iOS 26 Wallpaper Guide: Spatial Scenes and Live Photos

iOS 26 (announced at WWDC25 in June 2025, released September 2025) gives the lock screen three wallpaper types worth knowing about. Spatial Scenes are the headline feature — iOS builds a depth map from a photo in your own library and shifts it in 3D as you move the phone — while Live Photos and classic stills carry over unchanged. This guide covers every type and exactly how to set each one up.

The iOS 26 Wallpaper Types

Wallpaper Type	Motion	Interaction	iPhone Required	Custom Photo
Spatial Scene	No — 3D parallax on a still	Move or tilt the phone	iPhone 12 or newer	Yes (from your own eligible photos)
Live Photo	Yes (raise-to-wake)	Press and hold	Every iPhone on iOS 17+ except iPhone SE	Yes
Static	No	None	Any	Yes

Spatial Scenes work on iPhone 12 and later running iOS 26; iOS generates the depth map on device from an ordinary photo. Live Photo wallpapers work on every iPhone running iOS 17 or later, apart from the iPhone SE. iOS 26 itself runs on iPhone 11 and later plus iPhone SE (2nd generation) and later.

How to Set Up Spatial Scenes in iOS 26

Spatial Scenes are made from your own photos. There is no Apple gallery of scenes to browse — you open the Spatial Scene tab in the Photos picker and iOS generates the depth effect for images that qualify. Photos with good lighting and clear separation between subject and background, or landscape shots with several depth planes, are the most likely to work. For a deeper look at how they work, see the Spatial Scenes guide.

Steps to enable a Spatial Scene:

1. Open Settings → Wallpaper → Add New Wallpaper
2. Tap Photos at the top of the picker
3. Scroll the top bar across to the Spatial Scene tab
4. Pick one of the eligible photos it shows you
5. Wait for Generating Spatial Scene to finish — iOS builds the depth map on device
6. Tap Add
7. Tap Set as Wallpaper Pair to apply it to both lock and home screens, or Customize Home Screen to pick a different home screen background

The 3D effect shows on the lock screen only, and it responds to movement rather than playing frames — nothing animates if the phone is sitting still.

Live Photo Wallpapers: Use Your Own Photo

A Spatial Scene reacts to how you hold the phone. If you want the image itself to move on raise-to-wake, that is a Live Photo.

A native Live Photo is a paired .heic still and .mov motion clip created by the iPhone camera. When set as a lock screen wallpaper, the motion plays when you raise the phone (raise-to-wake), and also when you press and hold the lock screen. In our own device testing, iOS plays a short burst of motion that slows and settles onto the still key frame, rather than the whole clip.

Using a Live Photo from your camera roll:

1. Open Settings → Wallpaper → Add New Wallpaper
2. Tap Photos at the top of the picker
3. Tap the Live filter button to show only Live Photos
4. Select a photo — the preview plays the motion clip
5. Pinch to crop, then tap Add

What if your photo isn't a Live Photo? That is where Lockimate comes in. Lockimate converts any still image into a native Live Photo (.heic + .mov pair) in about 2–3 minutes. It outputs the exact same file format the iPhone camera produces, so iOS 26 treats it identically to a shot taken with your camera.

The four animation vibes — Warm, Playful, Cinematic, and Lively — let you control the mood of the motion before you export. Your first wallpaper is free.

Comparison: iOS 26 Wallpaper Types at a Glance

Feature	Spatial Scene	Live Photo	Static
Plays on raise-to-wake	No	Yes	No
Responds to how you hold the phone	Yes	No	No
Responds to touch	No	Yes (press hold)	No
Custom photo support	Yes (eligible photos)	Yes	Yes
Minimum iPhone	12	Every model except iPhone SE, on iOS 17+	Any
Source image	Any eligible photo	Any photo	Any photo

Live Photos with Lockimate's Cinematic vibe are the option to reach for when you want real movement rather than parallax — and the image is yours either way.

Which iPhones Get Every iOS 26 Wallpaper Feature

iOS 26 ships on iPhone 11 and newer, plus iPhone SE (2nd generation) and later. Not every wallpaper type works on every model:

• iPhone 11, iPhone SE (2nd and 3rd generation) — Static and, on everything except the SE, Live Photo wallpapers
• iPhone 12 and newer — Static, Live Photo, and Spatial Scenes

There is no Pro-model, Apple Intelligence, or LiDAR requirement for Spatial Scenes: iOS builds the depth map on device from an ordinary photo.

Setting a Live Photo from Lockimate as Your iOS 26 Wallpaper

After generating a Live Photo in Lockimate (about 2–3 minutes per image), the app saves directly to your Photos library in the Live Photos album. iOS 26 detects it immediately.

1. Open Lockimate → pick a photo → select a vibe → tap Generate
2. Tap Save to Photos — the .heic + .mov pair saves to your camera roll
3. Open Settings → Wallpaper → Add New Wallpaper → Photos
4. Filter by Live — your new animated wallpaper appears at the top
5. Set it and you are done

Generation takes about 2–3 minutes; setting the wallpaper afterwards takes under a minute. For step-by-step screenshots, see the lock screen customization guide.

---

FAQ

What iPhones support Spatial Scenes in iOS 26?

Spatial Scenes run on iPhone 12 and later with iOS 26. Apple documents the requirement as iPhone 12 or later — there is no Pro-model, A17 Pro, or Apple Intelligence requirement, and LiDAR plays no part in it. iOS 26 itself installs on iPhone 11 and later plus iPhone SE (2nd generation) and later, so iPhone 11 and the SE models run iOS 26 without the Spatial Scene option.

Can I make my own Spatial Scene from a personal photo?

Yes — that is exactly what the feature does. Go to Settings → Wallpaper → Add New Wallpaper → Photos, scroll the top bar to the Spatial Scene tab, and pick one of the eligible photos. Only certain photos qualify; images with clear separation between subject and background, or landscapes with distinct depth planes, work best. Note that the result is still a static image with 3D parallax. If you want the picture to actually move, create a Live Photo with Lockimate from any still.

Does iOS 26 support Live Photo wallpapers from third-party apps?

Yes. iOS 26 accepts any Live Photo saved to the Photos library, regardless of which app created it. Third-party apps like Lockimate write a standard .heic + .mov pair directly to your camera roll. iOS 26's wallpaper picker recognizes it as a Live Photo and plays the motion clip on raise-to-wake. Apple did not change the Live Photo file format in iOS 26.

Does iOS 26 include a gallery of Spatial Scene wallpapers?

No. There is no library of Apple-authored Spatial Scenes to browse and no Spatial Scene capture mode in the Camera app. The Spatial Scene tab in the Photos wallpaper picker surfaces photos from your own library that qualify for the effect, and iOS generates the depth on device when you pick one.

Do iOS 26 wallpapers slow down the iPhone?

No measurable slowdown in everyday use. Apple has not published power figures for either wallpaper type. In practice a Spatial Scene renders a still image with parallax rather than playing video, and a Live Photo wallpaper only plays a short burst of motion when the screen wakes, so neither behaves like an always-running animation.