Comparison

Darkroom Formulas vs Lightme

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

Head to head
About

Darkroom Formulas

This app provides a digital cookbook of over 160 chemical formulas for darkroom photography. It features a volume mixer for easy proportional adjustments and allows users to save, edit, and share their own recipes. Access all data offline, making it a convenient tool for photographers.

Highlights
  • 160+ chemical formulas
  • Custom formula editing
  • Proportional volume mixer
  • Offline access
  • Formula export and backup
  • Supports multiple units
Features
Read full description

Darkroom Formulas contains a database with over 160 chemical formulas from Digitaltruth.com including film developers, print developers, toners, reducers, intensifiers and more. Users can edit existing formulas or add their own favorite recipes. The app contains a powerful Volume Mixer allowing all ingredients to be adjusted proportionally on-the-fly. No more messing around with complex calculations, simply change the final volume and every ingredient changes automatically! Your own saved formulas can be exported and shared by email, or stored externally as a back up. The app includes all the data internally, so there is no need to connect to the internet to use it. Simply download and store in your pocket. Ideal for lab technicians and other darkroom users who need to mix formulas from scratch. Formulas can include up to 3 part mixes (eg. Part A, Part B, Part C) and each part can contain up to 10 ingredients, allowing a maximum total of 30 ingredients. Available units are ml, g, fl oz, oz, tsp, grains and drops. Lifetime free updates, no ads, no add-ons.

About

Lightme

This app helps analog photographers meticulously track their film rolls, shots, and development processes. It allows for detailed logging of gear and consumables, with features for data visualization and export. Users can also manage film holders and add post-development notes with photos of final results.

Highlights
  • Log film rolls, shots, and development
  • Track gear and consumables
  • Data visualization with graphs/histograms
  • Data export in JSON/CSV formats
  • Manage large format film holders
  • Post-development notes with photos
Features
Read full description

Lightme - Logbook is a clean and powerful tool to record and keep track of your rolls, shots, developments, and all the gear that revolves around shooting film — from 35mm to medium and large format. The idea behind it is simple: logging a shot should take seconds, not steal time from actually shooting. Lightme pairs a beautiful, immediate interface with enough depth and flexibility to fit any workflow, whether you shoot a couple of rolls a year or fill several large format holders in an afternoon. LOGGING, EFFORTLESSLY • Log a shot in seconds: aperture, shutter speed, focal length, filters, bellows correction, measured EV, notes and more • Log straight from your wrist with the companion Apple Watch app, with Siri and Shortcuts, or from the home screen and lock screen widgets • Together with the Lightme Lightmeter app, your meter readings can prefill a new shot automatically • Every shot can carry a location and address, a preview photo, and later its final scan, plus a star rating ROLLS, SHEETS AND DEVELOPMENTS • Track rolls from loading to unloading, with film stocks from a growing database and a processing pipeline: waiting for development, off to the lab, back from the lab, to be scanned, scanned • Keep detailed development notes — developer, dilution, time, temperature, agitation — for rolls and single sheets alike, including push/pull (N+ / N-) development • Add post-development notes and a photo of the final result to rolls, sheets and individual shots YOUR GEAR, ORGANIZED • Cameras and lenses with nicknames, formats (including custom formats you define), pinhole and bellows flags, custom shutter speeds and selectable shutter step sizes • Roll film backs and lens filters with their exposure compensation • Film holders and backs can be marked as compatible with specific cameras, and everything is searchable from a single bar LARGE FORMAT, COVERED • Keep track of your film holders with three states — unloaded, loaded and exposed — always knowing which film is inside each one • Group holders together and follow every sheet from exposure through development INSIGHTS FROM YOUR DATA • Build and save custom queries, filtering by date (fixed or rolling windows), camera, lens, film stock, format, ISO, aperture, shutter speed, focal length and notes • Visualize results with histograms — by camera, lens, film stock, shutter speed, aperture, focal length, ISO, format, rating or hour of the day — alongside aggregate stats like mean aperture and average exposure • Save the queries you use most and re-run them anytime YOUR DATA, YOURS • Everything syncs privately through iCloud across your iPhone and iPad • Export any selection of data as CSV or JSON, or as a beautifully formatted PDF with customizable columns and a contact-sheet mode, bundled with your images in a single ZIP • Batch-write shooting metadata (EXIF) onto your scans — for a whole roll at once, or by matching files from the Files app • Viewing and exporting your data is free, forever; adding and editing is unlocked with a one-time purchase or a subscription AND MORE • Full-text search, favourites and an archive to keep things tidy • Available in English, Italian, Spanish, Japanese and Simplified Chinese • A roadmap of what's coming next lives right in the app — new very cool features are on the way :) If you have any suggestion or issue, write me at lightme.apps@gmail.com Terms of use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Darkroom Formulas4 screens
Lightme4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Lightme at 75% against Darkroom Formulas's 29%. Lightme also leads on price (Free vs $5.99) and rating (4.8 vs 2.5). Darkroom Formulas's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 8) and chart position (#129 vs unranked). On ads 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

Lightme is free to download; Darkroom Formulas costs $5.99 up front. Lightme sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Darkroom Formulas asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Lightme holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 2.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Lightme has 103 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 29% of Darkroom Formulas's written reviews are positive against 75% of Lightme's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Darkroom Formulas ships an update every 14 months, Lightme every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 7, 2026 and October 21, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard9 real differences · 2 level
Darkroom Formulas versus Lightme: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDarkroom FormulasLightme
Price$5.99Free — better
Rating2.5 (4 ratings)4.8 (103 ratings) — better
Positive reviews28.6% of reviews75.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings4103 — better
Update frequencyEvery 14 monthsEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank#129 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS9.0 — better15.6
Further details — not scored
Size2 MB13 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperFreestyle Photo & ImagingGiuseppe Bertolini

Customer experience

Darkroom Formulas

All ratings4 ratings
Positive25.0%
Neutral25.0%
Negative50.0%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive28.6%
Neutral28.6%
Negative42.9%

Lightme

All ratings102 ratings
Positive97.1%
Neutral0.0%
Negative2.9%
Written reviews24 reviews
Positive75.0%
Neutral12.5%
Negative12.5%

In-app purchases

None

Darkroom Formulas

No in-app purchases

8 purchases

Lightme

Subscriptions4
  • 1 Cappuccino7 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • Focaccia Barese7 Days trial$12.991 Year
  • Spaghetti Carbonara7 Days trial$29.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Homemade Pizza party7 Days trial$49.991 Year
One-time4
  • A smile :)Free
  • Box of Prosecco$59.99
  • Fuel for my '90s camper$119.99
Show 1 more
  • Terme for two$239.99

Questions

Is Darkroom Formulas free?
Darkroom Formulas costs $5.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Lightme free?
Lightme is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Darkroom Formulas or Lightme?
Lightme is rated higher. Darkroom Formulas averages 2.5 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while Lightme averages 4.8 from 103 ratings.
Do Darkroom Formulas or Lightme have ads?
Neither Darkroom Formulas nor Lightme shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Darkroom Formulas or Lightme?
Darkroom Formulas ships an update every 14 months, and Lightme every 2 weeks. Most recently, Darkroom Formulas was updated on October 7, 2026 and Lightme on October 21, 2026.

Other comparisons