With Apple releasing iOS 10. 1 to beta testers today we’re now getting our first good glimpse at the iPhone 7’s portrait mode, which is said to accurately mimic the bokeh seen in quality glass. The aesthetic is created by using the camera’s 56mm lens and wide angle lens in conjunction with one another to produce a depth map.

MacRumors demonstrates how the effect is rendered realtime in a series of tests.

The degree of blur is proportionately calculated based on the distance between the images simultaneously taken with the two lens. In addition, a preview mode provides live feedback to the user before the shot is even taken.

Unfortunately, the main downside from creating fake bokeh naturally comes from the halo effect seen around the in-focus subject and the blurry background. However, you won’t need to wait until the iPhone 8 is released as the algorithm will almost certainly smooth away these issues with software updates.

While the quality of bokeh seen on iPhone 7 is remarkable, the halo effect becomes very apparent when compared to a camera with dedicated optics for creating natural bokeh.

What do you think of the results? Let us know in the comments or on Facebook.

2016-10-7 03:00