While the iPhone’s camera is one of the best in its segment, it lacks a certain amount of customization and processing power. Luckily, there are plenty of apps in the App Store that make up for this lack of features. So, if you need more camera app options, I’ve compiled a list of the best handheld camera apps for iPhone to make your search easier.
So, without further delay, let’s check the records!
- ESCO
- Galid Mark II
- ProCamera.
- Camera+
- ghost chamber
- Neuralcam
- professional camera
- Fokos
- Prokam 8
- Rare VHS version
1. VSCO – Editors’ Choice
VSCO is one of the most popular handheld camera apps of all time. The elegant user interface and plenty of customization options make it stand out from the competition.
In the free version of the app, you can access a photo editor with 10 free presets to style your image. Plus, the app membership gives you over 200 photo editing options to make them look the way you want. Advanced editing tools such as Split Tones also add more depth to image processing.
In addition, there is a huge VSCO community with helpful members who provide simple tips to subtly improve your photo and video editing skills. You can also upload or download custom presets created by creators in the VSCO community to get more options.
My only issue with the app is that the free version is severely limited in terms of the features it provides. Membership is the only way to truly experience the VSCO app.
pros
- Beautiful, elegant interface
- Advanced Editing Tools
- Huge number of presets
- Helpful community
Minuses
- The free version is too limited
Price: Free (In-app purchases start at $7.99)
2. Halide Mark II – perfect for photographers
When you are a professional photographer, powerful editing tools are not enough for you. You need a manual iPhone camera app that uses the best algorithm to process raw images. This is what you get with the Halide Mark II.
The app’s controls are inspired by professional cameras, adding more options for instantly changing aspects of your perfect shot, such as shutter speed, aperture, and lighting. What’s more, with advanced tools like XDR (high dynamic range), focus assist and 14-bit RAW streaming viewing, Halide Mark II is one of the most complete handheld camera apps for iPhone.
In addition, the user interface of the app is quite minimalistic and elegant, which makes it a pleasure to use. It even lets you take pictures of subjects in portrait mode on phones like the iPhone XR and iPhone SE. All in all, as a photographer, you won’t find a better camera app.
However, recent app updates have created stability issues. The app crashes quite often. Let’s hope the developers can release patches to fix this soon.
pros
- Advanced Camera Tools
- Decent user experience
- Makes full use of iPhone cameras
Minuses
- Recent updates caused stability issues
Price: Free (In-app purchases start at $2.99)
3. Procamera. – For processing RAW images
While there are plenty of manual iPhone camera apps that offer RAW image processing, very few can come close to the genius of ProCamera.
This app is specifically designed for iPhone 12 and later by making full use of the iPhone’s camera hardware. If you want full control over your iPhone’s camera, you can use it through this app as it offers features like exposure compensation and aperture control. In addition, it can also process image formats such as RAW, JPG, TIFF, and HEIF.
The photo album feature on the app is pretty decent too, letting you make changes as you see fit with plenty of customization and organization options. In addition, the photo album will be integrated with iCloud, so you will never lose your precious pictures.
However, the automatic application configuration algorithm is not the best. You will definitely have to make some minor adjustments when you take a picture.
pros
- Great for processing RAW images
- iCloud integration
- Can handle various image formats
Minuses
- Autotune settings should have been better
Price: $14.99 (In-app purchases start at $0.99).
4. Camera+ is a decent choice for beginners
While Camera+ has plenty of editing tools, make no mistake. This is not an app that I would recommend to photographers. However, if you’re a beginner who needs a basic yet powerful iPhone handheld camera app, it’s worth checking out.
The application has full integration with the photo library, which greatly simplifies the editing process. You can easily switch between tabs with different images to quickly make the necessary edits. Also, one of the app’s best features is Magic ML, which uses machine learning to use different iPhone lenses depending on the capture scenario.
Its auto and manual modes are decent, with the latter providing good control over your shot. Transferring pictures to another device or computer is also easy thanks to the integration of files and iTunes. Basically, if you are a beginner and want to understand how the manual camera app for iPhone works, this is a good option.
The only problem with the app is that image processing is a bit slower than usual.
pros
- File and iTunes integration to transfer photos and videos
- Machine learning algorithms for image enhancement
- Easy to use
Minuses
- Image processing is a bit slow
Price: Free (In-app purchases start at $2.99)
5. Specter camera – for long exposure photos.
Specter Camera is one of the more specialized manual iPhone camera apps on this list. In fact, the app is perfect if you want to take long exposure shots and water based photography.
The app is made by the same developers as Halide, one of the best handheld camera apps for iPhone. However, with Specter, long exposure shots are made easier by the use of artificial intelligence. Medium to long duration shots help capture scenes by removing traffic and people for a cleaner shot.
Soft water effects make water-based shots look elegant and professional. In addition, the app’s artificial intelligence adjusts lighting and camera stability to deliver the best long exposure shots. Technologies such as tripod detection, DCI-P3 widescreen color pipeline, and metal graphics acceleration are also integrated into the application, making it useful for the photographer.
However, the app is limited by time settings. Users have complained that three time settings are not enough to diversify the shots you take with the app.
pros
- Best suited for long exposure and water-based photography.
- Artificial intelligence regulates stability and lighting
- Computational photography features for exceptional shots
Minuses
- Additional timer settings should have been provided
Price: $4.99
6. NeuralCam – for night photography
Not all manual iPhone camera apps can accurately capture the intricacies of night photography. However, if clicking images at night is your forte, NeuralCam is a great option.
The app uses artificial intelligence and computational photography technology to take the night shots you want. These features remove background noise and sharpen objects for a clearer image. You can also use these functions during daytime photography to ensure that the colors in your photographs are faithfully reproduced.
In addition, the app comes with enhanced AI macro modes and a 48MP AI Upscaled engine for highly detailed images. In addition, the NeuralHDR feature automatically adjusts light capture, whether it’s daytime or not, to provide the best lighting for every scenario.
The only drawback of the app is the user interface. Developers could do better by updating the app’s user interface.
pros
- Best for night shots
- Authentic color rendering
- Zoom technology for more detail and resolution
Minuses
- Clumsy user interface
Price: $4.99 (In-app purchases start at $3.99).
7. Professional camera – very versatile
Not to be confused with the other “ProCamera”application. in this list, Pro Camera is a manual camera app for iPhone that offers multiple shooting modes for both video and photo. This makes it one of the most versatile apps in the App Store.
These shooting modes include, but are not limited to, single photo, burst mode, movie mode, dynamic mode, fisheye mode, 3D image, and analog mode. In fact, there are over 150 of these modes built into the app, giving you multiple ways to unleash your creativity.
Plus, independent control locks and manual options give you full control over the shot you want to take. It also supports many file formats such as ProRAW, TIFF, RAW, RAW+JPEG, and HEIF.
However, most of the app’s features are blocked by paywalls.
pros
- Can take photos and videos in multiple formats
- Over 150 presets to choose from
- Can handle various file formats
Minuses
- Most features are locked behind a paywall
Price: Free (In-app purchases start at $7.99)
8. Focos – for bokeh effect
For shooting in the light field, there is hardly a better application than Focos. Computational photography app is just on another level.
This computer-generated photography helps you focus images, adjust aperture, and add multiple lighting effects to a 3D space. In fact, the editing tools are very powerful and designed for large aperture shots and additional bokeh effects.
Speaking of bokeh effects, you can choose from various simulated apertures that create different bokeh effects in your photos. In addition, each of the various lights that you add to the 3D image space can be customized by changing the color and intensity. Most importantly, the app also helps beginners with built-in tutorial videos.
However, my problem with the app is how buggy it is after the latest updates. The app’s camera shutter releases infrequently and also tends to crash.
pros
- Superb computer photography
- After shooting, you can adjust several aperture and focus settings.
- Light intensity in 3D image space can be adjusted
Minuses
- A little buggy
Price: Free (In-app purchases start at $1.99)
9. ProCam 8 – great for video
ProCam 8 is not just one of the best handheld camera apps for iPhone. In fact, it is also one of the best iPhone camera apps you can use today.
Although it also offers a photo mode, even the developers prefer that you use a video recording app. This is evidenced by the huge array of options provided by the app when it comes to frame rate and video resolution.
These resolutions range from VGA to 4K Ultra HD, with 3264×1836 upscaled to 3840×2160. For the latest iPhones, you can also access 4K Max resolution for the highest quality videos. With each of these frame rates and resolutions, you can also access different Time Lapse frame rates.
Video capture is also aided by tools such as true focus, various aspect ratios, ISO, focus, and white balance values. All in all, this is a pretty comprehensive app.
However, many users have reported a bug in the app that prevents videos from being saved to the phone’s memory.
pros
- Best for shooting and video editing
- Supports multiple resolutions and frame rates
- Comprehensive video capture tools
Minuses
- A bug prevents some users from saving videos to the phone’s memory
Price: $9.99 (In-app purchases start at $0.99).
10. Rarevision VHS – for the perfect retro look
While this is not a manual iPhone camera app that I would recommend to professional users, this app is perfect for casual photographers who have a penchant for retro and Polaroid style photography.
The app uses the visual format of the VHS camcorder popular in the mid-1980s and uses the iPhone’s camera to capture your best moments. You can also create retro VHS style videos to take you on a nostalgic journey. It even mimics the camera glitches that VHS camcorders suffer from. Don’t worry, the app isn’t actually buggy.
This application is not a professional application per se and never claims to be. However, for nostalgia and mood, this is one of the best manual camera apps for iPhone.
Unfortunately, the main downside of this app is the lack of editing options. While it comes with several built-in options to further customize your photos or videos, it’s not enough for people who like to fiddle with their camera shots and videos.
pros
- Perfect for retro and nostalgic vibes
- Beautiful filters
- Does the basics well
Minuses
- Not too many modern features
Price: $3.99
How to choose a camera app?
Choosing the right camera app for yourself can be a bit of a hassle. So take a look at the following features:
Modes
Most camera apps have multiple modes for taking photos or videos. Make sure you carefully check the app details to see if the camera app provides specialized photo or video modes for individual shots.
Editing tools
The manual camera apps for iPhone also contain editing tools to add effects to your photos. Some apps have the most basic editing tools, while others have the advanced tools available in DSLRs. If you want to understand the nuances of photography and editing, you’re better off with apps with advanced toolkits. Otherwise, switch to simpler versions.
User Experience
Even if the manual iPhone camera app has the best features, you won’t be able to use them properly if the user interface is clunky. Look for apps that provide clean aesthetics as well as editing features. This will greatly simplify the use of the application.
In-app purchases
Because most apps in the App Store follow the freemium model, many of their features are locked behind paywalls. Some apps also only provide 7-day trials before you need to subscribe to their premium version. If you’re on a budget, check out apps that provide the most essential tools for free.
However, if you’re willing to spend money on an app, make sure that in-app purchases aren’t over the top. Their subscription model should provide access to all tools without the need for additional purchases.
FAQ
To change your iPhone’s camera settings, you can go to the Settings app. Navigate to the “Camera”option and select it. The next window will show all the camera settings, which you can change depending on your requirements.
Unfortunately, the iPhone camera app has fixed several important settings to suit the system’s preferences. Thus, it does not have a special manual mode. Because you can’t change settings like aperture, you’re better off using a manual camera, which gives you more freedom to manually change camera settings.
The iPhone camera app has a limited number of settings that you can manually adjust. To apply these manual changes, you can tap the screen while using the camera and adjust the focus or exposure of the photo. You can also press and hold the screen for autofocus or autoexposure.
Takeaway
I hope this list helps you choose the best handheld camera app for iPhone based on your preference. I have listed the top rated handheld camera apps based on their features and use cases to make your decision easier. If you have some suggestions, feel free to let me know in the comments!