iPhone 18 Pro Variable Aperture: See the Real Difference
One of the biggest camera changes on the iPhone 18 Pro is the addition of a variable aperture on the main camera. Instead of being locked to a single aperture like previous iPhone generations, the 18 Pro can shoot at f/1.48, f/1.8, f/2.8, and f/4.
I wanted to see how much of a difference that actually makes in landscape photography, so I photographed several scenes with the iPhone 18 Pro at different aperture settings and compared the results against the iPhone 17 Pro. Watch the video below:
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If you want to inspect the results yourself, you can download the original comparison iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro files for free.
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What Changes at f/1.48 vs f/4?
The biggest difference is depth of field.
At f/1.48, the iPhone 18 Pro produces a slightly more out-of-focus background than the iPhone 17 Pro, which makes sense since the 17 Pro uses a fixed f/1.78 aperture.
The much more noticeable difference appears when the 18 Pro is stopped down to f/4.
Across the scenes I tested, f/4 brought more of the image into focus and gave the distant background noticeably more definition.
In a close-up composition where I focused on a tree very close to the camera, the distant background was still somewhat blurred at f/4. But it was clearly more defined than it was at f/1.48.
Sunstars
The other major difference is the way bright light sources are rendered.
At f/1.48, the sun appears much more like a bright circular highlight.
At f/4, the iPhone 18 Pro produces a much stronger and more defined sunstar.
That was one of the most obvious visual differences in my testing.
How Does It Compare to the iPhone 17 Pro?
At the widest aperture, the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro look fairly similar overall.
The 18 Pro at f/1.48 gives a slightly more blurred background than the 17 Pro at f/1.78, but the difference is relatively small.
The bigger advantage comes from having the option to stop the 18 Pro down to f/4.
That gives you more control over how much of the scene appears sharp and in focus, while also changing the way bright light sources such as the sun are rendered.
Other Benefits of Variable Aperture
Being able to adjust the aperture can also help you dial in specific shutter speeds and ISO values when needed, and it can be useful for video as well.
For this comparison, I mainly wanted to see how the new aperture system affects general landscape photography.
Does It Actually Matter?
I think it does.
The biggest benefit is control.
You can shoot at f/1.48 when you want a slightly shallower depth of field or need to let in more light, and then stop down to f/4 when you want more of the scene to appear sharp and in focus or want a more defined sunstar. Being able to adjust the aperture also allows you to better control shutter speed and ISO values.
That is flexibility that simply was not available with the fixed aperture on the iPhone 17 Pro and earlier models.
