The built-in Camera app lets you control focus and exposure with a few taps. Touch the screen to set a focus point, slide the sun icon to brighten or darken, and press and hold to lock both. For full manual shutter speed and ISO, you generally need a third party camera app.
Set and Lock Focus and Exposure
- Open the Camera app and frame your subject.
- Tap the subject on the screen. A yellow square appears, showing where focus and exposure are measured.
- Press and hold the same spot until the label for AE/AF lock appears. The settings stay fixed even if you move the phone slightly.
- Recompose if needed, then press the shutter button.
- Tap anywhere else to release the lock.
Locking is useful for portraits, panning and any scene where the phone keeps hunting for focus or changing brightness.
Adjust Brightness with the Exposure Slider
After you tap, a small sun icon and a vertical line appear beside the square. Drag it up to brighten and down to darken the image.
- Bright backgrounds, such as a sky behind a person, often fool the camera into darkening the subject. Tap the face, then slide up slightly.
- For high contrast scenes, lower the slider a little to protect bright detail, since clipped highlights are hard to recover.
- Check the screen image in the shade of your hand if sunlight makes it hard to judge.
Use Exposure Compensation and Other Controls
Many iPhone models also offer an arrow at the top or an options menu, depending on the system version. It reveals extra controls.
- Exposure compensation: lets you set a plus or minus value that stays for a session if you preserve camera settings.
- Flash and night mode: choose when you want to override automatic behavior.
- Live Photos and timer: turn these off or on to match your shot.
- Grid: switch on the grid in the settings app to help level horizons.
Available features differ between models and software versions, so check what your phone shows.
When to Use a Manual Camera App
If you want to set shutter speed, ISO, white balance and focus distance yourself, a third party app can provide those sliders. Typical uses include long exposures of water, light trails and consistent product shots.
| Goal | General guidance |
|---|---|
| Sharp handheld shots | Keep shutter speed faster than about 1/100 for steady hands |
| Cleaner low light images | Keep ISO lower and use a stand with a slower shutter |
| Silky water | Use a stand and a shutter speed of about a second or longer |
| Close focus | Move the focus slider toward the near end and check the screen |
Treat these numbers as baselines and adjust to the scene.
FAQ
Why does focus keep shifting?
The camera refocuses when the scene changes. Use the press and hold lock so it stops adjusting after you set it.
Does a tripod help on a phone?
Yes. A small tripod or clamp keeps the framing fixed, which matters for slower shutter speeds and for repeating the same composition.
The Short Version
Tap to focus, slide the sun icon to adjust brightness, and hold to lock both before you shoot. Use a manual camera app only when you need direct control of shutter speed, ISO or focus distance.
