If we didn’t already know that the iPhone 7 Plus has one of the best cameras available in a smartphone we do after news that Condé Nast has used the phone to shoot covers for their May issues of two of their most popular magazines: ‘Traveler’ and ‘Bon Appétit’.
TechCrunch have announced that this is the first time that the iPhone 7 Plus has been used to shoot covers for these publications. Creative Director of Bon Appétit, Alex Grossman, announced that the device seemed like the perfect choice for the May cover, stating that it “works well picking up people and places.” Peden + Monk, the photographers responsible for the front cover image, also stated that using an iPhone made the process feel more relaxed: “It didn’t feel like a big magazine cover shoot where there were a bunch of assistants and light reflectors,” Peden said. “It felt very comfortable and natural.” They also explained that they used VSCO photo editor for the shoot, allowing them to edit the photos on the device.
When asked whether the iPhone could ever replace the DSLR, TechCrunch reports:
Moving forward, Grossman said the iPhone can just become another part of Bon Appétit’s toolbox. Sure, it’s not at the point where the photos are completely comparable to “a $25,000 DSLR,” particularly in print — but if you shoot in the right conditions, “99.9 percent of people out there” might not know the difference.
“We always have to be pushing and evolving our aesthetic anyway,” Grossman said. “It doesn’t really matter whether it’s a phone or an illustration or cool type design, we’re always finding new ways, whatever they may be, to push our aesthetic.”
The iPhone 7 Plus and Portrait Mode were also used to shoot the front cover of Traveler’s Hot List awards issue.
This isn’t the first instance of an iPhone 7 Plus being used to shoot a magazine cover, however. Billboard recently used the device to shoot a front cover featuring former Fifth Harmony member Camila Cabello. Apple has stressed the Portrait Mode feature of the iPhone 7 Plus as one of the main selling points for the device and have continually released new advertisements for the feature.