How to Improve Photo and Video Composition Without Cropping on iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro

Saturday September 21, 2019 5:21 AM PDT by Tim Hardwick
With the arrival of the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max, Apple has introduced an optional new camera feature in iOS 13 that's designed to allow you to correct the alignment of photos and videos without having to resort to cropping.


Basically, when you take pictures or video using either the wide lens or (on the 11 Pro series) the telephoto lens, the camera will simultaneously shoot or record using the next widest sensor. So the wide lens is active when you shoot with the telephoto lens, and the ultra-wide is active when you shoot with the wide.

With the feature enabled, you can take your shot, tap Edit in the preview window, tap the Crop tool, then select Straighten, and you'll be able to use the area captured outside the frame of the photo or video to fix the horizon and improve the composition of the shot without needing to crop it.

The toggle switches that control this behavior can be found in the Settings app, under Camera -> Photos Capture Outside the Frame and Camera -> Videos Capture Outside the Frame.

settings
Apple has disabled it by default for photos, so you'll need to turn it on to take advantage of it. Note that it is enabled by default for video, so you may want to disable it if iPhone or iCloud storage space is a concern. That said, if the area around the frame isn't used to make corrections, it will be automatically deleted after 30 days.

Related Roundups: iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro
Buyer's Guide: iPhone 11 (Buy Now), iPhone 11 Pro (Buy Now)
28 comments


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MrUNIMOG
11 weeks ago
This is great. Seemed odd to me they didn't highlight it on stage at the event (like so many things), it's kind of a tentpole feature.
Rating: 3 Votes
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Saipher
11 weeks ago


Apple has disabled it by default for photos, so you'll need to turn it on to take advantage of it.


Why would they do that?! The average user will not know such feature exists or how to turn it on but could greatly benefit from it. Specially since the “unused” wider picture gets deleted after 30 days so unless you are taking a ton of pictures/videos at once, it wouldn’t be an issue with storage.

Edit: a word
Rating: 1 Votes
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metalsiren
11 weeks ago
I have to watch a video on this I can’t seem to figure it out lol
Rating: 1 Votes
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eyeseeyou
11 weeks ago


Why would they do that?! The average user will not know such feature exists or how to turn it on but could greatly benefit from it. Specially since the “unused” wider picture gets deleted after 30 days so unless you are taking a ton of pictures/videos at once, it would be an issue with storage.

Probably an issue with storage. I didn't take a look at the UI if it actually provides a warning but it would be a valid concern.
Rating: 1 Votes
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WilliamG
11 weeks ago


Yeah not working for me either. Maybe glitch?


One of MANY bugs in iOS 13.
Rating: 1 Votes
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talkin73
10 weeks ago


Working here on iPhone Pro Max. Nice feature.

Guessing that’s what the little icon is in the upper right when activated.



Same for me. That icon only appeared after I turned the capture outside the frame off and back on again in camera settings.article says it’s off by default but mine was on. Now icon shows up on all pics taken with wide and tele.

Had same issue with messages in cloud. On by default but not working after 24 hrs. Turned off then back on and all syncd in 5 minutes.
Rating: 1 Votes
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