Camera Lucida 4+

Great Tool

I decided to learn watercolor painting but have no skills for drawing. Choosing my own photos to work from I was spending way to much time trying to make an accurate light sketch. The sketch is minimal but so important to perspective in the composition. I was reading about the camera Lucida when I found this app for my iPad. I figured out a way to use it and am so disappointed I had only grabbed scratch paper. My line drawing took very little time and the very quick painting atop that drawing was terrific! This takes so much pressure off and allows me the pleasure of experimenting with the paint and it’s effects without the very hard and tedious task of making an accurate sketch. Thanks for coming up with this app! It will take a little practice getting used to how to set up for accurate size overlay. I do need a stand but so far I have managed. Patty

Ps. I despise apps with “in app purchase” so I appreciate the way you marketed this. Reviews were positive and you were clear about it takes a little getting used to. But that is the case with all the camera Lucida options. You are drawing without looking at the paper. Kind of weird but great results.

Worth every penny

My wife has asked me for twelve years why I stopped drawing, and I never had a good answer. In the month following my purchase of this app, I have drawn more than I have in the past twelve years. Camera Lucida has made me fall in love with drawing again. iTunes has that 15 minute grace period where you can "return" an app, right? I wanted to see what I could accomplish in that 15 minutes, and after a very quick sketch session, I realized that in the short time I had been sketching I had accomplished hours worth of work. This app would be a bargain at twice the price.

Edit: I have been using this app since 2015, and my opinion has only improved with age. The user community that has grown up around it is one of the most welcoming and genuinely supportive I have experienced. I think this owes a lot to Peter's tireless involvement and commitment to helping users get the best experience possible. Other software developers pay attention: This is how you support your community!

Top app in the game, but interface needs help

It’s a great app with powerful features with great developer support. Only a few competing apps can get near it. One problem that persists with this app and the DaVinchi App is the interface lacking consistency and flow, a little better button and features placement and better button icons. I’ve been using these 2 apps for years but the buttons are just in need of a little better grouping placement. It’s easy to forget what button did what then you have multiple down arrows (easy to mix up) and the photo filters icon for example is a treasure chest on another page, instead of something indicating photo filters in a proper group layer.

If this app would have a better organized GUI it’d be a 5 star app. But no one says anything about it because the app is indeed awesome and the dev is super nice, the Facebook page is super supportive, and even I feel like a jerk for giving a negative feedback on something because of the 100% feelgood atmosphere. But I really think the dev needs some more specific GUI feedback to make this app really polished and shine. For now I’ll just mention it.

Developer Response ,

J.,
Constructive feedback is never a problem and your review is very welcome! And thank you for the kind words! And yes, the "toolbox" icon does look like a treasure chest now that you mention it. Sometimes it helps to have a second set of eyes!
Feel free to send me a list of more specifics. And again, a thoughtful review is never a bad thing and I share some of your thoughts on the issues with "flow". Over the 12 years the app has been developed, I've always been reluctant to change too much during a given release, but perhaps it's time for a bigger UI update!