I overcharged my iPhone camera with Adobe’s new Indigo app
iPhone 16 Pro The amazing image quality has already impressed us. For other top-end Android phones Includes Galaxy S25 Ultra and Pixel 9 Pro. Also, the default camera app makes it easier to snap, but it doesn’t have the features needed by a passionate photographer. But when Apple left a gap, Adobe quickly filled it out.
The instant shutter allowed us to catch this bird in just the right moment.
Adobe’s new camera app (called Indigo) packs AI-based features such as 10x zoom resolution upscaling, removal and reflection removal tools, while also providing clean control over camera settings such as white balance and shutter speed.
The app is currently available on iPhoneso like a prone to excitement, I took it to make it spin around Edinburgh quickly.
I love this first shot of a bird flying through the Royal Mile in Edinburgh. Here we used two functions. Firstly, the manual white balance allowed us to warm the scene a bit, as the default camera app on iPhones often tends to tilt towards the cool side. I love the tones that were filmed here. Secondly, the app features a zero-rag shutter, allowing you to quickly capture the moment when the bird was perfectly along the church spire.
It’s a difficult shot to nail down, but the lack of delay between pressing the shutter button and taking the image makes all the difference. Adobe says This accomplishes this by “continuously capturing raw images while ViewFinder is running”. This means that when you press the button, the image is technically captured. Zero Rug Shutter is a boon for anyone wanting to get high-drama shots from football games or shots of dogs jumping for Frisbees.
Image taken with 10x optical zoom with Denoise applied within the Adobe Indigo app.
The iPhone’s base optical zoom is maxed out at 5x, but Adobe’s Indigo app allows you to improve quality and further expand your digital zoom. Using AI, it combines multiple frames to upscale those images, so it retains more detail than zooming in 10x with a regular camera app. I used it here and I was impressed with the overall clarity of the scene.
The difference between the sharpness between the original image (right) and the AI DeNoise version (left) is not immediately clear, but it helps to give the scene a little more clarity overall.
I also ran the app’s AI Denoise tool on the image. There was no much image noise in the first place, but this tool has the added benefit of sharpening the image. I was impressed here because the image doesn’t look digitally sharp. Instead, the image looks natural and surprisingly clear due to the zoomed-in shot.
That said, it doesn’t always mean that you’re doing a good job.
I actually prefer shots from the iPhone’s default camera app (left) here than the Indigo version (right).
The image from the iPhone’s built-in camera app on the 10x digital zoom (left) looks sharp here, but often has a richer image contrast. The same scene, shot with 10x zoom using Indigo (right), has a very low contrast and looks flat in comparison.
I like the natural tones of this straight camera image.
But that’s not necessarily a bad thing overall. In fact, we found that many of the test images have a natural look with realistic shadow tones, highlights and colors. Phone software often appears to process images too much, especially on various phones that try to lighten the shadows too light (I’m looking at the OnePlus 13), but the images produced by Indigo have a great balance even without Lightroom editing after capture.
Speaking of which, as an Adobe product, it’s no surprise that Indigo can easily share images directly with Adobe Lightroom for further editing. DNG RAW files generally work easily (you need to enable HDR editing and using profiles seems to blow the highlights off quickly). There are likely early compatibility issues, and we expect this to improve in time.
Adobe Indigo on iPhone: Should I use it?
I enjoy using Indigo and look forward to spending more time in the coming weeks. It definitely offers deeper functionality than Apple’s default camera app, especially the ability to adjust white balance and other settings. I also appreciate the natural look that the images offer and the flexibility of editing in Lightroom. Next, there are more wider features, such as noise reduction, reflection reduction, and night modes I haven’t tried yet.
Using an indigo as a camera means sacrificing the features of the apple, such as live photography and photography style. This is great for adding a movie look to your images.
It was easy to add your own color grade to this raw file in Adobe Lightroom.
You also don’t need to use a separate camera app, especially when you fly around frequently between still images and video shooting, which can be easily done when using the default camera. In an ideal world, Adobe would like to work directly with Apple to implement these features into the core camera experience.
Still, if you’re an avid photographer and want more control over the images while taking pictures, Indigo is definitely worth installing and playing with. Despite Adobe talking About the app in 2022 CNETit is believed to be a beta version (the company calls it an “experimental camera app”). Features such as Creative Brooks, Portrait Mode, and even advanced tools like Exposure and Focus are potentially focusing on the cards for future updates. Also, the Android version is “certainly” on the table.
Given that it is free to use now, it’s worth a try as you don’t have to sign in with an Adobe subscription.