Leica LUX Just Took Over My iPhone's Action Button
This is not your typical camera app
Whether you admit it or not, you would probably love to own a Leica camera with a few lenses. And until that day arrives, we have something with that very DNA to tide us over - The Leica LUX app for iPhone.
After just an hour of testing, I’ve already promoted it to the Action Button on my iPhone 15 Pro Max. I’ll still be using Apple’s Camera App by long-pressing the icon on the front screen. But now I have quick access to Leica LUX as well.
Why would I want that?
For starters, the interface is very Leica. The UI is clean and functional with easy access to all of the controls, which are plentiful, even in the free version of the app. I’ve been shooting in Aperture Priority, with the Summilux-M 28mm f/1.4 ASPH lens simulation (that uses Apple’s 24mm optic), and opting for the Leica Natural Look.
The free version of the app provides 5 Leica Looks, two exposure modes, and the 28mm lens. If you fall in love with it all, you can unlock more lenses and looks with a $6.99 a month subscription. In the world of iPhone apps that’s not cheap. But it is Leica technology.
Their engineers have created the lens simulations and color palette that is faithful to the Leica look.
You can view your captures in the app itself, or jump over to Photos where they are automatically added to your film roll.
The Leica color science is a pleasing alternative to Apple’s. And having the option to quickly switch between the two cameras is great.
When you view the images in Photos, there is a branded metadata note that reads: Saved from Leica LUX. So you can quickly determine which images in your library were captured via the Leica camera.
All my pictures captured with the 28mm Summilux-M were in Portrait Mode, which I thought was interesting. When I edit the LUX images in Photos, the various lighting options work well, but the Depth adjustment doesn’t operate properly. I’m guessing this will be addressed soon in an update.
I haven’t decided if I’m going to upgrade to the Pro version yet, which would give me more lenses - Summilux-M 35mm f/1.4 ASPH, Noctilux-M 50mm f/1.2 ASPH, and APO-Telyt-M 135mm f/3.4 (on iPhone 15 Pro Max only) - and more Looks - Leica Classic, Contemporary, Eternal, Blue, Selenium, and Sepia. I’ll keep shooting with the 28mm and see what I think.
But I do know that this app is a lot of fun, and does a good job of providing different looks for your iPhone photography.
Thanks for the tip! Got the app and I'm enjoying using it.
Great suggestion. When I set up my iPhone 15 Pro I don’t know why I set the action button to camera, the long-press of the camera icon is so easy I have been using the long-press exclusively. Now, per your tip, I have the action button launching Leica Lux. I have selected the vivid look instead of Derrick’s choice of natural. I’ll see how that goes, so far so good.