Remote Shutter is a free, open-source iOS app that turns any two Apple devices into a wireless camera system. One device (iPhone or iPad) is the camera; the other (iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, or Apple-silicon Mac) is the remote, showing a full-screen live preview and controlling the shutter. The devices connect directly over peer-to-peer Wi-Fi — no internet, no Wi-Fi network, no account, no subscription. Photos and videos stay on the devices; nothing is uploaded anywhere.
Multicam (10.0+): one iPhone directs up to four iPhone cameras at once — every angle live in a grid, one synced shutter that fires photos or video on all of them at the same instant, and footage that collects back to the director time-aligned for editing. Two cameras free, four with Pro.
- Live preview on the remote — see exactly what the camera sees before you shoot, not a postage-stamp thumbnail.
- Photo and video — take photos or start/stop video recording from the remote.
- Multicam — connect up to four iPhones as cameras, see every angle live in a grid, and fire a synchronized photo or video capture on all of them. Clips auto-collect to the director with alignment metadata so any editor lines them up.
- Full camera control — switch lenses (wide / ultra-wide / telephoto), flip front/back, flash, torch, tap to focus, timer; frame rate (24/30/60), resolution (1080p/4K), aspect ratio, HDR and JPEG/HEIF, all set from the remote.
- Any pairing — iPhone ↔ iPhone, iPhone ↔ iPad, iPhone ↔ Mac, iPhone ↔ Apple Watch.
- Range — about 50 ft (15 m) line of sight over peer-to-peer Wi-Fi, or anywhere on the network when both devices share a Wi-Fi network.
- Private by design — no accounts, no cloud, no tracking of photo content.
- Free with optional one-time purchases (Pro unlocks everything). No subscription.
- Group photos with everyone in the shot — hand a friend's iPhone or your Watch the remote instead of running back for a self-timer.
- Use an old iPhone as a remote camera — the spare phone in a drawer becomes a wireless camera you can see through and trigger: wildlife at the feeder, pets, hard-to-reach angles, checking on a room.
- Overhead / product / workbench video — mount the iPhone above the table and monitor the frame from an iPad or Mac in front of you.
- Vlogging and tutorials — frame yourself from the rear camera with a live feed on the second device, and start/stop recording without touching the rig.
- Apple Watch as a trigger — fire the shutter from your wrist.
- Multi-angle video with several iPhones — interviews, music, sports, dance, unboxings: record the same moment from up to four phones with one button and edit the synced angles together.
- Install Remote Shutter on both devices from the App Store.
- Open the app on both; they find each other automatically over peer-to-peer Wi-Fi (Bluetooth and Wi-Fi on, no network needed).
- Choose which device is the camera and which is the remote.
- Frame the shot on the remote's live preview and tap the shutter — or start recording.
Guides and FAQ: remoteshutter.app · Support: GitHub Issues
This app is open source, and forks are welcome — but do not re-upload a copy of Remote Shutter to the App Store. Submitting a clone of an existing app (same features, minor rename or reskin) violates Apple's App Store Review Guidelines (see 4.1 "Copycats" and 4.2 "Minimum Functionality"), will likely be rejected, and can get your developer account flagged.
What to do instead:
- Contribute here. Bug fixes, features, and translations are welcome as pull requests — your work ships to everyone in the official app.
- Fork and make it yours. If you build on this code, add your own original ideas — new functionality, a genuinely different experience — before you even consider submitting to the App Store. Ship something the store doesn't already have.