On an iPhone XS or later running iOS 14 or higher, FaceTime digitally modifies your video feed so your eyes are always looking into the camera—even when they're not. If you find the idea of digitally altered eyeballs unsettling, this feature is easy to turn off. Here's how. First, open “Settings” on your iPhone.
On video calls using the FaceTime app , you can become your favorite Memoji or Memoji character (on an iPhone with Face ID). On supported models, you can use a built-in filter to change your appearance and add stickers, labels, and shapes.
Working on the iPhone XS and XS Max, the system appears to use ARCore—the same tech behind animoji—to fix the position of your pupils digitally. That means FaceTime is using image manipulation to fake eye contact (though the feature can be toggled on or off).
Easy tip: Eyes up, talk directly to the camera making “eye contact” it looks professional and also gives off the most natural view of you. Don't forget, posture up. While your friends may take you as you are, you don't want to be slouched or lying back on a work call. Save sloth mode for after work calls.
It's a simple matter of perception. Like a picture, your face looks more wide and flat in a video. Some other factors come into play as well, such as lighting and angles. Do you like to FaceTime or voice call?
In “Settings,” tap “FaceTime.” In “FaceTime” settings, flip the switch beside “Eye Contact” to turn it off.
The lens on phone cameras is too short for facial photography. Taking face photos with short lens cameras and up close results in the whole face, nose, and eyes appearing wider and face and nose longer than in real life. This facial widening distortion also causes the ears to disappear on the photographs.
Eyes can look different in photos and mirrors because of the way that cameras and mirrors reflect light differently. Mirrors reverse the image that they reflect, which means that left and right are flipped.
FaceTime does not use a 'beauty filter' per se, but it does have an optional 'eye contact' feature that subtly changes how your face appears on camera.
When using Apple's FaceTime app, you can apply camera effects while on a video call, including built-in filters, stickers, labels, and shapes.
One reason many people say they don't look good in a video call is actually due to bad lighting. To look better on video calls, you'll need a light source that brightens your face, positioned in front of you.
"Some of this is due to perception, what I call 'Zoom face,'" Dr. Rajani Katta, a dermatologist based in Texas, told CNN. "Between the harsh lighting, the strange angles, and just staring at your face for hours on end, it can alter your perception of your own appearance."
Switch the Camera's Orientation using Tile
Tap the tile when you get a FaceTime call. To use the back camera, simply tap the reversing arrow. Tap the flip icon again to return to the front-facing camera.
When you're finished using a Focus, you can quickly turn it off to allow notifications again. After you turn off a Focus, it still appears in Control Center and can be reused.
You can use Focus to temporarily silence all notifications, or allow only specific notifications—ones that apply to your task, for example—and let other people and apps know you're busy. When a Focus is linked to your Lock Screen, you can turn it on by simply swiping to the corresponding Lock Screen.
With iOS 15 and iPadOS 15 or later, Focus lets you stay in the moment when you need to concentrate or step away from your device. You can customize Focus settings and choose when you want to receive alerts and notifications, while letting other people and apps know when you're busy.