Android devices may offer some competition to iPhone in the case of processors and RAM, but for the camera sensor, Apple always had the upper hand. The iPhone camera is considered one of the best smartphone cameras, and there’s hardly any dispute on that. Still, this camera can at times be subject to some glitch and may not work properly. The iPhone camera black screen is one of those glitches.
Now, it’s not the end of the world when you find out that the screen on your iPhone has gone all dark. For the majority of cases, this is due to a software glitch that can be solved within seconds. If you are extremely unlucky, you may need some hardware troubleshooting.
In this piece, we are going to show how to fix the iPhone camera black screen problem in 15 simple ways. So, fasten your seatbelts, and get your phone handy.
Why is My iPhone Camera Screen Black?
Before asking ‘how do I fix my iPhone camera if it’s black’, you need to know the reason why it has turned dark. There is plenty of reasons, and software malfunction should be one of the key reasons. Sometimes, it’s possible that the camera sensor is working just fine, but the software the phone uses to operate the camera is somehow having some issues.
How to Know if The Camera is Physically Okay?
You should check if the camera is physically fine before you even attempt to solve the camera black-out problem. How to do this? Well, it’s pretty easy. Simply open any other app that uses the camera. You can always use the FaceTime app.
It’s the built-in Video Calling app for the Apple ecosystem. Alternatively, you can use any other Video Calling app like Messenger, WhatsApp, etc.
Now, if you can use the camera on these apps, you can be ensured that the problem isn’t with the camera hardware or the sensor. It’s simply a glitch of software that can be solved at home.
How To Solve iPhone Camera Black Problem?
While it’s not a huge challenge, it’s not something that lets you chill out, either. So, you need to resolve the issue as soon as possible. So, here are our solutions that you can follow to solve the problem right away.
Remember, you probably can solve the case right away with one of the solutions, but you may need to try more than one option to bring your camera back to performing as it should.
Close the Camera App
There’s no debate that terminating any app while it’s giving you a headache is a good way to bring it back to normal. The camera app is no different. Simply pull the running app list on the background from the bottom of the screen (in case you have a home-buttoned iPhone, tap the home button twice).
Now, pull the camera up towards the upper side of the phone, and it’s closed. Now run the app again, and hopefully, you will be able to run it again as normal.
Force Stop Other Apps
Is it still there? Well, sometimes, regular termination of the app doesn’t yield the desired output. In that case, you need to stop all the apps that are running in the background. This will make it easy for the system to remove all live memories and start everything fresh. The process is similar to the previous one.
Simply swipe the screen from the bottom and close all the apps as you have closed the camera app.
Flip The Camera Modes
Sometimes, it’s the camera mode that is causing the problem. So, what you should do, is switch the camera mode from back to front. Click the camera flip icon on the bottom right corner.
This will flip the camera mode, and you will be able to see the selfie mode on the screen or the regular mode if you were already using the selfie mode. Now, wait for a few seconds and then flip the mode again.
After flipping back to the previous mode, the issue may get resolved on its own.
Turn Off Live Photo
It’s likely that your phone camera may be facing some issues with the Live Camera option. Although it’s not the most common reason to hamper camera operation, it’s definitely a possible reason to block the regular function. Moreover, many users don’t actually like a live photo anyways.
To turn the Live Photo option, go to Settings > Camera > Preserve Settings
Here, you will find the Live Photo option at the bottom of the three options. Toggle it off and terminate the camera app. Run it again to check if it has solved your problem.
Try Turning the Flash On
At times the camera won’t work if the flashlight is not working. So, check if the flashlight is syncing with the camera or not. To do this, bring down the control center from the top.
Select the Flashlight option from the list. This will turn it on, and you can now open the camera app to check if it’s working. If the issue is related to the flashlight synchronization with your camera, doing this would solve it right away. Otherwise, you need to check for other solutions.
Remove The Case
Is the case of your phone blocking the camera? Check this to make sure it’s not blocking the lens of the iPhone camera. Remove the case and see for yourself. Turn the camera on after removing the case. If it was the case that was covering the lens, you might need to look for another case that doesn’t.
Is Your Phone Too Hot?
If the iPhone gets too hot, it may cause some malfunction on different operations. Such as, the touchscreen may not work properly, or the camera may show a black screen. In this case, check if your phone is hot. If you feel that the phone is actually pretty hot, simply remove the case of the phone and turn it off.
Leave the phone aside in a cool place for about 5 to 10 minutes until it cools down. Once it’s cooled down, restart your phone, and you may find the problem resolved.
Restart Generally
Here’s a common solution. Most of the software glitches of our smartphones can be solved by a simple restart. Try restarting your iPhone to see if it works well. Hold the Side button on the right side of your phone and the Volume Up button together.
It will prompt the ‘Slide to power off’ option, and all you need to do is simply slide the option to the right. It will take a while to turn off. Once the phone is completely switched off, you need to press the Side button once again to turn the phone on.
After the phone turns on, simply check if the phone camera is working correctly.
Turn off VoiceOver Option
It may sound a bit weird, but a number of users actually have found that the camera works fine if they turn off the VoiceOver feature under Accessibility. So, it’s always a safe shot to play if you try it out, as well. So, this is how you should turn it off.
Go to Settings > Accessibility > VoiceOver
If the VoiceOver is turned on, simply toggle it off. Now close the camera app and re-open it. Try your luck; if it works, it’s going to be awesome!
Disable Camera Location
Another glitch in the software is the location option. Sometimes, turning the location service for the camera can alter its operation and cause the black screen. So, it’s better you turn it off. To turn off the camera location, go to Settings > Privacy > Location Service.
Scroll down and find the Camera option. If you can see that the location service for the camera is on, simply select Never. This will disallow the phone to use location service for the camera. And hopefully, it solves the black screen problem, as well.
Turn On Camera in Restricted Screen Time
If somehow you have restricted the camera in the Screen time option, there’s a possibility that the camera may not work properly at some point. Automatic gray or black screen would be a phenomenon that won’t be a surprise in any way. So, in order to keep your camera from getting blacked out, you need to ensure that the camera is not restricted in the Screen Time.
To do this, go to Settings > Screen Time > Allowed Apps
Scroll down to the Camera option and make sure it’s green-marked. If it was under the red-marked category, simply make it green marked and add it to allowed apps.
Check For Storage
Okay, the camera might be working well and good, but there’s not enough memory or space on your phone to capture and save the photos you take or the videos you shoot. That’s one of the reasons why the camera may get blacked out. So, in order to check if you have enough space left on your phone, go to Settings > General > About.
If you scroll a bit down, you will find an option Available. If there’s enough space on the Available option, it’s not the storage issue that is hampering the camera performance. But if there’s no space left at all, you need to clean up some data from your phone. You can delete your old pictures or simply transfer the large files from your phone to your computer.
Alternatively, you can find this information on Settings > General > iPhone Storage
Go For Software Update
In some rare cases, the issue may be caused by a bug in the iOS version you are using. In that case, upgrading or downgrading the iOS can solve the problem. However, it’s not always a better idea to downgrade the iOS version. So, go for upgrading. To do this, simply go to Settings > General > Software Update.
You will find the latest version for iOS, and you can simply tap on the Download and Install option to upgrade to the newer iOS version. This will definitely make things better for the camera if the issue was caused by an iOS bug.
Reset All Settings
If nothing above seems to solve the black screen problem, you may use the last resort – resetting all the settings. Resetting settings means you will remove all memories from the phone software and give the phone a fresh start. This can possibly fix the camera issue in most cases. To reset all settings on your phone, go to Settings > General > Reset > Reset All Settings.
After tapping the Reset All Settings option, your iPhone will bring all the settings on the phone, including the camera settings, to the default position. It will very likely solve the black screen error instantly.
Visit Apple Store
If you are not sure how to solve the problem by yourself or don’t want to take any risk of altering the settings, there’s always a way out. You can visit the nearest Apple store and show the device to them for suggestions. Some of the Apple stores do provide repair services. If you are lucky enough, you may get an instant solution, as well.
Alternatively, you can subscribe to the AppleCare+ service provided by Apple to get expert technical support for both software and hardware problems on your iPhone. Read this page for more information on Apple’s repair services.
Takeout
Unless your phone camera is experiencing a server hardware problem, you can easily solve the iPhone camera black screen issue on your own. Follow these techniques and solutions to solve the problem right away at home.
If nothing works, there are no other options than to take the device to the Apple service center and get it repaired by them. It’s always safer to allow the Apple-authorized repair shops to deal with your phone.
Good luck!