In many ways, I’m an odd guy – I do odd things, think odd thoughts, and find odd solutions to odd problems. But then I also use and love the iPhone 16 Pro Max, which probably makes me seem supremely basic as a tech journalist.
Yet putting aside that imagined juxtaposition, I have found an odd use for Apple’s new Camera Control feature that I really wasn’t expecting to catch my attention.
Now, I’ve written before about how I’m interested in the haptics-centric extra button Apple has added to its best iPhones with the explicit idea of doing more with the cameras with greater control. But Camera Control isn’t a feature that I’ve fully embraced; more often than not, I’ll forget about it if I’m shooting quick snaps. I appreciated its potential, but Camera Control still feels a little half-baked…
That was until I needed to photograph and record the back of my head.
Thinking with my head
No, no, before you rush to the comments section, I haven’t gone mad. Rather, I needed to do so for a pseudo-medical reason. Specifically, I was concerned about the health of my hair at the back, and potential skin irritation (look, I’m 38, and at the age where parts of my body start to malfunction bit by bit).
If you’ve ever tried snapping a photo of the back of your noggin, then you’ll know it’s a nightmare.
Trying to guess the angle of the cameras – whether you’re using rear or selfie snappers – is an exercise in frustration and borderline madness. Then, when you think you’ve nailed the angle after a deluge of attempts, you fail to hit the digital shutter button or tap it in such a way that the shot goes askew.
Such moments can make you want to fling your phone across a room or at an inviting wall. But I can’t alleviate my irritation like that, as the phones I use are review samples and I’d get into more trouble than a moment's angry respite is worth.
However, for me, having a physical shutter button changed the weird photography game.
Through the use of Camera Control and my iPhone’s selfie camera, I was able to get some semi-useful shots and videos of the back head, ready to be pored over with increasing paranoia.
It's growing on me
The simple ability to smoothly tap a physical dedicated button was mildly transformative, letting me keep what I thought was the right framing and snap shots at speed, two things I would and have struggled to do before Camera Control.
Taking a step back and looking at the bigger picture, as I’ve gone about my travels and odd wanderings, I’m slowly finding myself using the Camera Control button a lot more. It’s a weird mental leap, not automatically tapping the digital shutter button, but when I need to keep a nicely lined-up shot in place, Camera Control proves its usefulness.
I’m not fully won over by it, and I’ve yet to really get to grips with the Apple Intelligence features it facilitates. Yet there’s scope for Apple to build out the functionality and intuitiveness of Camera Control, which I hope to see realized on the rumored iPhone 17.
What do you reckon? Do you use Camera Control, or do you think it’s still a bit of a dud now that the iPhone 16 line has had time to settle in? Let me know in the comments.
