With the launch of the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, Apple’s highly anticipated variable-aperture camera is finally a reality. The company makes some bold claims about its capabilities, including crisper group shots and better low-light performance. What’s more, Apple installed the camera in both variants of the iPhone 18 Pro series, confounding rumors that only the larger Pro Max model would support it.

Why Do I Need A Variable Aperture?

Apple’s new variable aperture becomes necessary in order to support the iPhone 18 Pro’s new, brighter lens without compromising focus in group shots, but it also provides a number of additional benefits.

Where the iPhone 17 Pro/Pro Max offered a fixed main camera aperture of f/1.78, the new flagships offer four discrete settings of f/1.48, f/1.8, f/2.8 and f/4.0, controlled by six physical blades.

This means that, in theory, the iPhone 18 Pro/Pro Max lens can open up to capture around 50% more light in a single shot or close down to increase the depth of field, helping to keep group shots in focus and unlocking new creative possibilities. This addresses one of the iPhone camera’s biggest flaws , one which would only have become worse if Apple had opted for a fixed super-bright f/1.48 aperture lens.

However, variable aperture lenses make photography considerably more complex as the best aperture selection depends on how much light is available. But it also depends on the type of shot you’re taking and how you want the results to look. That’s great for creative control, but makes for a terrible point-and-shoot experience. Rival manufacturer Xiaomi discovered this to its detriment with the Xiaomi 13 Ultra and 14 Ultra. Dxomark’s testing demonstrated that a variable aperture doesn’t automatically improve image quality unless paired with effective exposure, autofocus and processing. It’s no good to simply add the feature and leave the user to figure out how to use it.

Where Auto Mode Can Stumble

Dxomark found that the Xiaomi 13 Ultra’s default auto mode left the aperture fixed at f/1.9 , sometimes leaving background subjects in group shots out of focus . The automatic aperture mode had to be enabled manually. The company addressed this issue in the 14 Ultra, adjusting the aperture in response to lighting conditions by default, but failing to adjust automatically to the scene composition. The company later dropped the variable aperture altogether in the 15 Ultra.

Apple’s default fully-automatic mode, on the other hand, takes over all the decision-making in an attempt to optimize performance across a wide range of shooting conditions. This happens without the user ever needing to know about aperture settings. Of course, it remains to be seen how well this functions in practice.

Dxomark identifies potential pitfalls with variable aperture smartphone lenses, stemming primarily from the increased complexity of adding a new hardware parameter to the camera’s imaging pipeline. The camera has to make complex decisions about not only the shooting conditions, but also the content of the image you’re trying to take and which parts of the image should be in focus.

Can I Control The Aperture Manually?

However, users who do know how to control the aperture effectively now have the ability to do so, thanks to Apple’s new Pro Controls feature that finally lets photographers adjust camera settings manually, including aperture. This is a first for Apple, which has until now left this sort of feature to third-party apps.

Apple gives several examples of where aperture choices change the look of the final image, including deliberately narrowing the aperture to create a starburst effect on point light sources. This is an area where Apple could take a page out of the Google Pixel playbook by offering contextual real-time tips that guide new users through unfamiliar settings.

Camera Coach , on Pixel 10-series phones and newer, does this for framing, lighting, and mode selection, offering suggestions like switching to Portrait mode based on what’s in shot. Similar hints in Pro Controls, tailored to aperture and shutter speed, could help users gain confidence quickly.

Expect More From Third Party Apps

However, even Apple’s new Pro Controls appear to offer only a simplified subset of what the hardware can do. According to official documentation, the camera API allows “ even more control across the aperture range ”, suggesting that advanced camera apps may be able to select aperture values between Apple’s four selectable stops, such as f/2.0, although this would need to be confirmed through testing.

This would give professional users even more flexibility, enabling a more precise level of control over exposure, shutter angle and video flicker reduction than is available from the default camera app. The ability to restrict light intake accurately by stopping down the aperture with greater precision would make it easier to maintain the desired shutter angle and reduce reliance on ND filters in professional setups.

Has Apple Pulled It Off Where Others Have Failed?

Putting any potential reliability issues aside, the iPhone 18 Pro/Pro Max may have achieved, on paper at least, what many previous attempts, excepting Huawei’s class-leading Chinese flagships, have failed to do. The iPhone 18 Pro series promises genuine photographic benefits and increased creative control without complicating its default fully automatic point-and-shoot mode.

However, the proof will be in the test results. Has Apple pulled it off?