I think you mean a worse but more flattering photo.

I’ve noticed this a lot as well. I just take a screenshot in the camera app instead of actually taking a photo.

You can actually take a photo while the video is recording. Just drag the red button to right to start video and then tap the white button on right of screen to take photo when ever you want to.

Depending on the exact “problem” you’re experiencing, you can address it in a few other potential ways:

1. Turn off the setting for View Full HDR.
2. Take photos in burst mode to prevent Deep Fusion from activating and letting people see your pores when capturing photos in medium to medium-low light situations.
3. Take photos in portrait mode and use one of the built-in lighting modes, like studio light and contour light. They add realistic lighting to your face (and body) that ends up smoothing out your face a bit. You can edit the intensity of the effect. You can edit also lighting modes when capturing or editing, and you can use them independently of the depth effect, which can be toggled off if you prefer. If you have an iPhone 15, you don’t even need to switch to portrait mode when capturing.