Darkroom Assistant vs ShutterMeter

Make better darkroom prints—and preserve every decision that got you there. Darkroom Assistant is a purpose-built workflow app for black-and-white darkroom printers. It connects what you see in the print to the exposure, dodging, burning, and sequencing needed to make the next one. Map adjustments on the image, work in stops, and let Darkroom Assistant calculate the actual exposure times. You don’t need an expensive programmable f-stop timer to use an advanced f-stop printing workflow. Whether your timer counts in stops or only in seconds, the calculations, visual map, and printing sequence stay connected to the image. If you have ever made a great print and struggled to recreate it, searched through scattered notes, or wasted paper rebuilding a previous result, Darkroom Assistant brings the complete printing process together. It does not automate printing or replace your judgment. Your eye decides what the print needs. Darkroom Assistant translates that decision into the next exposure—and preserves the path when the session ends. VISUAL DODGING AND BURNING Map local adjustments on the print image instead of trying to connect handwritten times to remembered areas. Set the desired change in stops, and Darkroom Assistant calculates the corresponding dodge or burn times and organizes them into a clear printing sequence. A programmable f-stop timer can count exposure in stops. Darkroom Assistant goes further by connecting each adjustment to the image, calculating the time for that operation, and preserving the reasoning behind the print. PRINT PROJECTS AND PRINT LOGS Organize each image as a project and preserve the path from test strip to final print. Keep multiple interpretations together, compare them over time, and return later without reconstructing the session from memory. Record paper, developer, filtration, exposure, contrast, notes, and the decisions made along the way. A short version note on the physical print can lead you back to the complete plan in Darkroom Assistant. TEST STRIPS AND SPLIT-GRADE PRINTING Build and document test-strip and split-grade workflows inside the app. Compare results, refine exposure and contrast, and carry your decisions forward without starting over. SCALE PRINTS WITHOUT STARTING OVER When you change print dimensions, Darkroom Assistant can scale the exposure steps in the complete Print Log—not just the base exposure. Carry a successful plan into the new size and begin with a calculated starting point instead of rebuilding every exposure, dodge, and burn from scratch. Additional calculators help with changes in exposure, aperture, filtration, neutral density, and print size. DARKROOM TIMERS Use focused, distraction-free timers designed for printing and film-development sessions. FILM DEVELOPMENT Create and run film-development workflows with organized formulas, timing, and session records alongside your printing tools. BACKUP AND RESTORE Protect your darkroom library with manual backup and restore. LEARN AND GET SUPPORT Use the video guide and subscriber community for help. DARKROOM ASSISTANT HELPS YOU: • Translate visual decisions into precise exposure steps • Use an advanced f-stop workflow without an expensive programmable timer • Plan dodging and burning without calculating every time in your head • Scale complete printing plans when changing print size • Reduce avoidable paper and chemistry waste • Preserve successful prints and multiple interpretations • Spend less time reconstructing old sessions • Build a consistent, repeatable darkroom process BUILT BY A DARKROOM PRINTER Darkroom Assistant was created by a working darkroom printer with decades of hands-on experience. Its tools come from real workflows developed at the enlarger—not from an attempt to replace analog craft with automation. Practical tools for photographers who care deeply about the craft. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Has your old camera's shutter slowed down? ShutterMeter uses your iPhone's microphone to analyze the sounds of a mechanical shutter and estimate the interval between opening and closing. Compare it with the selected speed, check repeatability, and keep a test history for each camera. Repeat each speed three times Choose a camera and speed, then follow the measurement flow. Save three Clear signal results before moving to the next speed. Results with complex signals are marked separately and do not count toward the health map. Shutter health map See the median deviation and spread of the latest three clear results at each speed, along with how many speeds you have tested. Find gaps or speeds that need another check, then share a text report through the system share sheet. The report is a shooting and maintenance reference, not a calibration certificate. Archive backup and CSV export Export camera details and measurements as a JSON backup. On another iPhone, choose the file, preview new and duplicate items, then confirm the merge. Items with the same identifiers keep their local versions; existing records are not overwritten. Export CSV files to view raw timings, UTC timestamps and signal grades in a spreadsheet. Exported measurements are diagnostic references, not calibration certificates. For an offline export, choose On My iPhone > this app's folder > Exports in Files. The folder may be named ShutterMeter or 快门测速仪, depending on language. This app folder is part of the app's sandbox and is deleted when you delete the app. Save important backups to iCloud Drive or another location outside this app folder; those independent copies survive deletion of ShutterMeter. Camera log Search by camera name or notes, and edit details without losing measurements. Create a profile for each camera and browse measurements and deviation trends by speed. Save results without a camera to Unfiled and assign them later. Clear signal results include exposure compensation guidance. Your local records remain available to view. Supported speeds This version provides microphone measurement for 11 nominal speeds from 1 second to 1/60 second, including the vintage 1/5, 1/10, 1/25 and 1/50 settings. Camera mode is not enabled. Measurement at 1/100 and faster is not supported. ShutterMeter is an audio analysis aid. Its accuracy across all supported speeds has not been validated against a physical shutter tester. Clear signal describes how well the sound events can be distinguished in that recording; it is not an accuracy certification. Mirror slap, background noise and shutter design can affect the result. Repeat the test before using a result as a shooting reference. Not every mechanical shutter will produce a usable result. Designed for iPhone The colorful interface supports Dark Mode, Dynamic Type and VoiceOver, with clear controls to save, repeat, finish a test run and close sheets. Data and purchase Audio recording and analysis take place on your iPhone. The app does not automatically upload measurement data. When you share a report or export a file, the selected data goes to the app or file service you choose. System device backups may also include local records. Archive backups do not include audio, purchase receipts or free-measurement counts. Use Restore Purchases to recover an existing purchase on another phone. Purchases and restoring purchases require an App Store connection. Your first 10 measurements that produce a result are free. Attempts that do not detect usable shutter sounds do not use a free measurement. A one-time purchase unlocks unlimited measurements, with no subscription or ads.