Our story

Editing should feel like creating.

Darkroom is an independent company building photo and video tools for the moment when an idea becomes an image. Since 2014, our work has been guided by one belief: powerful creative tools should help you find your rhythm, not interrupt it.

Ten years of Darkroom
Darkroom on iPad beside a Leica camera
A seamless workflow from Leica camera to Darkroom on iPad.
What we believe

Technology should shorten the distance between intention and result.

Creativity begins with human intention. Editing is part of making an image, not merely finishing one. Automation can clear away repetitive work, but it should never take authorship with it.

The best creative tools help you move from what you imagine to what you create with as little friction as possible — while keeping judgment, taste, and creative control in your hands. That's the kind of creativity we want to help people keep.

Where we came from

Photography changed.
Its tools needed to change with it.

In 2014, mobile photographers had more creative possibility in their pockets than ever before, but editing still meant slow imports, duplicated files, and jumping between apps. Filters were quick but limiting; professional tools were powerful but made for another kind of computer.

Darkroom started with a prototype and a simple question: what if editing could be as fluid as browsing your photos? Two people spent eight months answering it from a shared office in San Francisco. In February 2015, we launched Darkroom on iPhone.

Our founding premiseEditing workflows are inefficient, and creative tools are limiting.
The long run

A decade of steady reinvention

Darkroom has grown from a focused iPhone editor into a creative workspace across Apple devices. The product changed because photography changed. The principles stayed the same.

2015

Darkroom launches on iPhone

After eight months of work, Darkroom arrived with no-import editing, custom filters, Curves, batch export, and a commitment to speed.

2018

The workflow expands to iPad

A bigger canvas brought Darkroom into more demanding workflows and laid the foundation for editing across Apple devices.

2020

A defining year

Darkroom won an Apple Design Award, launched on Mac, added video editing, and moved to a sustainable membership model.

Today

Still building for the long run

Across iPhone, iPad, and Mac, we keep refining the foundations and details that help creative work move.

Where we thrive

The difference is the workflow.

Features matter. But the space between them—how you move from choosing a photo to shaping it and sharing it—is where creativity either gathers momentum or loses it. See how that workflow compares with other editors.

01

Flow over friction

Your library is already there. Your tools are close at hand. Darkroom is designed to keep every step fast, direct, and in context.

02

Depth without clutter

We bring professional control to approachable interfaces, choosing a coherent toolset over a kitchen sink of disconnected features.

03

Native by design

Darkroom works with Apple Photos, iCloud, Shortcuts, and the camera apps you love, across iPhone, iPad, and Mac.

Independent on purpose

We answer to the work.

Darkroom is self-funded, profitable, and built by a small team. Independence lets us take the long view: invest in foundations before they become visible, revisit old decisions, and measure progress by the quality and usefulness of what we ship.

That path has demanded perseverance. We have rebuilt our rendering engine more than once, slowed down when the responsible choice was to strengthen the product, and kept going through quiet years when momentum was hard to see. We would rather build something durable than chase novelty.

Darkroom's 2020 Apple Design Award with a note from Alan Dye
The 2020 Apple Design Award, a reminder to persevere.
What we stand for

Principled tools for creative people

Efficiency is a creative feature.

We study the complete workflow so every interaction can feel faster and more natural.

Quality takes focus.

We make opinionated choices and put in the time to do a smaller number of meaningful things well.

Creative control belongs to everyone.

Our tools are powerful enough to grow with and intuitive enough to invite experimentation.

In conversation

Our story, told out loud.

Podcasts and interviews with Majd and Jasper about building Darkroom — the product, the business, and the long view.

Article · Sketch Blog · 2024

Building the next generation of mobile-first photography tools

Jasper on Darkroom’s design philosophy, the team’s journey from iPhone to Vision Pro, and how Sketch fits in.

Read  →Podcast · Full Stack Whatever · 2023

No Modes

A deep conversation on Darkroom’s history, the competitive landscape, and how the product keeps evolving.

Listen  →Podcast · iPad Pros · 2022

Darkroom with Majd Taby

Majd walks through RAW, Live Photos, masking, video grading, presets, and how Darkroom thinks about iPad.

Listen  →Podcast · Sub Club · 2021

Building an Apple Design Award-winning photo editing app

Majd and Jasper on founding Darkroom, Apple features, subscriptions, and growing an independent app business.

Listen  →Article · The Sweet Setup · 2018

Bringing Darkroom 4.0 to the iPad

Majd and Jasper on workflow, ambition, and designing a first-class photo editor for every Apple screen size.

Read  →Article · Bekk · 2015

From inspiration to finished product

Majd on the Norway hike that sparked Darkroom, early product decisions, and shipping the first release.

Read  →
The team

Small by design, global by nature.

We are a close-knit team of designers and engineers working together from around the world. We care deeply about photography, the details of software, and making tools that earn a lasting place in someone's creative life.

Special thanks

The following people have all contributed to making Darkroom possible: Nurkan Kirkan, Joe Connellan, Tim Bormans, Paulo Mattos, Giovanni Kessesshak, and Jarod Luebbert for their many loyal and impactful years. Julian Clark, Sara Kerens, Andrew Pouliot, Josh Mobley, Ashley Nelson, and Bryan Summersett.

Matt Brown ♥ for his belief and hard work in the early days. Sébastien Ploix, Ryan Gomba, Alex Kan, Om Malik, Dan Rubin, Ari Grant, and Colin Campbell.

Our significant others, for their support, patience, and putting up with our endless conversations at all hours.