Light Box vs Photographers Light Table
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Light Box
Transform your iPad into a versatile film illuminator viewer. Adjust brightness, lock rotation, and add grids or lines for precise viewing. A cost-effective alternative to dedicated lightboxes.
- Film negative/positive viewer
- Adjustable brightness
- Rotation lock
- Grid and line overlays
- iPad optimized
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Turn your iPad into negative / positive film illuminator viewer. Why pay 100 dollars for LightBox when you can turn your iPad into one with selectable styles. Desensitized white screen has a small settings button at the top right, where you can lock rotation, adjust brightness, or add a grid or lines. Simple and Smart. *Important notice: We shall not be responsible or liable for any loss or damage of any kind incurred as a result of the use of functions or the content of this application. By using this application you are deemed to agree to this condition.
Photographers Light Table
Transform your mobile device into a portable light table for viewing film negatives, prints, and creating astrophotography calibration flats. Offers adjustable brightness, white balance, and an optional grid overlay for precise alignment and accurate color work.
- Device to light table transformation
- Adjustable brightness control
- Adjustable white balance
- Optional grid overlay
- User-friendly interface
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Photographers Light Table turns your iPhone or iPad into a clean, evenly lit surface for viewing film negatives and slides, checking prints, and shooting astrophotography calibration flats. Precise, portable, and ready whenever you are. VIEW FILM AND SLIDES Backlight negatives, transparencies, and contact sheets for inspection, DSLR scanning, or digitising — no bulky light box required. PRECISE LIGHT CONTROL Dial in brightness and colour temperature with full-width sliders and live readouts, from warm tungsten to daylight. Pick any custom colour, and keep the ones you use most one tap away. GRID OVERLAY Turn on an adjustable grid for alignment, framing, and repeatable setups. REMOTE CONTROL Adjust your light table from another device without touching it — handy when it's under a camera or telescope. Use any web browser on your WiFi, or a nearby iPhone or iPad directly, with no shared network needed. Group several tables and drive them together, or focus any single one. An optional PIN keeps your table private. SAVED SCENES Store your setups by name and recall them instantly. Apply, rename, and export scenes right from the remote, and back them up or move them between devices. LIGHT EFFECTS Gentle, photosensitivity-safe effects — Breathe, Colour Cycle, and Candle — plus your own programmable colour sequences. ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY FLATS Produce an even, stable illuminated field for flat frames, with fine brightness control and steady output. Photographers Light Table is free and supported by ads. A one-time Premium purchase removes them.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Photographers Light Table at Free against Light Box's $0.99. Photographers Light Table also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 3 months). Light Box's advantage is rating (4.1 vs 2.3) and in-app purchases (none vs 1). On review sentiment 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
Photographers Light Table is free to download; Light Box costs $0.99 up front. Photographers Light Table sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Light Box asks for nothing beyond the download.
Light Box holds the better App Store score, 4.1 against 2.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 12 and 3 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 48% of Light Box's written reviews are positive against 50% of Photographers Light Table's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Light Box ships an update every 3 months, Photographers Light Table every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Light Box | Photographers Light Table |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $0.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.1 (12 ratings) — better | 2.3 (3 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 47.6% of reviews | 50.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 12 — better | 3 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 3 weeks — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Paid | Free with in-app purchases — better |
| Devices | iPad | iPhone, iPad — better |
| Requires iOS | 7.0 — better | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 1 MB | 9 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Systemiko Inc. | William Termini |
Customer experience
Light Box
Photographers Light Table
In-app purchases
Light Box
No in-app purchases
Photographers Light Table
- Premium (Ad-Free)$1.99
Questions
Is Light Box free?
Is Photographers Light Table free?
Which has better reviews, Light Box or Photographers Light Table?
Do Light Box or Photographers Light Table have ads?
Which is updated more often, Light Box or Photographers Light Table?
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