HOW IT WORKS

The iPhone 15 Pro Max has an innovative new lens design

The iPhone 15 Pro Max provides powerful 5X optical zoom, rather than less accurate digital zoom.

YOU WILL LEARN

How Apple’s tetraprism lens provides powerful 5x optical zoom for the iPhone 15 Pro Max

Key fact

Apple says that the larger size of the iPhone 15 Pro Max made it possible to add the new 5x tetraprism lens, while the iPhone 15 Pro still has the same 3x zoom as the iPhone 14 Pro. However, there are already rumours that the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max models will both have tetraprism lenses next year, putting them back on an equal footing.

The tetraprism lens is ideal for taking close-up portrait shots that need a lot of detail.

One of the remarkable achievements of the iPhone is that its compact O camera system has become a professional-level tool for many photographers and film-makers.

It hasn’t completely replaced traditional cameras, of course, but the pocket-size iPhone can be used on the move to quickly capture photos and video footage without the need to carry and set up more conventional camera systems with their bulky collections of lenses, tripods and other accessories. And, of course, that’s especially true of the iPhone Pro and Pro Max models, which boast three cameras that provide ultra-wide, telephoto, macro and other shooting modes. The latest iPhone models continue that trend, sporting dazzlingly powerful cameras even on the basic iPhone 15 and the more advanced iPhone 15 Pro. However, it’s the iPhone 15 Pro Max (read our review on p78) that steals the show, with a new tetraprism telephoto zoom lens that takes the iPhone into entirely new photographic territory.