DadCam - 80's Film Camera Filters designed for millennials.
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Our goal was to blend the tactile soul of a 1994 Handycam with the cutting-edge performance of an iPhone 16 within a single, seamless mobile experience.
About the project
DadCam is a high-performance mobile app that replicates the 90s camcorder aesthetic. Its custom "Studio" engine processes grain, metadata, and color in real-time, blending a 1994 Handycam's tactile soul with an iPhone's cutting-edge performance.
Project
DadCam
Industry
Tech & Creative Tools
Location
Dubai, UAE
Date
2025
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Client Request
Our goal was to blend the tactile soul of a 1994 Handycam with the cutting-edge performance of an iPhone 16 within a single, seamless mobile experience.
Omar Aref
Founder
Our Simple Rules for Design
Haptic buttons and toggles mimic physical hardware, bringing a 1994 Handycam's analog soul to mobile.
We replaced external editing with real-time processing, enabling creators to export finished, nostalgic content instantly.
Beyond simple capture, the "Studio" offers professional control over frame rates, jitter, and light leaks directly within the mobile app.
DadCam bridges the gap between nostalgic aesthetics and professional workflow.
Pain points
Slow Processing
Most apps take too long to "render" or save videos.
Fake Looks
Users were tired of "flat" filters that didn't look like real film.
Low Quality
Professional creators couldn't use most retro apps because the video quality was too low for big projects.
Problem Statement
From Filter App to Creative Studio
We saw users leaving because they didn't want to be stuck with a permanent filter. To fix this, we pivoted from a simple camera to DadCam Studio, a non-destructive editor. This lets creators film first and "develop" the look later, which stopped them from wasting content and lowered our drop-off rates.
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Nostalgia is about control. The Studio lets users 'develop' their film exactly how they want
Omar Aref
Founder
Solution
The DadCam Interface
We put recording, editing, and file management into one simple app
01 - Retro Camera
The main recording screen looks like an old camcorder screen. It has easy-to-use zoom buttons and a classic date-and-time stamp that appears on your video just like it did in the 80s.
02 - DadCam Studio
An editing suite for adjusting grain, light leaks, and "tape" quality.
03 - Fast Export
Save photos in high quality for any social platform or pro project.
The Blueprint & Evolution
Wireframe Logic
We designed the interface for "One-Handed Use." Since DadCam mimics a handheld camera, all important buttons (Zoom, Record, Date-Stamp) are placed within easy reach of your thumb. We tested "Modular Sheets" that slide over the screen so users can tweak settings without blocking their view of the shot.
Key Features
DadCam Studio
A simple editing area to make your video look older. You can add film grain, light leaks, and "glitch" effects
Fast Export
Visual Identity
The Visual Language
We chose a "Utility-First" design. The app looks like professional tech equipment from the 80s, using high-contrast colors and heavy icons.
Color Palette
We used Safety Orange for primary actions, Deep Slate for backgrounds to make the photos pop, and Ghost White for sharp, readable text.
Typography
We used a bold, industrial font for headers to show authority, and a clean, modern sans-serif for paragraphs to ensure instructions are easy to read on small screens.
User Interface
UI Logic
The interface follows "Direct Interaction" logic. Instead of buried menus, users interact with the sliders and the video itself.
Gestural Controls
A simple swipe cycles through film stocks, while a long-press on the date-stamp lets you customize the timestamp metadata.
Haptic Feedback
The app uses vibration patterns as you slide through effect intensities, giving the user a physical sense of "tuning" the video.
Next Iteration
Future Roadmap & Scale
We are expanding DadCam’s engine to better simulate the physical imperfections of old cameras. Our next steps involve refining how the app handles lighting and lens distortion to feel more like a mechanical process rather than a digital effect.
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Our vision is to move from simple visual adjustments to total sensory nostalgia. We aren't just changing how clips look; we're changing how they feel.
Omar Aref
Founder
The New DadCam Experience
