Lumio Cam may seem like just another camera app in a sea of camera apps that are available on the Play Store, but that simply isn’t the case as it actually has quite a bit to offer anyone who is looking for a camera app which is fully featured. It provides plenty of controls and customizable options for users who want more out of their smartphone photography than what’s typically provided by the stock camera apps that come on smartphones. With a decent selection of options, let’s take a closer look at what makes Lumio Cam an app worth considering.
Before you can jump into taking some great photos with the help of this new app, you’ll need to head to the Play Store and install Lumio Cam onto your device.
Right off the bat it’s clear that Lumio Cam takes their photography seriously, as the app’s design is inspired by real DSLR cameras to give that feel of a traditional picture taking experience.
While the app will let you operate it just like you would any other camera app, as you can simply tap the camera icon button or the record button to initiate either of those functions, it offers up so much more than just those two features. Tapping the menu button will allow you to open up the settings and tweak plenty of things, beginning with the General settings menu. Here you’ll find options enabling the grid on the UI as well as geotagging of images, and you can also swap back and forth between the front and back cameras from this menu.
There is also a menu for Camera settings, and here you’ll find options to adjust the camera resolution used for photos. You can also set the contrast options here, if you need to, but it’s default setting is on automatic if you don’t want to mess with it. You can also adjust other options like the JPEG quality and tweak the ISO and metering.
If you need to adjust the exposure of your camera before snapping the picture, Lumio Cam makes it fairly simple to do by dragging left or right on the dial wheel that sits in the top right hand corner. As you can see from the image above, the picture is pretty dark as the exposure has been adjusted all the way to the left most setting.
Just as you would find in a DSLR or other digital camera, surrounding the menu button are various options you can cycle through on the d-pad. The bottom arrow for example, will allow you to cycle through different focus options such as macro and more.
Lumio Cam also offers up various framing options to help you frame your subjects perfectly whether there is one or a few people in your picture.
One of the better options you’ll find with Lumio Cam is the varied amount of included photo effects that can be added to your photos. By tapping on the menu button and then hitting the fourth option down, you can see various photo effects like Black and White, Lomo, Sepia and more. You can also make it so that you see a preview of the picture for a specified amount of time up to 5 seconds, as well as enable the ability to keep the original image and the one with the effects.
Lumio Cam has plenty on offer and although it is loaded with features that are suited to the best of photographers, it’s easy enough to use even if you’re a beginner who is just starting to take more pictures. It has the ability to save your images and videos to the external SD if you wish, and there are other useful features like remote shot thanks to the Android Wear support. You also have control over where the camera focuses with a simple tap, and if you tend to record video Lumio Cam will support your phone’s 4K video recording if the camera is able to record in 4K.
Ratings
- Speed (5/5) – Even with an app splash screen Lumio Cam opens up rather quickly and functions quickly.
- Theme (5/5) – With options for a brushed metal or retro leather for the UI, Lumio Cam is just as stylish as it is functional.
- Features (5/5) – There are honestly too many feature to name, but you’ll find just about anything you could need with Lumio Cam from ISO and metering adjustment to simple tweaking of the exposure right from the viewfinder.
- Overall (5/5) – Hands down a great camera app if you’re looking for more options than what a stock camera offers.
Pros
- Huge amount of features
- Stylish UI design
- Easy to use but packed with enough stuff to make even more experienced photographers feel satisfied
- Special photo effects
- Android Wear support
- 4K video support
Cons
- Despite being easy to use, some users may still feel overwhelmed by the amount of stuff and could benefit from a short tutorial informing them about the different functions of the app. Having said that, Lumio Cam does offer a quick start guide which can be accessed in a PDF.
Whether or not you take more than the occasional photo with your smartphone, Lumio Cam is a great camera app to serve as your one and only option. It has everything that any user could need to really make the most of the smartphone camera and take great pictures, and the design is great which makes it more enjoyable to use. The app is available to download and install for free as a trial which limits the use of things like recording time, but you can unlock everything by purchasing the full version of the app, and it’s currently on sale for 50 percent off for a limited time. If you need more than what your stock smartphone camera app is giving you, give Lumio Cam a try as you shouldn’t be disappointed.