iPhone 17 Pro Drops Night-Mode Portraits — What That Means for Users

iPhone 17 Pro Gains — and One Notable Loss

When iPhone 17 Pro launched, many hailed it for upgraded camera hardware — including a trio of 48 MP Fusion lenses and a new “Center Stage” front camera — plus software improvements like dual-capture video. 9to5Mac+2MacRumors+2

However, despite all these enhancements, one long-standing feature has quietly disappeared. According to an official document from Apple, Night Mode is no longer available while shooting in Portrait mode on iPhone 17 Pro. 9to5Mac+1

What It Means: No Night Portraits on iPhone 17 Pro

For several generations — from iPhone 12 Pro through iPhone 16 Pro — users could combine Portrait mode’s depth-of-field (bokeh) effect with Night Mode’s low-light optimization. Apple Support+1

With iPhone 17 Pro, that combination is gone: if you set the camera to Portrait mode under low light, Night Mode simply won’t trigger. As a result:

• Portraits taken at night or in dim environments may appear darker, grainier, or noisier than what Night Mode offered before.
• For users who prioritized low-light portraits — think nighttime cityscapes, restaurant photos, evening outings — the switch feels like a downgrade.
• If you rely heavily on Portrait + Night Mode, upgrading to the 17 Pro might actually weaken that aspect of your photography, despite upgrades in other areas.

Why Apple Might Have Removed It

Macworld speculates that combining Night Mode with Portrait Mode may have caused tradeoffs: longer exposure times (Night Mode’s longer shutter capture), potential motion blur, or inconsistent depth data — all of which degrade user experience, especially under low-light settings. Macworld+1

Moreover, by removing Night-Mode Portraits, Apple might favor more modern techniques: improved sensor technology, computational photography, and other defaults tuned for 48 MP cameras that perform well even without that legacy mode.

What Photographers Should Do — or Know

• If you take a lot of portraits in low light, test iPhone 17 Pro in your usual “night + portrait” scenario — you might prefer sticking with an earlier Pro model (like iPhone 16 Pro) for Night-Mode Portraits.
• For standard night photos (not portrait mode), Night Mode is still available — just not when using Portrait. 9to5Mac+1
• Consider using third-party photography apps that might simulate Night Portrait effects — though results may vary widely.