Apple announced the new just as my iPhone 7 Plus is about to bite the dust. Instead of “Trading in” my iPhone 7 Plus, I’m going to pre-order the iPhone 13 Pro Max, 512 gb, graphite color and I’ll use my old iPhone for a few video production related tasks moving forward.
iPhone 13 Pro Max for great Video B-Roll
Why not a regular iPhone 13? Because I need to upgrade to the 3 lenses so that I have more flexibility with shot variety. Plus the new longer focal length 3x telephoto lens is ideal for talking heads and interviews.
My friend Jules (VideoHero.com) shared this Pro Tip: Shoot talking heads on the telephoto not the wide lens for a more flattering look.
Why an iPhone 13 Pro Max? While the iPhone 13 Pro Max is too big for guys who wear skinny jeans, my fat hands fit it perfectly. Since I’ll take my iPhone 13 Pro Max everywhere, I prefer the larger screen for day to day usability (especially when I’m camping with Connie in our Winnebago).
The iPhone 13 Pro Max is very handy for Mobile editing and I need the bigger screen real estate to see what’s going on. The 13 Pro has the same specs as the iPhone 13 Pro Max except the screen is smaller and less battery life. (There were sensor differences between the 12 Pro and 12 Pro Max – this is now NOT the case with the 13 Pro Vs iPhone 13 Pro Max.)
Why 512 gb? It’s enough for what I do and saves a couple hundred dollars. If you shoot loads of 4k video and can’t offload easily then you really need to get the 1TB.
Don’t get the 128 gb if you want to shoot ProRes 4k! That memory size will only allow shooting at 1080p 30fps (more later).
Why Graphite? The iPhone 13 Pro Max has some new colors, but most video cameras are black or grey so they avoid reflecting color or standing out in reflections.
What is cool about the iPhone 13 Pro Max over say the 12 Pro or the 11 Pro?
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Without getting geeky and making this post way too long – better sensors, faster chip, more responsive screen, better low light capability, longer battery life and sensor-shift optical stabilization. (i.e steadier Videos)
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As above, longer telephoto lens 3x (iPhone 13 Pro Max is Ideal for talking heads and interviews as well as filming distant objects)
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Cinematic mode (also available on the regular iPhone 13)
This is the new feature on the iPhone 13 Pro Max that is very cool for Video creators!
Potentially it will be like Portrait Mode for Video – I love the blurred backgrounds, and now it will work for talking head videos like this one.
One of the pitfalls of iPhone Video has been sharp, distracting backgrounds unlike larger sensor Video Cameras where you can shoot with a shallower depth of field to blur the background.
The Apple event demo Videos of the new Cinematic Mode looked awesome – check out this WhoDunnit Video clip:
In these video clips, they feature the Cinematic Mode for racking focus ie. rapidly shifting focus from a foreground object to background and vice versa:
Amazingly, I’ll also be able to change the focus point later when I edit my videos!
While I don’t shoot drama features, I am hoping I can use this mode for talking heads, interviews, Video Ads and most importantly (since I take my iPhone everywhere) I’ll use it for shooting short clips of Maddie and Caleb. I’m excited about being able to lock the focus while I Blur out the background – rather than focus transitions.
Stay tuned and I’ll let you know how well this feature works. Apple demo videos are super glossy but I need to try it myself in different scenarios.
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Pro Res recording up to 4k at 30 fps so you can shoot using an advanced Pro Video Codec to get incredible results. (Coming soon)
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Macro Videos. You can shot super close up with the ultra wide lens including slo-mo and timelapse. If you make insect, gadget, food or craft videos for example – this will be handy!
That’s the iPhone 13 Pro Max in a nutshell, I hope you found this useful.
See you soon.
