‣ Company: Ben McCarthy
‣ Mission: To put pro camera controls within thumb’s reach
‣ App launched: 2022
‣ Team size: 1
‣ Go-to emoji: 😬

Ben McCarthy created his camera app, Obscura, to give photography enthusiasts access to intuitive manual controls they could quickly access with one hand while holding their iPhone. What began as a fun side project (it was McCarthy’s first foray into coding) quickly evolved into much more.

The third iteration of the app adds an array of upgrades – including haptics that evoke the feel of an SLR camera, five new modes tailored for specific shooting styles and the ability to capture video. We chatted with McCarthy, who is based in Dublin, about favourite features, biggest challenges and the importance of personal connections.

Creating a camera app seems ambitious for someone just starting to code. How did you pull it off?

Not knowing how much I didn’t know was a huge advantage. I was in college studying graphic design – I figured I would design apps and somebody else would build them. Then I did a module on web design, which involved HTML and CSS. That kind of broke the seal on writing code for me. I also had the realisation that I was 20 and nobody was going to build apps for me unless I had a pile of money to pay them.

What was hardest for you?

Self-motivation. Parts of an app are a joy to design, to build, to show off to people. Working on those makes you want to get up early; time just melts away. But when you’ve got bugs to fix and problems to solve that you don’t even understand yet, it can be hard to sit down and chip away knowing there’s no one stopping you from slacking off and playing videogames.

What’s your favourite feature?

It changes all the time but probably the exposure dial. It’s simple, but so nice to move your thumb in a circle as though you’re turning a physical dial. I’ve always tried to replicate the feel of using an SLR camera, so I put a lot of work into making that feel natural, adding haptic feedback so you’re getting little clicks with each increment.

How did you get the word out about Obscura?

In college I was involved in this conference in Ireland called Úll [the Irish Gaelic word for “apple”]. I started as a volunteer, then did photography and design work. There I met a bunch of designers, developers, journalists, photographers and podcasters, including some big names like John Gruber and Jason Snell. When it came to launching Obscura, I had all these contacts. Not all of them were posting about it, but a couple of retweets massively amplified my audience. There’s just no substitute for meeting people – especially as an indie developer.

Any advice for aspiring developers?

Don’t get in your own way by thinking any of this is too big or complicated. When I started, I had no idea what I was doing. The most basic of things, like making a button do something or displaying text on the screen, were significant hurdles. But it’s all solvable. Unless you’re really at the cutting edge, it’s highly unlikely a problem hasn’t been run into before by dozens of people. Answers are on Stack Overflow and developer forums. All problems can be broken down into smaller ones that eventually are not that difficult to solve.

Obscura is a part of the App Store Small Business Program. If you are a developer and would like to learn more about the program, follow the link below.