Studio Ninja is made for photographers, and so is Apture. The difference is that Apture's galleries and website are built in, so the whole client journey happens in one place.
Step 1
Tap every tool you pay for. The page rewrites itself around your setup.
Clients, bookings, contracts, invoices and client emails, made for people photographers, with galleries and your website built in.
Moving from Studio Ninja, step by stepWhat you get with Apture
Instead of Studio Ninja
From the first inquiry to the final gallery, every client has one record: sessions, messages, forms, contracts, payments and galleries.
No copying a client from your CRM into your gallery tool, and no wondering which app has the latest email. Your team sees the same record you do.
Instead of Studio Ninja
Plans differ in storage, video hours and team size. Nothing else is held back for a higher tier.
Automations, proposals, payment plans, video, RAW files, your own domain and AI writing help are on the smallest plan too. There are no add-ons to buy.
Instead of Studio Ninja
A client picks a session, signs your contract on their phone and pays the deposit, in one booking.
Turn on signing before paying and the contract becomes part of booking, so a date is never held without a signature and a deposit. Your client gets the signed PDF, and the signed record stays with the booking.
Instead of Studio Ninja
Deliver photos, video and RAW files side by side, in galleries clients open without an account.
Hearts, picks and proofing, downloads in the sizes you allow, download sales, and print orders you send to your own lab. Galleries are linked to the booking that came before.
Instead of Studio Ninja
A photographer's website on your own domain, with booking, galleries and the client portal built in.
Pick a design, add your photos and words, and preview it on a phone and a computer. A blog, search settings and a link-in-bio page come with it.
Instead of Studio Ninja
Clients see their sessions, contracts, forms, payments and galleries in one place, on their phone.
They pay a balance, answer the questionnaire and find their gallery from the same link, so they stop emailing you to ask where things are.
Instead of Studio Ninja
Deposits, balances, payment plans and gift cards are paid into your own Stripe account. Stripe's card fees apply; we add nothing.
Payment plans with autopay, bank transfers (ACH) for balances, and tips on the final payment are all there when you want them.
Instead of Studio Ninja
A setup guide walks you through packages, hours, contracts and Stripe, with sample clients to click around first.
“Honestly, you killed this. Setup was so easy. Once I saw how everything connects, it all just clicked.”
Ready-made workflows for weddings, portraits, branding and minis mean you change a few emails instead of building from scratch.
Instead of Studio Ninja
Send us your client list and we'll bring your clients and upcoming sessions across, with what each has already paid.
You check a preview of every row before it goes live, nobody is emailed, and one click undoes an import.
Side by side
| Feature | Apture | Studio Ninja |
|---|---|---|
| Inquiries, contracts and invoices | YesEvery plan, with no limits on clients or contracts | Yes |
| Online booking with a deposit | YesClients can sign the contract before they pay, in the same booking | Extra costNo online booking forms on Starter |
| Proposals with packages to choose from | YesUp to three packages side by side | YesQuotes |
| Automations and reminders | YesReady-made workflows per type of shoot | Extra costNo workflow automation on Starter |
| Client portal | YesSessions, contracts, forms, payments and galleries in one place | Yes |
| Client galleries | YesFavorites, proofing and downloads | NoConnects to Pic-Time and ShootProof |
| Video in galleries | YesOn every plan | NoNo galleries |
| RAW files in galleries | YesOn every plan | NoNo galleries |
| Website builder | Yes15 designs, your own domain, a blog | No |
| Every feature on every plan | YesPlans differ only in storage, video hours and team size | NoStarter: 1 user, 5 active jobs |
| No platform fee on client payments | Yes0% from Apture; Stripe's own card fees apply | Not checked |
| Automatic lab printing | Coming soonAutomatic ordering through a pro lab is on the roadmap; for now orders come to you to send to your lab | NoNo galleries |
| QuickBooks or Xero sync | Coming soonQuickBooks and Xero sync is on the roadmap | YesXero and QuickBooks |
| Free-forever plan | NoA 14-day free trial, no card needed | No7-day trial |
Checked on each company's own pricing page on 22 October 2026. “Extra cost” means a higher plan or an add-on; “Not checked” means their page didn't say. In fairness, some of them are ahead in places: galleries like Pixieset, ShootProof and Pic-Time send print orders to a lab automatically, several have a free plan, Studio Ninja syncs with QuickBooks and Xero, and Pixieset has a mobile gallery app. Apture works in your phone's browser.
Checked 22 October 2026. Prices and plans change; tell us if something here is out of date.
Apture is $5.67 a month more here, and it does the jobs you'd otherwise need more tools for.
| Tool and plan | A month |
|---|---|
| Studio Ninja Starter$160 a year; Starter is limited to 5 active jobs | $13.33 |
| Starter | $19 |
Each company's own published price on 22 October 2026, billed yearly, for the plan named. Plans and features differ and prices change, so check before you decide. Card processing fees are extra with all of them, including Apture.
Download your client list as a spreadsheet (CSV) and drop it into Clients, Import in Apture. You match the columns once, check a preview of every row, and import. Upcoming sessions come too, with what each client has already paid, and nobody is emailed. Changed your mind? One click undoes the import. Or send us the file and we'll do it for you.
Copy your contract wording into a contract template, and your questionnaire questions into a form. Fill-ins like the client's name, the session date and the balance are added for you, and clients sign with a finger on their phone.
Pick a ready-made workflow for weddings, portraits, branding or minis, then change the emails, forms and reminders to match yours: so many days before the session, after it, or when the gallery is delivered.
Add your sessions with their price, length and deposit, then the hours you're open each week. Apture keeps those times open on your booking page, and a client who books pays the deposit there and then.
Make a gallery, type a scene (Getting ready, Ceremony), and drop in that folder's photos. Copies for the web and for phones are made for you, and downloads keep your camera and copyright details. Send it to the couple and up to ten family members in one go.
What you keep: Your books come with you too: Apture records every payment as income, tracks your expenses and shows profit by month, with a year-end export for your accountant.
No. Delivery, proofing, favorites, and print and download sales are built in. You send print orders to your own lab.
Yes. The client portal shows their sessions, contracts, forms, payments and galleries.
Free move-over help
Export what you have in Studio Ninja and send it over. We import your clients and upcoming sessions, with what each has already paid, and you check everything before it goes live. Nobody is emailed.
Or write to us first: support@aptureapp.com