Copyright © 2022, Quiller Media, Inc.

AppleInsider is supported by its audience and may earn commission as an Amazon Associate and affiliate partner on qualifying purchases. These affiliate partnerships do not influence our editorial content.

An ophthalmologist in San Diego has gone into more detail about his use of the iPhone 13 Pro Max to photograph a patient's eyes, explaining the reasons behind using the iPhone camera after using a DSLR, and that he's used iPhones for quite a while already.

On September 30, a Linkedin post by Dr. Tommy Korn, an ophthalmologist and digital health innovations specialist at Sharp Healthcare, went viral due to his use of the iPhone 13 Pro Max's macro photography feature to take images of his patient's eyes. After receiving attention for the post, where he says he was "impressed" with the camera and that it could "innovate patient eye care and telemedicine," Dr. Korn elaborated on his background in using cameras in his work.

According to Dr. Korn, the use of the iPhone is not really for the diagnosis of a patient, more for keeping track of a patient's condition over a period of time. "There is some confusion on if the camera is going to replace exams or larger cameras," he said to PetaPixel.

"Let's say you have an eye condition or eye problem and you have to see a doctor and you see them six months later and you ask hey, how does it look compared to last time?' " offers the doctor. "Do you think the doctor remembers? They can't remember. They look at notes and verbal descriptions."

This is why doctors make copious notes and take photographs, he explains. While some commentary has encouraged him to continue using a higher-quality standalone camera, he still insists the iPhone camera is fine for the task that he's doing.

"I'm using it for documentation," Dr. Korn states. "I have just enough information to know if it's serious or not."

The doctor has been using cameras for documentary purposes for quite a while, and at one point did use a full-size camera instead of a smartphone. However, using a Nikon D800 with a 105mm f/2.8 macro lens produced "lots of friction points" in needing to transfer the images from the camera to his computer and into records.

Over time, Dr. Korn realized that there were easier ways to do the same task, starting with the iPhone 6 Plus. At the time of launch, he started to use an iPhone modified with an adapter with a slit lamp eye camera.

With the iPhone 13 Pro, he believes the camera quality has improved enough that he doesn't require any adapters nor the $15,000 lamp to take the images he needs.

"This is a pro camera that comes with a computer attached to it," he reasons. "So, that being said, I use this camera to document patient photos and attach them to my records with a few taps."

Along with being faster and easier to perform, he adds there's the benefit of using AirDrop to provide the same images to the patient's iPhone, so they can show the photographs to other doctors.

Dr. Korn also praised the potential for patients to be diagnosed from home, with the possibility of conducting a video call and asking them to show him their eye using their iPhone's camera. "I can then bring in the people who really need to be seen in person, and those who are not an urgent case can still get care conveniently at home."

In the event that your iPhone is lost or stolen, there are several things you can do to help protect your data and potentially recover your device. Here's what you should do if you lose your iPhone.

Shipments of Apple's iPhone are seeing a slowdown amid a broader smartphone downturn in China, though its market share in the country remains stronger than previous cycles.

GoCube, the maker of Bluetooth-enabled puzzle cubes, has released its newest product — GoDice. We took a look at these fun new dice to see if they'd be a worthy addition to game night.

Apple recently started selling officially refurbished models of the Apple Watch Series 7. Here is how they differ from retail versions and whether they are worth the savings.

The Sony WH-100XM5 are a new revision of the popular headphones priced at $400, here's how they compare to Apple's AirPods Max as we go hands on.

Spotify and Apple Music are the heavyweights of the music streaming industry, but which is better isn't clear-cut.

Amazon has updated its Fire 7 tablet for 2022 to make it faster and boost battery life, but it's unlikely to draw many potential buyers away from Apple's standard 10.2-inch iPad or the iPad mini, except for the highly cost-conscious.

Sony used May to unveil its Xperia 1 IV, a content creation-focused smartphone with some new camera tricks. Here's how its features compare against Apple's iPhone 13 Pro Max.

How to send balloons, hearts, and other flair in iMessage

Apple's Tim Cook trails behind Elon Musk in CEO pay for 2021

Daily deals May 28: Discounted refurbished MacBook Pro, $90 off iPad mini, 50% off 55-inch TCL 4K TV, more

Apple fails bid to shut down refiled Cydia antitrust lawsuit

Senators ask Apple, Google to stop collecting data that could identify abortion seekers

Apple workers in Atlanta drop union vote request, citing intimidation tactics

Samsung's Memorial Day Sale knocks up to $1,550 off Galaxy smartphones, 2022 TVs, home appliances

If US lawmakers are good at anything, it's failing at technology

In the event that your iPhone is lost or stolen, there are several things you can do to help protect your data and potentially recover your device. Here's what you should do if you lose your iPhone.

Shipments of Apple's iPhone are seeing a slowdown amid a broader smartphone downturn in China, though its market share in the country remains stronger than previous cycles.

GoCube, the maker of Bluetooth-enabled puzzle cubes, has released its newest product — GoDice. We took a look at these fun new dice to see if they'd be a worthy addition to game night.

Apple recently started selling officially refurbished models of the Apple Watch Series 7. Here is how they differ from retail versions and whether they are worth the savings.

The Sony WH-100XM5 are a new revision of the popular headphones priced at $400, here's how they compare to Apple's AirPods Max as we go hands on.

Apple's smart speaker family could expand in the future, with speculation of a new HomePod release on the way. Here's what Apple is rumored to be preparing to launch.

Alogic's first monitor, Clarity, echoes Apple's styling in many ways. While the Studio Display has incredible picture quality, Alogic aims for more flexibility.

We got our hands on the new OnePlus 10 Pro and compared to Apple's latest iPhone 13 Pro line for this in-depth showdown.

GoCube, the maker of Bluetooth-enabled puzzle cubes, has released its newest product — GoDice. We took a look at these fun new dice to see if they'd be a worthy addition to game night.

The StarTech Thunderbolt 4 Dock adds ten ports to your Mac via a single cable with three downstream Thunderbolt ports at a high price.

The Iodyne Pro Data offers storage for creative professionals working in teams, combining multiple Thunderbolt connections with high capacity NVMe SSD storage, in an appliance accessible by multiple users.

The Monoprice 28-inch CrystalPro 4K monitor looks like a competitive budget monitor on paper, but audible coil noise and poor design ruin its potential.

Tronsmart's new Bang speaker can pair with up to 100 other Bang units to fill a large space with sound, but there are several spots where the speaker could see improvement.

AppleInsider is one of the few truly independent online publications left. If you love what we do, please consider a small donation to help us keep the lights on.

If you love AppleInsider and want to support independent publications, please consider a small donation.