I’ll add a few more comments about the two iOS camera apps that I use; ProCamera (
ProCamera + HDR - the next dimension in iOS mobile photography!) and CameraPixels (
https://camerapixels.app).
I mentioned in an earlier post that I originally bought the apps to shoot RAW, at a time when shooting RAW was an advantage. Apple’s image processing is now so good that I use the non-Raw JPG or HEIC image more often than I use the RAW. But I still use CameraPixels and ProCamera instead of the iOS Camera app, for a few reasons…
The primary reason is that both apps allow me to shoot with shutter-priority or ISO-priority. The iOS Camera app can’t do this, and it often makes a difference here in Vancouver where we have lots of rainy, gloomy days. In lower light conditions I can force the camera to the lowest ISO setting to minimize noise, or I can increase the shutter speed to avoid blurring moving people/objects. Both apps display the shutter speed and ISO, as well as EV compensation, so I can see whether or not I need to take control and use shutter-priority or ISO-priority.
I’ve been using CameraPixels more and more because it allows me to save camera settings as presets. Accessing presets from within the app is fairly easy (it takes a couple of taps), but it’s even easier to use the CameraPixels widget which opens the app from the lock screen with the desired settings. I use the widget to open the app at least 90% of the time because it’s so fast to access.
ProCamera has a few more features that the iOS Camera app doesn’t provide. There’s a second shutter button opposite the main shutter button that takes a 4-image burst. There’s also VividHDR and LowLight Plus modes (both are in-app extra purchases) that merge multiple images to extend dynamic range and reduce noise. The relatively inexpensive subscription includes a few more features like exposure bracketing and auto perspective correction.
So even though Apple’s image processing has improved to the point that there is little advantage to shooting RAW, it’s still worth looking at third-party camera apps for features beyond the basic ones that the iOS Camera app provides. I hope to upgrade to an iPhone 12 Pro this fall to be able to shoot in ProRAW. I could do that with the iOS Camera app, but instead I’ll continue to use ProCamera and CameraPixels for the shutter-priority, ISO-priority, presets and other features.