Camera Lucida™ vs Ricalko
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Camera Lucida™
This app uses your device's camera to superimpose a reference image onto your drawing surface, guiding your hand to create detailed art. It offers advanced features and tools to enhance your sketching and painting skills, making art creation easy and fun.
- AR image superposition for drawing
- Advanced image filters
- Zoom lock for detail
- Session save and restore
- Time-lapsed recording
- External USB camera support
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Draw Like a Pro with Camera Lucida™: AR Drawing One-Time Purchase: No subscriptions! Buy it once and use on your devices. Enhance Your Art Skills: Whether you're sketching with a pencil or painting with a brush, Camera Lucida™ helps you become a better artist. Unmatched Functionality: With 12+ years of development, Camera Lucida™ offers features that no competitor can match. Create stunning physical art using your iPhone or iPad's camera. Simply point your device at your drawing surface, and watch the screen to see your reference image superimposed over your work. It's more versatile than a light table, better than a projector, and easier to use than a traditional Camera Lucida™. How It Works: Place your iPhone or iPad between your eyes and your drawing surface. The app shows a virtual image on your screen, guiding your hand as you draw. This clever method makes it easy and fun to create detailed art. Top Features: • Buy it once for lifetime use. • Advanced Image Filters: See with an artist's eye. • Zoom in Lock: For ultra detailed drawing. • Session Save & Restore: Automatically realign your camera, sketch, and reference image. • Full Color Palette Control: Use your own paints, markers, and more. • Camera Adjustments: Use your device camera and adjust for different setups manually or with an in-app purchase to auto-adjust. • Time-Lapsed Recordings: Share your drawing process on social media. • Advanced Tools: Vertical split screen sliders, timed image fading, and more. • Video Tutorials: Watch tutorials within the app or on YouTube. • Comprehensive User Manual: Accessible from within the app. • Reliable Customer Support: Plus, an active user community for inspiration. • External USB Camera Support: For USB-C equipped iPads running iOS 17. Easy Setup: Secure your iPhone or iPad above your drawing surface using common household items like a stack of books or a vase. Tutorials are included to help you get started. Contact: For any questions or support, email cameralucida@bigidesign.com.
Ricalko
Transform photos into traceable art projections using your device's camera. Ideal for both aspiring artists and experienced creators, this tool offers features like layer separation and perspective correction to help you achieve stunning results on any surface.
- Project photos for tracing
- Layer separation for detailed drawing
- Perspective mode for angled projection
- Augmented reality tracing with markers
- Creative filters for art styles
- Zoom for precision drawing
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Ricalko lets you create incredible artwork, see how your drawings take shape, like magic! It is great for beginners who want to learn drawing and it is perfect for advanced users who want to improve even more! Ricalko has many smart features that let you achieve the results your aiming to, but in few words it is able to virtually project photos, so you can trace them on a paper sheet, an easel or on any other surface! You don't have to be a professional artist to reach amazing results. How is it able to do that? In normal mode you have to put your device onto a stand (DIY works too, like a simple glass), with the camera pointing to a sheet of paper below for example. On your screen an overlay will be shown and you will be able to see both the photo and your hand below so you can trace it! See below for more details... CRAFT REALISTIC ARTWORK FROM ANY PHOTO You can choose any photo and then create art from it. Pencil and paper? Brush and watercolours? You choose! LEARN TO DRAW AND SEPARATE LAYERS Split photos to different layers, in colors or grayscale, see them one by one individually and trace them on your art to create the final result. Perfect for learning! CREATIVE FILTERS Turn your photo into a drawing, a comic or apply a posterisation, Ricalko filters are great for creativity. PERSPECTIVE MODE You don't have to keep your device perpendicularly if you don't have a stand, you can also keep it angled, perspective mode will remove any distortion and you will be able to create your artworks without any particular effort. You just have to set it with the guidelines helper image! AR MODE Don't like keeping your device still? You don't have to with the augmented reality. You can select a marker, the app will recognise it and place your photo virtually next to it, so you can trace it! USE ANY CAMERA You can use any camera on your device, wide angle, zoom lens, ultra wide angle or even the front camera, this one with the perspective mode and a reflector (to be purchased in online stores, such as OSMO and not included). ZOOM TO BE PRECISE After you have setup your environment you can zoom on the area where you are drawing to see even more clearly, with natural gestures like pinch to zoom or by moving your device closer in AR Mode. PREMIUM CUSTOMER SUPPORT Need help? Have a suggestion? See it included in future releases and drop an email to support@genovasoftworks.com REQUIREMENTS Ricalko does not have any particular requirement since supports iOS 14+ devices only. If you can download it, it will work on your device. A printer is suggested in order to print markers for AR Mode and the guidelines image for Perspective mode, even if they could also be displayed on an additional supporting device. A subscription is required. Terms and Privacy Policy can be found at https://www.genovasoftworks.com/terms.php. For any question or help drop an email to support@genovasoftworks.com.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Camera Lucida™ at 89% against Ricalko's 11%. Camera Lucida™ also leads on rating (4.8 vs 4.1) and ratings volume (2K vs 83). Ricalko's advantage is price (Free vs $14.99). On update cadence, ads, in-app purchases 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
Ricalko is free to download; Camera Lucida™ costs $14.99 up front. Camera Lucida™ sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Ricalko sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Camera Lucida™ holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Camera Lucida™ has 2K ratings behind it against 83, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 89% of Camera Lucida™'s written reviews are positive against 11% of Ricalko's.
Camera Lucida™ ships an update every 4 months, Ricalko every 5 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 21, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Camera Lucida™ | Ricalko |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $14.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.8 (2K ratings) — better | 4.1 (83 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 89.4% of reviews — better | 11.1% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 2K — better | 83 |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months — better | Every 5 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Paid — better | Subscription |
| Best chart rank | #7 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 14.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 55 MB | 40 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Camera Lucida | GENOVA Softworks |
Customer experience
Camera Lucida™
Ricalko
Bugs and requests
Camera Lucida™
Reported bugs
2 issues- Compatibility issues with newer iOS versions
- Occasional crashes or freezes
Requested features
3 requests- Ability to draw larger images
- More camera settings and controls
- Integration with other art apps
Ricalko
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Camera Lucida™
- Auto-Correct For Perspective$4.99
Ricalko
- Weekly Unlock3 Days trial$2.997 Days
- Premium Ricalko 1 Month$4.991 Month
- Premium Ricalko for 1 Year$19.991 Year








