Best smartphones for macro

You don’t always need specialist equipment for close-ups; modern smartphones are very capable when it comes to macro photography, says Amy Davies.

Shooting macro can often require specialist equipment. Even a basic camera set-up will generally require a lens with macro capability, either for magnification, close-focusing, or both.

For those who would like to give it a go, but 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 These tended to be fairly low in quality, fiddly to use and, since they were usually specific to a phone model, were out of date as soon as you upgraded your device. In recent years, flagships and even mid-range phones have come equipped with macro functionality directly in camera. It’s even become a key selling point for many.

If macro photography is of interest to you, and you’re thinking of upgrading your smartphone, consider some of those listed here. These are all high-end smartphones with a price-tag to match, but cheaper deals can be found by skipping back a generation (or two), [check that the older versions offer macro first].

How does smartphone macro work?

Generally speaking, most smartphones utilise the ultra-wide-angle 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 14/15 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 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.

Most phones have the option to switch off the macro focusing for each shot if you prefer to use the standard lens – but you will probably need to move further from the subject to achieve focus.

There are exceptions to using the ultra-wide lens, such as the Xiaomi 13 Pro, Xiaomi 14 / 14 Ultra, Vivo X100 Pro, iQOO 12, OnePlus Open, and others, that use the 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.

Best smartphones for macro at a glance:

• iPhone 15 Pro – buy now
• Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra – buy now
• Google Pixel 8 Pro – buy now
• OnePlus 12 – buy now
• Xiaomi 14 Pro – buy now

Continue reading to find out how we tested the smartphones and why we chose these models…

iPhone 15 Pro

• 48MP wide camera, f/1.78 aperture, 24mm equivalent
• 12MP ultrawide camera, f/2.2 aperture, 13mm equivalent
• 12MP 3x telephoto camera, f/2.8 aperture, 77mm equivalent
• 6.1” Super Retina XDR OLED screen
• iOS 17
• Price: from $1,149 / £1,266

The iPhone 15 Pro, much like the iPhone 14 Pro, features a triple-lens array, comprising standard, ultra-wide and telephoto (3x) lenses. The main lens has 48 megapixels (standard output thanks to pixel binning is 24 megapixels), while the two additional lenses have 12MP sensors. If you prefer a larger phone, the iPhone 15 Pro Max also has a triple lens setup, but it has a 5x lens instead of a 3x, but for macro work the specifications are mostly the same across both. A non-Pro version of the iPhone 15 (and previous generation) is available, but they do not have macro functionality.

Apple is now in its third generation of smartphones with macro capability. The mode enables you to get super-close to the subject by automatically switching to the ultra-wide-angle camera. You can record both video and still images with the iPhone’s macro mode, and you can also shoot in Apple’s ProRAW format when it is engaged, too.

If you’re finding image quality to be low – such as if light levels are poor – you can switch off the macro focusing and switch back to using the standard camera. You can still get fairly close with the standard camera; provided the subject isn’t too small it can work well enough.

Another method with the iPhone is to switch to Portrait mode to create a shallow-depth-of-field effect. Again, this will work best with subjects which aren’t super-small, but perhaps are still typical macro-type subjects, such as larger flowers. Note there’s no macro focusing capability in this mode, nor can you shoot in RAW format.

If you fancy the idea of an iPhone with macro focusing but want to save a bit of cash, skipping back two generations to the iPhone 13 Pro/Max is an idea. You might also want to look into the second-hand market as there are some great deals to be had.

Read our full iPhone 15 Pro review

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Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

• 200MP f/1.7 main camera, with OIS, 1/1.3inch, 23mm 
• 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide-angle camera (0.6x), 13mm 
• 10MP f/2.4 3x telephoto camera, with OIS, 69mm 
• 50MP f/3.4 5x telephoto camera, with OIS, 115mm 
• – 5x telephoto camera has 10x Super AI / Multi-frame / Super Resolution 
• 12MP f/2.2 PDAF selfie camera (same on all S24 models) 
• 8K 30fps video, 4K 120/60/30fps 
• 6.8inch screen, 1-120Hz, 2600nits, with Corning Gorilla Glass Armor* 
• Titanium frame, 5000mAh battery 
• Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor 
• Available in Titanium gray, black, violet (blue-ish), and pale yellow
• From $1,300 / £1,249 (256GB) 

Succeeding the S23 Ultra, the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra is the flagship camera phone from Samsung, and adds a vast array of AI photography features. It is beyond doubt one of the best smartphone for photographers.

A new generation of AI technology comes with the S24 series, utilised during image capture and said to improve night photography, noise performance, zoom quality and HDR imaging among others. AI is also relevant in the new on-device and cloud-based editing features like its new Reflection removal tool. Speaking of reflection removal, which is really useful, the S24 Ultra also has one of the best screens on any phone, thanks to the anti-reflective coating on the screen.

By default, if you point the camera at a close-up object you want to photograph, the phone will switch from the main camera to the ultra-wide-angle camera and give you a cropped (and distorted looking) photo, as well as lower quality results in low-light. Switch to the 3x camera, and the phone will crop from the 1x camera – giving a pixelated, but relatively pleasing-looking, image.  

Switch to the 5x or 10x cameras, and the phone will again crop, this time from the 3x camera, giving a pixelated image. It’s quite frustrating, and it doesn’t advise you what’s going on until you look at the EXIF data after you’ve taken the shot. However, for the best results, the 5x option (which crops from the 3x camera) looks to give the best results. Other smartphones, though, have really impressive telephoto macro capabilities that use the periscope camera, rather than just cropping from the ultra-wide-angle camera as this does. 

Read our full Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra review

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Google Pixel 8 Pro

• Triple camera setup
• 14mm, 25mm, 113mm equivalent
• Android operating system
• 30x Super Res Zoom
• 10.5MP f/2.2 selfie camera with autofocus
• Price: $999-$1179 / £999-£1179

Macro functionality was new for the Google Pixel range, introduced for the first time with the 7 Pro. The Pixel 8 Pro maintains its a triple-lens array, with a standard, ultra-wide and telephoto (5x) option. The main sensor is 50 megapixels (output at 12.5MP). The significant improvement for our purposes is that the ultra-wide for the Pixel 8 Pro is f/1.95 with 48MP sensor, and the telephoto 48MP.

As with most macro-capable smartphones, the Pixel 8 Pro will automatically detect when attempting to focus close to a subject, and switch to macro mode. With it enabled, you can focus as close as 3cm. This can be overridden when not wanted for certain conditions, but again, you won’t be able to focus as closely.

You can shoot both video and stills when close-focusing, and as a bonus, can record in RAW format when using macro mode since this is accessible in the standard Photo setting. There is now a Pro mode – the first for a Pixel phone – for control of exposure, shutter speed, and white balance.

Portrait mode is available and, again, can be useful for creating shallow-depth-of-field images of macro-type subjects in certain conditions. As before, this will work best with subjects that aren’t particularly small.

Read our full Google Pixel 8 Pro review

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OnePlus 12

• 50MP f/1.6 23mm equivalent 1/1.4” Sony LYT-808 camera
• 48MP f/2.2 14mm equivalent 1/2” Sony IMX518 camera 
• 64MP f/2.6 70mm equivalent 1/2” OmniVision OV64B camera
• 32MP f/2.74 1/1.274” Sony IMX615 selfie camera, fixed focus 
• 8K video up to 24fps
• 4K video up to 60fps
• 6.2-inch, 3168 x 1440 (QHD+), 4500 nits peak brightness, 120Hz screen
• Operating system – Android 14 
• Processor -Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 Mobile Platform
• $799 / £849

Its latest flagship gives further credibility to OnePlus’s claim to offer high-end specs for less than high-end prices. As such, we get a superb triple array for the camera, industry leading screen technology and 8K video in something which is significantly lower in price than equivalent models from the likes of big names such as Apple and Samsung, and it’s even better priced than the latest Google phones, who have often also traded on their lower price points.

The macro mode allows you to get nice and close to a subject and produces some good detailed shots. It’s good to have this option on a mid-range priced phone as sometimes this is one of the functions that is missed at this price point. It works well for things like flowers and other small subjects. 

Read our full OnePlus 12 review

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Xiaomi 14 Pro

• 50MP f/1.6-4.0 23mm equivalent camera with one-inch sensor
• 50MP f/1.8 12mm equivalent ultrawide camera
• 50MP f/1.8 75mm equivalent 3x telephoto camera
• 50MP f/2.5 120mm equivalent 5x telephoto camera (periscope lens)
• 8K video at up to 30fps
• 4K video at up to 120fps 
• 6.73-inch, 3200 x 1440 pixels, 3000 nits peak brightness, 120Hz LTPO AMOLED screen
• Operating system – HyperOS based on Android14
• Processor – Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 
• £1,299

Xiaomi’s latest flagship, the 14 Ultra, it has four cameras, all of which have high-resolution 50MP sensors, and all of which are fronted by Leica Summilux branded lenses, a fine marker of quality. Not only that but the main sensor is a large one-inch type, which is much larger than sensors found in almost every other smartphone out there – and certainly bigger than from the mainstream brands of Samsung, Apple and Google. 

There are other enticing features or any photographer – including special coatings to prevent typical lens problems such as glare. And plenty for those who shoot macro. Three of the four lenses can shoot macro photography, so you can really get creative with your close-ups. Six focal lengths are available losslessly, with 2x and 10x using the central portion of a sensor to create images (known as in-sensor zoom). You can also extend digitally up to 120x – beating even the 100x of the Samsung S24 Ultra. 

Leica has been working with Xiaomi for a while now, having previously partnered with another Chinese manufacturer, Huawei. For this model, we see high-end Summilux lenses used by Xiaomi for the first time – though this branding has been used on previous smartphones such as the Huawei P40 Pro.

This and other high-level specifications (more on that shortly) don’t come cheap though. The Xiaomi 14 Ultra will set you back £1,299, putting it in the same realm as the likes of the Samsung S24 Ultra and the iPhone 15 Pro Max. 

Read our full Xiaomi 14 Pro review

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8 Tips for shooting macro with your smartphone

To get the most from your smartphone when shooting macro, give these tips a try to boost your shots.

1. Know when to switch it off

Sometimes, the dedicated macro mode can do a worse job than leaving the standard lens to it. If you don’t need to get super-close, switch it off and see how the main sensor copes first.

2. Shoot RAW if you can

For maximum flexibility, shooting in RAW (+JPEG/HEIF simultaneously, usually) gives you scope to edit your smartphone macro shots after the fact, or by using apps such as Snapseed. Not all smartphones offer the ability to shoot raw and macro at the same time.

3. Experiment with digital filters

Most smartphones include some inbuilt digital filters. Try experimenting with black & white and macro, for example.

4. Adjust exposure

Even smartphones without full manual control give you some degree of tweaking. Using the onscreen slider to add some positive exposure compensation can brighten up close-up subjects to good effect.

5. Turn your phone upside down

To get super-close to some subjects, a rotation of the smartphone – so the screen is upside down – can provide a better angle. It’s a simple tip, but it’s easy to fail to realise the difference it makes.

6. Use a smartphone tripod

To remove the risk of shake, you could use a phone tripod, or a smartphone adapter for your existing tripod. You could also utilise the smartphone’s self-timer (usually 3 seconds or 10 seconds) so that you’re not touching the phone at the point of capture.

7. Portable LED lights

Another potential accessory you might to use is portable LED lights to illuminate the scene, especially for very close-up scenes. This will help to produce clearer, sharper details, especially in situations where light is low in the first place.

See the best camera phone accessories.

8. Use the telephoto lens

If your smartphone doesn’t have a dedicated macro lens/capability, but it does have a zoom lens, try using that to recreate the appearance of close-ups.

See more tips for shooting macro on smartphones.

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See our smartphone reviews and find more tips for smartphone photography below:

• Best photo apps and photography apps for phones
• The best budget camera phones
• Black and white smartphone photography guide
• How to take portraits on a smartphone

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