5 Fantastic and Free iPhone Photo Apps

There are hundreds of photo apps in the App Store and sometimes, it can be quite an effort to sift through them all to get the ones you think will be most useful. I wrote previously about five fantastic paid iPhone photo apps and it’s about time I mentioned some free photo apps with rather impressive features.

Impression – this app adds a watermark to your image which can have several uses. iPhone photos may be easily copied without your consent once you upload them in the internet. A watermark acts as a deterrent and makes people think twice before grabbing the photo. The watermark of this app can also be anything, from your name, to a short phrase, to a photo title, as long as it is no more than 60 characters. You also have the option to add the copyright symbol or not. The text size can be adjusted by pinching or stretching the text and you may also adjust its opacity and placement in the image. Just be aware that it will save to the original shot so use a copy image if you want the original to be left untouched.

PS Mobile – if you want an efficient and user friendly photo editing app, then this app from the makers of Adobe Photoshop could be what you’re looking for. It doesn’t have that many features but then it’s free so I can’t complain at all. Most of the tools are basic for quick editing such as crop, rotate, flip, and exposure, saturation and tint adjustment settings. It also has several filters and effects such as Vibrant and Soft Black and White. Once you’re done editing, you may upload it to photoshop.com, its website where you can set up an account and get a free 2 GB worth of photo storage. This app is so easy to understand that even if you have never used it or Photoshop before, you’ll quickly get the hang of it.

iRetouch Lite – this is one photo editing app that’s quite a powerhouse even though it is free. It has several editing tools such as smudge and clone stamp, and you can adjust the image brightness, color and hue, among many things. From selective desaturation to blemish removal, this app is great for spot editing. The buttons do need some getting used to and your hand needs to be steady since the slightest flick of your finger while editing can affect the image.

Polarize – if you miss the days of the Polaroid camera, you can download the Polarize app and create images that look as if you were using the real deal. This app takes the image in a square format and adds a border where you can write a tag or caption (14 characters max) below the image. Most of the images from this app end up with a soft blue green color cast just like how images from Polaroids would look. The effect can appear vintage and make one become quite nostalgic.

GorillaCam – from Joby, the creators of the Gorillapod, that flexible tripod, comes an app packed with features that can seldom be found in other photo apps. Among its many features is a self-timer, a time-lapse function, a ‘press anywhere’ capability which means your whole screen becomes one giant shutter release button, and an unlimited rapid-fire so you can now take pictures at high speed just by keeping the shutter button pressed. If your iPhone is 3G or 3GS, you will find the separate accessory, Gorillamobile, handy as it is a flexible tripod specifically designed for the iPhone.

 

 

 


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5 Paid iPhone Photo Apps Guaranteed to Add Pizzazz to Your Shot

You might feel overwhelmed with the number of photo apps in the iPhone App Store. I know I was, so I did some research and downloaded some (okay, a lot) of photo apps in my quest to search for the perfect photo app that has everything I wanted and needed. After some time I realized there is no such perfect photo app. However, there are some which can do only a few things but do them extremely well. Here are five paid iPhone photo apps which I tested and now can’t do without. They are well worth the price of a few dollars for they greatly boost the bland shots I’m getting from my iPhone 2MP camera.

1.  SwankoLab ($1.99) – long before anyone could conceive of the idea of digital processing, the photographer’s darkroom existed. It was a place of alchemy where images appeared from blank paper or plastic film with the use of chemicals. Darkroom magic has been recreated with the SwankoLab app. The visuals are very appealing with the rich dark wooden shelf that holds various chemicals which you can mix unto the processing tray below. Experiment with eight various formulas and watch your images materialize in different effects depending on which chemicals you chose. Nine more chemicals are available with an additional one time $1.99 subscription fee. Not bad at all considering the number of combinations you can use.

2.  Hipstamatic ($1.99) – From the creators of SwankoLab is a camera replacement app which allows you to imitate vintage toy lenses such as the John S lens and the Kaimal Mark II lens. You can also choose from a variety of lenses and flash settings, all with just a flick of your finger. When you open the app, the screen displays an image which simulates the back (or front, if you press the flip icon) of an analog camera, including a small square viewfinder. This viewfinder is not precise, so what you see is not usually what you get. The experience of this randomness adds to the appeal of the app. You will have to take a picture for the app to be used, unlike some photo apps where you can use images already saved in your photo library. Hipstamatic saves the images in a square format and the results from the filters can be very moody and unique. More filters and lenses are available in what is called ‘HipstaPaks’ which you can purchase from within the app.

3.  Photo Forge ($2.99) – if you’re looking for a photo editing app which will answer most of your needs, then this could be it. This app packs quite a punch, having extensive features to help tweak your image to your satisfaction. It offers very useful adjustment tools such as the unsharp mask, crop tool, levels and RGB curves. It also has several effects such as Lomo, Dreamy and Vignette. On top of that, it provides illustration tools as well such as brushes with color and transparency options.

4.  CameraBag ($1.99) – this camera replacement app simulates several effects that you would get from various cameras and lenses.  These presets vary from Helga, to Colorcross to Fisheye. You may take a picture or get one from your camera roll or photo library. To change the effect, just swipe your finger left or right and you’ll immediately see the various results. What could be easier than that?

5.  Best Camera ($2.99) – what better iPhone photo app developer than a professional photographer?  When Chase Jarvis decided to make an app, he wanted to make sure it did everything an iPhoneographer was looking for.  You can use Best Camera to take a picture, edit it using 14 presets, and then upload it straight to Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, thebestcamera.com website or to your email. That’s quite a lot of features in one app, which makes this one of the top rated photo apps in the App Store.


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