How to add readable text and arrows to an iPhone photo

Write the instruction before decorating the image

An annotation should help someone do or understand something: find the entrance, identify a detail, or compare two areas. Write that purpose in one sentence before adding labels. If the picture needs a paragraph of explanation, consider putting the longer explanation in the accompanying message.

Work on a separate version when you need an unmarked photograph later. Keep the finished annotation easy to distinguish from the source so that the wrong version does not become your next edit.

Open Markup and add the label

Apple’s support route is Photos → select photo → Edit → Markup. Use Add for text or shapes, then Done and Done again to save. Apple’s iOS 26 guide describes Add Text, a movable text box and formatting controls for size, font, alignment and color.

For an arrow, use the shape tools where available. The guide also describes drawing a shape in one stroke and pausing at its end to replace it with a more regular version. Adjust its position and direction so that the tip identifies the intended detail. Compare the guide for your installed software if the controls differ.

Example: show someone which entrance to use

Imagine a building with two doors. Put “Use this entrance” in an uncluttered area and point one arrow to the correct doorway. Avoid covering the sign or distinguishing feature the visitor needs to recognize.

If two instructions are necessary, use short labels such as “Entrance” and “Meeting point.” A second arrow should add information, not merely make the photograph look busier. Choose the label color against the actual background, including both its bright and dark areas.

Check three things before sending

• Readability View the whole image at ordinary phone size. If you have to zoom to read a simple instruction, shorten or enlarge the text.
• Accuracy Trace each arrow from its label to its tip. Make sure the point lands on the exact object rather than a neighboring feature.
• Context Check whether a label or shape hides evidence that the recipient needs to orient themselves.

Annotation is not a secure-redaction workflow

This guide adds visible explanation; it does not establish that covered information has been securely removed. If the source contains something the recipient should not receive, prepare a suitable sanitized file through a separate redaction process and verify that result.

Also check the outgoing file after saving. A label that looked readable while zoomed in may be too small in a compressed message preview. Keep only the annotations that help the intended reader, and use the accompanying text for anything that does not belong on the image.