Manual Camera app fix (sort of!)

[sswitzer]

If you've bought the Manual Camera app ( https://forums.androidcentral.com/e...ails?id=pl.vipek.camera2&hl=en&token=LJZA0e3v ), but found that on the G4 it quickly starts and then closes right away... you're probably not overly impressed, and you may have even left feedback like every 2nd person saying that the app doesn't work on the G4.

Have no fear, a solution is here! (sort of)

Use the Key Plus app ( https://forums.androidcentral.com/e...com.apptuners.keyplusapp&hl=en&token=umEJdFEF ) to customize the "lock screen double-tap volume-key up" so that it launches Manual Camera, and then enter your unlock pass code. And it works.

Geez.

Yes, it seems like the Manual Camera app fails because there's something in the G4 UI that doesn't happen when the phone is in a locked state.

Even with this "fix", as soon as you do anything else (like switch to another app, or look at the photo in the gallery), and then go back to Manual Camera, the app will close. To relaunch, lock the phone, double volume up, unlock... and bob's your uncle.

Anyways, if you're one of those that has purchased the app and would like to get something for your money, please try this out.

 

[sswitzer]

It looks like the Manual Camera app (by Vipek) https://forums.androidcentral.com/e...ails?id=pl.vipek.camera2&hl=en&token=APox7iGh has been updated to work on the G4. Note that if you've already installed a previous version (that you couldn't launch!) you should clear the data/cache once you upgrade.

I love this app's UI (the scroll wheel for adjusting settings! no need to enter a manual camera mode to make adjustments!) is excellent, although you should expect as good photos at the LG camera... especially if you use HDR at all. The ISO doesn't have the same high range, but is adjustable. I've also found that macro can't get nearly as close as the LG camera. There's no video mode.

Anyways, if you're looking for a better UI, especially for quick access to manual settings, this is a great app.

It's one of only 5 apps that use Camera 2 API (for true manual camera settings), and I've tried all of them. This app is my favourite for ease of use.

 

[HernanC88]

What are the improvements of this app over the stock camera?
I tried open camera but the image quality is really bad.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[sswitzer]

What are the improvements of this app over the stock camera?
I tried open camera but the image quality is really bad.

Posted via the Android Central App

Good question! There are a few benefits:

• You can choose the size (in terms of pixels) of your jpg's; the LG camera can only take "large" pictures... good for quality, but lousy if you want to share the photos
• Some of the manual UI pieces are shown against a semi-dark background so that you can see them well when you're taking a photo of a bright subject; the LG camera uses white manual UI... against a bright subject they're really hard to see
• As soon as you go into the camera you'll see the most obvious manual adjustment (exposure +/- up to 2.0) in an easy to use large wheel; all the manual adjustments use this wheel -- this is the key feature, in my mind, as it's the one thing you're most likely to want to adjust, and this app makes it very easy
• I believe, although I haven't fully tested it (I just looked at the Exif data), that portrait shots will show in portrait mode when you share / post them rather than showing as landscape; the LG camera uses Exif rotation for portrait shots and many renderers (such as this forum) don't understand that rotation and end up showing your portrait photos sideways

There are, of course, some downsides when compared to the LG camera:

• You can't save to the external SD
• Macro goes down to around 3 inches, maybe double the distance as the LG camera
• No HDR
• No multi-point focus; the automatic focus of the LG camera is excellent compared to this app -- it's OK when light is good and you're focussing on the centre... I still need to some experiments with this
• No video
• Exiting from the app is less obvious than the LG camera app; you either swipe up from the bottom/side to get your home buttons (tricky, in that you'll sometimes end up tapping the shutter button!) or you long press on the settings icon -- the LG camera method of simply tapping on the "return" button is much better
• It has a selfie mode, but it's much harder to switch to than with the LG camera; also the LG camera has better selfie features (pseudo-flash, dual mode, beautify)
• You can't have it triggered automatically with lock-mode volume up or down... you can attach it to the volume up (using the LG Key Plus app), but you'd need to unlock the phone before using the app, which rather defeats the purpose!

In terms of what they both do:

• Choose between JPG or JPG + Raw
• Manual focus, exposure, shutter speed, white balance
• Automatic mode if you wish

I haven't done a full photo comparison between the two, but I haven't been unhappy with photos taken with Manual Camera.

Now that the app actually works on the LG G4, it's well worth a few bucks to see if you like using it.