X

iPhone 8 Plus and 7 Plus photos: What's the difference?

I compared the photo and video capabilities of the 8 Plus and 7 Plus. And while the 8 Plus has a leg up, can you spot the improvements?

Patrick Holland
Patrick Holland has been a phone reviewer for CNET since 2016. He is a former theater director who occasionally makes short films. Patrick has an eye for photography and a passion for everything mobile. He is a colorful raconteur who will guide you through the ever-changing, fast-paced world of phones, especially the iPhone and iOS. He used to co-host CNET's I'm So Obsessed podcast and interviewed guests like Jeff Goldblum, Alfre Woodard, Stephen Merchant, Sam Jay, Edgar Wright and Roy Wood Jr.
Patrick Holland
iphone-8-camera-0985-004
1 of 56 Josh Miller/CNET

iPhone 8 and 7 Plus camera shootout

The iPhone 8 Plus has new larger camera sensors, a new processor and nifty new software tricks like Portrait Lighting Mode. But how much better is it than last year's 7 Plus?

Let's take a look.

bike-at-rest-iphone-8-plus
2 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus

Here are a handful of my favorite photos that I took with the 8 Plus.

red-fiat-1100d-iphone-8-plus
3 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus

I love the way the colors came out in this picture. It really makes that red Fiat 1100D pop.

twin-peaks-city-view-iphone-8-plus
4 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus

It's hard to take a bad picture of a sunset over San Francisco when there's no fog.

camille-loos-off-to-the-side-iphone-8-plus
5 of 56 Xiomara Blanco/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus

Singer Camille Safiya taken in Portrait Lighting Mode - Natural Light.

bookshelf-iphone-8-plus
6 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus

Take a look at the detail of the books.

stella-the-cat-wants-to-nap-iphone-8-plus
7 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus

Here are a bunch of comparison pictures taken with both the 8 Plus and 7 Plus. First up: Stella the cat taken with the 8 Plus.

stella-the-cat-wants-to-nap-iphone-7-plus
8 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 7 Plus

This 7 Plus photo looks good, but the one from the 8 Plus has more detail.

iphone-8-plus-compare-stella-the-cat
9 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

Cat comparison

Notice her fur and how the 8 Plus photos has a wider dynamic range of color.

img-0548
10 of 56

iPhone 8 Plus - Dolores Park

Dolores Park taken with the 8 Plus. Notice the color of the sky and grass.

img-0269
11 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 7 Plus - Dolores Park

Now Dolores Park taken with the 7 Plus.

iphone-8-plus-compare-dolores-park
12 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

Dolores Park comparison

It's really hard to tell the difference. If you look at the lettering on the building, it's a smidgen easier to read in the picture from the 8 Plus.

california-cable-car-iphone-8-plus
13 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Cable car

A cable car taken with the 8 Plus.

california-cable-car-iphone-7-plus
14 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 7 Plus - Cable car

And now taken with the 7 Plus.

iphone-8-compare-cable-car
15 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

Cable car comparison

There is a little more contrast in the photo from the 8 Plus.

iphone-8-compare-portrait-mode
16 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

Portrait Mode comparison

And here is a Portrait Mode photo taken by each phone. The one from the 8 Plus (right) pops a bit more than the 7 Plus (left).

iphone-8-plus-portrait-lighting-mode-effects-correct
17 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus Portrait Lighting Mode Effects

Here are all five Portrait Lighting Mode effects on the 8 Plus side by side. From left to right: Natural, Studio, Contour, Stage and Stage Mono.

portrait-mode-morgan-stage-light-mono-fail-iphone-8-plus
18 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Portrait Lighting Mode Stage Light fail

The hardest lighting effect to get to work correctly was Stage Light which blacks out the background.

portrait-mode-cappuccino-stage-light-fail-iphone-8-plus
19 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Portrait Mode Lighting Stage Light fail

It didn't work much better on inanimate objects.

portrait-mode-xiomara-stage-light-mono-iphone-8-plus
20 of 56 Xiomara Blanco/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Portrait Lighting Mode Stage Light success

But when it did work, like here on singer Xiomara, the results were gorgeous.

portrait-mode-mel-studio-light-iphone-8-plus
21 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Portrait Lighting Mode

Here are a couple more Portrait Mode photos from the 8 Plus.

portrait-mode-maxwell-iphone-8-plus
22 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Portrait Lighting Mode

I was impressed with how the 8 Plus handled his curly hair.

morgan-iphone-7-plus
23 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 7 Plus - Flash

Then there's flash photography. Flash pictures from the 7 Plus can have the classic red eye and hard white zombie skin look that make me never want to use a flash.

morgan-iphone-8-plus
24 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Flash

But the iPhone 8, 8 Plus and X all have Slow Sync Flash. As seen here.

iphone-8-plus-compare-flash-morgan
25 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

Flash comparison

Slow Sync Flash keeps the shutter open longer making the background less dark. The flash blends in better. This is my favorite feature on the 8 Plus.

26 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus Slow Motion

The 8 Plus can shoot slow motion video at 1080p 240fps vs. 120fps on the 7 Plus. The 240fps makes juggler Melanie Webster and her flying potatoes look even cooler. Check out this video to see the footage at full resolution.

nourish-cafe-waffle-with-riccota-carrots-and-pickled-onions
27 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Nourish Cafe

The rest of this gallery are photos that I took with the 8 Plus like this quinoa waffle from Nourish Cafe.

bird-indoors-iphone-8-plus
28 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Nourish Cafe

I love the blue sky in this photo.

img-0234
29 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Nourish Cafe

Overall, the 8 Plus is the best iPhone for photos and video. 

img-0233
30 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Nourish Cafe

But in November the iPhone X comes out.

twin-peaks-sutnset-2-iphone-8-plus
31 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Twin Peaks sunset

Internally it is exactly the same as the iPhone 8 Plus.

sutro-tower-sunset-iphone-8-plus
32 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Twin Peaks sunset

The rear cameras are the same, aside from the telephoto lens.

twin-peaks-hill-iphone-8-plus
33 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Twin Peaks sunset

The iPhone X, improves the rear telephoto camera with a faster f/2.4 lens and adds optical image stabilization.

img-0381
34 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Twin Peaks sunset

On paper, it should take even better photos and video than the 8 Plus.

img-0385
35 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Castro at night

But will the difference be drastic?

los-straitjackets-marquee-iphone-8-plus
36 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Los Straitjackets

We'll have to wait and see.

los-straitjackets-iphone-8-plus
37 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

Los Straitjackets - iPhone 8 Plus

los-straitjackets-iphone-8-plus
38 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Los Straitjackets

fullsizeoutput-182e
39 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Los Straitjackets

fullsizeoutput-182b
40 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Los Straitjackets

los-straitjackets-wide-iphone-8-plus
41 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Los Straitjackets

fullsizeoutput-1868
42 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Classic car

tail-of-an-old-chevy-iphone-8-plus
43 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Classic car

img-0412
44 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Octo mural

green-vw-van-iphone-8-plus
45 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Green VW van

firemen-putting-up-a-ladder-iphone-8-plus
46 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Fireman's ladder

boar-heads-iphone-8-plus
47 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Four Barrel Coffee

fullsizeoutput-1822
48 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Four Barrel Coffee

jj-abrams-flare-iphone-8-plus
49 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Dramatic Flare

mission-high-school-tower-iphone-8-plus
50 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Mission High School

palm-tress-in-dolores-park-iphone-8-plus
51 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Dolores Park

dolores-park-skyline-iphone-8-plus
52 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Dolores Park

iphone-8-plus-compare-dolores-park-wide
53 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Dolores Park

dolores-park-park-trees-iphone-8-plus
54 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Dolores Park

park-and-city-view-iphone-8-plus
55 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Dolores Park

img-0361
56 of 56 Patrick Holland/CNET

iPhone 8 Plus - Twin Peaks sunset

For more on the differences between photos and videos from 8 Plus and 7 Plus, check out my in-depth comparison.

More Galleries

My Favorite Shots From the Galaxy S24 Ultra's Camera
A houseplant

My Favorite Shots From the Galaxy S24 Ultra's Camera

20 Photos
Honor's Magic V2 Foldable Is Lighter Than Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra
magic-v2-2024-foldable-1383

Honor's Magic V2 Foldable Is Lighter Than Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra

10 Photos
The Samsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus Looks Sweet in Aluminum
Samsung Galaxy S24

The Samsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus Looks Sweet in Aluminum

23 Photos
Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra Now Has a Titanium Design
The Galaxy S24 Ultra in multiple colors

Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra Now Has a Titanium Design

23 Photos
I Took 600+ Photos With the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. Look at My Favorites
img-0368.jpg

I Took 600+ Photos With the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. Look at My Favorites

34 Photos
17 Hidden iOS 17 Features You Should Definitely Know About
Invitation for the Apple September iPhone 15 event

17 Hidden iOS 17 Features You Should Definitely Know About

18 Photos
AI or Not AI: Can You Spot the Real Photos?
img-1599-2.jpg

AI or Not AI: Can You Spot the Real Photos?

17 Photos