How To Blur Background in FaceTime Video Calls on iOS 15

Jun. 8, 2021

Portrait Mode in FaceTime on iOS 15

In this article, I will show you how to use the new “Portrait Mode” on Facetime or blur your background during a FaceTime video call in iOS 15. So, be sure to follow this story till the end to know how the feature works. Or, you can use the interactive table below to jump directly to your desired section.

Before I move on to the steps, it’s worth mentioning that FaceTime’sPortrait Mode feature will only work on devices with the A12 Bionic chip and later. That means the feature will be available on the iPhone XS series, iPhone 11 series, and last year’s iPhone 12 series running iOS 15.

With that out of the way, let’s take a look at the steps you need to follow to blur the background in FaceTime video calls on iOS 15.

1. Open the FaceTime app on your iOS device.

2. Make a FaceTime video call to any of your contacts. Then,tap on your own video viewat the bottom right corner, and watch it expand to reveal all available options.

3. In the expanded video view, you willsee a “Portrait Mode” iconat the top left corner. Tap on it to enable background blur in your FaceTime video call.

4. And that’s it. Thanks to the blurred background, you can now FaceTime your friends and colleagues without revealing your messy room, your photo wall, and more.

5. Open the FaceTime app on your iOS device, and make a FaceTime video call to any of your contacts.

6. During the video call, open the Control Center on your device. To open it, swipe down from the top right corner on a Face ID-enabled device or swipe up from the bottom on a Touch ID device.

7. In the Control Center, you will find anew “Video Effects” tile.

8. Long-press or 3D touch on the “Video Effects” tile to expand it. Next,tap on the “Portrait” buttonto toggle it on.

9. Now, close the “Video Effects” tile and the Control Center and go back to the video call. And voila! You will now see a blurred background in your FaceTime video call.

Now, although I have shown you how to turn on “Portrait Mode” for FaceTime calls in this guide, this feature also works with other video calling apps on iPhone. So if you make a video call using WhatsApp or Instagram, thenthe “Video Effects” tile will show up in the Control Centerwith the name of the corresponding app. You can then turn on/ off the feature using the same steps as above.

That is all you need to know about the new “Portrait Mode” feature for video calls in FaceTime on iOS 15. Apple is trying to rival othervideo conferencing apps like Zoomand Google Meet by offering such features with FaceTime. Moreover, it now allows you to make FaceTime calls to Android users, share your screen, and much more. However, if you are not a fan of FaceTime, you can also check out how toset a virtual background in Zoom,custom background in Google Meet, andchange the background in Microsoft Teamsvia the linked articles.

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