SMARTPHONE MACRO
Sometimes you don’t need specialist equipment for close-ups; modern smartphones are very capable when it comes to macro, says Amy Davies
Shooting macro can often require specialist equipment. Even a basic camera set-up will generally require you to have a lens with macro capability, either in terms of magnification or close-focusing (or both). For those who would like to give it a go, but would prefer not to invest in a niche bit of kit, there’s always the option of using your smartphone. Not long ago, clip-on macro lenses and loupes for smartphones were available to buy. These tended to be fairly low in quality, fiddly to use and, since they were usually specific to a phone model, quickly went out of date as soon as you upgraded your device. In recent years, flagships and even mid-range mobiles have come equipped with macro functionality directly in camera, and it’s even become a key selling point for many.
If macro is a favoured subject of yours and you’re thinking of upgrading your smartphone, you might want to consider some of those listed here. These are all high-end smartphones with a price-tag to match, but you can pick up cheaper deals by skipping back a generation (or two), though you might want to check that the older versions offer macro.
How does smartphone macro work?
Generally speaking, most smartphones utilise the ultra-wideangle camera for macro work. The phone will detect when you’re attempting to take a close-up picture and automatically switch to macro mode, in most cases. With the iPhone 14 Pro, for example, this gives you the ability to focus as close as 2cm from the subject. The phone will then crop in to give the same angle of view as if you were shooting with the standard 1x lens, for a more natural appearance. Since you’re switching to a different sensor and lens, there are some situations where image quality may suffer – such as in low light. With most phones, you have the option to switch off the macro focusing for each shot if you’d prefer to use the standard lens – but you will probably need to move a little further away from the subject to achieve focus. There are exceptions to using the ultra-wide lens, such as the Xiaomi 13 Pro, which also uses its telephoto lens for macro. Some smartphones have dedicated macro camera units, but in practice we’ve usually found these to be fairly poor performers, particularly when they’re low resolution – some are just 2 megapixels.
iPhone 14 Pro
• From £1,099
The iPhone 14 Pro features a triple-lens array, comprising standard, ultrawide and telephoto (3x) lenses. The main lens has 48 megapixels (standard output thanks to pixel binning is 12 megapixels), while the two additional lenses have 12- megapixel sensors. If you prefer a larger phone, the iPhone 14 Pro Max has exactly the
