Classic Camera by Hipstamatic vs Dramatic Black & White
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Classic Camera by Hipstamatic
This app offers a unique analog-style photography experience on mobile devices. It provides a variety of vintage camera simulations, advanced editing tools, and the ability to create and share custom presets. Users can capture and edit photos with a focus on artistic expression and authentic visual aesthetics.
- Analog-style camera simulations
- Manual camera controls
- Extensive editing suite
- Customizable presets
- Multiple exposure feature
- RAW format capture and editing
Read full descriptionHide full description
Hipstamatic is a world-class photography app and Apple’s original App of the Year! Shoot beautiful authentic photography and become part of the world’s most creative community, exclusively on iPhone. • Apple’s very first App of the Year • The original photo filter app • The inventor of square filtered mobile photos • Plus, all of the features below :-) — CLASSIC CAMERA Digital photography has never looked so analog. Shooting Classic provides beautifully rendered skeuomorphic cameras that transform your experience as you swipe through lenses, flashes, and films. ■ Use Multiple Exposure to shoot multiple images in one shot and get amazing artistic results ■ — PRO CAMERA For the mobile photographer looking for a minimal capture interface with maximum control, shooting Pro gives you ultimate creative control. ■ Manually control focus, white balance, exposure, shutter speed, ISO, and aspect ratio ■ — DARKROOM EDITING SUITE A full editing suite including over 20 professional adjustment tools and 12 signature presets. • Classic Lens, Film, and Flash • Crop • Straighten & Rotate • Skew • Exposure • Clarity • Definition • Exposure • Clarity • Definition • Highlights • Shadows • Vibrancy • Fade • Curves (RGB + Red + Green + Blue) • Temperature • Tint • Depth of field • Texture • Grain • Vignette • Before & After view by holding down image in edit view • Undo & Redo by swiping left and right ■ Choose the overall mood of your image with Hipstamatic's signature Lenses, Films, and Flashes, then fine tune with extensive editing tools ■ — FAVORITE PRESETS Create your own Favorite Presets and even share your signature look with others. If you are looking for inspiration hit the shuffle button and explore a world of serendipitous beauty. • 12 World-class presets • Customize and edit presets • Save new presets • Presets are synchronized across your devices with iCloud • Share any favorite preset with other photographers ■ Define your signature looks, then quickly apply them to your photos with Copy/Paste support ■ — NATIVE WORKFLOW Hipstamatic is fully synchronized with your photo library. Tap on any photo to instantly edit it, and see and organize your photos in either Hipstamatic or Apple Photos. • Runs natively on iPhone and iPad • No need to import, just tap and edit • Quickly Favorite or Delete photos • Always full resolution • Save as Separate Files (default) and keep your originals untouched • Save as non-destructive Versions and streamline your photos with the original safely embedded within the Hipstamatic version (works best with iCloud Photo Library) • Browse folders created in the Photos app • Fully synchronized with Photos app and iCloud Photo Library • View detailed metadata • View shared image details across social networks (likes, comments, etc.) • Capture and edit in RAW format ■ Shoot on iPhone and edit on iPad with fully native support and synchronized Favorite Presets via iCloud ■ — HipstaMart™ Shop Browse amazing filter packs available for purchase via the In-App store created by the world’s most talented photo makers. Collaborations from top fashion and street photographers to famous artists like Salvador Dali with new packs available monthly. PrintLab™ Get real physical prints delivered straight to your door. We built this service in 2010 because no service would print square photos, and today PrintLab is still the best square format printing service in the world. Shipping to over 200 countries! • Print Prints (4”, 7”, 10”) • 30” Gallery Prints • Aluminum Prints (10” or 20”) • Birch Wood Prints (10” or 20”) — LET'S MAKE BEAUTIFUL PHOTOS TOGETHER Help us make Hipstamatic the best app ever. Send your thoughts & comments to feedback@hipstamatic.com or message us anywhere @Hipstamatic Thanks and welcome to the HipstaFamily!
Dramatic Black & White
Transform your photos into striking black and white images with adjustable light, contrast, and texture. Explore classic and modern styles, and use unique tools to create artistic compositions. Perfect for photographers seeking to enhance their monochrome vision.
- Black and white photo conversion
- Adjustable light and contrast
- Texture and shape controls
- Ellipse spotlight tool
- Classic, infrared, and HD styles
- Grain and vignette effects
Read full descriptionHide full description
Make a Black and White Photo with Light Contrast Grit and Form --- MacWorld’s pick for the App Gems of the Year Award --- Everyone knows it doesn't get better than classic Black & White - it's the artistic soul of photography. Referencing one of our favorite Ansel Adams quotes: "Great Black & White photos aren't taken - they're made". Using Dramatic Black & White you can make your own black and white photographs, ones where light and contrast, grit and form come together to tell a story; ones where stone and sky, water and light transcend the material world and ascend to the Photographers’ Gallery. With Dramatic Black & White there are no mistakes you can't fix, no limits to your vision, no stopping until you're finished, nothing to hold you back from truly 'making your photos' and making them - Oh.My.Gosh. good! JixiPix's Dramatic Black & White app starts by leaving color in the rear view mirror, and enables you to make expert adjustments with easy-to-use, fully customizable controls to contrast and light, texture and shape. Before your eyes, watch your photo transform into the dramatic looks of the past and cutting-edge styles of the present. PHOTOGRAPHY STYLE • Black & White – Classic • Infrared Photo – Modern • Dramatic Black & White – High Definition FEATURES A one-of-a-kind ellipse spotlight tool will allow you to set up a light source on a subject in your composition. Fully customizable controls allow expert adjustments to contrast, light, texture and shape; and adjustments to spotlight size intensity. INCLUDES Spotlight, Black and White Filters, Grain and Vignette UNIVERSAL FEATURES All JixiPix Apps come with: Superior Customer Service, Support for High-Resolution Images & Output, Undo/Redo, Randomize Button, Quick Presets and the ability to create Custom Presets, Cropping with the ability to specify aspect ratio, Quick Preview, Email, Print, and the ability to post directly to Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Tumblr. We also have an online art gallery and invite our user’s to display their artistic creations on it: http://www.flickr.com/groups/jixipixcreations/ *************** “JixiPix turns any photo into a masterpiece. All that is required of you is the appreciation — we’ll take care of the rest! ” JixiPix.com “Creative Tools for Creative People” Photography | Artistic | Graphic Apps MAC • iPad • iPhone
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Dramatic Black & White at none against Classic Camera by Hipstamatic's 10. Dramatic Black & White also leads on review sentiment (84% vs 63%) and price ($2.99 vs $4.99). Classic Camera by Hipstamatic's advantage is ratings volume (4.5K vs 345) and chart position (#157 vs unranked). On rating, update cadence, ads and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Classic Camera by Hipstamatic costs $4.99 and Dramatic Black & White $2.99 up front. Classic Camera by Hipstamatic sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Dramatic Black & White asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Classic Camera by Hipstamatic against 4.8 for Dramatic Black & White. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Classic Camera by Hipstamatic has 4.5K ratings behind it against 345, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 63% of Classic Camera by Hipstamatic's written reviews are positive against 84% of Dramatic Black & White's.
Classic Camera by Hipstamatic ships an update every 3 months, Dramatic Black & White every 4 months. Both last shipped on September 24, 2026.
| Parameter | Classic Camera by Hipstamatic | Dramatic Black & White |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $4.99 | $2.99 — better |
| Rating | 4.7 (4.5K ratings) | 4.8 (345 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 63.3% of reviews | 84.3% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 4.5K — better | 345 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months — better | Every 4 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases — better | Paid |
| Best chart rank | #157 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 89 MB | 15 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Hipstamatic, LLC | JixiPix, LLC |
Customer experience
Classic Camera by Hipstamatic
Dramatic Black & White
User reviews
Classic Camera by Hipstamatic
From 4.5K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Powerful creative tool
- 👍 Versatile lens/film combinations
- 🎨 Unique vintage-style photography
- 💡 Ability to edit existing photos
- 👍 Reliable and consistent performance
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and stability issues
- 🔋 High battery consumption
- 💰 Expensive in-app purchases
- 🤔 Confusing interface changes
- 🙁 Inability to restore purchases
Dramatic Black & White
From 345 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Great for B&W photography
- 🎨 Lots of editing options
- 💻 Works well on desktop
- 🤩 Fantastic results
- 🙌 Easy to use
Room to improve
- 🐛 Crashes frequently
- 🔍 Clunky UI/UX
- 🔍 Annoying pop-ups
- 🔍 Slow saving process
- 🔍 Limited features
Bugs and requests
Classic Camera by Hipstamatic
Reported bugs
5 issues- Photos not saving properly
- Viewfinder not aligning correctly
- Inability to change ISO settings without crashing
- Purchased items disappearing from the app
- Syncing issues between devices
Requested features
5 requests- Add support for iPhone 14 Pro camera
- Improve RAW file handling
- Implement batch photo editing
- Provide better organization for purchased items
- Introduce an undo/redo function
Dramatic Black & White
Reported bugs
3 issues- Freezing on login screen
- Incompatibility with newer devices
- Inability to access camera
Requested features
4 requests- Ability to adjust individual color channels
- Layers and masking tools
- Remembering custom settings
- Improved performance and stability
In-app purchases
Classic Camera by Hipstamatic
- Williamsburg Starter HipstaPak$0.99
- Portland HipstaPak$0.99
- Shibuya HipstaPak$0.99
Show 7 moreShow fewer
- Camden HipstaPak$0.99
- Mission Hipstapak$0.99
- Dali GoodPak$0.99
- Soho HipstaPak$0.99
- Bondi HipstaPak$0.99
- Wicker Park HipstaPak$0.99
- RetroPak One$1.99
Dramatic Black & White
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Classic Camera by Hipstamatic free?
Is Dramatic Black & White free?
Which has better reviews, Classic Camera by Hipstamatic or Dramatic Black & White?
Do Classic Camera by Hipstamatic or Dramatic Black & White have ads?
Which is updated more often, Classic Camera by Hipstamatic or Dramatic Black & White?
Other comparisons















