# Second View - viewfinder — Light meter, film tools & more > Analog photography planning tool with viewfinder, light meter, and film stock data. (iPhone/iPad app by Benoit Linard.) - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/second-view-viewfinder/id6761623499 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`) - Developer: [Benoit Linard](https://appshunter.io/developer/1890500952) - Category: Photo & Video, Utilities - Price: Free with in-app purchases - Rating: 4.00/5 from 5 App Store ratings · 9 written reviews indexed - Age rating: 4+ - Requires: iOS 16.0 · 36 MB - Languages: English - Released: 2026-04-28 - Data updated: 2026-08-12 - Monetization: free with in-app purchases - User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/second-view-viewfinder/id6761623499/reviews.md ## What is Second View? PLEASE READ FIRST Second View is not a camera app and does not take photos for you. It helps you frame, meter, and plan shots before you press the shutter on your own camera. The photos it saves are framing aids, not final images. --- Second View turns your iPhone into a precision field toolkit for analog photographers. Set your lens and format, and it crops the ultra-wide camera to match what your film camera will capture: same field of view, aspect ratio, and framing. Supports 35mm, medium format (6x4.5 through 6x17 panoramic), large format (4x5, 5x7, 8x10), digital sensor sizes, and custom sizes. VIEWFINDER Precise field-of-view matching for any focal length and format. Portrait or landscape, control side of your choice, even upside down. WORKSPACES Design your own bottom control panel. Arrange the controls you use, then switch layouts with an edge-swipe. Start from built-in layouts or build your own per kit. FREEZE MODE Pause the frame on a full-resolution still to compose rise and shift, spot-meter, and measure distance, all without the scene moving. LIGHT METER Select your aperture and the app calculates the shutter speed. EV compensation, hyperfocal distance, auto/manual modes, readout in shutter speed or EV, and whole/half/third-stop increments. BELLOWS COMPENSATION A meter cell folds close-focus light loss into your reading for macro and large-format work, set manually or by LiDAR. SPOT METERING Meter the whole frame, or switch to spot mode to read a small area with a reticle, calibrated against your reference meter. LENS FILTERS Log the ND, polarizer, and color filters on your lens. The meter compensates automatically, and every capture records them. RECIPROCITY CORRECTION 60 built-in film stocks with accurate reciprocity curves, plus your own. Exposures over one second are corrected automatically. Portra, CineStill, Tri-X, Velvia, and more, plus an ECN-2 category. Custom stocks support color or B&W, white balance, and a tunable curve. FILM AND FILTER PREVIEW Simulate B&W film with color filters in the preview and captures, and preview color-film white balance from the loaded stock. LONG EXPOSURE TIMER A countdown timer for long exposures, with a 3-second pre-countdown and a full-screen progress ring. LIDAR DISTANCE MEASUREMENT On iPhone 12 Pro and later, measure the distance to your subject with LiDAR by tapping the viewfinder. On other devices, enter it manually. PARALLAX CORRECTION Compensates for the physical offset between the iPhone and the taking lens, using LiDAR or a manual distance, applied automatically. RISE, FALL AND SHIFT Simulate the movements of a view or technical camera. Offset the crop up, down, left, or right in 1mm steps. COMPOSITION TOOLS Rule of thirds, phi grid, golden triangle, square 1:1, and a custom grid up to 12x12. Bubble level with roll and pitch readout. PANORAMA SIMULATION Preview a stitched multi-frame panorama before you shoot it, and save it as a plan. SHOT CHECKLIST Build a step-by-step checklist per kit and run through it in the viewfinder. One step can fire the shutter automatically when you reach it. CAMERA KITS Save complete configurations and switch instantly. Each kit stores its lenses, format, preferred stocks, workspace, parallax offsets, and checklist. Pick a body and the format picker narrows to the masks it can shoot, with a film-advance guide for multi-format cameras. FILM ROLL TRACKING Track your rolls from first frame to last, so you always know which is loaded and when it was exposed. CAPTURE AND GALLERY Save a reference photo cropped to the exact framing, with full metadata: focal length, format, stock, filters, shutter speed, aperture, ISO, rise/shift, GPS, and timestamp. Optionally export a frame with a data overlay. Edit data, add notes, group into rolls, and export a CSV log. --- Terms of Use : https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy policy : https://secondview.app/privacy ## Key features - Precise field-of-view matching - Real-time light meter with spot metering - ND, polarizer, and color filter logging - Reciprocity failure correction for 60 film stocks - LiDAR distance measurement - Composition and grid tools - Panorama simulation ## Pricing and in-app purchases Base price: Free. **Subscriptions** | Subscription | Price | Period | | --- | --- | --- | | Second View Pro Yearly | $14.99 | per year | | Second View Basic Yearly | $7.99 | per year | ## Recent user reviews (9 of 9) All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/second-view-viewfinder/id6761623499/reviews.md ### 5/5 — Must have for film *2026-06-10* Best choice for film photography. I have Fuji TX-1 and Hasselblad 500, and Second View makes the process light and reliable. Even more it has a record feature to store the information of the shots made. ### 5/5 — Excellent with tons of options *2026-06-03* This is a very good viewfinder app. Photographers can set their lens and film format, and the app crops the ultra-wide camera to show exactly the frame of view the camera will capture: the same field of view, the same aspect ratio, and the same framing. It supports 35mm, medium format (6×4.5 to 6×17 panoramic), large format (4×5, 5×8), and even fully custom sizes. The app works even better with the built-in parallax correction, which allows you to align the wide-angle lens of the iPhone with the exact perspective of the lens. It also has accurate reciprocity failure curves for a huge list of film stocks. It’s great! ### 5/5 — Absolutely essential for large format and panoramic film photographers. *2026-06-02* Been using the app for over a month now. Fantastic way to ensure your shots are accurately metered, focused, and composed - especially when zone focusing and not using a ground glass. Parallax correction is accurate and indispensable! Really helps you make the most of your film and not waste any shots! ### 1/5 — Subscription :( Just 3-day trial? *2026-05-22* Just a 3-day trial? I understand that you need fo be paid for your work, but a subscription? Really? Can’t you do like some other app, ask for a paid upgrade to the next version, and let people decide whether or not to upgrade? The “Adobification” of things is the bane of all our existence… **Developer response:** Hey, thanks for the honest feedback, I really hear you on subscription fatigue. For context, this isn't an Adobe situation: it's a tiny indie project, and the subscription is what lets me keep shipping updates, fixing bugs, and adding features people actually ask for instead of disappearing after launch. Worth mentioning too, the subscription is annual (not monthly), the price is genuinely modest, and you can cancel anytime right after subscribing while keeping access until the end of the period. That said, 3 days is short, I agree, and I'm looking into extending it. If you want to give the app a new shot, shoot me an email. Either way, thanks for taking the time to write. ### 5/5 — Ultimate film photography companion *2026-05-05* I shoot a lot of fully manual medium format film cameras, and this app is indispensable. Metering is accurate, framing is precise, but most importantly it has PARALLAX CORRECTION and DISTANCE MEASUREMENT! These are crucial when I shoot 6x17 panoramics and want accurate framing without dealing with the ground glass. Amazed that this is the first available app that does this, and amazed that it does it so well! ### 2/5 — setup and payment required before seeing the UI *2026-05-05* Downloaded the app to see what it does and if it would be useful. on startup it required setup (very limited options). then after Kit setup you must pick an in-app pay option. i have no idea if this app will be useful, i couldn't even see the UI. **Developer response:** Hello and thank you for your feedback, you can test the UI before paying; both plans offer 3 days free, and you can disable the renewal instantly afterward (and still test for 3 days). ### 3/5 — Really wanted to like it *2026-05-02* I really wanted to like this camera app. I am always on the lookout for a more realistic experience on the iPhone. However this falls short in a few ways 1) it heats up the phone pretty hard 2) no way to pull focus. Measuring is nifty, but what’s that do when I cant pull focus. 3) some of the buttons are small when in landscape mode. And are beneath some of the iPhone native functions. **Developer response:** Hi, thank you for taking the time to write a review. I want to address a fundamental misunderstanding about what Second View is, because your feedback suggests it may not be the app you were looking for. Second View is not an iPhone camera app. It's a companion tool for analog film cameras (medium-format and large-format). The iPhone acts as an external viewfinder: you compose your shot through the app, then fire your film camera. You never take the photo with the iPhone. With that in mind: - Focus is pulled on your film camera, not on the iPhone. The LiDAR distance measurement exists to calculate parallax correction between the iPhone and your taking lens, not to focus anything on screen. - The heat issue is a fair concern for long sessions, noted. - The landscape button size is also valid feedback I'm working on. If you shoot medium-format or large-format film, I'd genuinely encourage you to give it another try with that context in mind. And if this isn't your use case, I completely understand, but I'd appreciate it if you'd consider updating your review, as it may mislead photographers who the app is actually built for. Feel free to reach out directly if you have questions. ### 1/5 — Very poor focus *2026-05-01* All functional elements are great but the shot results suck. Focus is way off a bad no way to adjust it. It’s nothing more than a viewer - might as well use the camera. **Developer response:** Hi, thanks for the feedback. I think there's a fundamental misunderstanding about this app. Second View is exactly what you called it: a viewer. And that's entirely by design. It's a viewfinder companion for analog film cameras. You use the iPhone to compose your shot, check your exposure, and meter the light, then you fire your actual film camera. The iPhone never takes the photo, so the focus and image quality you see in the app have no impact on the final result, which lives on film. If you shoot medium-format or large-format film, I'd really encourage you to give it another try with that in mind. And if analog isn't your thing, I totally get it, this one is pretty niche by design. Either way, I'd really appreciate it if you'd consider updating your review, since it might give the wrong idea to the film photographers this app is built for. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions! ### 5/5 — Best in Class *2026-04-29* Benoit really nailed it! This is the best app of its kind that I’ve used, and I’ve used many! It’s simple, yet powerful and it has the best user interface of any of the apps I’ve used. It’s so well thought out and a pleasure to set up and use. This app has a perfect balance of tools and functionality with easy of use. Most apps of this kind try to be all things to all people making them cluttered and complicated. Second View is exceptionally easy to set up and effortless to use. It provides everything you need, and nothing you don’t. Thank you for bringing such an amazing tool to the analog photography community! ## Frequently asked questions about Second View ### Does Second View take photos? No, Second View is not a camera app and does not take photos. It is a companion tool designed to help you frame, meter, and plan shots before using your actual camera. ### What film formats does Second View support? Second View supports a wide range of film formats including 35mm, medium format (6x4.5 through 6x17 panoramic), and large format (4x5, 5x7, 8x10), as well as digital sensor sizes and custom sizes. ### How does the light meter in Second View work? The built-in light meter allows you to select your aperture and calculates the correct shutter speed in real time. It offers EV compensation, hyperfocal distance display, and both auto and manual modes. ### Can Second View compensate for lens filters? Yes, you can log ND, polarizer, and color filters mounted on your lens. The meter automatically compensates for the exposure, and each capture records the filters used. ### Does Second View have ads? No, Second View does not contain advertisements. It is a free app with optional in-app purchases. ### What is the update frequency for Second View? The app was last updated on June 19, 2026, indicating regular maintenance and potential feature additions. The latest version is 1.1.9. ### Is Second View available on Android devices? Based on the provided data, Second View is currently supported on iPhone devices only. It is not listed as available for Android. ### What is the age rating for Second View? Second View has an age rating of 4+, making it suitable for a wide range of users. The app's features are designed for planning and technical assistance in photography. ## Version history (last 5 releases) ### 1.2.2 — 2026-08-08 - Rotate the live preview 90°, 180°, or 270°. Set it globally or per kit, for cameras and adapters that hand you a turned image. - The rise, fall, and shift arrows now stop at your kit's travel limits. The old "Panorama shift" section is renamed "Max rise, fall, shift", since those values always described both uses. A side left at 0 stays unbounded. - Grid and bubble level stay on across restarts, so your framing setup survives closing the app. - Film list no longer jumps when you star a stock. ### 1.2.1 — 2026-07-30 - Grid & level stay put: the composition grid and bubble level overlays now remember whether you left them on. - Cleaner custom film form ### 1.2 — 2026-07-25 - Workspaces: design your own bottom control panel per kit. Arrange the controls you actually use, then switch layouts with an edge-swipe on the viewfinder. Start from the built-ins (Default, Frame, Meter) or build your own in Settings (Pro). - Freeze mode: pause the frame on a still to compose rise and shift, spot-meter any point, and probe distance anywhere in it, all without the scene moving. - Richer exports: save a frame with a full data overlay including exposure, film, kit etc. - Bellows factor compensation: a new BELLOWS meter cell folds close-focus light loss into your reading for macro and large-format close-ups, set manually or by LiDAR. - Custom film stocks: add your own stocks, tag them color or B&W, set the white balance, and tune the reciprocity curve. Now with a dedicated ECN-2 category. - Simulate B&W film with color filters in the preview and captures, and preview color-film white balance derived from the loaded stock. - Hold and drag to switch values much quicker (on lens, film, format, grid, aprture, speed, comp, filters) - A lot more settings (timer options, increments, miror image), all rearranged into global parameters and by kit. ### 1.1.9 — 2026-06-19 Dial in your panorama range: long-press PANO to open the shift sub-menu, then use the two sliders to trim how far the composite reaches on each side of the axis. The dashed plates and stitched crop update live as you drag. ### 1.1.8 — 2026-06-12 - VZ-6617 checklist template: load the full shooting sequence in Settings. The exposure step auto-fires the shutter and the advance step shows the live wind-to frame for the selected format. ## Apps similar to Second View | App | Rating | Price | Category | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | [FilmMeter](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/filmmeter/id6753060069) | 5.0 (41) | Free | Photo & Video | | [Frames: Film Photography Log](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/frames-film-photography-log/id6744057317) | 5.0 (6) | Free | Photo & Video | | [Pellica: Analog Film Log](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pellica-analog-film-log/id6756510462) | 5.0 (3) | Free | Photo & Video | | [GrayZone - Esposimetro](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/grayzone-esposimetro/id6757147623) | 2.3 (3) | $2.99 | Photo & Video | | [Film Photography Viewfinder](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/film-photography-viewfinder/id6741761447) | 5.0 (10) | Free | Photo & Video | | [Analog FilmStock](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/analog-filmstock/id6755291709) | 4.6 (10) | Free | Photo & Video | ## Related topics [film viewfinder](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/film-viewfinder) --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-12.*