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Which director's viewfinder app?
For most DPs the choice is between Cadrage, Artemis and Cutvey Viewfinder. Cadrage is the most-reviewed single purchase, and Artemis has the widest family of apps on a subscription. Cutvey Viewfinder is $19.99, once, with the largest counted camera and lens list and the only Apple Watch app of the set, checked November 2026.
On this page
The leaders, side by side
| App | Maker | Price, US | Runs on | US ratings | Choose it when |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cutvey Viewfinder | Cutvey LLC | $19.99, once, or included per seat in a Cutvey plan | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch remote | 0 so far | You want the largest counted camera and lens list, mixed kits, depth of field and a Watch remote in one purchase |
| Cadrage Director's Viewfinder | Cadrage GmbH | $19.99 once | iPhone, iPad | 4.74 from 378 | You want the most-reviewed one-price viewfinder and share setups by QR code |
| Artemis Director's Viewfinder | Chemical Wedding | Free, then $3.99 a month, $16.99 a year or a $29.99 Core License, plus add-ons | iPhone, iPad; family apps on Mac, Apple TV, Vision Pro | 4.11 from 190 | Your production already works in Artemis, or the frame must stream to other iPhones and iPads nearby |
| Magic ViewFinder apps | Roman Medvid | Free with ads; Premium $1.49 a month or $4.99 once per app | iPhone, iPad, Vision Pro, Android | 4.78 from 177 (Magic ARRI) | You shoot one maker's cameras and want a free start |
| Mark II Artist's Viewfinder | DIRE Studio | $39.99 once | iPhone, iPad | 4.77 from 104 | You shoot stills and want DNG captures and medium format backs |
| Lightframer Pro | Eric Hernandez | $19.99 once | iPhone, iPad, Mac, Android | 4.83 from 6 | You scout exteriors and want a 3D shadow map, AR stand-ins and animatics |
| Viewfinder Preview | Adam Fowler | $4.99 once | iPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro | 4.71 from 301 | You shoot stills or film and want a cheap framer with a light meter |
| FrameUp | Ronan Furuta | Free, then FrameUp PRO $14.99 | iPhone, iPad | 4.88 from 17 | You are a student who wants a free, quick framer |
Prices are Apple's US prices, checked November 2, 2026, on each app's App Store record. Ratings are US App Store counts on the same day, and they move daily. "Not stated" means we found nothing either way on the seller's own pages.
We make Cutvey Viewfinder, so read the table with that in mind. Every line about another app comes from its own App Store page or website, and where one is better at a job, the comparison says so.
The comparisons
- Cutvey Viewfinder and Artemis: a subscription with add-ons against one payment, and what Artemis TV and its weekly database are worth.
- Cutvey Viewfinder and Cadrage: the same price, so it comes down to mixed lens kits, depth of field and Cadrage's QR sharing.
- Cutvey Viewfinder and the Magic ViewFinder apps: one free app per camera maker, with ads, against one app for 37 makers.
- Cutvey Viewfinder and Mark II: a stills photographer's RAW viewfinder against a motion one.
- Cutvey Viewfinder and Lightframer Pro: the same price again, with AR stand-ins and a shadow map on one side and a far larger database on the other.
Longer reads
- Director's viewfinder apps compared: every app we checked, the jobs that separate them, and how Cutvey Viewfinder behaves on the phone.
- Artemis alternatives: what to move to, and what you give up, if Artemis's subscription or its iOS 18 floor rules it out.
The one Watch app in the set, checked November 2026
Of the apps in this table, checked November 2, 2026, only Cutvey Viewfinder's App Store page lists Apple Watch. The Watch is a remote for the iPhone app open on the viewfinder: it shows the frame at about 1.5 frames a second, fires the shutter or starts a take, and steps through the kit with the Digital Crown. How the Watch remote works.
How we checked
Prices, ratings, languages, the oldest supported iOS and the device list come from each app's US App Store page and Apple's lookup record, read on November 2, 2026. Features come from each seller's own site and store text. We read no forum posts as facts, and where a seller's page says nothing about a job, the tables say "Not stated", which is not proof the app cannot do it. Our own figures were counted from the app's bundled data on the same day: 722 camera bodies, 2,309 recording modes, 707 lens series and 3,926 lenses. The facts page lists the rest.
Questions
What is the best director's viewfinder app?
It depends on the job. Cadrage is the most-reviewed one-price app, and Artemis has the widest family of apps and updates its database inside the app. Cutvey Viewfinder has the largest counted camera and lens list and an Apple Watch remote, at $19.99 once.
Which director's viewfinder apps have no subscription?
Cutvey Viewfinder, Cadrage, Lightframer Pro, Mark II and Viewfinder Preview are each a single purchase on the App Store, checked November 2026. Artemis sells a subscription or a Core License, and the Magic apps offer Premium as a monthly subscription or a single purchase.
Do these comparisons get updated?
Each page carries the day it was checked. Prices and ratings move, so the seller's own App Store page is the final word.
Camera and lens names are trademarks of their respective owners, used only to identify the equipment.
See the frame before the camera arrives
Cutvey Viewfinder frames any camera, recording mode and lens on your iPhone or iPad. $19.99, once.