Lenset vs Shadow Planner
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Lenset
This app helps filmmakers and location scouts visualize shots by simulating real cinema cameras, lenses, and sensor formats. It offers advanced zoom controls, authentic lens vignettes, and integrated location scouting tools with sun-path analysis.
- Simulate 63 cinema cameras and 300+ sensor formats
- Cinematic zoom control with adjustable curves and speed
- Real lens vignettes from reference captures
- GPS-tagged captures with sun-path overlay
- Organize shoots into projects and scenes
- Import custom LUTs
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Lenset is the Director's Viewfinder reimagined for filmmakers and location scouts. Frame shots through real cinema cameras and lenses, pull cinematic zoom moves, and see authentic lens vignettes from reference captures, every capture tagged with GPS, compass heading, and a sun-path map overlay. DIRECTOR'S VIEWFINDER, REIMAGINED Frame the shot before you set up. Pick a camera, a sensor format, and a lens, and Lenset scales the iPhone preview to match — with frame lines, focal length, 35mm equivalent, coverage ratio, and a calibration warning if the sensor exceeds the reference data. • 63 cinema cameras across 10 manufacturers — ARRI, RED, Sony, Canon, Blackmagic, Panavision, Panasonic, Fujifilm, Vision Research, Freefly • 300+ sensor formats — Open Gate, Vista Vision, Super 35, Super 16, anamorphic, plus 35mm and 16mm film • Cinema frame lines with adjustable color, opacity, and masking • Grey-border framing for wide primes the iPhone can't reach natively, with vignette and frame line tracking the lens, not the iPhone CINEMATIC ZOOM CONTROL — SMOOTH & SPEED CONTROL Pull a zoom move the way a focus puller would. Not a pinch. Not a digital slider. A real zoom-pull engine designed for cinematic moves. • Logarithmic and linear zoom modes • 7 zoom curves — Linear, Standard, Aggressive, Soft, Broadcast, plus two ARRI ZMU-4-inspired Cine Expo profiles • 0–100 speed slider for slow push-ins or crash zooms • Optional feathering for smooth motor-style ramping • Joystick or speed-strip control • Vision-based parallax compensation at multi-lens switchovers — when the iPhone crosses 2× or 5×, the frame stays put through the lens swap • Prime lens navigation: swipe or pinch to step through fixed focal lengths in a cinema set, with auto-selection of the best iPhone physical lens for each prime LENS COVERAGE — REAL LENS VIGNETTES, LIVE See how a real cinema lens behaves on your chosen sensor. Lenset's vignette data is sourced from reference captures — not procedurally generated, not estimated from spec sheets. 66 lens sets with reference-captured vignette textures: More being added 100+ additional cinema lens sets included as data-only references — Master Primes, Signature, Supreme, Master Anamorphic, Cooke S/i, Primo, Hawk anamorphic, Optimo, Premista, Cabrio. LOCATION SCOUTING, BUILT IN Every capture is GPS-tagged with compass heading and device tilt. Drop a scene onto a map with your camera's field-of-view cone projected from the capture point, then scrub through a sun-path overlay computed from NOAA solar ephemeris — sunrise, sunset, golden hour, and the full daypath at your shoot location and date. Plan future shoot dates by checking sun angle before you arrive. PROJECTS + SCENES Organize shoots into projects and numbered scenes. Drag clips between scenes, mark favorites, review with pinch-to-zoom photo and video. Export shotlists to share with directors and producers. BRING YOUR OWN LUT Import .cube LUTs from DaVinci Resolve, Lustre, or any grading tool. Preview your look live in the viewfinder, then bake it into recordings and full-resolution photos. Apple Log, Rec.709, ARRI LogC4, S-Log3, BT.2020, and DCI-P3 input/output color spaces supported. CAMERA FUNDAMENTALS 4K HEVC video at 24, 25, 30, 50, 60 fps. Full-sensor HEIF photo capture. Tap-to-focus, long-press AE/AF lock. Manual white balance, EV bias, rule-of-thirds grid, customizable center marker. Frame line, vignette, grey border, and info bar baked into recordings. PRIVACY BY DEFAULT Everything stays on your device. No tracking, no analytics, no cloud, no account. Lenset doesn't have a server. Made for filmmakers, by filmmakers.
Shadow Planner
Visualize sun and shadow placement on real-world maps before filming. Scout locations by dropping virtual objects, simulating light movement throughout the day, and measuring distances for precise rigging. Export scenes for planning and collaboration.
- Real sun and shadow simulation on maps
- 3D terrain and buildings for accurate shadows
- Place and manipulate virtual frames and objects
- Simulate light movement from sunrise to sunset
- Measure distances and gear ranges
- Export scenes and share links
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Scout the light before you get there. Shadow Planner puts a real sun on a real map. Drop your overheads on the actual location, scrub the day from sunrise to sunset, and watch true cast shadows fall across the ground in 3D — so you know what you're walking into before the truck rolls, and so does everyone you hand the page to. SCOUT ANY LOCATION • Search an address or drop straight onto your GPS position • Satellite, street and dark map styles • Real 3D buildings and terrain, so shadows fall off the geometry that's actually there • Live sun compass with azimuth and altitude KNOW WHEN YOU LOSE THE LIGHT • Sunrise, solar noon, sunset, golden hour and civil dusk for any date and any location, with the day's length • Tap any spot for a shade timeline: when it holds direct sun and when it goes into shade, across the whole day • See the sun's path arced over the map — amber where your spot has sun, blue-grey where something blocks it, so you can watch the moment the sun clears a roofline • Reads the buildings and terrain actually around it, plus your own overheads BLOCK THE SHOT TO SCALE • Drop 12x12, 20x20 and 40x40 frames, or set your own custom size • Dial height above ground, spin and tilt on every frame • Add vehicles and human stand-ins for scale • Stack as many objects as the day needs — each one colour-coded, with its own cast shadow and the area it covers SEE THE WHOLE DAY MOVE • Scrub sunrise to sunset and watch every shadow track with the sun • Pick any date and check the light for a shoot weeks out • Stand-ins and vehicles dim when they fall inside a frame's shadow MEASURE THE RIG IN 3D • Tap two points for a true diagonal distance — overhead down to ground • Know exactly where the base, the truck and the crew gear have to land • Measurements stay locked to a frame, so they update as you raise or move it • Matching gear ranges for the distance you measured, from a PeeWee dolly to a 120' Condor FEET OR METRES • One switch converts every height, span, distance and shadow area, and the gear ranges with them • Gear and frame names stay as the industry says them — a 12x12 is still a 12x12, a Condor 40' is still a Condor 40' • Your choice is remembered between sessions TAKE IT BACK TO THE OFFICE • Save a location by name with its camera angle, date, time, every frame, the measurement and the shade you picked — long-press to rename • Six stops in a day, all still there tomorrow • Export a letter-size page carrying the location, date, time, sun position, sunrise and sunset, the rig you had up, and the lift sizes that reach — so the gaffer, the AD and the office are all reading the same sheet • Same page on every device, straight to Photos, Files or Messages • On iPad, drag the menu panels into the order you work in • Full undo and redo Built by a working cinematographer for tech scouts, gaffers, grips, DPs, location managers and anyone who has ever guessed where the shadow would be. No account. No subscription. No tracking.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Lenset at 100% against Shadow Planner's 40%. Lenset also leads on price ($19.99 vs $29.99) and chart position (#55 vs unranked). Shadow Planner's advantage is update cadence (every 5 days vs every 10 days). On ads, in-app purchases, monetization model 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
Lenset costs $19.99 and Shadow Planner $29.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Lenset ships an update every 10 days, Shadow Planner every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Lenset | Shadow Planner |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $19.99 — better | $29.99 |
| Rating | — | 4.0 (3 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better | 40.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | — | 3 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 10 days | Every 5 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Best chart rank | #55 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 329 MB | 4 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Eyvin Studios AB | Christopher Fenner |
Customer experience
Lenset
Shadow Planner
In-app purchases
Lenset
No in-app purchases
Shadow Planner
No in-app purchases








