Almost all of Apple’s main built-in iPhone apps were updated to iOS 16 with new features, including both the Photos and Camera apps. Photos has some new features including the option to get rid of duplicates and some locked folders for sensitive photos, plus the camera app can translate text and functionality is improved for iPhone 13 users.
This guide collects everything that’s new in iOS 16 in both the Camera and Photos app. Many of these features are also available in iPadOS 16 and macOS Ventura.
Locked Hidden and Recently Deleted Albums
In the iOS 16 Photos app, both the “Hidden” and “Recently Deleted” albums under Utilities are locked with Face ID or Touch ID and cannot be opened without biometric authentication or a passcode.
It protects photos you’ve deleted or marked as hidden. Anyone who has access to your unlocked phone will not be able to open these albums without further authentication.
There is no option to not lock these two albums as this is a system level lock that cannot be overwritten. However, the option to hide Hidden Albums remains.
duplicate detection
In iOS 16, your iPhone will automatically detect any duplicate images you have in your Photos app. Duplicate photos will appear in a “Duplicates” album under Utilities in Photos, giving you the opportunity to merge them to save space and reduce clutter.
The Duplicate album appears only if you have duplicate photos in your library, and the merging feature is intelligent. This will keep the highest detail and maximum metadata while creating the best possible image.
If, for example, you have one copy of a photo with a higher resolution and another copy that contains more metadata, the Photos app will combine the best qualities of both photos into one image.
After updating to iOS 16, your iPhone will continuously scan for duplicates, so duplicate images may appear over time and may not be available properly when the update is installed.
Edit Copy and Paste
If you have multiple photos that you want to edit in the same way, or if you’ve made changes to one photo that you want to replicate in another photo, you can use the new copy and paste editing tools in iOS 16. can.
To use the option, edit an image and then tap the three dots icon in the upper right corner. From there, tap on Copy Edits to copy everything you’ve done to the image. Open another photo, tap the three dot icon again, and then choose the Paste Edit feature to get the exact same adjustment.
Undo and redo edits
To streamline photo editing, iOS 16 adds simple undo and redo buttons, a feature missing in earlier versions of iOS. With the Undo and Redo buttons, you can delete edits you’ve made to photos one by one instead of canceling all edits by completely undoing an image.
The Undo and Redo buttons are located in the top right corner of the image editing interface and will appear once you’ve edited the photo using the built-in editing tools in Photos. You can undo and/or redo each change individually, which makes it quicker to go back and correct the mistake.
In prior versions of iOS, you had to manually change one of the edited parameters back to where you started, or revert the changes completely.
people sorting album
In a small but meaningful change, Apple added the option to sort dedicated People Albums by name in iOS 16. You can open the People album and tap the two arrow keys to change the sorting from “Custom Order” to “Name”. The Name option rearranges the people in the album alphabetically.
iCloud Shared Photo Library
iOS 16 includes iCloud Shared Photo Library which is basically the same as the standard iCloud Photo Library, but shareable with up to five other people.
There are a lot of ins and outs to know about iCloud Shared Photo Library, so we’ve created a dedicated guide on iCloud Shared Photo Library that walks you through everything you need to know about setting up this feature and using it with family and friends. need to know about doing. ,
pick up the subject from the background
Although it’s not a Photos app feature, Lift Subjects from Background is one of the funniest random additions in iOS 16 because it’s like a mini version of Photoshop. You can use it to drag a subject from any image or photo.
To use it in the Photos app, open an image and then long-press on the main subject of the photo until it lights up. From there, you can drag it or select the “Copy” option to copy it to the clipboard. You can paste it in another photo or send it as a sticker in messages.