Give them something to look at on the iPhone Duo cover screen

While you shoot on the inner screen, the cover screen faces the person in front of the camera. Show them a photo, a video, an animation or themselves.

What the cover screen can show

Photographing a baby, a toddler or a dog often means waving a toy with one hand while the other holds the phone. On iPhone Duo, AnyFront Camera lets the cover screen do that job. While the phone is open and the camera is running, the cover screen faces the person you are photographing, and the app can show:

A photo or a video from your library, picked by you.
One of eight original animations, on the Animations tab: Bubbles, Peekaboo, Rainbow Spiral, Bouncy Ball, Confetti Burst, Silly Face, Fish Tank and Smile Countdown.
A live mirror of the shot, so the people you photograph can see themselves in the frame.

A library photo, a sunflower field, on the cover screen, as the person in front of the camera sees it.

Show a photo on the cover screen while you take the picture

This is the simple case. Pick a photo from your library, show it on the cover screen, and take the picture from the inner screen, with the viewfinder and the manual controls in front of you. The person in front of the camera has something to look at, and you stay on the controls instead of waving a toy.

You can pick a video instead. The animations are there for when you want something that moves, and the live mirror lets the people you photograph see themselves in the frame.

A tip: start with a photo the person already likes, and switch to an animation if their attention drifts.

The inner screen of an iPhone Duo: the viewfinder with the manual controls, and beside them the cover-screen controls, here with the live mirror on the cover.

Need ideas for getting someone to look? These guides are tips, not rules: how to get a baby to look at the camera, how to get a dog or cat to look at the camera and photographing toddlers and kids. If you are the one in front of the camera, see iPhone Duo selfies with the rear cameras.

Choose and switch it from the inner screen

You control the cover screen from the inner screen, where your viewfinder and manual controls are. Beside the viewfinder is a live preview of the cover screen, with six choices beside it: Off, Animations, Message, Photo, Video and Mirror. Pick one; the eye on the preview hides the cover screen and brings it back. You can change what is showing whenever you like, without leaving the camera, so you can try a photo, then an animation, then the mirror in the same session. The circled camera icon in the row with the lock (off until you turn it on) adds a shutter button to the cover screen: a tap there takes the photo, or starts and stops the video.

The cover-screen controls on the inner screen, beside the viewfinder: a live preview of the cover with the choices Off, Animations, Message, Photo, Video and Mirror beside it, and the eight animations.

When iOS shows the cover screen

iOS decides when the cover screen is available. It is used only while the phone is unfolded, AnyFront Camera is open in front of you and the camera is running. Fold the phone or leave the app and the cover screen switches off. It comes back when you return.

If nothing is showing, check that the phone is open, the camera is running and the eye on the cover preview is not crossed out. Without AnyFront Pro, the live mirror and Bubbles go on the cover; photos, videos, the other seven animations and the message card stay a preview on the inner screen. Folded, the iPhone Duo works like a regular phone, and AnyFront Camera runs on the outer display as a normal camera. More answers are in the FAQ, and you can write to support.

What it costs

The camera and all of its manual controls are free on every compatible iPhone. AnyFront Pro is a monthly subscription with a 7-day free trial for new subscribers, offered once per Apple Account. It adds AnyFront's library of 18 attention sounds for pets and babies on every iPhone, plus your own sounds from Files or recordings up to 10 seconds; pick one in the camera and play it to get their attention. On an open iPhone Duo with iOS 27.1 or later, the live mirror and Bubbles are free; AnyFront Pro unlocks your photos and videos, the other seven animations and the message card on the cover screen. The price for your country is shown in the App Store, and prices differ by country and can change. Billing starts when the trial ends unless you cancel at least 24 hours before it ends, and it renews every month until you cancel. Cancel in Settings > your name > Subscriptions. AnyFront Camera requires iOS 27 or later.

If you already subscribe and are setting up a new or reset phone, open Camera Settings > AnyFront Pro in the app and tap Restore, signed in with the same Apple Account. Refunds are handled by Apple at reportaproblem.apple.com.

The camera underneath

The cover screen is the extra. The camera itself is a full manual camera with ISO, shutter speed, white balance, focus, exposure compensation, histogram, focus peaking and zebras. Everything you shoot is saved to your Photos library, like the built-in camera. See all the features. The app collects nothing: no account, no ads, no analytics. Its only network use is the App Store, for AnyFront Pro, and iCloud Photos, when it shows you a photo or video kept there. It never uploads photos, videos, sounds or face data. Details are in the privacy policy.