photos iconBurst Mode refers to when the camera on your iOS device captures a series of photos in rapid succession, at a rate of ten frames per second. It's a great way to shoot an action scene or an unexpected event, since you're always more likely to end up with the picture you were aiming for.

For instance, the picture below was taken when the sun came out momentarily from behind the clouds to throw light on the beautiful yellow ocher leaves of a tree. Burst Mode made it possible to shoot the whole event and then save out the one shot that captured the tree at its most vivid during its brief illumination.

To take a photo in Burst Mode, launch the Camera app from the Lock Screen – if your device is unlocked, select the Camera app from the Home screen or slide the Control Center into view and launch it from there. Once you have a shot in frame, tap and hold the shutter button at the bottom of the Camera interface for the duration of the scene that you're trying to capture.

IMG 2349
Notice the counter increase at the bottom of the frame for as long as you hold down the shutter. This indicates how many shots are being captured in the current burst. Simply take your finger off the shutter when you want to end the burst of shots.

When you take a series of burst photos, they automatically appear in the Photo app under the Album name Bursts. You'll also find them in your main Photo Library as well as the Moments section found in the Photos tab. Here's how to view your burst photos and pick out the best images from them for safe keeping.

How to View Burst Photos

  1. Launch the Photos app.
  2. Tap a collection of burst photos – they appear in the Photos Library as a single picture, but if you look closely, you'll see more images stacked underneath the top thumbnail image.
    taking burst photos 1

  3. Tap Select at the bottom of the screen.
  4. Swipe the film strip-like ribbon of images below the photo to view the other shots in the burst.

taking burst photos 2
Any dots you see below images in a burst indicate that Apple's algorithms think they have the best focus and detail in the set, but of course you may think differently.

How to Save Individual Images in Burst Photos

  1. Tap a stack of burst photos in your Photo Library.
  2. Tap Select in the top-right corner of the screen.
  3. Tap each image in the series that you want to keep.
  4. Tap Done in the top-right corner of the screen.
  5. To keep only the images that you ticked in the burst series, tap Keep Only Favorites. Otherwise, tap Keep everything.

taking burst photos 3

Related Forum: iOS 12

Top Rated Comments

Mac Fly (film) Avatar
85 months ago
Anyone know how to combine several burst photos into one on iOS? The easiest way; preferably an automatic method.

Example photo:

Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ColdShadow Avatar
85 months ago
How to turn off this annoying feature permanently??
alot of my photos are saved as burst all the time.I hate it!
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mac Fly (film) Avatar
85 months ago
How to turn off this annoying feature permanently??
alot of my photos are saved as burst all the time.I hate it!
Use volume button as shutter and press with a click.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
RightMACatU Avatar
85 months ago
How to turn off this annoying feature permanently??
alot of my photos are saved as burst all the time.I hate it!
Ahhh this!!! I would double thumb-you-up if I could.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iapplelove Avatar
85 months ago
Burst photo and Live Photo...two things I shut off immediately.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
yaxomoxay Avatar
85 months ago
Burst photo and Live Photo...two things I shut off immediately.
Live Photos is actually pretty cool. It’s one of the things I radically changed my mind upon. I captured quite a few nice moments with it, and thanks to the possibility to change the main picture I was gladly happy to find out multiple times that a picture taken on a very slightly different moment was much better than the one I actually took.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

AirPods Pro 3 Mock Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Just Months Away – Here's What We Know

Friday April 18, 2025 5:16 am PDT by
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
iphone 16 pro models 1

17 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 17

Thursday April 17, 2025 4:12 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup. If you skipped the iPhone...
Beyond iPhone 13 Better Triad

Apple's 20th Anniversary iPhone May Finally Go All Screen

Tuesday April 15, 2025 6:31 am PDT by
Apple is preparing a "bold" new iPhone Pro model for the iPhone's 20th anniversary in 2027, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. As part of what's being described as a "major shake-up," Apple is said to be developing a design that makes more extensive use of glass – and this could point directly to the display itself. Here's the case for Apple releasing a truly all-screen iPhone with no...
maxresdefault

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 12 New Features

Sunday April 13, 2025 7:52 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and ...
CarPlay Hero

Apple Releases Wireless CarPlay Fix

Wednesday April 16, 2025 11:28 am PDT by
If you have been experiencing issues with wireless CarPlay in your vehicle lately, it was likely due to a software bug that has now been fixed. Apple released iOS 18.4.1 today, and the update's release notes say it "addresses a rare issue that prevents wireless CarPlay connection in certain vehicles." If wireless CarPlay was acting up for you, updating your iPhone to iOS 18.4.1 should...
top stories 2025 04 19

Top Stories: iPhone 17 Pro Rumors, CarPlay Bug Fix, and More

Saturday April 19, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
This week saw rumor updates on the iPhone 17 Pro and next-generation Vision Pro, while a minor iOS 18.4.1 update delivered not just security fixes but also a fix for some CarPlay issues. We also looked ahead at what else is in Apple's pipeline for the rest of 2025 and even the 20th-anniversary iPhone coming in 2027, so read on below for all the details on these stories and more! iPhone 17 ...
iOS 18

iOS 18.5 Includes Only a Few Changes So Far

Monday April 21, 2025 11:00 am PDT by
Apple seeded the third beta of iOS 18.5 to developers today, and so far the software update includes only a few minor changes. The changes are in the Mail and Settings apps. In the Mail app, you can now easily turn off contact photos directly within the app, by tapping on the circle with three dots in the top-right corner. In the Settings app, AppleCare+ coverage information is more...