartphone video camera

[@ConnorDRyan]

I have the iPhone 16 Pro in Desert Titanium as well and I couldn't agree more with everything you said!

[@daquiksta]

Glad to see a well prepared video with great pictures. Thanks for caring about your audience and not the hype!

[@Flamamacue]

Appreciate the detailed comparison on the UW - in all the reviews I've seen so far no one has covered it anywhere near as well as you. I use my 15 Pro a lot for various BTS and snapshots alongside my pro gear and find the "smartphone crunch" of the 13mm and 77mm a little too noticeable. I use the 13mm probably the most and seeing that it looks closer to the 24 is what I was hoping for when I heard the 13mm sensor was getting a bump. Nice surprise to see the tele sensor got improved but a shame they moved the 3x to a 5x. Always thought 77mm was a much better focal length and not too tight.

[@RanftEvan]

This is the first time I felt like all 3 cameras had the same “feel” of that makes sense. Going into all the testing I saw a lot of people saying how bad the cameras were and it caused me to be pleasantly surprised. Thanks for watching and appreciating the effort!

[@arjunutech]

I'm interested in comparing the quality of RAW files from the Samsung S24 series Expert RAW app and the iPhone. I'm particularly interested in seeing which has the highest dynamic range. or maybe could you send or give link to some sample RAW files from the iphone.

[@DanMarino7111]

Like your video on the iPhone 16 pro. I mainly use my Iphone for product photography. Was wondering if you have done a video on how to best use the iPhone for that purpose? If not I would be interested in such a video. Thanks for the good content!

[@markledbury3666]

Excellent video Evan! Thanks for putting this together. The info you provided will help me make a decision on upgrading. Thanks again😊

[@RanftEvan]

Happy to hear it! Thanks for watching!

[@eike.zender]

Excited for the comparison with the new Pixel!

[@blnkvslz6989]

Solid Review always brother more content like this.

[@tespinal8]

What are you post editing with ? Pictures taken look different after you posted them

[@kyler323]

Great job showing us how the ultra wide looks with pictures. Also gotta know where you got that sick hoodie!

[@crucifixgym]

The difference between this one and my 11 Pro is phenomenal. The 11 is such a small, thin, compact device, the 16 is almost twice as thick and heavy. The lenses look almost twice as large, and the image quality is mind blowing for a phone.

[@BCE-111]

Great take Evan! 👍

[@danw9773]

I get you on the color let down. I wanted bronze, or heck bring the pink back from the iphone 6s. Nah we got some generic gold.

[@shadow479]

I had an expectation about a comparison between this iPhone and the cameras like the Nikon you placed on the thumbnail...

[@2Shadow6]

Yes can't wait for the comparison I'm still on the fence

[@stuckonurbanstudio]

I am not a professional photographer by profession but I have understanding through 14 years of playing around with professional cameras and recently went niche with smartphone camera enough to release 3 books. With pixel, raw does makes sense because it is like what you said capture raw untouched detail enough for post processing and pixel used to be the only one that does stacking not only with their jpg by default but with raw too. Due to that, it is really subjective as to how much raw detail there are still left with pixel raw after they stacked it out of the camera. But, stacking ensure it removes enough artifacts by default before it reaches the hands of the photo editors and that is always welcomed because you will have slightly less to do in post than dng that is contains everything including the artifacts. Then again, having raw or not really depends who who uses it and what that is for. If it is for social media, then raw is not exactly needed don't you think so especially if you owns phones like pixel and iphone. I would prefer smartphone photography users focus on composition rather than post processing. If you are using it with the intention of making some side incomes on stock market then raw is definitely a must because you want to squeeze as much information out of that dng as possible. Certain photos stock markets are freaking strict when it comes to sharpness, noise, chromatic aberration and etc. Not easy to have those photos accepted for sales but it is easier if you used dng than jpg. For those who edit photos entirely on their phones, you will be interested. I have messed with enough mobile apps to know that the app you use to process those photos is important. I am not going to name any just in case I get into trouble with those developers or whatever but going for industry leading apps make tons of sense. Years ago, I tested 2 apps side by side, one of them I can name and that is Lightroom. I compared the exact types of adjustment with another popular app, not really an industry leader when it comes to photo manipulation. The industry leader which is Lightroom mobile processed the extreme shot like a champ whereas the popular app once again not really an industry leader, they are just popular messed up the extreme shot specifically with the recovery of the shadow during export. Anyway, just my 2 cents. By the way, love your channel. Keep those videos coming! Thanks!

[@brunosousa5117]

Nice i was waiting for this video, i am a mobile photographer with a page on Instagram and im in doubt on this one or the pixel, waiting for the video comparison, still i think Huawei is the best smartphone for photos, nice work, love your videos 👍

[@judeemclaughlin]

Still considering an upgrade because I am using the 13. I would still appreciate a review on the video quality.

[@RanftEvan]

Yeah I’m going to get to that soon. Getting all these examples and analyzing them is so much work haha adding video would be overwhelming. I’m definitely going to touch on it in next weeks video tho 🙏

[@carminemartino1197]

Should I upgrade from my iPhone X to the 16 Pro? I do lots of photos

[@AyoKiyoshi]

It’s definitely a big jump from the 10

[@ChessTurner]

Thank you so much for great review, perfect photos

[@roamingwithjosh1996]

Collegiate grill. Gainesville GA: 5 min walk from my apartment Awesome seeing this in your work

[@AndrewJamesStringer]

I hope in the comparison video you take advantage of the 50MP mode on the Pixel 9 Pro XL 😁

[@CelebrityQuotes123]

can u make a video about volggong setup using iphone 16 pro max using applelog

[@MikeR-g1n]

Hey Evan, great video-thanks so much! You make me want to try raw on an iphone, do you have any courses or videos on that? Hey, we almost have the same strange last name! Cheers and thanks again, Mike Ranfft

[@sushobithsukumarmandru]

Whether iphone 16 pro will be a good upgrade over iPhone xr?

[@sushobithsukumarmandru]

Or else should I go with iPhone 16 and save some money?

[@aragnophy]

@@sushobithsukumarmandru If you don't care about 120Hz screen and extra telefoto camera, you don't missing much going with 16.

[@jeremyg9305]

At 5:27 the iPhone 15 Pro is likely cropping into the main camera, which seems to happen in low lighting more often with the old 3x zoom.

[@RiceCubeTech]

Yeah my 13 pro max does it a ton. Rather would have grain than the smeary mess that is zooming in digitally in low light

[@dougmorato]

Great video and awesome shots!!! That camera button truly is useless and a gimmick so Apple could say they had something new. The reason why people use smartphones a lot is the ease of use and simplicity. Touch that huge screen and set the image as you wish.

[@grantjustineflavier6857]

Try also the Xperia's flagship

[@athenaallen6119]

Is it just me but the photos taken in the view finder vs the photos that came out is so different that it looks edited? I can clearly see artifects and noise in the photos taken with the view finder and then suddenly, he panned the photos to look digitally enchanced with zero noise and zero blur. I've been trying to get the same photo as this guy been shooting even in both proraw and the pictures are borderline bad with noise and pixelated, adding random textures in the photos when it wasn't there to begin with. I think there's something you aren't telling others about the actual photo quality of the camera and trying to sell it off as if the phone camera is stellar without much editing.

[@danelhouseofel7634]

What i want to know and I'm sure spme could agree. How about a video of just straight jpeg pics, with no post-processing comparison between the pixel vs. A mirrorless camera and the same thing with the iPhone. All without post processing. In short, can a smartphone take the same level of quality photo as a pro camera for those of us who are just point and shooters. Thank you for the video.

[@jithnukapasandul8805]

love ur photos man

[@nicoletiana]

I preordered the 16 pro natural titanium in 1tb. I also did an unboxing and first impression on my channel. this phone is great :)

[@curtispazarjr4985]

Great review!!!😮😊

[@RonBoger]

There are a few drawbacks I continue to see with the ultrawide lens: low light and astrophotography. In low light, the images are muddy and washed, the same as previously seen on 15 Pro/Max. Great lighting is a must to have crisp, clear images when shooting at 0.5. Then there are the newly discovered blue streaks/lines seen when the night mode is set to 30 sec. in dark/near total dark environments, typically used by astrophotographers. This is a hardware issue, sometimes resolved by trading in the 16 Pro/Max for a new one. It is a hit/miss; not all phones have this. Apple has not come up with a fix yet. Hopefully, R&D is working on it.

[@josejuncal9342]

Would be interesting if you integrate apps like halide in your next comparison. So we can see the zero processing camera halide offers compared to proraw or the pixel

[@Hunter-ij8qj]

Great work man!

[@RanftEvan]

Appreciate it!

[@BogdanGrigore]

i Don't agree if the raw aspect. You can shot JPEG-XL, which is the Apple Raw file and the size is much less than normal raw.

[@ordertoone]

Thanks for your content)

[@endresac369]

I hopped on to the last smartphone review, why is it iPhone vs dslr’s, whereas it’s google raw vs Samsung’s…and your tones different every single time, if I’m not bound to an OS, just based on camera, what’s better and please tell about the digital-esk photos on iPhones and natural on Google’s

[@ElectedNickNation1]

Love your style

[@Fazillah]

Any thoughts on the video quality?

[@ASCENTxyz]

I'm still waiting for the Pixel vs. iPhone comparison :)

[@sandeepsaini3121]

Stunning photos

[@SABBlNG]

Love this!

[@RanftEvan]

Thank you!

[@jakt6964]

Hi sorry but I liked the way you made the video for pixel 9. The pictures that you took and the way you took them seemed like a professional photographer but this video didn't excited me as much as the pixel 9 video did. If possible could you please follow your pixel 9 video style, may be like taking the pictures similar to the pixel 9 video. I appreciate your effort thank you for bringing such great videos, looking forward to your upcoming video pixel 9 vs iPhone 16 😊

[@przemek8887]

Nice

[@nicholasgz890]

5:00min. the telephoto lens is the same as last year’s lens. You also tested the 15 pro, so you should have noticed that it’s the same camera?

[@Artemis-v8i]

15 seconds later he says the 16 has more detail

[@Yt_ShadowBannedme]

He wrote in another comment he meant to say he compared both the 15 and 16 PM

[@FART-REPELLENT]

No matter how sophisticated and advanced cameras in Smartphones get, I will always prefer to use a dedicated high-end camera; primarily because holding say a Nikon Z8 feels considerably more secure and steady in the hands than a Smartphone.

[@Jan-Gess]

Nice seeing a reviewer showing what’s actually better. Seeing most reviews, my impression was the iPhone got worse.

[@EricLaMosca]

The part about the phone actually being rose gold is accurate. I thought mine was gonna be copper colored like a penny. Kinda let down in that aspect.

[@orlandoalexander7119]

No night photos? Was this just a daylight review of how good the camera could be.

[@Tranquil-Trekker]

great photos! But you edited all of them, right?

[@Luka_Film]

Попробуй VIVO X200 Pro охренеешь от качества

[@pennywenny812]

I’m very unhappy with my 16 pro camera. Videos and photos are coming out grainy at just a normal 1x. I’m considering returning and going back to 14 pro but am just confused how everyone online is getting such great videos 😭

[@HwL01]

Hmmm you felt iPhone photos aren't sharp enough, for me I feel they are always over-sharpened and looked unnatural. The only way to reduce those artificial sharpening is to shoot in the super huge RAW files (14 pro series has no jpeg-xl).

[@cekuhnen]

my main beef with the iPhone 16 is that the tele lense remained 12 MP so I cannot digitally crop much

[@slowbluesmaster]

Halide developer Ben Sandofsky posted an excellent article 'Understanding ProRAW' on Medium, Dec 15, 2020.

[@TheOhamd]

You can also buy the normal iPhone 16 … best value 🎉

[@RanftEvan]

Very true!

[@Aeldae]

Hi Evan, great video! Keep up the good work. May I ask what software do you recommend for editing iPhone’s raw images? (If there’s good open source software even better)

[@RanftEvan]

Lightroom classic or Lightroom mobile are my go to’s 👍

[@RanftEvan]

Thanks for watching!

[@BryanMumble]

iPhone 16 pro VS Pixel 9 pro please

[@RanftEvan]

Just posted it, check it out! 🙏

[@underdasink8641]

Apple added the level of digital zoom processing that Samsung does so it looks sharper n cleaner

[@Motawa88]

The 15 pro 5x looks worse because you didn’t use the max. The main lens is way better because it shoots way faster now

[@Yt_ShadowBannedme]

That was the 15 pro Max lol. He just said he forgot to mention the whole name

[@AnthonyAcree-l7e]

Mertz Fields

[@juandavidrosero675]

😊

[@cal6311]

I’m coming from a 14 pro max I thinking of upgrading to the 16 pro max

[@cuscuztech3470]

2:41 still not RAW though...sharpening and other stuff is baked there

[@317daveyk]

👍👍

[@johnadams3038]

5:25 Bro your comparison is flawed... for the telephoto examples you should have used the 15 pro max... the 15 pro doesnt have the prism lens but the 16 pro has it now. Its a flawed test because its two completely different lenses and not comparable

[@Yt_ShadowBannedme]

He did

[@vladkajaia4216]

it looks cool but i think pixel did it better

[@julianrobertson3303]

Hello Evan , thank you for sharing as always . I thought that I ought to mention the image technical properties of (Joint Photographic Experts Group ) & how it's advanced over the decades. All consumer & professional camera manufactures invest billions into research and development on jpeg camera image compression technology and this system is shared constantly on all media on a global scale . The jpeg image file compression technology has advanced in leaps & bounds since the early days , I unfortunately do not have the time to go through all the in's & out's of the advanced (Joint Photographic Experts Group) that has advanced over the past twenty years , but this I will say , there are many downsides to RAW , a RAW file generally looks dreadful , hence the reason for jpeg & in today's age there really isn't any reason to shoot on RAW , ie , Facebook , Instagram , and so forth , it's all jpeg & that's all it needs to be , the RAW process is essentially tampering with a large file , and for what ?, Most RAW images look edited ! , because they are !, and the computer file sizes , do we really need them ?, the art is in the photography , just like film , RAW is a computer game ,RAW is unnecessary & has completely been blown out of proportion , the photographer takes the photograph as it is , perhaps with a little editing , of course all this is subjective & each to their own , but having box's full of solid state hard drives is not fun , it's expensive & takes computer & physical space . It would be futile comparing a 40MP phone RAW to a 36MP jpeg from a Nikon D800 , the Nikon D800 36 MP jpeg file will wine every day hands down , the i phone is not 40 mega pixel , hence it's a quad pixel arrangement , it's essentially a con , and besides there's no comparison on the glass between a phone & a camera lens , the RAW compression on any phone enlarged will look dreadful against a jpeg image taken by a professional full frame camera. I've been a photographer for the past 45 years , I've enlarged jpeg to poster size many times & it's perfect , I trust the jpeg compression & I trust the Nikon D800 full frame , and I don't need box's full of expensive solid state hard drives that I will never use & all those files just stored doing nothing . Today's photography is a market selling high end cameras & computers that are completely unnecessary , their just toys for the privileged .

[@johnadams3038]

The 48mp on the iphone is nonsense

[@Motawa88]

Ok what is the best phone camera? Don’t say s24u