Camera+ picks up support for depth mapping, HEIF format & more

The popular iOS camera app Camera+ was updated on App Store today with support for the new HEIF image format in iOS 11 and macOS High Sierra, portraiture photography on iPhone 7 Plus and iPhone 8 Plus, a more accurate viewfinder, a brand new Smile mode and more.

If you run iOS 11, Camera+ can now capture depth-of-field images on Plus phones just like the Portrait mode in the stock Camera app. In my brief test, I’ve found this feature lacking with realtime depth-of-field preview dropping frames and generally producing disappointing results with lots of artifacts.

Stick to Apple’s Camera app for your Portrait captures.

Still, the app can use depth information saved with your Portrait photos for a variety of other creative purposes as most of the editing tools in the app’s Lab section have been enhanced to support depth mapping.

For example, you can now desaturate the background so the foreground pops in vivid color, or apply exposure compensation to a distant area of the image. This works for pictures taken with the system camera, too, and with any Portrait photos in your Photos library.

There’s also a new design:

In Camera+ 10 we turned our attention to the camera itself. We came up with a new design that feels completely at home in iOS 11 but, more importantly, we’ve made sure that the most frequently used features and settings are closer at hand and easier to find.

A new shooting bar is always present at the top of the screen, giving you quick access to the new Portrait/Depth mode, to the beloved Macro mode, and to frequently used controls such as the flash and the camera switcher.

Tap the small plus sign next to the shutter to access a variety of camera settings, like the grid, the horizon level, RAW capture and additional shooting modes presented as a 3D carousel.

ROUNDUP: Everything you need to know about iOS 11’s new HEIF image format

As for the new Smile mode, it works like the stabilizer, but for smiles.

According to release notes:

Have you ever found yourself in a position where you are trying to shoot a selfie and got the framing just right, only to find you can’t reach the shutter? Now you can simply smile, and the photo will be shot. It doesn’t need to be selfies, it works for the back camera too, and for any number of people—just point the camera at them and tell a funny joke.

The more accurate viewfinder now always shows the exact area that will be captured, regardless of your device, settings or onscreen controls.

Last but not least, Camera+ 10 supports the new efficient HEIF format for your photos that Apple introduced in iOS 11 and macOS High Sierra. Use it if to save storage space—HEIF images take up half the space of JPGs without any loss of quality.

“The only downside is that HEIF is a relatively new format, so it still does not enjoy as much support as the venerable JPEG does,” developers noted. Of course, Camera+ always lets you choose to save your photos in the ubiquitous JPG format for maximum compatibility.

This update is free for existing users of the app.

Camera+ for iPhone is $2.99 on App Store.