iPhone SE (2022) how to take SINGLE picture with time delay

[Doug Lass]

OK,so I want to set a 10 second delay, to take group pictures including myself. When I do this, the iPhone automatically does it in burst mode, taking ten pictures, nine of which I throw away. You can kill the burst mode by setting LIVE to active, in which case you gat lots ofmp4 garbage. Geez Louise, how do you take ONE PICTURE with no sound and no video with a delay???

 

[now i see it]

It’s not possible.
Apple is smarter than us and knows what’s best. Anyone using a timed shutter is taking a group photo so a 10 picture burst is what we all want — even if we don’t.
iOS is chock full of these types of assumptions — and almost always they’re wrong

 

[Doug Lass]

Thank you. So I gather. Of course, why then when you DON'T do time delay do they not do burst mode? What is it about time delay that makes Apple think that people need burst mode? Oh, maybe they figure that if you are willing to wait ten seconds, you'll have extra time to throw crap away?

 

[now i see it]

deep at apple central, they assume that the only time someone needs a timer is when the iPhone is on a tripod and the user wants to take a group photo by clicking the shutter button then running back into the group. Since its hard to get a group photo with everyone looking good (closed eyes etc) a burst photo can increase the chances that one of the burst images will get everyone looking their best.
In apple’s mind, that’s what the iPhone timer is for - group photos.

 

[Doug Lass]

I see. You mean, in your group of fifty people, you want to make sure that no one person is blinking? I mean, you've got a countdown numbers and flashing lights, so it isn't as if anyone should be unaware that a picture is about to be taken. My solution to that, if there is some suspicion that someone simply can't be trusted to keep their eyes open, is just to take two or three pictures. But why we don't get to decide whether or not to burst is beyond me. Of ourse, in the burst, all ten pictures are taken in less than a second, so if you're not looking good, you probably won't be looking a lot better a few milliseconds later.

 

[PeteBurgh]

how do you take ONE PICTURE with no sound and no video with a delay???

You can do this in Halide. (And several other 3rd party apps I imagine).

As with lots of things in the camera app, for better or for worse Apple makes a series of assumptions about what is best for most users, and leaves what it considers to be edge cases to specialist apps).

 

[HDFan]

OK,so I want to set a 10 second delay, to take group pictures including myself.

One workaround if you have an apple watch is to use the camera app on the watch. You get into the group and use the watch app to take the picture. Helps positioning the group as well if you go screen side to the group so they can see if they are visible in the photo and reposition themselves as needed. Just have to be careful as the photo will show you touching your watch to take the photo

 

[Saturn007]

That's a terrible design. Burst mode should be an option separate from timer delay — the way it is on “real” cameras! 😎

I just tried timer delay on a iPad and it automatically turns on burst mode there, too.

Does it also happen with Night Mode?

For example, if someone wanted to used their iPhone and take a single photo of ISS moving across a static starfield. The stars would be stationary while the ISS would be a bright blur.

You'd want to turn on timer delay to eliminate shakes from pressing the shutter button and wouldn't want a burst series of photos where each of the 10 photos would simply show the ISS as a bright “star”.

 

[Doug Lass]

That's exactly right. Burst mode should be an OPTION, just like it is on real cameras. But, um, Apple doesn't think any of us know how to use real cameras ...