Simplphoto for iPhone combines a manual camera, stop motion, and collages

I have released Simplphoto, a free iPhone app where I combined three things I personally missed: a manual camera, stop motion, and collages.

The idea started with reducing AI interference in the photo-taking process. That is why Simplphoto focuses not on “magic enhancement,” but on a more understandable and controllable shooting workflow.

In the Camera section, the main focus is manual control and making the final image more predictable in different shooting conditions. The settings include familiar controls usually associated with a full-featured camera:

• ISO;


• shutter speed;


• common aspect ratios: 16:9, 4:3, 1:1, as well as a wider 21:9 ratio;


• monochrome mode;


• two quick settings buttons that allow users to return to basic camera settings if they have gone too far with manual adjustments.

For convenience, these presets are divided into Bright and Dark, depending on the lighting conditions in the frame.

[Photo №1, Photo №2]

A separate Stop Motion section has also been added. I wanted users to be able to create short frame-by-frame animations quickly and conveniently, using the same manual settings available in the Camera section.

[Photo №3 and Photo №4]

The third section is Collage. It allows users to create collages from 2 to 6 photos with different layout options [Photo №5] and different final collage aspect ratios [Photo №6].

There is also an option to set the background color using the standard color picker interface, including an eyedropper tool for selecting a color directly from the photos used in the collage.

[Photo №7]

The most important part of the app is hidden in the Settings section.

[Photo №9]

In addition to showing how much storage is used by media files in each section of the app, the Settings section also contains the level of AI-processing restriction for photos. There are three modes in total:

Full disable enhancers [Photo №9]

This is the strictest mode. The app disables all image enhancers available for the specific device and attempts to minimize software interference in the photo. However, mandatory parts of the camera pipeline still remain: the sensor, ISP, demosaicing, color conversion, camera calibration, and final file generation. This is the maximum level of restriction currently possible within the public capabilities of iOS.

Medium level disable enhancers [Photo №11]

This is a compromise mode. The app disables some available enhancers while keeping the system mechanisms required for stable camera operation and correct image generation. In this mode, the ISP, basic sensor data processing, demosaicing, color transformations, calibrations, JPEG/HEIF pipeline, compression, and certain Apple automatic corrections may still remain active if iOS does not provide a safe public switch to disable them.

I look forward to hearing about your experience with the app and hope it proves useful.

The app is already available on the App Store.