Chromagraph Camera: Rian Johnson brings the Knives Out look to iPhone

Director Rian Johnson, of Knives Out and Star Wars: The Last Jedi, announced on October 28, 2026, in a post on X, Chromagraph Camera, an iPhone camera app created with cinematographer Steve Yedlin and color-science developer Eric Cameron. The idea is to bring the same kind of image processing used in the duo's films to your pocket — not just to apply a filter on top of a finished photo.

How Chromagraph works

According to the App Store description, quoted by 9to5Mac, Chromagraph starts from the sensor's raw data and builds the image from scratch, bypassing the iPhone's standard look processing. In practice, you frame through the viewfinder without seeing the final result — like a film camera — and only check the look after the photo is processed, in the app's own gallery.

After the shot, you can still adjust color, tone and texture, including grain and halation, without losing the app's signature look. The gallery keeps the original RAW files at full quality, and exports can be made as JPEG or HEIC, with an option to send photos automatically to the photo library.

Limits: stills only, iPhone only

For now, Chromagraph shoots still images only: there is no video recording. Johnson said video may arrive later, but probably only on recent Pro models. There is also no Android version — the team cites hardware variety as the reason to stay focused on iPhone, which requires iOS 17 or later. The app already supports iPhone Duo, according to 9to5Mac.

The price is a one-time $12.99 purchase, with no in-app purchases, and 14.99 euros in some European countries. After the announcement, the app reached the top of the Photo & Video category among paid apps on the App Store, according to 9to5Mac — a sign that interest goes beyond film fans, reaching people who have debated iPhone computational photography for years.

This announcement is classified here as CONFIRMED: it comes from Johnson himself on X and from the official App Store description. The chart position is reported by specialist press, not claimed by the developer.

Sources

Image credit: 9to5Mac, illustration of the Chromagraph Camera announcement.

Transparency: this article was prepared with the help of artificial intelligence, based on cross-checking public posts on X and internet sources listed above. Check the original sources to confirm details, prices and availability before making any decision.

— Muse