As mentioned in our iOS 7.1 screenshot roundup, the new iOS update adds auto-HDR mode for the iPhone 5s, letting the camera’s brain decide whether or not to activate the High-Dynamic Range feature.
In theory, this should mean that your iPhone will switch to HDR when there is too much contrast in the scene for the camera to capture in one exposure.
HDR is the name Apple gives to its exposure-blending feature that snaps three shots at different exposures and combines them into one shot. The result is a single picture that has details in the shadow, mid-tines and highlights, and it’s particularly useful on a bright sunny day where the contrast range between the shadows and highlights is outside the dynamic range that can be captured by the iPhone’s sensor.
I like the idea of adding an auto mode, as I tend to accidentally leave HDR on after I’ve used it, resulting in some weird glitch effects and blurs in pictures I take later in low light, where the three captured images don’t match up.
Now all I need is an iPhone 5s.
