Subjective Designer v1.0

April 1, 2026

We’re excited to announce the first public release of Subjective Designer — a real-time visual effects tool for Mac and iPhone, built entirely on Apple technologies.

Subjective Designer lets you create visual effects, shaders, and interactive experiences through a node graph editor. Connect nodes, see results instantly. No code required.

Available now on the App Store for $9.99 (introductory launch price).

168 Nodes

The v1 node library spans 15 categories:

Math (51) — trigonometry, noise, easing, interpolation, matrix operations
Effects (26) — bloom, blur, blend modes, FXAA, grain, chromatic aberration, pixelate
Instancing (16) — GPU instancing, grid layouts, instance transforms
Rendering (16) — gradients, draw passes, samplers, fullscreen effects
Values (13) — time, colors, noise textures, constants
Particles (11) — GPU particle system with gravity, drag, turbulence, and emission shapes
Device (8) — audio input, MIDI controller, video capture, viewport size
Geometry (8) — box, sphere, cylinder, plane, torus, custom mesh
Camera (6) — FPS and orbit controllers, perspective, orthographic
Events (4) — tap, pointer, update, run once
Transform (3) — 2D/3D transforms, decompose
Variables (2) — get/set graph variables
AI (1) — CoreML model inference

Browse the full Node Library for details on every node.

Key Features

Surface Shader System — Chain surface shader nodes together and the engine compiles them into optimized Metal fragment shaders automatically. Zero-code shader programming.

GPU Particle System — Emit particles from spheres, boxes, planes, and cylinders. Apply forces (gravity, drag, turbulence), control lifetime, color, and size over age.

Video Export — Export your creations in H.264, HEVC, ProRes 422, and ProRes 4444. Up to 4K resolution at 30 or 60fps. Presets for TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube aspect ratios.

MIDI Controller — Connect any MIDI device. Note on/off, control change, pitch bend, and channel pressure. Learn mode for easy parameter mapping.

Audio Analysis — Feed audio from your mic into the graph. Frequency band analysis drives visuals reactively.

Camera Capture — Use your front or back camera (iPhone) or built-in camera (Mac) as a live texture in your node graph.

Subgraphs — Organize complex graphs into reusable subgraphs with drill-down navigation.

47 Bundled Samples — Learn by example with curated sample projects spanning particles, noise, gradients, 3D scenes, post-processing, and more.

Platforms

Mac — macOS 15 (Sequoia) or later. Apple Silicon recommended.
iPhone — iOS 18 or later. iPhone 12 or newer.

What’s Next

This is just the beginning. We’re working on tutorials, more sample projects, and new node categories. Follow along here for updates.

Questions or feedback? Reach us at subjective@sxp.studio.