Fire the shutter with the volume buttons, Camera Control or a keyboard
The volume buttons fire the shutter, and so does Camera Control on iPhones that have it, from iOS 17.2, but only while the viewfinder is the screen in front. On iPad, a hardware keyboard adds a Camera menu of shortcuts.
The volume buttons and Camera Control
On iOS 17.2 and later, a press of either volume button does what the shutter does: a still in PHOTO, start or stop a take in VIDEO. Camera Control does the same on iPhones that have it.
They work only while the viewfinder is in front. Behind Shots, Setup or Settings, or while you type a name, the buttons change the volume as usual. While a still or a take is still saving, a press is refused, so it does not turn into a volume change either.
Keyboard shortcuts on iPad
Hold Command to see the Camera menu, or find it in the menu bar on iPadOS 26.
- Space: take a photo, or start and stop a take.
- Up and down arrows: previous and next lens, or zoom out and in on a zoom. In Vertical, the left and right arrows.
- Command-1 and Command-2: PHOTO and VIDEO.
- Control-Command-F: Clean View, the picture with every read-out hidden but the shutter.
- Escape: close the panel that is open over the picture.
- Command-comma: Settings.
A shortcut is dimmed in the menu when it cannot act right now, for example while a name is being typed.
If that didn't work
If a volume press changes the volume, check that the viewfinder is the screen in front and that no sheet or card is open over it. On iOS 17.0 and 17.1 the buttons always stay volume buttons.
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Updated November 2, 2026