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iOS 18.1 Beta 5 Adds New Selfie Option for Camera Control

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With the fifth beta of iOS 18.1, Apple has made a small tweak to the Camera Control button that was introduced on the iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max.

iphone-16-capture-button-2.jpg

When you dig into the Camera Control settings, there is now a way to set it to the front-facing camera without having to interact with the iPhone's display.

To get to the selfie camera, open up the Camera app with a press on the Camera Control button, and then use a swipe gesture on the button to scroll through the lenses. The person icon at the very top swaps to the front-facing selfie camera.

iphone-16-selfie-camera-control.jpg

Note that if you have Camera Control set to a different setting, you will need to open up the Camera app, activate Camera Control, and then tap on the screen to swap tools. The selfie camera and lens options are under the "Cameras" heading. The last tool you used will be the tool Camera Control opens with.

Prior to iOS 18.1, you could use this gesture to swipe through the different lens options, like 0.5x, 1x, 2x, and 5x (Pro only), but now it also includes the selfie camera to make it easier to get to all of the available lens options.

Article Link: iOS 18.1 Beta 5 Adds New Selfie Option for Camera Control
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2024/09/23/ios-18-1-beta-5-selfie-camera-control/
Am actually surprised I haven’t heard much talk of selfie implications regarding this button - mine hasn’t arrived yet so I’m not sure - but surely it’s actually a super nice position for portrait and landscape selfies?

There’s always that moment of potential catastrophe when stretching as far as you can and then needing to reposition your thumb to take the picture.
 
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the most useful function would have been to add a “Focus” button. Where I can slide the focus around or at least push the button instead of reaching for and tapping the screen
honestly the use ive had for it is for adjusting EV. Highly highly recommend turning off “Clean Preview“ in Settings. Not sure why this is on by default.
 
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** sorry, found it, i needed some info video to learn what a 'light press' is

Am i doing something wrong? I can only single-click / take a photo.
 
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A button for taking selfies, especially in landscape mode, was my only idea how to make use of this button anyway. Good!
 
You do realise it will takes ages to get to that option when where your thumb is on the screen is to switch to selfie cam, so why would any one use the camera button which will take a while to get to that option
 
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Someone explain why someone would be so against using the touch screen like we always have the actual button to change to selfie or rear cameras is there where your thumb is? Plz someone explain how this is better
 
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Read this like 5 times and I still don't understand what that even means 🤪 so far I only use this button to open the camera, everything else seems too complicated for something that is already shown on the screen anyway. The few times I tried it, it made my photos blurry because I was ever so slightly shaking the phone when I pushed the button. I also have a hard time differenciating between a press to take a photo and a press to get to the different options and don't care enough to figure it out either
 
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gimmesomemo said:
Am actually surprised I haven’t heard much talk of selfie implications regarding this button - mine hasn’t arrived yet so I’m not sure - but surely it’s actually a super nice position for portrait and landscape selfies?

There’s always that moment of potential catastrophe when stretching as far as you can and then needing to reposition your thumb to take the picture.
Click to expand...
Because it doesn't really work. The few times I tried taking selfies with that button, the photos were all blurry because I unintentionally make the phone shake slightly when I trying to push the button. A raise your hand to the camera gesture like on Android to take a selfie would have been much more convenient. No idea why Apple never implemented this.
 
gimmesomemo said:
Am actually surprised I haven’t heard much talk of selfie implications regarding this button - mine hasn’t arrived yet so I’m not sure - but surely it’s actually a super nice position for portrait and landscape selfies?

There’s always that moment of potential catastrophe when stretching as far as you can and then needing to reposition your thumb to take the picture.
Click to expand...
I was thinking the same thing until I got it. Alas the camera button the feature I've been by far most excited for (so I can finally free up the action button for something else.. was a bit of a let down. Though of course need to go ive it more time. But it's below where your thumb naturally lights an while you can certainly bend your thumb to it, feels slightly uncomfortable made worse by the fact its a flat button and you have to press while your finger is bent which isn't something you do for any other buttons on the phone. Very hard to explain. Wish it were higher up and raised but then would be triggered often where people normally rest their finger. And when doing landscape, also feels odd since you are expecting it to be too the far right but not, and the flat button makes it feel much less like a typical camera shutter. And finally the swipping lenses is very sensitive.

Overall, I've wanted this for ever, and glad they are taking a stab at it, and hoping will just taking getting use to, but currently find myself using the action button more still, since my index finger presses it more comfortably for a selfie, and its raised so no missing it, and no swipes to accidentally trigger and on landscape feels more like a typical shutter location. Wish that was the capture button and the other was the action, but maybe others love it from the get go.
 
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contacos said:
Read this like 5 times and I still don't understand what that even means 🤪 so far I only use this button to open the camera, everything else seems too complicated for something that is already shown on the screen anyway. The few times I tried it, it made my photos blurry because I was ever so slightly shaking the phone when I pushed the button. I also have a hard time differenciating between a press to take a photo and a press to get to the different options and don't care enough to figure it out either
Click to expand...
Hopefully 6th time is the charm. Also it's saying is when you swipe on the new camera button, instead of just swiping between zoom levels, now in the latest beta the last zoom level will be a self button, so you don't have to click the screen to enable selfie mode. That's weird about it being blurry, unless taking it the dark and using dark mode. Since when taking a photo in normal lighting, either with the on screen button or action button or camera capture button you can shake a good deal and typically won't show blur, since taking at a higher appture and using lots of processing to reduce the noise that would normally be present when doing higher shutter speeds. Luckily if you do decide to care enough to figure it out, can promise it will take less time than it took for you to write this message. However, I find some fundamental issues with the button location and not raised nature, but glad to see them trying and I'm sure every other phone will be offering it as well in no time so probably best for us all to give it a good try now.
 
Antes said:
honestly the use ive had for it is for adjusting EV. Highly highly recommend turning off “Clean Preview“ in Settings. Not sure why this is on by default.
Click to expand...
Thanks! I thought it was silly all of the options disappeared, and wished for a setting to disable such behavior. I had looked in camera control settings to disappointment. The description beneath Clean Preview doesn't describe what it does at all!
 
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Kylo83 said:
Someone explain why someone would be so against using the touch screen like we always have the actual button to change to selfie or rear cameras is there where your thumb is? Plz someone explain how this is better
Click to expand...
It's more complicated and can lead to inadvertent activation, so it must be better! 😂
 
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