Sim
I was playing with a friend’s iPhone 17 Pro and was surprised that Portrait and Cinematic modes were limited to 1 – 3x zoom. Is it possible to use them on the 4x and 8x modes?
Oct 14 at 2:34amIvory for iOS
Show threadAdam CharronOct 14

@simsaens on my 17 pro max I can use portrait on 1x, 2x, and 4x.

Cinematic is only 1x and 2x though, 3x is there but seems to be a crop of 2x?

Show threadSimOct 14
@Charrondev oh right 4x portrait I did see. But no 4x cinematic, wonder what the limitation is considering the 4x is a 48mp sensor and the 3x is < 12mp crop
Show threadRené HenrichOct 14
@simsaens Doesn’t this use depth information from the back lidar which is somewhat low-res? That would explain why it doesn’t work with higher zoom levels.
Show threadSimOct 14

@ReneHenrich oh damn. Though non-LIDAR iPhone Air does it for its 1x camera and supports the full suite of features. Unsure why they can't activate that for the 4x lens on the pro

https://9to5mac.com/2025/09/12/iphone-air-offers-a-new-feature-never-seen-in-a-single-camera-iphone/

iPhone Air offers a new feature never seen in a single-camera iPhone - 9to5Mac

Apple has been including Portrait Mode on iPhone models with only one back camera since the iPhone XR, but the...

9to5Mac
Show threadRené HenrichOct 14
@simsaens just checked it and lidar is only being used for low light portraits anyway, so no idea why Apple implemented only for lower zoom levels 🤷🏻‍♂️ must be some implementation specific stuff