Accessibility: VoiceOver, text size and motion
The dials and buttons speak, turn with a swipe, and calm down when you ask for less motion.
VoiceOver
Every control on the body has a spoken name and value. The dials and rockers are adjustable: select one and swipe up or down with one finger to turn it a step. Buttons and switches take a double tap.
| On screen | VoiceOver says | How to use it |
|---|---|---|
| DECADE wheel | "Decade", with the decade and its caption | Swipe up or down |
| TECHNOLOGY / STYLE dial | "Technology" or "Style", with the entry | Swipe up or down |
| DEGREE dial | "Degree", for example "7 of 12" | Swipe up or down |
| REC | "Record", "Stop" while recording, or "Shutter" in STILL | Double tap to start, double tap again to pause; in STILL, double tap to take a photo. There is no press-and-hold. |
| Mode lever | "Mode", "Cine" or "Still" | Double tap to change |
| EXPOSURE rocker | "Exposure", with the EV value | Swipe up or down |
| ZOOM rocker | "Zoom", for example "2.0x" | Swipe up or down, 0.5× at a time |
| FORMAT mini button | "Format", or "CINE ONLY" in STILL | Double tap |
| TIMER mini button | "Self-timer", "Off" or the seconds | Double tap |
| LIGHT / FLASH mini button | "Light" or "Flash", "On" or "Off" | Double tap |
| SOUND mini button | "Audio", with the mode | Double tap |
| LIBRARY button | "Library", and "Recovered takes available" when there are some | Double tap |
| LAST TAKE | "Last take" | Double tap |
| MENU button | "Menu", with "Open" or "Adjusted" | Double tap |
| FLIP button | "Flip camera" | Double tap |
| UNDO button | "Undo", with the seconds left | Double tap |
- MENU rows are adjustable too: swipe up or down to change a value. List rows say "Double tap to show the choices". With VoiceOver, EXPOSURE stops at −2 and +2 instead of wrapping.
- The counter reads out the minutes of tape left.
- The fact of the day is read aloud at launch.
- The launch intro says "Double tap to skip".
- In the LIBRARY, the two-finger scrub (the VoiceOver escape gesture) takes you back to the camera.
- In SET CLOCK, the ADJUST jog is adjustable once you have selected a field; until then it says "Select a clock field first".
Text size
The camera panel is drawn like a physical body with fixed proportions, so its labels don't grow with your iPhone's text size: the engraved labels and button captions stop at the Large size. This keeps the dials from overlapping. If you need larger text, the iOS Zoom feature (Settings › Accessibility › Zoom) magnifies the whole screen, viewfinder included.
Reduce Motion
With Reduce Motion on in iOS Settings, the camera keeps still where it would otherwise move:
- the launch intro cuts instead of fading;
- at launch the DECADE wheel doesn't spin in; only the fact of the day appears;
- the red ring on REC stays still instead of pulsing while you record;
- dials, levers, switches, the MENU and the LIBRARY settle with a short 150 ms fade instead of a spring, so nothing bounces or slides.
Shooting without the screen
You don't have to find REC on the glass. The volume buttons and Camera Control shoot too: in CINE one press starts recording and the next pauses; in STILL the photo is taken when you release the button. The self-timer applies to them. You can also start a clip or a photo with Siri, or assign one to the Action button (see Siri and Shortcuts). Haptics click with every step of every dial, so you can feel the DECADE wheel move one decade at a time.