High-resolution photography app Hydra received an update today that brings a couple of much-requested improvements to its camera support.
For those unfamiliar with the app, Hydra merges up to 60 individual images to make a single high-quality picture, effectively getting more light from the scene.
In this way, Hydra produces up to 32-megapixel high-resolution images (4x the 8-megapixel sensor resolution), enhanced HDR, better 2x/4x/8x zoom, and reduced camera noise in low-light scenes.
With the just-released version 1.5 update, users can now activate the telephoto camera in Zoom mode on iPhone with double lenses, as well as the front-facing camera in High Dynamic Range and Lo-Light modes.
The update means Hydra users can now take selfies with improved quality in poor lighting conditions, while the Zoom mode can be used in up to 8x for long shots.
Existing users should note that Hydra 1.5 now requires iOS 10 or later to work. The app costs $4.99 and is available to download for iPhone from the App Store. [Direct Link]
Top Rated Comments
Essentially, Hydra does one thing very well (usually)—combining information from many images to create a single image with less noise, better light balance, and higher resolution. Hydra adapts this one ability into several modes, including low light and digital zoom.
What it tries to do, it usually does very well in my limited experience. Low light images usually have noticeably less noise and digital zoom images are noticeably better than using the stock app, or most camera apps I’ve tried.
But Hydra doesn’t seem to take advantage of the second camera on X and Plus iPhones with dual cameras.
And pictures it takes with the front facing camera are not consistently better than the stock app. Sometimes the exposure is better but the colors are a bit off.
Lastly, please someone correct me if I’m wrong but I don’t think Hydra can shoot RAW. In fact, there are relatively few options you can adjust considering everything Hydra does.
For iPhone photography enthusiasts, I think this app is worth having on your phone but won’t replace Hallide or whatever your current favorite app might be.
For people who aren’t into the nitty gritty of photography but enjoy taking pictures and want them to come out well, I think you’ll like this app pretty well.
But you can't zoom with Halide (other than switching between 1x and 2x cameras on X and Plus iPhones). I use digital zoom to compose a shot. Without it, I have to crop after capturing the image.