Leica Lux App: Leica Looks on Your iPhone

In a way, the Leica LUX app brings Leica’s appear and feel to the iPhone. It provides a much less convoluted UI, a extra tactile taking pictures revel in, and get admission to to customized Leica colour profiles. It doesn’t attempt to mimic professional cameras thru gimmicks and the like—it leans into what the iPhone can already do and will provide you with extra keep an eye on over it.

I used the app in quite a lot of places: architectural pictures, instructing periods, and as my primary iPhone digital camera when used together with the Leica LUX Grip. It hasn’t changed my digital camera, nevertheless it’s the one cell app that made me wish to decelerate and compose.

The unfastened model of the app was once used for this assessment as an alternative of the total professional model. The unfastened model has its boundaries when it comes to capability, to be had lens emulations, and to be had Leica Looks, but for this assessment, the unfastened model was once greater than good enough. More at the pricing of the app later.

Specifications

• Manual controls

• Shutter pace

• ISO

• Manual concentration with peaking (Pro)

• Exposure repayment

• Live histogram (Pro)

• Leica Looks

  • Leica Standard

  • Leica Classic

  • Leica Contemporary

  • Black and white choices

• Focus peaking

• Tap-to-focus

• Clean interface and not using a bloat

• Compatibility: iPhone 12 and more recent

Shooting Experience

The app feels rapid. You faucet the shutter, it shoots—no lengthen, no animations—only a blank, decisive click on with haptic comments in the event you interact it. The controls are simple to be told, despite the fact that you aren’t a photographer. Its easy UI is solely that—easy. The app encourages you to shoot slower and with extra function. No filters, no fluff, simply publicity, concentration, and number of Leica Look, which by the way is retained from the ultimate atmosphere used.

The two taking pictures modes to be had are Aperture and Photo. The Aperture mode (Pro model) will give you quite a lot of lens emulations. In the unfastened model, then again, you handiest have the ability of the 28SLX. The Photo mode avails you of 5 focal lengths starting from 13mm to 120mm.

Leica Looks

This is the place the app sticks out. The colour profiles aren’t merely filters; they’re tuned rendering kinds according to Leica’s in-camera appears. Leica Classic will provide you with a extra nostalgic tone, while Contemporary brings distinction with softer highlights. The black and white modes aren’t overly grainy or overwhelmed; they’re blank, with delicate roll-off within the tones. You don’t need to shoot uncooked to get them. JPEGs pop out having a look completed. You may even body your symbol with all of the EXIF knowledge and site data if that’s your bag.
In the unfastened model, you’ll be able to view your scene with all of the Leica Looks however can handiest shoot with 5 of the 15 Looks to be had. I did shoot with all the to be had Looks however spent a perfect portion of the time the use of the Black and White High Contrast.

Stability and Speed

The app runs easily, and I by no means encountered any crashes, stutters, or insects. It boots rapid and connects to the LUX Grip instantly in the event you’ve used it sooner than. There’s no video mode, so in the event you’re in search of an all-in-one app, this isn’t it—but when images is the function, it delivers, along side some in reality candy Leica Looks.

Final Thoughts

I’d suggest it if you wish to have:

• Full guide keep an eye on over your telephone digital camera

• You care about colour and tone instantly out of the digital camera

• You use uncooked or wish to get extra from JPEGs

• You’re pairing it with the LUX Grip

• You love the Leica Looks

And I’d keep away from it if:

The unfastened model is excellent to make use of for the entirety I’ve discussed right here. The Pro model, then again, retails at £69.99 according to yr or £6.99 monthly, which I think is just a little too steep for an app, even with all of Leica’s Looks and lens emulations. Granted, it’s now not the most costly app and it does supply a perfect cell taking pictures revel in, but I think that possibly £20 or £30 much less could be a greater ballpark determine.

The Leica LUX app doesn’t attempt to flip your telephone right into a Leica—it merely will provide you with a cleaner, extra managed taking pictures revel in. It slows you down in the fitting manner. You get started considering like a photographer once more, now not a content material writer. I came upon that it turned into one in every of my default apps inside an afternoon merely on account of the Looks, and that it slowed me down in the fitting manner.

You can in finding the app within the App Store.