Focal
A mobile app helping film photographers track their shots, notes, and store live reference photos.
Focal is a mobile app prototype that was a part of my senior capstone project during my senior year in Seattle University’s design program. As the sole designer, I created this comprehensive project from concept to high-fidelity prototype. The objective was to create a useful, user-friendly mobile app that could store notes, light meter readings, live reference photos, and archive completed film rolls to help film photographers track their shots, past or present.
Role
Sole Designer
Timeline
2 months
Year
2025
Research
Understanding the different needs of film photographers—from intermediate to professionals.
As an intermediate film photographer myself, the process of learning how to shoot film revealed two distinct use cases: I want to know what my shot will look like, and I want to know what the light meter’s suggested settings will look like versus my own camera setting.
These insights shaped the foundation of the app’s design: an album for each film roll, and its respective live field notes that would serve as a reference and a guide for the film roll’s shooting experience.
Alongside my own pain points, I conducted research
The Problem
Film photographers forget what they shot. By the time their film rolls get developed, they often forget which exposures followed the light meter’s readings and which ones used their experimental camera settings.
The Goal
Create a film note-taking app that allows users to take note of each exposure’s camera settings, alongside the option to take a live-reference photo as a placeholder image in the meantime.