Pretty much every camera app for iOS that has come out lately focuses only on one major feature — to improve upon the photos you’ve taken. This could be either be done using advanced post-processing capabilities of the app (like VSCO Cam) or simply using photo filters like every Instagram clone out there. Thankfully, Hydra is different. Hydra is a camera app for iPhone and iPad that focuses on pre-processing, meaning it helps you take stunning photographs.
Hydra achieves this using some under the hood magic of its own. When you take a photo using the app, it captures up to 60 frames in quick succession and merges them to create a single, better photograph. This technique lets the app capture more light and results in a photograph that has less noise with better highlights and shadows. It features five capture modes — HDR, Lo-light, Zoom, Hi-res and Video-HDR. The Hi-res mode helps you take photographs up to 32 mega pixels while the Video-HDR lets you capture video, but in HDR.
The app also features direct Camera Roll integration, thus offering the ability to review your photos, as well as their metadata right within the app. Unlike other apps, the photos reside directly on the Camera Roll and there’s no duplication or the need to manually save them to the camera roll. This way, you can even delete photos directly from the app, thanks to iOS 8. Any photo you mark as favorite in the app is also reflected in the Camera Roll and if you have iCloud enabled, across all your devices.
Unfortunately, due to the technique utilized by Hydra, you need to have really steady hands when taking a photo. If your phone shakes before Hydra is done capturing frames, it results in a photo that’s obviously unusable (It will prompt you if there’s too much shake). Hydra is available as a Universal app for $4.99.