Comparison

Halcyon Camera vs Slay Composition Guide Camera

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

Head to head
About

Halcyon Camera

Capture photos and videos with the authentic look and feel of classic film stocks. Offers professional manual controls, advanced editing tools, and various shooting modes like long exposure and slow-motion.

Highlights
  • Authentic film stock simulations
  • Full manual camera controls
  • Long exposure and slow-motion video
  • WYSIWYG editing with film simulation
  • Pro video recording options
  • Built-in pro overlays and grids
Features
Read full description

Halcyon brings the soul of film to your iPhone. Twelve hand-crafted film stocks — Kodak Portra 400, Cinestill 800T, Velvia 50, Tri-X 400 and more — each with the temperature, tone curve, grain, and halation of the real thing. Apply them live, before you take the shot, and what you see is exactly what you get. REAL PRO CONTROLS, ONE-HANDED. Full manual ISO, shutter, focus, white balance, and exposure. Tap to focus. Long-press for AE/AF lock. Pinch to zoom. Volume buttons fire the shutter. Lens switcher for ultrawide, wide, telephoto. Halide-style focus loupe magnifies the sharpness plane as you rack focus. Histogram, waveform, focus peaking, zebras, false color, horizon level — when you need them, hidden when you don't. NEW IN 3.2 — LONG EXPOSURE, SLOW-MO, LIVE PHOTO. • Multi-frame long exposure — 2, 5, 10, or 20 second stacks with automatic alignment for handheld light trails, silky water, and star fields • Slow-motion capture at 120fps and 240fps • Live Photo for every film stock — the frames before and after, with the film baked in • Thermal and storage health warnings before a long take can bite you • Alternate app icons: Amber, Midnight, Noir BUILT-IN PRO OVERLAYS. • Histogram — real-time RGB • Waveform — luminance monitor • Focus peaking — see what's sharp • Focus loupe — Halide-style magnifier • Zebras — highlight clipping alert • False color — exposure map • Horizon level — stop crooked photos • Rule-of-thirds grid • Cinematic frame modes — square, 3:2, 16:9, half-frame • Live ISO / shutter chips PRO VIDEO WITH FILM SIMULATION. Record HEVC, ProRes 422 HQ, or Apple Log with the film baked in. Cinematic 24fps, 4K, live audio, plus 120/240fps slow-motion. EVERYTHING IS YOURS. WYSIWYG: every effect — film, grain, halation — is baked into the saved photo. ProRAW is preserved as alternate. Create custom film recipes with a 14-slider editor. Save them, share them, refine them. YOUR PHOTOS STAY ON YOUR DEVICE. No analytics. No data collection. No network requests. Nothing leaves your iPhone. Made with care for everyone who misses film.

About

Slay Composition Guide Camera

Features
Read full description

Slay is a camera built to make every shot look intentional. Real-time composition guides appear right over your live camera, so you frame the shot correctly before you press the shutter — not after. Then grade it with cinematic LUTs and fine-tune your look without leaving the viewfinder. FRAME LIKE A PRO • 14 composition guides drawn live over the camera preview • Guides for portraits, travel, one-third, two-third, vanishing point, triangles, aerial and more • Each guide suggests the ideal zoom and includes a reference tutorial • Optional grid and level for straight, balanced shots FIND YOUR LOOK • 38 cinematic LUTs applied live to the preview and baked into your photo • Manual adjustments: exposure, contrast, saturation, warmth and tint • Mix a LUT with your own tuning for a signature grade • Compare and switch looks instantly LEARN AS YOU SHOOT • A feed of practical photography lessons on framing, light, color and mood • Bite-sized reads you can apply on your very next shot BUILT FOR iPHONE • Fast, responsive live preview • Front and back camera, flash, and 0.5x / 1.5x / 2x / 3x zoom • Saves directly to your photo library with optional location info • Designed for iOS 26 with Liquid Glass FREE TO DOWNLOAD Start with a curated set of LUTs, composition guides and lessons at no cost. SLAY PRO Unlock the full collection: • All 38 LUTs and presets • All 14 composition guides • All premium lessons and articles Choose a monthly plan or a one-time lifetime purchase. Cancel the monthly plan anytime in your App Store account settings. Terms: https://www.slaycamera.com/terms Privacy: https://www.slaycamera.com/privacy

Screenshots

Halcyon Camera4 screens
Slay Composition Guide Camera4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Halcyon Camera at every 2 days against Slay Composition Guide Camera's weekly. Halcyon Camera also leads on iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.0). On price, 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

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Halcyon Camera ships an update every 2 days, Slay Composition Guide Camera weekly. The most recent releases landed on September 28, 2026 and October 8, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Halcyon Camera versus Slay Composition Guide Camera: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHalcyon CameraSlay Composition Guide Camera
PriceFreeFree
Rating1.0 (3 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews0.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings3 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 days — betterWeekly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size4 MB77 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBirkan AksoyIbrohim Abdivokhidov

In-app purchases

None

Halcyon Camera

No in-app purchases

None

Slay Composition Guide Camera

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Halcyon Camera free?
Halcyon Camera is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Slay Composition Guide Camera free?
Slay Composition Guide Camera is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Halcyon Camera or Slay Composition Guide Camera have ads?
Neither Halcyon Camera nor Slay Composition Guide Camera shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Halcyon Camera or Slay Composition Guide Camera?
Halcyon Camera ships an update every 2 days, and Slay Composition Guide Camera weekly. Most recently, Halcyon Camera was updated on September 28, 2026 and Slay Composition Guide Camera on October 8, 2026.

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