It often happens that you can get the most out of your mobile camera by using alternative software compared to the factory one. We show you the best.
Don't like your phone's factory camera app, or find the settings too sparse? Maybe HDR or RAW mode is missing? No problem, Google Play Store is full of better alternatives that can replace these features. It's also not uncommon for the manufacturer to provide a second software for the same camera, or for the community to come to your aid. But alternative software is not only useful when some services are missing, it can also be useful if the mobile phone's factory implementation uses too strong noise filtering or is regularly wrong in terms of white balance.
open the camera
A completely free alternative to the factory camera app is Open Camera, which, in addition to the RAM format, knows several things that are usually left out of cheap phone software. For example, the possibility of using manual settings, HDR mode, or RAW format support. The quality of JPG files can be customized, and if you want, you can also save them in WEBP format.
Adobe Lightroom
On mobile, Lightroom can be used not only to edit photos, but also to take photos. The advantage is that you can choose the style in which you want to capture the subject before exposure. Lightroom supports both RAW format and manual adjustment options, so after one click, everything is at your fingertips to make the most of the photos you've taken. However, please note that some positions are paid.
Chimera
Cymera is also free, and we recommend it especially if your photos are often used on social media platforms. The application can be used not only to take photos, but also to enhance recordings for Instagram or, in the case of videos, for YouTube. Naturally, it also has a bunch of filters, some of which you can even use while taking photos after activating the beauty mode.
google camera
For a long time, Google's Pixel phones were made with only one camera system, and yet these phones took the best quality photos. The secret is revealed through the amazing software, which is miles ahead of competitors' solutions in almost every aspect. That's why the enthusiastic community has “ported” GCam to many other phones. We must know that these are unofficial requests; For “supported” phones, the app can be downloaded from xdaforums.com (use the term “Google Camera Port Center” to search. If the GCam app works on your phone, you will almost certainly be able to take better photos with it than the mobile phone manufacturer that uses it, But you need to know that it works on a trial and error basis, because it is very likely that you will have to face constant freezing.
Samsung raw experts
The Samsung example clearly shows that when developing camera software, manufacturers focus primarily on the needs of the masses, that is, on making photography as convenient as possible, so that the result is the best that can be obtained from the given in one form or another. hardware. For the small group that likes to play around with settings and (also) shoot images in RAW, Samsung has created Expert RAW, which you can download from the Galaxy Store. Not surprisingly, the software only works with Samsung phones, including premium models; Note 20, S20/21 Ultra, S22 series, S23 series, S24 series, Z Fold2 and later.
