Apple unveils its next-gen camera in a powerful new photography exhibition

Equipped with three advanced 48MP Fusion cameras, Apple’s just-debuted iPhone 17 Pro Max is a marked improvement when it comes to photography. The freshly integrated 4x and 8x-zoom Telephoto rivals the capability of most midrange DLSRs available today. Showing what these features can do are new photo series by renowned artists Inez & Vinoodh, Mickalene Thomas, and Trunk Xu; the first images captured with the new phone.

Opening in New York this week – just in time for the release of the next-gen device – the 'Joy in 3 Parts' exhibition puts these works on full display and in dialogue with each other. Curator Kathy Ryan – the former director of photography at The New York Times Magazine – worked closely with the talents to treat the theme of joy. The results are as varied in subject matter as they are technique.

Inez & Vinoodh

Dutch-American duo Inez & Vinoodh took an unexpected direction. Noted photographers, such as Sally Mann, take pictures of their children but few continue to do so as they get older. Choosing to depict a love story – that of their 20s something son and his girlfriend – the artists broke with the convention. For them, there’s been joy in seeing their offspring experience romantic love for the first time, much like they once did.

The Think LOVE. pentatych (five image) installation unfolds with black and white portraits of each protagonist on either side, flanking three distinct scenes of them visiting Marfa, Texas. Another key element is the red fabric that the pair uses in different ways. In one instance, the 'veil' covers them as they embrace. The composition nods to Gustav Klimt's 1907 The Kiss painting but what’s most striking is the crispness of the textile, captured true-to-form thanks to the iPhone’s advanced HDR setting.

In one scene, the lovers are pulling the fabric behind them. Just as the photo was shot, the sun appeared from behind clouds. The image takes on a transcendent quality, highlighting the power but also fragility of nature, another underlying focus of the series.

'Our work, however well planned, depends on improvisation,’ says Inez van Lamsweerde. ‘The delicate exchange with our subjects at the moment is key to our process. The iPhone's immediacy and intimacy while preserving the highest photographic quality, has been a game-changer for us.’

Mickalene Thomas

Best known for her rhinestone-adorned portraits of Black women, multidisciplinary artist Mickalene Thomas chose to express joy by capturing the ‘life’ that activates Fort Greene Park. The Brooklyn, New York greenspace is close to her home and where her daughter participates in a Double Dutch jump rope group.

By the very impromptu nature of using the iPhone – rather than a traditional camera that’s heavy and often supplemented with a lot of external equipment – she was able to take off-the-cuff portraits of Black residents at leisure. Included are black and white photos of dancers practicing choreography and a couple cuddling in a hammock.

'Too often, African Americans are seen through the lens of labor and endurance,' says Thomas. 'This work counters that narrative, exploring rest as a form of resistance, power, and self-reclamation. It asks: what happens when we are allowed to simply be? I envision a world where rest is not a reward, but a right; where softness is not weakness, but a radical form of power.'

The expectation of having to pose was removed from the equation; the interaction between photographer and subject was more immediate and so, the resulting depictions are far more honest and authentic.

'The iPhone allowed me to document fleeting, personal moments of quiet and connection, its accessibility making space for spontaneity,' she adds. ‘In this way, the process itself became part of the message.'

Trunk Xu

In contrast to Thomas’ approach, Chinese artist Trunk Xu chose to stage his five images. It made sense given his aim of celebrating social media culture; our need to capture and share almost every moment of our lives.

'The iPhone and its accessibility has transformed the culture of photography,' he says. 'For me, the iPhone has unlocked a profound joy: the ability to document the world as it is now, an active participant ready for its moment.'

Focusing on Los Angeles as an ever-unfolding yet emblematic backdrop, Xu shot his compositions at iconic locales: a notable skatepark, the Santa Monica Pier, and a ubiquitous motel room. Some of the photos feature multiple individuals, each involved in a different facet of their daily life: a couple kissing while others walk by; a mother suntanning and taking a selfie while her daughter, standing up in an inflatable swimming pool, looks straight up at the camera. The photo is shot from above.

There’s a degree of self awareness in each image; amplifying the idea that we’ve all become accustomed to being photographed often, thanks in part, to the proliferation of the iPhone – first launched in 2007 – and the convenience of its professional-grade camera.