iPhone 15 Pro & Pro Max Review for Photographers!

[@graywind4326]

As a photojournalist of 40 years for a major metro daily now retired, I can honestly say the iphone 15 pro max camera is the best camera that I always have with me. Beats everything you left home. I started before a phone in your pocket existed. Evolved to this. Its an amazing job in a device this size thats primary function is a communication and computing. It’s omni present. Love it. Especially the 5x lens and the portrait mode. The progression of camera phones is amazing.

[@agimos_art]

Natürlich ersetzt es nicht meine Kamera mitsamt den Objektiven, aber mein iPhone 15 Pro Max macht tolle Fotos und alles, aber gehen Huawei keine Chance.

[@1997LT1Camaro]

I agree. It’s amazing that large performance is now in your pocket.

[@mikehev222]

Could you link to some of your work? I’m curious ! 🙏

[@jonathanorleyi6600]

01:11 The cut from the "uneven surface" warning sign to Chris stumbling up the stairs caught me off guard :D

[@joe_scotto]

The LOG profile looks like it mostly fixes the over-sharpening the iPhone does with the other video modes and finally is an image that I would consider usable if you're in good light.

[@CarlBergsdorf]

Yeah that looked great, I’m looking forward trying that out next week when my gf gets her 15 pro, only thing that was missilg was an nd filter for proper shutter speed since that lack of motion blur is also a typical giveaway that somethings been recorded on a smartphone. Either way its cool to see these kind of upgrades thats actually interesting and not just a bunch of gimmicky shit like how cinematic mode is on the older models. I know you got to start somewhere but its nice its finally starting to look decent.

[@MOTMUS]

Very impressed by the log video. Seems to be the only video mode that doesn't have that overprocessed iphone look

[@linkinjunior]

curious to see how this will look in a bar/night club scene.

[@MuhammadKharismawan]

which part is that? is it all the vid?

[@JunsuePark]

Anyone know where to find the official Apple log lut?

[@NeverStark]

@@MuhammadKharismawan The video has on-screen text at the bottom that tells you when log is being used and whether it's been graded.

[@mdhazeldine]

Yeah. The ungraded stuff doesn't look any better than my Samsung Galaxy S10, which is what, 3, 4 years old now? The log stuff looks great though. And the smooth zoom feature, while not perfect, is way better than my S10, so that's a nice improvement.

[@peteT269]

Thanks for never referring to this as a "10x zoom" or "zoom camera" or any other incorrect term that the big youtube channels throw out when discussing phone cameras.

[@dougscottking]

Would love to see a comparison of the “crop” modes vs a post photo crop and see if Apple’s processing is doing the magic or if it’s just a gimmick

[@techtt6213]

It actually works, downside being that any real detail is scrubbed away by the aggressive processing, even in raw.

[@nnn-pr3vr]

mrwhosetheboss shows this comparison in his video

[@stark-fy9lq6]

I have preordered the iphone and got the store pickup slot timings also but they didn't charged up my credit card is my order guaranteed or not?

[@ghfsd786fa]

is not a gimmick, but there is some loss of detail (less than if you were to crop the 1x, so is doing some 'magic')

[@deus-bd1qt]

@@stark-fy9lq6yes. I got charged a few days late

[@MacXpert74]

The Pro-res manual graded shots looked really great, with nice natural looking color. The native HDR mode didn't look as nice to me, though. But with the technical capability being there, I hope software tweaks can still improve this.

[@ghfsd786fa]

hdr sucks, i disable it on my phone and shot sdr video looks miles better

[@rossfisher323]

I noticed on my MacBook Pro M2 that if I have my display brightness turned up past half or so it'd blow out all the highlights. Try turning your display brightness down, there will be a notch of brightness where the clouds, etc come back. Not sure if this is a KZbin or Mac bug

[@TheWhiskeyShow]

HDR on youtube, and windows is pretty broken last I checked. I usually tell people to just pretend the features don't exist. I'm curious if the new black magic capture app will allow you to lock exposure so people can develop consistent luts, because I was also pretty blown away by the quality of the graded footage.

[@techtt6213]

Because it works first-glance. People see a lot of colour without it being comical, they think it sharp and there is little noise. Only when you look closer you see that it's unnatural, oversharpened and noise reduced to shit. Every manufacturer does this, even Google. Luckily on Android it is sortof fixable with a custom gcam.

[@TheWhiskeyShow]

@@techtt6213 Color work reminds me a lot of cooking. You need to go too far with seasoning and pull back to find the "right" amount. People look at over-saturated, bloomed images thinking it's good. Come back tomorrow and you realize how off it is.

[@amits4768]

I never seen a KZbin video showing this sort of camera analysis of any smartphone. That's really a incredible work to clear perspective.

[@FortWorthRaised]

I’m going to Japan this winter, so I’m trying to watch every video for iPhone photography and videography. That’s really the only reason I decided to upgrade this year after having the same phone for a few years.

[@CassioHungria85]

Did you buy? Is the shutter sound always on a problem?

[@arai4tim]

@@CassioHungria85 The "always on" sound is only there if you buy the phone in Japan.

[@meat_loves_wasabi]

Normally I upgrade every year because of the better camera hardware… but i realise the 15PM 5x lens is not practical focal length cause it only kicks in at 120mm and above The 3x lens will give better image between 77 to 119mm which a practical range for portrait shots

[@jakelindsay6251]

When Chris mentioned he wasn't an iPhone user his legend grew ten fold. On the way home from filming this video, Chris got pulled over by the cops. They got off with a warning.

[@BrotherFried]

This is the greatest smartphone camera review I have ever seen hands down. Subscribed!

[@BobbyCash814]

Looks like going from the 12 Pro to the 15 Pro Max will be a nice photo/video upgrade, in addition to other quality of life improvements. Look forward to messing around with the new phone when it arrives.

[@4.7m_views]

Believe it or not the camera upgrade from 12 pro to 13 pro is actually a big leap. You’ll definitely be blown away with the 15 pro series.

[@jamesthornock8214]

I'm going from the XR to the 15 Pro, so I'm expecting to have my socks knocked off.

[@PatrickWithCamera]

I did upgrade from 12 pro to 14 pro and already seen big leap in quality, in some cases it was like day and night, especially low light performance. And if you try RAW then difference is even bigger.

[@sokkerjeff]

Same exact jump I'm making ... pretty excited for the 3-level upgrade!

[@m18293]

I’am going from 11, Ive got huge expectations…

[@davegarth]

The big question for me is this: How many really “serious” photographers will decide it’s time to give up their traditional dslr or mirrorless cameras and only use a smartphone for their photography? It’s tempting for me, as an old retired pro, because it’s gotten so much less fun to lug lots of heavy equipment around. Is the image quality and handling now good enough?

[@rcrinsea]

Especially for vacations. I do not like carrying things around.

[@JerrisEverydayPeople]

I get not lugging stuff around, but I feel like I’m a different photographer with a camera than I am with my phone. I just picked up the Pro Max today, so I’ll see if it will take the place of my cameras.

[@ianchristian3870]

@@JerrisEverydayPeople how was it?

[@JerrisEverydayPeople]

@@ianchristian3870 it’s a good phone, but I’ll always use a regular camera over my phone. I did get the DJI Pocket 3 and it’s becoming my daily camera for recording life.

[@joshnlevinson]

It's not about replacing your main camera gear with a phone. It's about a phone giving more acceptable results when you wouldn't otherwise bring your camera. When I go out on a walk in the forest with my kids, I ain't lugging around any sort of dedicated camera - it just isn't feasible given how much attention my kids require. But I think it's awesome that I can pull out my phone and get some good (not great) quality photos and videos, whereas otherwise I wouldn't have gotten anything.

[@ColdStream]

PLEASE UPDATE THE VIDEO OR THUMBNAIL TO SHOW THIS COVERS VIDEO AND NOT JUST PHOTO. I almost didn't watch this video and it's genuinely one of the best I've seen on this topic, thank you both!!!

[@iggytse]

I thought it was a missed opportunity to have 4 cameras in the Pro Max with the two telephoto cameras. Now you have to really ask if you take more portraits or if you want the 5x spy camera.

[@iliastsiphlidis4607]

Love how at 1:11 we see the sign warning of uneven surface and then Chris trips in the next short cut. It’s these little things plus so much more that has me stalking you on KZbin wherever you go.

[@carlo344]

Most important part to compare and review should be the the zoom between 2.1 - 4.9 Zoom in IPhone Pro and Pro Max.

[@behindthebuild8016]

Agreed

[@global2526]

Ordered the 15 pro max Today, coming from Android for 5yrs looking fwd to returning to This Beast!! The A17 Bionic chip when researched is Literally Amazing, this phone is More Powerful than Most actually Realise. 👍💯

[@Hello-yv5wq]

I cannot believe you are one of the rare KZbinrs who can post early iPhone reviews (same time slot as MKBHD, iJustine)

[@leev2463]

Mr. Who’s the boss also has reviews now

[@andrewhowe4266]

I have ordered the Pro. I prefer the smaller form factor. The 120mm was tempting, but it seemed an awfully big gap for the main camera to have to fill with digital zooming. How do the images out of the two sizes compare between 3x and 5x?

[@lonzie]

Yes, disappointed not to see a comparison of the 3x crop on the Pro Max vs the native 3x of the Pro

[@ericwright8592]

My thought too. On the Pro Max the main camera jumps from 35mm to... 120mm? That's a massive jump. Is everything in between a digital crop/zoom? The 70 ish mm on the regular pro is such a good mid point.

[@andreasoberg2021]

Yes all is digital. I wish it had 4 lenses to solve this

[@m11kan]

@@ericwright8592 48mm looks pretty good as well. You can't see the difference in social media at least.

[@Jasonfry15]

At 3x it holds up pretty well but anything after that to 4.9 doesn't look very good

[@G43X]

I watched 5 reviews and you are the first to shoot the review with the iPhone. This is what I was looking for. Subbed.

[@yuxiangwang7247]

Nice review. I am more curious about whether iPhone still does the "auto-sharpening" thing. As a 14Pro user, I am often annoyed by this feature that makes my picture too contrasty and unnatural. Changing the "photographic style" in settings doesn't help. I guess this is related to the auto HDR function. I wish Apple can give users more flexibility on this

[@FilmScape4K]

It still does. Too much detail that isn’t there. You can tell with this review. Micro contrast is boosted.

[@darwiniandude]

On a 13 series phone, all photos I edit and drop the contrast parameter a bit. This really helps, and brings the images closer in line to the output from my Fuji gear. Still wish Apple let us set this as a preset. I'd rather capture less contrast and crush it later if needed, rather than the reverse.

[@yuxiangwang7247]

@@darwiniandude That's what I often do right now. It's disappointing that Apple ignores people's complaints

[@HeidiDubin-r2s]

I have not used my iPhone camera for anything but everyday pictures. For vacations, I haul my old Canon 5D with 70-200 lens. That's fine if I have a car, but for vacations without them, I'm not getting any younger and it's quite a load. I'm curious if the 15 pro (max probably?) would relieve me of the hauling and not disappoint me, especially with things like the Alps, island coastlines, etc.

[@ZWARBHATTAA]

The standout feature for me this year is the 5x telephoto lens. I am amazed with the amount of background compression in this 120 mm shot 12:38. Imagine if i phone 16 pro max comes with something like 300 mm telephoto lens and a good stabilization. The depth of field should be at par with a budget mirrorless zoom camera, and that's a fantastic thing. You would't need the gimmicky portrait mode and cinematic video because you will get the true bokeh in both photos and videos. Wishlist- i phone 16 pro max, 300 mm optical zoom, take my money.

[@ztfilms5047]

lol that would have to be around.a 15x lens which would be near impossible to fit in the phone (practically speaking). The aperture would have to suffer as well.

[@Joe-lb8qn]

Seems to me issue with the 5x lens is that if you are anywhere between 2x and 5x its all digital zoom. So 3x on the Pro may be a better compromise because unless you go to the full 5x mode, then digital zoom to say 4x will be better from a 3x optical than a 2x optical.

[@PeteC62]

​@@Joe-lb8qnThat was really obvious when Jordan was talking about the parallax glitch when the video zoom hit 5x. Just before that point, the digital zoom was _really_ soft, and then suddenly you could make out Chris's eyes again when it switched to 5x.

[@sudhirpandya8643]

Great reviews as always. A old XT10 died on me lately. Still have that amazing OS 2.8 Fujicon XT lens 2.8 16-55. Trying to decide between the Fujifilm XT30 Mk 2 vs Fujifilm Xs10,/20 bodies. Your guides Both under Camera Store and now Pentapixel have been SO helpful. So had the time come to just get a iPhone 15 Pro and say good bye to all the other heavy equipment? Further was in London , UK at Covent Garden Apple Store and took in an amazing talk form a DSLR photographer user on the iPhone photography. Would love to hear your thoughts on such topics. Keep it all up!! So appreciated!!

[@lazyname4130]

i was first impressed by the hdr mode but then I was literally mind blown by the log format. Looks great with natural softness in contrast to the oversharpened hdr shots

[@RadoslavSharapanov]

Thanks! The video looks all over the place in terms of colour, sharpening and shutter speed. The good parts were great though.

[@jonathanramsey]

I’ve been using my iPhone SE (2/2020) for KZbin for the past couple years, and the iPhone 8 (so, same camera afaik) for a couple years before that. This is the first time I’ve felt excited to upgrade. As a decades long SLR user and pro photographer wannabe, this is huge for being prepared all the time with something amazingly usable. Thank you, Lads!

[@robertozanconato4992]

On the Pro Max is the loss of resolution in the 70-120mm range by not having a 3x lens noticeable. If so how bad is it.

[@salarycat]

The new Blackmagic app looks very nice, and can use the new log, you should try it out. I’d love to also hear your opinion on how to handle shutter speed for video when recording outside, since aperture is fixed and if you lock SS then ISO gets locked too.

[@techtt6213]

It's a gimmick. Interface is nice but video performance is super similar to stock app. API is pretty limited anyway.

[@hereismatias]

I tested today and it’s so freakin’ good! Blackmagic cloud, ssd recording with an iPhone 11, metering tools. The whole shebang 🎉

[@michaelbch7713]

pro res work in stock app and blackmagic app in Iphone 14pro max only 4k30 ..Same time in app filmic pro I got 4k60 pro res proxy 360mbit/s save space and excellent quality.

[@salarycat]

@@techtt6213 it has proper metering tools and manual controls.

[@hollydillion1315]

Finally, someone who uploads in HDR.

[@Amaraldo]

The HDR colours are odd at times. Other times it looks quite nice.

[@ASadTeddyBear]

Also extremely oversharpened. The manually graded pro res video was quite good though.

[@marckroll9544]

I recently upgraded from an 11 Pro Max, to a 14 Pro Max. I’ll be happy for the foreseeable future with it.

[@PTYC933]

Yes a HDR review. Beautiful video. This log and external recording is excellent, looks very much alike the Panasonics. Indoor videos it’s okay it will get there, someday they will have dual iso. Their maddening marketing of 24mm 28mm 35mm and 48mm is just that. Who cares if the files are just really good. It’s probably great for budding photographers who want to get their first prime lens choose which focal length they want to get. Or some people can scout on the phone quickly before whipping out their cameras and switching out primes. It’s like people complaining about crop modes on a full frame, it gives more option to use an apsc lens or get more reach, like a teleconvertor.

[@amirahamilin]

I am first time user to use iphone. This video was very helpful. Cant wait to preorder the pro next week

[@PedroLopez-iy9ld]

Great review, great format. It would have been beneficial to see Pro and Pro Max side by side photos at 77mm. 77mm is my favorite for portraits and curious how the Max handles the gap between the lenses.

[@tappersreviews4677]

I agree. Not sure I’d prefer having the 120mm over the 77mm lens.

[@lightdive5219]

Yes, I would be interested in the look of the photo and how many megapixel the 77 or 80 mm photo on the 15 pro max still has due to the strong crop then.

[@techtt6213]

Don't forget it's not a real 77mm. You don't get the compression/perspective and DoF that makes you like a 77mm. It's just a crop

[@Yzyenthusiast]

@@techtt6213what

[@heezdeadjim]

​@@techtt6213none of it is real. Even a 105mm f4 or 135mm f4 could produce better bokeh than the 120mm on the iPhone or Samsung.

[@du3223]

Stumbled across this video and it was great to see you guys still doing your thing. I used to rely on your reviews from The Camera Store for Nikon gear “back in the day”.

[@coachsayf]

Great video. Some key things that are missing though... Are the 24mp digital lenses equivalent to a cropped 48mp image? Also does the 120mm tetraprism lens use the same sensor as the 77mm lens? Either way some detailed comparative shots between the 77mm and 120mm would have been useful as well as comparing the OIS between the two. Apparently the 120mm has improved OIS.

[@pietroalessandrini]

Finally someone that makes an HDR video to talk about HDR features

[@mikeymc222]

From what I remember, the iPhone 14 pro range was supposed to have a different chip to support other features but there was an issue and the chip wasn’t ready.. so now we’ve got the best chip to make the most of the hardware so the upgrade is to how the camera setup works not to the amount of mp you can use

[@agimos_art]

Sehr gut erkannt 😊

[@cmiller7299]

8:03 graded log looks great. SO much better than the other modes.

[@FireBlade57]

YES

[@TSGEnt]

OMG. I was born and raised in San Jose. Tell me you went to Shuei-Do Manju Shop while in J-Town. The best hand-made daifuku in the US. Yes, I've tried a lot around the US.

[@popinjayjunior7698]

Since you guys are covering the iphone 15 pros as camera phones, i would like to see how you guys would review the Sony Xperia 1/5 V and their performances as a camera phone.

[@Rickymanso]

best review ever about the Iphone 15 in terms of photography/videographey. Thanks

[@bjoernroy6233]

Great review, guys. Two questions: 1. Jordan: Is the prores video now without that dreadful oversharpenin? Or at least the log footage? Its my biggest complaint on iPhone 13 pro 2. Chris: Similar question on the photo side. The prores pics shot in the iphone 13 pro lack over sharpening which makes all the difference importing them into LR. But as you said, you do loose HDR output like with heif. Does the 48mp HEIF on the 15 pro combine detail, lack of over sharpening, high dynamic range AND hdr output capability? Thanks guys🎉

[@niccollsvideo]

The 48mp HEIFs were not too sharpened at all. Had really nice detail and extended dynamic range but not the HDR space that the 24mp shots give.

[@forneverarrow]

With the 15 Pro max its the first time i don't even turn on the Pro Raw option. The 24mp default output is seriously great for everything, especially with the Rich Contrast photographic style (i set it as default). The amount of detail is awesome and event they turn down a little that oversharpenning from the past iterations.

[@chaechaerro]

The log footage looks really great, if they weren't labeled I would've thought they weren't shot on the phone honestly.

[@VintageCraftsmanTools]

Hi. I make KZbin videos myself. I'm very basic, but now I know how much work you have to put to make a video like this, and I'm only a beginner. Well done guys. I just bought my iPhone 15 pro max, and your video was very informative. I liked it. Thank you for sharing. Keep up the good work.

[@techtt6213]

Cool to see a comparison with the Pixel for example.

[@HDBoyWonder]

Excellent, must-see video primer on the iPhone 15 Pro Max.

[@bsmukler]

Your team came through again. Yours and Ted Forbes’ reviews are the first professional and trustworthy deep dives on the photography and videography side of the new Pro and Pro Max models. As always, I learned a great deal from this review and the notations regarding lens and format are a great idea. I think the jump to 24MP without Pro Raw will prove a big deal for casual users. I’ve been impressed with my 14 Pro Max, which I use in Raw, and it appears the Apple engineers (or Mother Nature) have made significant improvements.

[@checksix_TC]

It would be nice if a RX100, a GR3 or a V10 can make phone calls. Come on Sony Ricoh and Canon, make it happen. 😜

[@username-videos]

​​@@checksix_TCSony already has the Xperia 1 and 5, which I would argue are better camera and one experiences than the iPhone. Even if they don't have the brand recognition that Apple does.

[@vrapan]

@@checksix_TC who the heck uses their phone for phone calls any more? :p

[@bsmukler]

No thanks!

[@guyjordan8201]

Nice to hear a good review from a skeptic. Chris had very pointed criticisms and justified his approvals. Jordan is much more pragmatic, uses iPhones, but he’s not blind to inadequacies. You guys do this stuff very well.

[@kingkiril]

So not much difference from iPhone 14 PM. More bigger improvements coming later on to the camera

[@Emre-bm8pp]

The best camera review I've ever watched. FR you guys covered everything

[@kylehessling2679]

honestly that prores log is so good I wouldn't have really noticed a switch between your pro camera as long as the DOF wasn't crazy thin. But the hdr footage looks very Iphony as usual, lol. Will be perma-strapping an SSD to mine and shooting video that way only, I think. This might be the first iPhone ever that can actually intercut with pro cameras even though everyone has always said they could, the workflow is actually doable now with the SSD recording!

[@michaelbch7713]

Cris says record to external ssd prores no original size ,smaller bitrate ,no resonable

[@kylehessling2679]

@@michaelbch7713 True but the smaller bitrate makes for really ugly video in comparison when viewed on larger monitors or televisions

[@Generic321]

This is by far the best iPhone 15 Pro camera overview on KZbin at the moment eh!

[@spektrograf]

Great coverage of and review of the new iPhone photo/video capabilities, as always. Thank you! The results are good for smartphone cameras, but we still haven't bent the laws of physics yet, and it still shows with the limitations demonstrated with this video.

[@121155377]

really wanted to see a comparison between 3x on pro max and pro.

[@stevenqirkle]

Being able to zoom through multiple lenses is one of my most-wanted features. It's unfortunate to see that there's a little jump when switching lenses - but even with that it's still something that I would use all the time e.g. when filming a soccer game. I'm also wondering if the 3x lens on the Pro might be better than the 5x on the Pro Max - since the quality dropoff just before switching to the 5x lense was really noticeable.

[@akaoveve]

Super review! Thank you! I would like to see more of these... photographers review is what people need... not bloggers review...

[@User57655]

That 5x lens is pretty unremarkable considering how much time was devoted to talking about it during the launch

[@k.vn.k]

12:33

[@King_504]

​@@k.vn.k🗑

[@Jeo-What]

On the telephoto zoom lens, Pro has a 3X zoom with 6% Autofocus Pixels and the Pro Max has 5X zoom with 100% Autofocus Pixels. Do you notes the autofocus speed in all different lighting conditions? With all the review I have seen so far, no one has mentioned or tested this yet.

[@vidthreenorth4007]

Good job. The Cinematic and manual graded Log were good. HDR looked bad. It would be nice if you tested the Sony Xperia 1 v as well as the current top line Samsung. The Sony in particular is fairly rarely covered, and it interesting that it is a camera company. I have a Sony Xperia 10 iii, and I do think there is a "Sony look" in common w/the Alpha cameras.

[@weizenobstmusli8232]

Or tests against the top chinese phones, since they are leading in camera tech.

[@LiamPhotoATL]

Great video as always guys. Looking forward to getting my iPhone 15 Pro Max

[@kalafalas246]

Thank you for uploading in HDR! I feel like I get a much more realistic idea of what the cameras will perform like

[@misterfilmguy]

This dynamic duo is always great!

[@MarioPalomera]

Increíble performance in good lighting conditions. After watching both of you for years you could fool me with many shots. Keep the great work!

[@bobsctx8166]

Wish you would compare 119mm shot with 15ProMax with equivalent shot on 15 Pro. I am concerned that with the 15 ProMax apple has left to big of range for the main 24mm camera to cover, as surfaced by Tony Northrup. What have you observed? I would prefer Apple to give us true variable zoom between 77 and 120 mm, as Sony has demonstrated themselves on Experia model.

[@scotthunter4]

Thank you. After 3 minutes this video tells me all I needed to know. Nothing much has changed since the 14 Pro camera wise. Unless they put the 48mp sensor behind all 3 lenses I probably won’t bother upgrading.

[@davidgcorbett3883]

The new Blackmagic App for iPhone looks awesome for better control of the iPhone video

[@arturogoga]

That cinematic mode looks amazing

[@scriptedBug]

Not if you are seeing it on a monitor. That blur looks really crappy near his head. Apple should stop emulating that depth of view because it looks damn fugly. At least nothing PRO about it.

[@matthewpatterson9184]

Love this format, hope to see more mobile 'photography' reviews going forward. Please do one of thse videos for the Google Pixel 8/8 Pro when it releases in October.

[@PetaPixel]

That’s the plan! Thanks for watching.

[@gookymofo]

Great review from a photographers' perspectives. It's a shame that Apple overblows their specs but nice to see some incremental improvements. Really like the compatibility of external drives. Thanks for the great review as always.

[@vnstsoom7804]

I have no knowledge anything about video or vlogging etc. But I got one thing from this vlog, the HDR is bad, at least compared to other video modes. Great vlog btw, enjoyed very much. 🤩😁

[@4.7m_views]

My BIGGEST beef with Apple is their “sharpening”. The fact that there’s no option to control it or turn it off is disheartening. Now all my family videos make my loved ones look like playdoe skin.

[@SolidBrixStudios]

Excellent review guys, you really covered everything and I feel liked I learned a lot!

[@coder543]

I think the HDR video looks great on my OLED screen!

[@beeldenman]

Does 3x look better on an iPhone 15 Pro than on an iPhone 15 Pro Max?

[@marcomarcon5802]

The quality of video footage is uneven, sometimes the skin tones and contrast are strange especially when not shooting in log, I get much more reliable results from my ZV-1, but the photos look good, despite the lack of a periscopic lens, like in my S23 Ultra

[@schack]

I've ordered to 15 Pro and can't wait to try out the new Blackmagic Cam app. It seems to have everything you could want in a video app. Even display LUTS.

[@TMM6900]

I felt like good audio really elevate the whole video

[@pcwebbjr]

Underrated KZbin channel right here. Great & thorough review! Thanks!

[@eccentricthinking]

I have to say, I watched this episode with interest because I happened to use my iPhone to film parts of my episodes a few times (albeit with third party apps), and having a 12 pro max due for an upgrade I was curious to see how the 15 pro max did. The quality of still photos taken with Apple devices (as we have gotten used to by now) is very good. I also welcome the introduction of a 5x zoom so I can save on the weight of carrying a pocket camera with me when hiking and climbing mountains. But to my surprise… well I have to say the quality of the videos seems absolutely abysmal! That’s so disappointing considering I have been able to use footage from various iPhones in the past and mix it with that of Panasonic cameras, to the point that it’s almost impossible to tell the difference. Watching this video was utterly painful. I don’t know if it depends on using third party apps vs Apple stock Camera app, but saved for a couple of shots, the video quality (I’m talking about colours, highlights, the weird skin smoothing, etc. not the natural DOF, which we all know can’t compete with DSLR cameras) is completely insufficient for any use apart from family videos. The “pro” in Pro Max and Pro Res seems really wasted here. I was going to blindly upgrade my phone but after watching this useful video (I love all PetaPixel videos, you guys rock!) I’m going to reconsider my purchasing options.

[@darwiniandude]

Try watching in different browsers / displays too. How I normally watch didn't handle the HDR video well at all.

[@Rojo_Photography]

Would like to see in depth videos of the top of the line Samsung, Sony and Pixel camera systems as well. Great video!

[@ThroughJoesLens]

The new Blackmagic video camera app for iPhone is an interesting one.

[@techtt6213]

I've used it extensively over the last few days on a 14. It's a bit of a gimmick tbh when purely talking image quality. But the interface is really nice

[@Humanityinthe6]

Im disappointed they removed the 77mm lens on the max. So there is no real “portrait lens” 5x or 120mm seems too close…Too much of a gap from the 2x to 5x. Would love to hear from portrait photographers using the. 15 max. Would have been nice to see 4 lenses.

[@michaelkaercher]

Nice review. I always think you guys are better to watch then all the fanboys. Very well made. Low light was a bit underexposed. I would hope fore more next time. Technically, I have just used an iPhone 13 Pro Max for a recording of a concert. It was very nice. I recorded the scene from several angles. The bigger cameras had much better dynamic range and performed better in low light but the iPhone was still very usable.

[@Moncriefs]

12:33 I was skeptical about the 5x with video mode, and now I'm sold on it! Thank you for this🙏

[@funkylosik]

still looks blurry/noisy/out of focus to me, especially at 2:24

[@Moncriefs]

@@funkylosik It's not the 5x zoom until 12:32, you can actually kinda see the camera's switch during the zoom. I'm a prime lens guy, so it works out perfect for my intended purpose, Plus I have an iPhoneX still🤣

[@funkylosik]

@@Moncriefs no, keep watching from my timestamp. 0.5, 3, 5x... and I also still rocking the X, hehe

[@_o__o_]

is the iPhone 15 Pro Max suitable for a colonoscopy?

[@DIYBill]

Only if you have 1TB version

[@niccollsvideo]

The brushed titanium felt very, very smooth.

[@bastian.michel]

I love you guys. Please never stop reviewing...

[@TobeyGuthrie]

Fantastic video as always! Upgrading from the galaxy s10 to the 15 pro. Extremely impressed with how good the 4k 30 HDR and Log footage looks. Curious what Jordan thought of the results of the apple lut vs manual grading -- or if he'd just prefer to shoot in HDR 4k 30p

[@deneswebb]

This HDR video looks amazing. Great job 👏

[@kefkafloyd]

Jordan, if you could do a comparison video between the advanced-focused video apps for iPhone (Filmic Pro, Cinema P3, ProMovie, the new BlackMagic camera app) that would be excellent. Being able to crank up the bit rate in those third party apps helps a lot on the low-light video front.

[@techtt6213]

And MotionCam on Android for true RAW video

[@SteveHartmanVideos]

It would be good to see if they can provide some of the missing controls, like smooth zoom, snap zoom, exposure meters, false color would be great.

[@theorientearl]

Didnt hear about the speed of shooting Apple Pro Raw. Did the new processor help to make it faster?

[@chronopath]

Thanks for this! A couple of questions... 1) in the pseudo 35mm crop mode, does it have the same natural distortion as the native 24mm lens or does the software correct it to look more like actual 35mm? 2) Is there a way to shoot in say 75mm or 90mm equivalent since there's such a big gap between the 24mm to the 120mm? If it's possible, is it done via software cropping the 120mm image?

[@anonymousonez]

Great question. Anyone?

[@Bayonet1809]

You need to specify whether you are asking about perspective distortion or non-rectilinear distortion. If the former, then you should know that just like with ILCs, perspective distortion is a property of the angle of view, and not the focal length, so cropping reduces the angle of view, and thus reduces the perspective distortion. If the latter, then I don't know how Apple chooses to correct distortion, but I imagine they would do so irrespective of crop setting.

[@techtt6213]

It doesn't, looks like a cropped 24

[@chronopath]

@@Bayonet1809 Thanks for that. My understanding is that perspective distortion isn't really distortion; it's simply perspective. So given that my question is whether the 35 etc FOV corrects the distortion of the 24, I'm referring to lens distortion/barrel distortion/non-rectilinear distortion. Is it corrected by the software?

[@FinalManaTrigger]

Cool stuff, but as an iPhone 13 Pro Max user I'm going to wait for the iPhone 16 to upgrade. By then I feel like the upgrade might actually be worth it.

[@TDCIYB77]

Please compare the new Blackmagic Camera App to native App!

[@brianbarajas2948]

I was waiting for your guyses review of this. Ive seen other reviews but you guys have a better way of showing off even a phone's camera in terms of framing and subject matter.

[@djfoo000]

The coloring in this video seems off. Skin tone seems too warm, while the greens are distractingly eye catching. Seems to be some highlight clipping and shadow crushing too. That backlit scene at 2:33 is uncomfortable to watch.

[@johnnybregar]

Skin tones look way off to me. Is this due to grading or is it as shot?