Mikey Campbell
Launching today in the iOS App Store, Realmac's Analog Camera is a clean, no-frills photo app that borrows design and usability features from the developer's popular to-do list title Clear.
Analog Camera doesn't offer users much in the way of new features. With a selection of eight photo filters, an in-app camera with exposure and focus control, and a plethora of sharing options, the title stacks up similarly with other camera apps that have been available for years.
However, what sets Analog apart from the rest is an attention to detail rarely found in a common camera and filter app. Drawing from the gesture-based Clear, Realmac combined a distilled photography feature set with the easy to use design that made its to-do list software popular.
Boasting a "flat" design, Analog is built around tiles, each serving a specific purpose. For example, when the app is opened, users are met with a live view of the rear-facing camera. Below the preview window is a large shutter control button. A two-finger touch activates focus and exposure points, much like the Camera+ app. Double tapping on the screen puts the camera back into auto mode.
Once a picture is taken, the image is sent to Photos, the catalog of which is displayed just behind Analog's camera view tile. Swiping down reveals a user's Photo library, and tapping on a picture will open a filter selection menu. Users can browse through the eight filter options by tapping and holding a filter tile, releasing on the desired effect.
Filter and sharing options.Just as in other photo apps, access to a user's camera roll and Photo Stream means that any pictures taken previously by another app can be filtered and sent out through Analog.
Sharing is also handled on the filter page, with options for saving to the iOS Photo library, attaching the photos in an email, integrating with Facebook and Twitter, and opening the processed picture to any compatible app with a "Send to" button. A pull down gesture returns users to the Photo library view, and from there a flick up activates the in-app camera.
Those familiar with Clear will find some of the app's sound effects have made their way to Analog, further adding to the app's fit and finish. The UI is snappy, as is filtering and animations.
Analog does make some concessions, however, as the in-app camera is unable to access the iPhone's zoom and flash capabilities, making picture taking less than ideal.
Also of concern is the severely cropped image produced by the app's filter processing. The cropping area is adjustable, outputting a 2,048-by-2,046 pixel image, though the resulting square image cuts off a large portion of the original 2,448-by-3,264 pixels.
Click image for full resolution.Some users might also be turned off by the lack of filter options, which at launch stands at eight. No word yet on whether more will be added, though many competing photo apps offer filter packs as in-app purchases.
Analog Camera is available now for $0.99 from the App Store.
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11 Comments
And this app needs to exist why?
And this app needs to exist why?
Maybe some people still like to use film. I wonder how you load the film.
Maybe some people still like to use film. I wonder how you load the film.
You go into a dark room and flip open the back. Try to locate the spool at the right side facing the back and then feed the end of the film into the slot and swipe three times. If the lock screen has engaged - start again. It's easy once you get used to it.
Good idea - it's like Instagram at the speed of the camera app. It's for people who want to spruce up their photos, but don't really give a care about if they're not using every pixel at their camera's disposal, or spending 2 minutes on each photo comparing different filters and trying to memorize filters names and borders - hey John, do you like California Burnt or Cucumber Cool better? They've narrowed it down to what they think is the best filters and the best sharing options so non-obsessives don't have to. When my dad pulls out his old photos, I don't care that they're low res, grainy, and tinted. It's kind of cool. Similarly, future cameras will blow away todays cameras, and we won't care if we had taken them in 2,048-by-2,046 pixel or 2,448-by-3,264 pixels. It's just giving us a great middle ground of quality vs time spent.
I won't use this because they spelled "analogue" incorrectly. :-)