Spectre Camera
Verified Oct 15, 2026 ActiveiPhone camera app that stacks hundreds of frames into a handheld long exposure.
Listed on EffectHub ·
Pricing
- Pricing model
- Freemium
- Paid options from
- $4.99 once
- Billing
- One-time purchase
Free download with a single $4.99 in-app purchase called Spectre Pro, which unlocks the 5, 9, 15 and 30 second exposure modes. No subscription.
Use tool ↗About Spectre Camera
Spectre is an iPhone-only camera app from Lux Optics, the studio behind Halide. Instead of holding the shutter open, it fires hundreds of frames over several seconds and merges them with on-device stabilisation and scene detection, so you get light trails, silky water or an emptied-out tourist square without a tripod. Each capture is saved as a Live Photo so you can scrub back through the exposure. The app itself is free; the Pro unlock adds the longer 5, 9, 15 and 30 second exposure modes for a single payment.
- Platforms
- iOS
- API
- Not confirmed
- Last verified
- Oct 15, 2026
Verified sources
- Product behaviour, stacking approach and Live Photo outputspectre.cam ↗
- Free download, $4.99 Spectre Pro in-app purchase, Lux Optics Incorporated as seller, 2019 release and 2025 updateapps.apple.com ↗
Is Spectre Camera legit?
We don’t label tools safe or unsafe. Below are the records we checked ourselves, each with the date we read it.
- Domain registered
- Jan 14, 2019 (7 years ago)Registry record (RDAP), registrar NameCheap, Inc., looked up Sep 6, 2026
- TLS certificate
- Issued by Google Trust Services, valid until Jan 11, 2027Seen in our own connection to the site on Oct 15, 2026
- Last checked
- Oct 15, 2026The site answered
- On the market since
- 2019The vendor's own material, read by us
- Operated by
- Lux Optics Incorporated, United StatesOur research, card verified Aug 23, 2026
Pros & cons of Spectre Camera
A single-purpose camera app that does one hard thing well: handheld long exposures that would normally need a tripod and a neutral density filter. Lux Optics still ships updates seven years on, which is rare for a $4.99 one-time app. It only runs on iPhone and it will not replace a real camera for the longest exposures.
Pros
- Stabilised stacking makes handheld multi-second exposures workable
- Results save as Live Photos so the whole capture is replayable
- One-time $4.99 unlock instead of a subscription
- Still maintained: version 1.5.5 shipped in September 2025 with iOS 26 compatibility
Cons
- iPhone only
- Free tier caps you at short exposures until you pay
- Stacking artefacts show up on scenes with fast, irregular motion
Best for
- iPhone photographers who want light trails or smoothed water without carrying a tripod
- Removing moving crowds from a static scene
- People who dislike subscription camera apps
Not for
- Android users, since there is no port
- Anyone needing exposures beyond 30 seconds or full manual RAW control
Watch out: The marketing site advertises a limited-time sale without printing a number; the App Store listing is the only place the actual $4.99 Pro price is visible.
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