Clapperboard iOS app and photo extension
An iOS photo app extension that adds a clapperboard-style first frame to videos for easy identification. Developed iteratively with feedback and released as a TestFlight beta.
Overview
My mobile app photo extension lets users add a Clapperboard to the video they are on. This helps the user locate the video quickly in the Photos app, since videos are typically hard to find because they appear as the first frame.
Problem
The problem my friend faced was that, when they were recording city skylines and their music performances, it was hard to go back and organise them, as the first frame wasn’t enough to help them locate the image. This was annoying for users when they wanted to share the clips on social media or with their friends, since the clips’ first frames looked quite similar, so they had to check them manually each time.
Solution
My app solves this problem by adding a Clapperboard-style image as the first frame, which includes the director’s name, title, scene, and take, all entered by the user. Then the user can press the blue check button to start the export process, which adds the Clapperboard to the first frame.
Key Features
- Adds clapperboard-style first frame
- Works as an iOS Photos extension, so no context switching
- Ability to set the default director’s name
How I built it:
MVP planning
I planned the MVP by messaging my friend to ask about the requirements for the photo extension and his suggested fixes, then we agreed on what should be included. I then started researching what I would need to create the application. I figured out that I would need to use PhotoKit to build the photo extension part of the project, and that I would have to use AVFoundation to generate the Clapperboard image.
I then started developing the project, creating the basic app UI, and moved on to implementing the main logic for the Clapperboard using AV Foundation, which I found quite hard as someone brand new to Swift and SwiftUI.
Feedback after the first sprint
After my first sprint, I gathered some feedback from my friend about the app design and the Clapperboard text image being small, which I plan to improve in the next sprint.
Tech Stack
- Swift / SwiftUI
- PhotoKit / Extensions
- User Defaults
Challenges & Learnings
I found AV Foundation the hardest part of making this application, as I had no experience with it before creating this app. I also learned during the process of creating the app how to communicate with users, gather their requirements effectively, and explain to them what you can’t do in code due to API restrictions, etc.
Outcome / Results
The outcome of this project was a working Clapperboard app, which my friend uses, which I managed to publish onto Apple TestFlight for my friend to test and try out.
Future Improvements
Future improvements I would like to make to the app are to add a way to bulk add the Clapperboard, so my users can catch up in batches. I would also like to fix the issue where the app doesn’t append the Clapperboard; instead, it replaces it. I would also like to see if I can make the image and export more performantly.