Comparison

PhotoPills vs DeepFrame

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

PhotoPills

Plan and capture stunning photos of the sun, moon, and Milky Way. This app helps you visualize celestial events and landscape compositions with advanced planning tools and augmented reality.

Highlights
  • 2D Map-Centric Planner (Sun, Moon, Milky Way)
  • 3D Augmented Reality Views
  • Celestial Event Finder
  • Photo Plans Manager
  • Location Scouting Tool
  • Calculators (Long Exposure, Timelapse, etc.)
Features
Read full description

Unlock your creative potential! Discover how to easily turn any Sun, Moon and Milky Way scene you imagine into a real picture… and start shooting truly legendary photos every time you pick up the camera! Whether your passion is to capture beautiful landscapes, immortalize the infinite night sky, surprise the bride and the groom in their happiest day... or to travel the world, PhotoPills will make you love exploring new artistic possibilities to tell visual stories in a way it wasn’t possible before. * All in one app PhotoPills is your iPhone and iPad personal assistant in all photographic matters. It provides tasty remedies to answer most of the questions when planning and shooting your creative ideas: - The First 2D Map-Centric Planner: Sun, Moon, Milky Way - Sun, Moon Alignments Fast Finder - 3D Augmented Reality: Sun, Moon, Milky Way, Celestial Equator, Polaris, DoF, FoV - Photo Plans Manager - Location Scouting Tool - Key information: Sunrise/set, Twilights, Golden Hour, Blue Hour, Moonrise/set, Supermoon dates, Moon Calendar - Calculators: Long Exposure, Timelapse, Spot Stars, Star Trails, Hyperfocal Table, DoF, FoV - Widgets: Sun, Moon, Milky Way - PhotoPills Awards… and much more! * Endorsed by Masters “PhotoPills is an invaluable tool which I use every time I plan a shoot.” – Mark Gee, Astronomy Photographer of the Year. “A tool every photographer should have.” – Kevin Raber, Luminous-landscape.com. “It pays off! Using such a tool ensures that we are repeatedly capable of quickly planning powerful shots; leaving maximum opportunity for more creative ruminations.” – José B. Ruiz, Innovation Award, Wildlife Photographer of the Year. * How it works Have you ever walked around a place and thought: "What a pity the Moon isn't EXACTLY right there... I would have captured a great photo!"? What about the Sun? And the Milky Way? Well, now you can let your imagination fly and calculate when this specific magic moment happens in just a few seconds: - IMAGINE: the Milky Way arching over a powerful landscape, a giant full Moon appearing from behind a nearby hill or a sunset between two rocks on a magic beach... The only limit is your imagination! - PLAN: easily calculate the exact date and time the scene you’ve imagined happens. Work smarter, not harder! - SHOOT: just get out there, immerse yourself in the great outdoors, and enjoy living and capturing unique moments. * Become a Legend Because we know the huge amount of time, energy and love you put in your photos. We want to HONOR them, SHOW them to the World, and REWARD you with up to $6,600 in cash prizes. It's easy and FREE! Just submit your creative photos from PhotoPills and join the Legacy! * Never waste an unmissable scene again Create a To-Do list of planned photos and get to the location on time. * Get it right Adjust your frame for the best composition before you shoot. Use the 3D Augmented Reality Views to see whether Sun, Moon and Milky Way will be at the desired position when pressing the shutter. * Explore, discover great places and create your own database of locations If you come across a location you’d like to remember, save it as a Point of Interest. * Enjoy all daily information in just one swipe with the Widgets Just swipe down from the top of the screen to get all the Sun, Moon and Milky Way events for your current location and date, in addition to your upcoming photo plans. * Get more than an app Our goal is not only to help you plan your shots, but also to help you nail them. Whenever you need help, take a look at our How-To articles and videos, join our free online courses or just contact us! “This is your last chance. After this, there is no turning back. You take the blue pill – the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take PhotoPills – you stay in Wonderland and we show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes. Remember: all we’re offering are Legendary Photos and Goosebumps in your skin, nothing more.”

About

DeepFrame

Features
Read full description

eepFrame is a deep-sky imaging planner for astrophotographers. Point it at your location and any night — tonight or a simulated one — and it shows exactly what's worth shooting and when. WHAT IT DOES • Plots every catalogue object's path across your sky from dusk to dawn, with a midnight marker. • Picks out the imageable window — where each object is high enough (alt ≥ 25°) and culminating near midnight — so you know the best hours to capture it. • Draws your rig's true field of view around any object, so you can judge framing before you set up. • Overlays a real all-sky survey photo, the Milky Way, constellations, named stars, the ecliptic, planets and the Moon — toggle each layer to taste. • Masks YOUR local horizon: capture a 360° skyline with the camera (a guided sweep, or import a panorama), edit the sky away, and objects that never clear your trees and buildings are flagged as blocked. • Keeps your imaging log: per-object sessions with date, scope, camera, filters and exposure, your own processed thumbnails, and how far each got — finished, captured-but-unprocessed, or stacked-with-no-result-yet. • Lays your own processed shots on the chart, on their own icon, at the exact field of view they were taken at — so you can see what you've already covered. • Browse your whole imaging database: a searchable, sortable, groupable list of every object with each night underneath. Tap a picture for the full frame; tap a name to jump to it on the sky. BUILT FOR THE FIELD • Works fully offline — the ~5200-object catalogue, all maths and your data live on device. • Fast, gesture-driven all-sky chart: pan, pinch to zoom, tap any object for its card, tracks and imaging log. • A time capsule to preview any past or future night. EVERYTHING IS FREE The full catalogue, every object type, magnitude and size, unlimited rigs, locations and your own shots — all free. No account, no ads, no tracking. Built with open astronomy data (OpenNGC, VizieR/CDS) and public survey imagery (Pan-STARRS via CDS; NOIRLab all-sky photo). Full credits in the About screen.

Screenshots

PhotoPills4 screens
DeepFrame4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: DeepFrame at Free against PhotoPills's $10.99. PhotoPills's advantage is chart position (#14 vs unranked) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

DeepFrame is free to download; PhotoPills costs $10.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PhotoPills ships an update every 2 months, DeepFrame monthly. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 8 level
PhotoPills versus DeepFrame: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPhotoPillsDeepFrame
Price$10.99Free — better
Rating4.7 (1.5K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews84.9% of reviews—
Number of ratings1.5K — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsMonthly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
Best chart rank#14 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size41 MB80 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperPhotoPills S.L.Arnulf Friedemann Jurgen Keese

Bugs and requests

PhotoPills

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes when using depth of field calculator
  • Location settings not persisting between sessions
  • Milky Way position not aligning correctly

Requested features

5 requests
  • User guide in multiple languages
  • Improved integration with other apps
  • More customization options
  • Weather forecast integration
  • Apple Watch companion app

DeepFrame

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

PhotoPills

No in-app purchases

None

DeepFrame

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is PhotoPills free?
PhotoPills costs $10.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is DeepFrame free?
DeepFrame is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do PhotoPills or DeepFrame have ads?
Neither PhotoPills nor DeepFrame shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PhotoPills or DeepFrame?
PhotoPills ships an update every 2 months, and DeepFrame monthly. Most recently, PhotoPills was updated on November 1, 2026 and DeepFrame on October 25, 2026.

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