Apple Highlights Holiday-Themed Photos Shot on iPhone XR and XS

Apple today highlighted a series of holiday-themed photographs shot on its latest iPhones, the XR, XS, and XS Max.

appleshotoniphone
All of the photos were shared on social networks by iPhone users, highlighting new iPhone features like Smart HDR, better blurring in Portrait mode, and improved low-light performance.


Apple has shared other "Shot on iPhone" images from its user base, highlighting images shot on iPhone XR and iPhone XS after each iPhone's release.

In its post of holiday-related iPhone photographs, Apple recommends users check out the how to section of its website for tips on how to capture great photos and videos.

Popular Stories

iOS 26

iOS 26.1 Coming Soon: New Features for Your iPhone and Release Date

Monday October 27, 2025 7:55 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 26.1 update includes a handful of new features and changes for iPhones, including a toggle for changing the appearance of the Liquid Glass design, "slide to stop" for alarms in the Clock app, and more. Below, we outline key details about iOS 26.1. Release Date Given that Apple has yet to seed an iOS 26.1 Release Candidate, which is typically the final beta version, the...
iOS 26

6 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 26.1

Wednesday October 29, 2025 4:22 am PDT by
Apple is about to drop iOS 26.1, the first major point release since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least six notable changes and improvements to look forward to. We've rounded them up below. Apple has already provided developers and public beta testers with the release candidate version of iOS 26.1, which means Apple will likely roll out the update to all compatible...
maxresdefault

Apple TV 4K Could Still Launch Before 2025 Ends: All the Rumored Features

Monday October 27, 2025 4:51 pm PDT by
Apple is designing an updated version of the Apple TV 4K, and rumors suggest that it could come out sometime in the next couple of months. We're not expecting a major overhaul with design changes, but even a simple chip upgrade will bring major improvements to Apple's set-top box. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. We've rounded up all the latest Apple TV rumors. ...
iOS 26

Apple Seeds iOS 26.1, iPadOS 26.1, and macOS Tahoe 26.1 Release Candidates

Tuesday October 28, 2025 1:07 pm PDT by
Apple today provided developers and public beta testers with the release candidate versions of upcoming iOS 26.1, iPadOS 26.1, macOS Tahoe 26.1, tvOS 26.1, watchOS 26.1, and visionOS 26.1 updates for testing purposes. The RCs betas come a week after Apple released the fourth betas. The new betas can be downloaded from the Settings app on a compatible device by going to General > Software...
M6 MacBook Pro Feature 1

M6 MacBook Pro: Release Date, Pricing, and What to Expect

Monday October 27, 2025 9:15 am PDT by
Apple this month refreshed the 14-inch MacBook Pro base model with its new M5 chip, and higher-end 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips are expected to follow in early 2026. However, these machines will represent the final update to the current design, with Apple reportedly developing a completely new version of the MacBook Pro packed with next-generation hardware...
iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange

8 Reasons to Wait for Next Year's iPhone 18 Pro

Thursday October 30, 2025 4:42 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth...
macos tahoe

Here Are Apple's Release Notes for macOS Tahoe 26.1

Tuesday October 28, 2025 1:21 pm PDT by
Apple today provided developers and public beta testers with the release candidate version of macOS Tahoe 26.1, which means the update will likely see a public launch next week. The release candidate includes notes on what's in the update, so we have a full picture of the new features that Apple has included. macOS Tahoe 26.1 adds AutoMix support over AirPlay, improved FaceTime audio...
ipad mini 7 feature blue

OLED iPad Mini: Release Date, Pricing, and What to Expect

Wednesday October 29, 2025 7:13 am PDT by
Rumors are stoking excitement for the next-generation iPad mini that Apple is reportedly close to launching. So what should we expect from the successor to the iPad mini 7 that Apple released over a year ago? Read on to find out. Processor and Performance Apple is working on a next-generation version of the iPad mini (codename J510/J511) that features the A19 Pro chip, according to...
iPhone Car Key Kia

Another Vehicle Brand Gaining iPhone Car Keys Support

Tuesday October 28, 2025 5:27 am PDT by
Apple is preparing to bring support for its digital car key feature to Jetour vehicles, according to evidence uncovered on Apple's backend by MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris. Introduced in 2022, Car Keys allows an iPhone or Apple Watch to unlock a vehicle through the Wallet app. A digital version of a car key is stored in Wallet, and unlocking can be done by holding an Apple Watch or...

Top Rated Comments

citysnaps Avatar
90 months ago
I wish I could take pictures like those with my phones. No matter how hard I try mine never turn out at all. Always blurry, always has some residual nonsense on them. It has to be something I'm doing... as usual. Those photos look so good! AGH!! Jealous!
A couple of tips:

1) Make sure you have decent light
2) Tap on the screen where you want the focus point to be
3) Try not to move the phone when hitting the shutter button
4) If shooting in low light, prop your phone on a fixed surface; ie wall, table, rail, etc.

iPhone cameras are outstanding and can return excellent photographs.

Here's one of mine from last Sunday, at San Francisco's Ocean Beach:




Attachment Image
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Col4bin Avatar
90 months ago
The dark to light tonal range is pretty awesome on my XS Max. Pic I took of my kids yesterday. Obviously not going to win any photo awards, but highlights this aspect perfectly.



Attachment Image
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Weaselboy Avatar
90 months ago
Moderator Note:

Some off topic comments have been removed from the thread.

If you would like to discuss the use of the word holiday vs. the word Christmas, please start a new thread on that topic.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nsayer Avatar
90 months ago
My wife shot what wound up being our Christmas card photo on her X. I think it's one of the best pictures either of us has ever taken.

https://twitter.com/nwsayer/status/1074709199198646272
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
44267547 Avatar
90 months ago
The photo with the little girl grabbing the lights is awesome. The light reflecting on her face really highlights the photo with the blurred background.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BlargKing Avatar
90 months ago
In before the struggling photographers criticize the iPhone camera quality.
Its not so much the quality of the camera but the effect it has where people take some nice photos on an iPhone and claim to be a "photographer".

Or when people claim upon viewing a photo taken by a professional photographer that "I could take that on my iPhone". People don't seem to realize just how insulting that is.

Or when people say things like "iPhones will make DLSRs obsolete in a few years" (They wont).

For their intended purpose they are excellent cameras. But they still lack in a lot of areas where DSLRs excel (and always will).
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)