iOS 16: How to Disable Lock Screen Depth Effect - MacRumors
Skip to Content

iOS 16: How to Disable Lock Screen Depth Effect

by

With iOS 16, Apple introduced a complete overhaul of the iOS Lock Screen, making it more customizable than ever and bringing widgets to the Lock Screen for the first time.

ios 16 lock screen customization
One of the new features is a new depth effect that works well with images of people in your Photo library. When you're creating a new Lock Screen, a "People" category suggests images of people that you've photographed that will work with the new depth effect.

On select images, the time will go under the person or object in the photo to create a layered look, similar to how Portrait mode photos look on the Apple Watch, and the results are often quite impressive.

Often, but not always. Sometimes the photo you use will have the depth effect automatically applied, but it may conceal too much of the time on your Lock Screen, or it may just look wrong. In that case, you can easily disable the depth effect. The following steps show you how it's done.

  1. Unlock your ‌‌iPhone‌‌ with Face ID or Touch ID.
  2. Press and hold on the Lock Screen to enter the wallpaper gallery.
  3. Swipe if necessary to the Lock Screen wallpaper with the depth effect, then tap Customize.
    Lock Screen

  4. Tap the ellipsis icon (three encircled dots) in the bottom-right corner.
  5. Tap Depth Effect to uncheck the option.
  6. Tap Done in the top-right corner when you've finished making changes.
  7. Tap the wallpaper again in the gallery to activate it.
    Lock Screen

That's all there is to it. Your chosen Lock Screen should now look as it should without the depth effect applied.

Popular Stories

Apple Lists 250 Changes Across iOS 27 and More Feature

Apple Shares List of 250 Changes Across iOS 27, macOS Golden Gate, and More

Wednesday June 10, 2026 1:34 pm PDT by
During its WWDC 2026 keynote on Monday, Apple briefly showed a slide with hundreds of new features and enhancements coming across iOS 27, macOS 27 Golden Gate, watchOS 27, tvOS 27, and visionOS 27. All of the software updates are currently available as developer betas, and they are expected to be released to all users in September. We already highlighted some of the key new features from the ...
Apple Event Logo

Apple to Release These 15 New Products Later This Year

Friday June 12, 2026 7:45 am PDT by
Apple's annual WWDC developers conference is drawing to a close, but there is still a lot to look forward to in the second half of the year. Apple is expected to release at least 15 more products later this year. Now that the more intelligent and personal version of Siri has finally arrived in beta, a full two years after Apple first previewed it at WWDC 2024, we should begin to see some new ...
iCloud iPhone 17 Pro

iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage Get Two New Perks on iOS 27

Tuesday June 9, 2026 11:29 am PDT by
If you pay for extra iCloud storage on your iPhone, beyond the 5GB included for free, you might receive two more perks on iOS 27 at no additional cost. First, Apple said there will be daily usage limits for some of the new and enhanced Apple Intelligence features on iOS 27, including image generation. However, the company noted that "increased access" is available with "most" iCloud+ storage ...