- This is our 2022 roundup of the best camera apps
for Android right now.
And, this year, there's even more alternatives
to that built-in camera app on your Android phone or tablet,
with some incredible new features
and more advanced functionality.
And, after spending a ton of time
trying and testing them out,
in this video, I'm gonna share my shortlist
as well as my number one pick
when it comes to
the best Android camera apps right now.
Now, as we're going through this video,
make sure you're leaving me a comment down below.
Let me know, what is your go-to Android camera app and why?
Okay, so there's lots of different options.
Some of them are great, and some of them not so great.
You've got things like Open Camera, FiLMiC Pro,
Manual Camera, HD Camera, ProShot, ProCamX, DSLR Camera,
Protake, and Cinema FV-5,
and that's nowhere near all of them,
and each of them does have
their own advantages and disadvantages,
but I've narrowed this shortlist down to three apps
that are my top apps right now.
But make sure that you're sticking around
to hear out all of the options,
so that you can leave here knowing
which is the best app for you.
So, app number one is Open Camera.
Open Camera is one of the most popular camera apps
on Android because it's open source.
It is completely free.
It also packs in so many features, and so many options,
and so much control that you can have over your videos
and the app itself.
So much so that the actual menu system
to help you go through and find all of these settings
actually can be a little confusing,
or definitely a little overwhelming for people,
especially if you're more at the beginner level.
The overall camera interface, though, is fairly intuitive,
but it is customizable.
So, if you wanna add extra functionality on it,
or remove features that you're not using,
then you can do that in your settings.
Now, one setting I do recommend you change,
if it is supported on your Android device,
is opening up the Camera API setting
and enable the Camera2 API.
This is gonna allow you to have more control over things
like your manual focusing and exposure,
and even white balance,
again, if your camera supports it.
Now, we do have a full walkthrough on Open Camera,
and I'll link that in the description below.
But, overall, again, it's a very feature-packed app.
Now, there are some pretty cool features in here,
like being able to enable the ability to tap on your screen
to start and stop recording,
or to take a photo, or even to trigger it
when there's a noise or a voice command.
And there's also some pretty useful
anti-banding or anti-flickering settings
that you can turn on to help you remove any flickering
from a computer screen
or from lights in your scene;
as well as different levels of noise reduction as well,
to help you clean up your video image.
But, overall, it's probably one of
the most feature-packed apps
that is intuitive enough to use,
but definitely not as easy as some of the other options
we've got coming up.
But, hey, it comes with the best price tag, which is free.
The next app is Manual Camera.
This is another one that we've mentioned quite a bit
on this channel as well,
and it's another app that really packs a punch.
In terms of features, it probably doesn't have as many
as Open Camera, but it is far more intuitive
and far easier to use.
I much prefer the overall interface,
and how much easier it is to access
a lot of the core features and functionality
that you'll wanna use in your day-to-day filming
right from the main screen.
Now, while the overall interface isn't as customizable
as Open Camera, you can still customize things up,
and you can hide different elements
to give you a more immersive experience,
so you're able to focus on the shot that you're getting
instead of having a ton of
features, and buttons, and things around.
And I guess that's something that's
a really personal preference.
For me, I'd much rather have access to all the controls
all the time, so that I can quickly make those adjustments
as I need to, instead of turning them off.
But it's cool that you've got the ability.
Now, if you ask someone who is after
some of the more professional controls,
then you can enable professional mode,
which is gonna give the ability,
just like Open Camera and the next app
that we're gonna mention,
to lock everything down manually;
your shutter speed, your ISO, your white balance.
You will wanna enable pro mode to be able to do that.
Now, the overall menu system
and navigating through to find everything
is much simpler than Open Camera.
It's not menus upon menus,
it's actually a really streamlined,
really neat and tidy experience,
and it makes it very fast to find
the settings or the features that you're looking for.
Now, one thing I really like about Manual Camera
is how everything is just displayed so simply.
Like, at the top of the screen here,
we can see how much storage is left,
what my aperture is set to,
what recording resolution I've got,
and I can also see my exposure, my ISO,
and my shutter speed.
And I love that you can see all of that in one place;
you don't have to look at different areas around the screen.
So, just at a quick glance,
you can see that everything is all the way that
you'd want it.
But one thing that I would love to see in here
is the ability to tap on those things
and to be able to adjust them from there.
To me, that would make more sense
if I just tapped on shutter, I could adjust the shutter
at that point.
Now, the only one there that that does work for,
if you do tap on it, is your recording resolution.
So, it's strange that they've implemented it for that,
but not the other options up there.
Again, not a deal breaker, but maybe a nice to have.
But, overall, it's still probably the fastest
and easiest to use app that still packs in
a ton of more advanced features and controls.
Now, in terms of pricing,
there is a free lite version of the app,
which does have a five minute record time.
There is ads, and it also limits your recording resolution,
so it could be a good idea to grab that
and to have a play around,
but, really, you wanna be looking at the pro paid version,
which is only gonna cost you $4.99,
which is gonna remove those limits
and give you access to more features as well.
So, that brings us to app number three, which is FiLMiC Pro.
Now, this is another one we've talked about a lot
on this channel.
I'm a massive fan of FiLMiC Pro,
and we have a tutorial and a walkthrough
that I will link down in the description box below.
I would say that FiLMiC Pro is really a great mix of
Open Camera and Manual Camera.
It's got a lot of the customizability and control
that you have in Open Camera,
but it's also got a lot more of the easier to use interface
and the simplicity that you have in Manual Camera.
So, FiLMiC Pro is an app that you can get
whether you're on iOS or Android,
and it really helps you unlock and get the most out of
your smartphone cameras.
Again, just like Manual Camera,
it's got a really clean, really easy to use,
fairly intuitive interface.
It's probably not as intuitive as Manual Camera,
but it still makes it really quick
and really easy to access all of the core functionality
that you would want to right from the main screen.
They make it really easy to
quickly lock down your focus point and your exposure
just by dragging the square and the circle on the screen.
Or you can dial this in even further
by bringing up the more advanced controls,
where you can really dial everything in
with great precision.
You've also got fast access to things like
focus peeking, and zebra lines, and other overlays
to really help you dial in your shot.
And you've got fast access to see your volume levels
on the side with the audio bars,
but also to adjust your volume levels up and down
right from that area if you need to as well.
In terms of the menu system
and diving into some of these more advanced settings,
it's still fairly intuitive,
and it's broken down into simple categories
to help you find what you need fast.
I really like that you can add different overlays
onto your video, so that you can see
what your video is going to look like,
and frame it up correctly
with different aspect ratios or these overlays applied.
And you can also tell FiLMiC Pro to crop your video
and to save it out with those aspect ratios
or those overlays applied.
Meaning, if you wanna create a one by one video,
you can actually do it here in FiLMiC Pro.
There's also great hardware integration with gimbals,
like the DJI OSMO Mobile and Zhiyun Smooth 4;
and also lens adapters and anamorphic lenses,
which means you can really use this
as a professional grade tool.
There are movies and documentaries that people have made
and have been making for years with FiLMiC Pro,
given how awesome and how powerful it is.
Now, there are some additional in-app purchases
and additional apps, as part of the FiLMiC family as well,
to help you take things to the next level.
There's a cinematographer kit, as an in-app purchase,
that will let you unlock different shooting styles.
So, that'll let you shoot
in a neutral dynamic, flat, or a Log V2 picture profile,
and it'll also help you customize it up
to how you'd like it.
But there's also the FiLMiC Remote app,
which will let you remotely monitor and control
your primary FiLMiC Pro camera or device
from another Android or iOS device.
So, this is something that'll work really well
on a pro level shoot,
or even if you're creating videos like I am here now,
where I can't see what the camera is recording.
I can use FiLMiC Remote to monitor and control everything
while I'm sitting in front of the camera.
Now, in terms of pricing, FiLMiC Pro isn't free,
but it is ridiculously cheap.
You can buy it for a one-time price of $14.99.
The cinematographer ad-on is currently selling for $13.99,
and the FiLMiC Remote app is currently $9.99.
Now, you can buy these in a bundle or package deal as well,
which is also in the Play Store.
So, those are my top three video camera apps right now
on Android; Open Camera, Manual Camera, and FiLMiC Pro.
Now, if I had to pick just one winner from those three,
the best all-rounder, I think I've already given this away,
but it is, once again, going to go to FiLMiC Pro.
I do think it is the best old rounder.
It's a great mix of
pro level features and advanced controls,
mixed in with an intuitive, easy to use interface as well,
making it great for anyone who is looking for
that next level up from their phone camera app,
someone who wants to dial things in,
have that full control, and maybe even add in
some extra hardware integration as well,
to really level up and step up your video creation.
So, now that you've got your camera app sorted,
if you wanna learn how to create
professional looking videos using your Android device,
then check out the video linked on screen,
where I take you through an easy step-by-step process
on how you can get the most out of your phone camera,
but also how you can create professional looking videos
fast and easy.
So, check out the video linked on the screen,
and I'll see you in the next one.