Photojojo » Reviews

Make the Ultimate Photo Timeline (And It’s Not on Facebook!)

lisbeth — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 11:00:56 +0000

There was that time your nephew accidentally deleted a month’s worth of photos. Or how about that time that your sister borrowed your camera and forgot to give it back?

To say the least, there are gaps in the photo timeline of your life.

That’s why we were pretty excited to hear about Pictarine!

It’s a web app that collects your photos from all the different places you’ve posted them on the web — Flickr, Picasa, Facebook, Instagram, Dropbox and lots more. It then turns them into a clean timeline that you can browse.

It’s even able to pull in photos your closest friends snapped, so you can see photos from the get-together that you didn’t get on camera.

We could tell you how nostalgic it’ll make you feel, but scrolling through your life in photo-form is something you’ll have to experience yourself.

Make a Photo Timeline with Pictarine via Netted

p.s. We’re judging a self-portrait contest by our friends at ViewBug. Check it out for chance at $100 in Photojojo bux and more!

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Ask Photojojo: Photojojo’s Photo Pros Answer All Your Questions!

lisbeth — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 10:00:05 +0000

Have you ever wondered what Photojojo’s deepest dreams and desires are?

What does Photojojo think about in the wee hours of the night?

Maybe you’ve just wondered how to make the best DIY home studio or which DSLR is hot right now.

We went to Twitter to ask Photojojo fans what question you would ask us if you could.

Here are our answers! Amit, Jen, Billy, Kiran, Kelly, Julieanne, Laurel…

See the faces behind the names along with our expert photo and DIY advice!

[Have a question? Ask us!]

Our Answers to Your Questions

p.s. Wanna work with us? We’re hiring in and outside of San Francisco. Seeking web developers, product buyers and sourcers, photographers, and writers!

p.p.s. Come eat pizza and photo walk with us!

Laurel

Laurel is the customer service overlord at Photojojo. Her interests include neon Skittles and personalizing each and every Photojojo order with a miniature dino.

Q: @bubblegumzee I need to set up a cheap, easy product photography shoot…any tips?

A: My favorite lighting kit in the whole galaxy is the sun. Just head outside.

If it’s a very bright day, find an evenly lit spot in the shade. If it’s overcast you’re good to go anywhere. Tape a piece of paper to a wall/tree/flower-pot to make a seamless backdrop.

With a well shot product photo, you could even sell that half of a day old donut you never finished (coming soon to the Photojojo Shop! …or not).

Q: @thecannibal14 50mm 1.8 or 18-200 3.5-5.6?

A: Go with the fixed fifty! You’ll have to use your feet instead of your fingers to zoom, but the beautifully big aperture is totally worth it. I love that lens.

Jen

Jen is Photojojo’s store manager extraordinaire. Jen finds all the best photo goodies for the Shop! She also trains her cat Fuji to fetch film from the photo lab.

Q: @LizaDuron I want to know what techniques I can do to make the light leaks/expired film effect on my new 35mm film.

A: Open the back of the camera just slightly to expose the film, then shut it really quick! There are probably better ways, I usually just do this on accident. Also, I’ve never done this, but I hear you can put new film in the oven to give it an expired look.

Q: @jollygeek What are various ways to become inspired to go out and shoot?

A: Movies and colors inspire me. So does the ocean. I also try and check out other photographer’s stuff on Flickr or Tumblr often. It’s inspiring to see what other people are doing.

Q: @boodles64 If you could suggest one thing to start learning for a new photog, what would it be? I’m overwhelmed with settings!

A: Pick up a simple point and shoot film camera like our Ultra Wide and Slim or our Double Shot Camera. They both just have one button and take awesome looking photos. In fact, the Ultra Wide and Slim was what got me into shooting film (the beginning of an addiction).

Q: @originaljahn What would be a good beginner film camera to purchase to begin to affiliate myself with medium format film photography

A: I bought a Lomo Lubitel from eBay just for this purpose. You can find them for under $100 there usually.

Q: @karljohnston I’ve always wondered; where did you come up with the name “photojojo?”

A: Amit came up with the idea, he thought it just sounded cool. I would have to agree.

Amit

Amit is the George Washington of Photojojo. He’s the founding father of this whole thing! (BTW Amit also comes in pixel form.)

Q: @pepperjess The best tiny digital point-and-shoot, one that rivals some DSLRs? Any suggestions?

A: Go with the Canon S95. It’s the same size as their popular Elph-like compact cameras but has a much larger sensor — the same one as the Canon G12.

That means you get much better low-light pics than other compacts. And it’s got full-manual controls with a ring around the lens you can use to adjust aperture, shutter speed, or exposure compensation. Fits in your pocket, takes excellent photos.

If you can bear something a little larger, you’ll get closer to DSLR performance with a Micro 4/3rds camera from Panasonic or Olympus. I’m a huge fan of the GF-1 (discontinued) but the updated version the GF-2 isn’t bad, either. The 20mm pancake lens is sharp and excellent. (If you can wait a couple months, the GF-3 is rumored to be just around the bend.)

Q: @mkoux Where can I get the best burger in NYC?

A: Shake Shack! Their cheese-filled shroom burger is the best veggie burger I’ve ever had, but I hear the regular burgers are pretty amazing, too. :)

Lisbeth

Lisbeth is editor at Photojojo, and she is writing these very words (mind melt). If it were a toss-up between shaving her head and playing with cameras, she’d pick the cameras.

Q: @pepperjess Do you have any DIY ideas for what to do with undeveloped/blank polaroid/photos? Seems a waste to trash them

A: Yeah!! Here are some ideas:

Turn them into frames! Paste another photo on top and use it as a cool Polaroid frame. Kinda like our Polaroid Postcards.
Draw on them! Check out Elia‘s, daaams’, and Dan‘s Polaroid drawings. Also, have you heard of Homemade Polaroid?
Use them as reusable to-do lists that you can stick on your fridge. Just grab a dry erase marker. Here’s a tutorial on how to turn your instant prints into to-do lists.
Turn them into postcards! Find a paint marker to write on black and then put a stamp on the back. You can send it in the mail without an envelope! [Note: This was Jen's idea!]

Q: @thejennydipo I want to know what lenses to rent/buy to take pictures of babies!!

A: My fave portrait lenses are a fixed 50mm lens (I use Canon, but nifty fifties come in all brands) and Canon’s 24-70mm lens and 85mm lens. Tamron also has sweet telephoto lenses in the same range. The 50mm is just the right angle — not too wide and not too telephoto, so there’s minimal distortion in the image.

The 24-70mm and 85mm are a little bit longer, so they capture shallow depth of field beautifully (good for bokeh!). When you shoot with a shallow depth of field, people (or any subject) really pop since the background gets all out of focus. Babies and other humans look pretty darn great through these!

BTW, the 50mm is affordable enough to buy. The 24-70mm and 85mm are a little pricier, so you might try renting those before deciding to get them.

Billy

Billy‘s a customer service ninja. Is he in the store inbox now? Maybe he’s in the chat! One never knows where Billy may be, but one thing is certain: he probably knows the answer to your question.

Q: @wendyh777 Explain aperture in 140 characters or less

A: Small aperture (bigger number) = more depth of field, less light for exposure. Large aperture (smaller number) = less depth, more light.

Q: @pebble8 Why is it that some cameras are more fun to use (eg m9 or nikon d300) than others? What’s the difference that makes the difference?

A: You make the difference! Not every camera is a good fit for everyone, so keep looking until you find one that is juuuusssst right (channel your inner Goldilocks).

Q: @boodles64 If you could suggest one thing to start learning for a new photog, what would it be? I’m overwhelmed with settings!

A: Enroll in a drawing class (really!). I took a figure drawing class in art school and it provided a great insight into space, form and light, three super important elements for photography. Plus it’s a ton of fun!

Kelly

Kelly writes many of Photojojo’s DIY favorites (she even co-wrote The Photojojo Book!). She eats DIY projects for breakfast, but not before she drizzles rainbow sprinkles on top.

Q: @joshua_cobb Where are the best places to take photos?

A: Anywhere you’ve never been before, because you see differently when you’re in an unfamiliar place.

You notice details more, and ordinary things pop out if you’ve never encountered them before.

I also like taking a camera along when I’m hanging out in my own neighborhood with friends from out of town. They notice things that I’ve forgotten about because I see them every day.

Kiran

Kiran‘s a Photojojo PR and customer BFF. Sometimes Kiran dresses up like a zombie for fun, but just because he’s undead doesn’t mean he doesn’t kick ass at what he does.

Q: @missbmarie84 In your opinion, is it the gadget or the talent behind it that makes the photo?

A: Definitely the talent.

Although gadgets today make it easier to take great photos (and that’s rad), photography is still an art. There can be a lot of thought put into shooting a single photograph, especially when it’s another person.

There’s an awesome photography book called The Contact Sheet that goes behind the scenes on some iconic photos to find out what went into making them. Making someone comfortable enough to reveal their personality is a skill of its own!

Sarah

Sarah is Photojojo’s photographer and crafty thing maker. She also writes amazing tutorials. Sarah loves rainbows, science, and dogs. She has a point there.

Q: @pepperjess Do you have any DIY ideas for what to do with undeveloped/blank polaroid/photos? Seems a waste to trash them.

A: I like to paint on mistake/blank Polaroids with acrylic paint, which you can buy at any craft store. It dries really fast and also comes off easily while it’s still wet if you make mistakes.

I also once used my blank and undeveloped Polaroids to make a calendar with fotoclips. I still use it!

Q: @boodles64 If you could suggest one thing to start learning for a new photog, what would it be? I’m overwhelmed with settings!

A: Put your camera in aperture priority (AP) mode. This will allow you to adjust the aperture to whichever setting you want, and the camera will adjust the shutter speed to make a correct exposure.

It’s my favorite of all the automatic modes, because it gives you a lot of creative control with depth of field (which is what the aperture controls.)

Q: @wendyh777 Explain aperture in 140 characters or less

A: Light sneaks into your camera through an aperture. If small (f/22), it makes a sharper image. If large (f/2.8), focus is more selective.

Q: @jollygeek What are various ways to become inspired to go out and shoot?

A: Look at tons of other photography! You don’t have to go out to a museum or gallery to see great photography these days, and there are so many awesome photographers online that inspire us every day when we’re looking for photos to post to our tumblr.

One of my favorite ways to get inspired and see new work is to go to a blog I like, find the one photo I like most, track down that photographer’s website, and look at all of their work.

I find so much great stuff that way that I wouldn’t have seen before, plus seeing other photographer’s portfolios always makes me excited to go out and work on my own.

Julieanne

Julieanne (or Jules!) is a tutorial writer and customer service agent. People say she looks like Scully from the X-Files. We agree. The way she knows the answer to every one of your questions is supernatural.

Q: @pepperjess For someone who doesn’t have the dough to drop on Photoshop, what is the next best alternative? or free alt? (picnic, picasa)?

A: GIMP. There is a learning curve, but it’s free and does a whole mess of Photoshoppy things.

Q @hilbelmont How does one manage to take photographs and still enjoy the moment…sometimes I struggle to.

A: This is a hard one! I’ve found a few things that have helped me (but I’m still figuring this out too).

Have some set times when you take some photos (beginning, middle and end perhaps) and have some set times when your camera is packed in your bag and you just enjoy the moment. Switching back and forth can help you keep it in balance.
If it’s possible to have someone else at the event who is also a photog it can really take the pressure off. Try not to be come the only photographer for your entire group of friends… if they want pictures they’ve got to help you out from time to time. If you’ve got a buddy who loves to shoot too, you can plan it out with them to switch back and forth – that way you won’t miss any photos but you’ll also get to be part of the party.
Start shooting film. If you can’t take a bazillion photos you’ll be more selective and more engaged in what is happening.
Know that it’s okay to not have a photo of every piece of your life. Sometimes life is just for enjoying in the moment. Don’t beat yourself up for not getting a picture of this or that. If it was something super special that you missed you can always write about it in a journal once you get home.

Liz

Liz writes many of our finest DIY tutorials. She has a magical way of making fancy projects easy to do! We think she might have a pact with a leprechaun. So magical.

Q: @jennjenn Can I be you guys when I grow up??

A: Sure! Why not? However, I still have yet to grow up, so I’ll let you know when I do. :)

Q: @howlingwolves What’s in your bag?

A: A lot! I have a rather large bag & like being prepared for anything that could happen!

Sweet leather wallet that my parents got for me from Spain
Keys (that always manage to get lost when I’m looking for them)
Burt’s Bees Replenishing Lip Balm (with pomegranate oil)
250GB portable hard drive. I hardly go anywhere without this!
Micron pens &/or Pilot Razor point pens
Post-its
3G iPhone. Sadly, it’s quite the dinosaur nowadays. But that’s okay, I think dinosaurs are neat.
Orbit gum in strawberry mint &/or wintermint
Metal card case that holds all those membership cards & whatnot
Ideas Log notebook
Measuring tape
Mini utility knife
Tums
Coldeeze
Eyeglass repair kit—with mini screws & all
Oil blotter sheets
Bandaids
Hand wipes (pet peeve of mine = greasy hands after eating fried foods. Not cool.)
Q-tips
Face powder
Travel toothbrush & toothpaste
Domo pouch that holds earphones
Random SD cards and bonus!—an SD card reader
A jumpdrive
Pop-up inflatable raft—just kidding!!

On some days I also carry my dad’s old Canon AE-1 Program with a Canon FD 50mm 1:1.8 lens in my bag, too. :)

Q: @missbmarie84 In your opinion, is it the gadget or the talent behind it that makes the photo?

A: Definitely the talent. Doesn’t matter if you have the newest, swankiest, shiniest camera toy on the block, if you don’t have the eye for creativity & patience to think outside the norm, your photos won’t be anything exceptional or interesting.

Same goes with any photo-editing program; I do use Photoshop & I love Instagram, but I don’t believe the use of either (or something similiar) makes a photo particularly fabulous.

In fact, I think what makes a photo should be the thought behind it as it was being shot—how somebody composed it, what angle was used, etc., not necessarily what effects were applied to it afterwards—whether by Photoshop, Instagram, or the like.

I also don’t think you need to be able to travel the world or have access to cool places to take the most awesome or interesting photos. Check out Abelardo Morell’s “Home” series, which feature some fantastic still life photos that use no special props or settings—just everyday household objects beautifully composed and shot inside his house!

Photo credit: Kelly by Terry Chay; Kiran by Mike Brown

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How to Use Your Android as a Photo Tool + Top 10 Apps

lisbeth — Thu, 19 May 2011 10:28:21 +0000

Nikon vs Canon, Mac vs PC, Rebecca Black vs Justin Bieber.

2-sided feuds aren’t a foreign concept considering you’re a Canon/Mac/Bieber appreciator.

When it comes to phones, you’re an Android lover.

This week, our Twitter and Facebook peeps voted on their favorite Android photo apps – apps for editing, filtering, friend-sharing, and even afternoon snacking (i.e. Pudding Cam!).

These are the top 10 crowd favorites!

Plus, as an added bonus, we rounded up apps designed to make life easier while you’re out shooting with your non-phone camera.

Whether you’re working with a gingerbread, cupcake, or a little green robot, your photo app folder is about to get real happy.

Use Your Android as a Photo Tool & Top Voted Apps

p.s. We’re throwing a Facebook giveaway today with our pals at Fracture! Fracture turns your photos into gorgeous glass prints that make snazzy wall hangings!

Your Android as a Handy Photo Tool

Let the gadget that’s always in your pocket (your phone) help you use the gadget that’s always around your neck (your camera).

In no particular order, here are a few apps that’ll make your shooting life easier and maybe even more fun.

Remote Your Cam – Lets you take photos with your DSLR from your phone. Adjust settings + instantly view photos on your phone.
Location Scout – Find filming locations from movies. Makes for cool backdrops.
Golden Hour – Tells you exactly when the golden hour of sunlight will be wherever you may be.
Color Flashlight – Turns your phone into a color flashlight – fun for light painting!
Wuala – Super secure way to access and edit your backed-up photo files from anywhere. Made by LaCie.
Bubble Level – Keeps your camera shooting straight.
PixelPipe – Lets you share your photos on multiple social networks at once.
Photometric – Pick an ISO and an F-stop and get the calculated exposure.
Light Meter – Uses your camera’s light sensor to calculate what your exposure should be for your (D)SLR.
Photography Assistant – Designed to calculate exposures + depth of field distances for SLRs. Also light meters.

Top 10 Voted Apps

These are the photo apps you guys (our Twitter and Facebook community) said are the absolute best photo apps right now.

They might even be amazing enough to convert an iPhone user! (Maybe.) Guess you’ll just have to try them out and see.

Vignette – Like experimenting with different films; it has 68 filters and 56 kinds of frames. Shoot with filters like Velvia and add effects like grain and soft focus. Check the options you want and shoot through the app. This is voted the #1 favorite!
PicSay – Consider this your go-to app when you want to adjust exposure, contrast, crop, and refine your photos with post processing in general. Get the Pro version for even more effects.
Retro Camera – Most like Hipstamatic. It gives your photos a vintage analog look with filters inspired by Lomo, Holga, Polaroid etc. plus other effects like film scratch, vignettes, and cross-processing.
Little Photo – Popular for its filters that update often and are up to 60+. Find sweet effects like adding text over your photos and creating bokeh. Also loved for being easy to use and having slick UI.
Picplz – Quick, good results and easy to share on multiple social networks at once. This app has filters to give your photos an artsy edge.
FxCamera – Lovable for its simplicity. Take a photo and add 1 of 5 effects: Fisheye, Polandroid, ToyCam, Warhol or SymmetriCam.
Pudding Camera – Choose what effects you want to use by scrolling through hip little film and camera icons. Lets you save in different image sizes and share on Twitter and Facebook.
Camera 360 – The do-it-all app, it packs 6 shooting modes, 30 effects (like selective focus and grids), tilt-shift, color-shift, and “scenery” which embeds your photo into another photo (i.e. your face is on a billboard).
HDR Camera – Combines 2 photos to make a single super-photo that’s evenly exposed throughout. Even lets you fine-tune the process.
Action Snap – A four-frame sampler! This app takes 4 photos in a row very quickly and combines them into a four-frame image – perfect for capturing fast motion.

Even More Apps to Try!

Apps that’ll make you go “whoa, I can do that?,” these are the honorable mentions.

A World of Photo – This is like a LIVE photo exchange. Open the app, find someone else who’s online and exchange a photo from your phone on the spot.
Photoshop Express- A phone version of a basic Photoshop. Make quick fixes with this one – straighten, crop, and fine-tune your pics.
3D Camera – Shoots 2 photos and lets you make and share a 3D wiggle .gif.
Face Blender – What would your kids look like? Find out the easy way by mashing up pictures of you and your friends!
Mini Instax Cam – Turn your photos into Instax Mini instant photos (looks like a skinny Polaroid!).
Flickr Explorer – Easy (and nice lookin’) way to browse photos on Flickr – view photos on a Google Map, search keywords, and make photos your background.
MyCloset – Take photos of your clothing, and this app will keep track of what you’ve worn, plus suggest outfits based on weather and past outfits.
Mobile Hidden Camera – Shoot in stealth mode. No sound or image – just a blank screen.
Mytubo – Most like Instagram. Share your photos, filters optional, with friends in a live stream.

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What iPhoneography Apps Are Hot Right Now

kelly — Thu, 12 May 2011 10:00:23 +0000

We’ve been wondering what photo apps the cool kids are using on their phones these days. Instagram? Hipstamatic? Diptic maybe?

So we rounded up 12 of our favorite smarties and asked for their top 3 faves.

Who’d we ask? Photographers (of course), web entrepreneurs, illustrators, designers, the guy who invented the #hashtag, and even a Mythbuster!

Here’s what we found out.

[BTW, we've got Android apps in here, too!]

The Top iPhoneography Apps Right Now

p.s. We’ve teamed up with our buddies at Fracture for a Twitter giveaway TODAY! Fracture prints your best photos directly onto glass, is ready to hang and looks super sleek.

Jake Lodwick

Who’s Jake? Inventor/founder of 13 billion web things like Vimeo and Pummelvision.

What’d he say?

Postagram
They print a postcard featuring one of your photos, and mail it to your girlfriend or Mom or whoever. Very low effort for a great result.

I Hardly Know Her*
A minimalist Flickr viewer. More elegant than the regular Flickr photostream. From Muxtape creator Justin Ouellette.

*FYI, this is an iphone-optimized website, not an app.

Everyday
This app bugs you to take a photo of yourself every day. Before you know it, you’ve got hundreds of self-portraits, just like the famous artist Noah Kalina, who co-created the app.

Check out our Pummelvision blurb [and interview with Jake]!

Zach Klein

Who’s Zach? Makes amazing web stuff like Vimeo and Svpply.

What’d he say? I’d be fibbing if I touted three, in fact I only use two:

PicPlz [Android friendly!]
A photo-sharing service made for a generation whose primary camera is their phone. Their location-tagging is especially swift, too.

360 Panorama
From the makers of RedLaser, this is simply one of the most ingenious panorama apps I’ve seen yet. They give you a 3D space and you ‘paint’ in your surrounding.

Kate Bingaman Burt

Who’s Kate? Our favorite illustrator! Also the author of Obsessive Consumption: What Did You Buy Today?

What’d she say? The ONLY photo app I use with great frequency is Instagram.

I love it because it is small and simple and the interaction feels super personal. I also love it because I can only use it on my phone!

Doctor Popular

Who’s Doc? Yo-yo enthusiast, Laughing Squid contributor, iPad street musician, Instawalk organizer, game designer, and SF-based “super nerd.”

What’d he say?

Slit-Scan
An unusual camera app that captures an image one chunk at a time from a moving horizontal position. Similar to dragging your hand across a photocopier.

Decim8
The ultimate tool to glitch out, melt, and awesomify your photos!

Interlacer
A unique way to stitch together multiple images. Try running a photo through Decim8 multiple times, then merging them with Interlacer.

Bonus!: SynthCam
Recreates the look of a narrow depth of field by taking dozens of shots of an object from slightly different perspectives and stitching them together. This app can be VERY tricky to use, but the results are often more interesting than your typical “tilt shift” app.

Even extra bonus: Doc’s full list of favorite iPhone apps.

Grant Imahara

Who’s Grant? Robotics engineer; R2D2 operator; blows stuff up on TV for Mythbusters.

What’d he say?

iPhone camera
Simple and to the point. Take a picture and then email it to Twitpic. Bam! It ends up on my feed. There are no other lenses or fancy exposure settings. It just takes pictures and that works fine for me.

Twitpic [Android friendly!]
It’s a workhorse. The pictures are emailed directly from my iPhone and the subject line becomes the caption. Twitpic automatically uploads to my feed. The interface is easy for people to navigate and comment on my photos (feedback is essential; helps me tailor my feed to what people like).

There is no number three. This is all I use. Period.

Noah Kalina

Who’s Noah? Photographic artist; has taken a self-portrait every day since 2000. Yes, really.

What’d he say?

3D Camera
Because I love the wigglegram effect.

Hipstamatic
Because I like the options and the interface.

Everyday
Because it was inspired by my everyday project and I
helped make it.

Kevin Meredith

Who’s Kevin? Lomokev! Superbad photographer; author of Hot Shots, Photo Op and Toy Cameras.

What’d he say? I have loads of photo apps but only use 3.

Instagram
Great for adding quick effects once your photo has been taken. It also has a built in mini social network which makes it easy to keep up with what your friends are doing visually.

Hipstamatic
Obvious but it’s still the king of the iPhone photo apps. It now has large selections of films, lenses and flashes which give you hundreds of different image combinations! I find it’s best to use the random feature by shaking the phone!

Everyday
There is no real instant gratification with it, as you have to use it for a few days before you see any result. It prompts you take a photo of yourself at regular intervals (I have mine set for 9am, 12pm and 9pm).

It has a handy grid feature so that all your photos line up and makes movies right on the phone. I have been using it for just over 2 mouths and only have 8
seconds of footage!

Chris Messina

Who’s Chris? Open web advocate at Google; invented the #hashtag.

What’d he say?

Instagram
Kind of a “no duh” at this point. It clearly fills the role Flickr used to play — but on my iPhone. Crisp, clear interaction; no fuss, no muss.

Pro HDR [Android friendly!]
Allows me to capture great shots in variable lighting conditions. Saves a lot of otherwise poorly lit shots from facing the wrath of my delete finger.

Infinicam
Instagram’s filters are great but sometimes redundant. Infinicam lets me play and experiment with an infinite set of filters.

Bonus: Halftone
If I’m going to engage in fauxtography, I *must* have something that helps me produce cartoon-style content!

Amit Gupta

Who’s Amit? Our very own Head Jojo, Amit’s the inventor of Photojojo, Jelly, and amazing things in general.

What’d he say?

Instagram
I realize I’m probably the 10th person to say this, but it’s the most-used photo app on my iPhone, by far. It’s simply what camera phones were made for.

Snappy
The fastest camera app on your phone. Swipe right on your status bar, from any app on your phone, and a camera instantly slides down. If you’ve missed shots because the camera app took too long to open, you need this. You will need to jailbreak your phone to use it. (Thx to Tag Savage for the tip.)

3D Camera
Super simple app for making those “Wigglegram” 3D animated gif photos. Snap a photo, move a few inches to the right, snap another, and it’s done!

Honorable mention: PS Express [Android friendly!]
I’ve tried a bunch of image editing apps on the iPhone. For some reason, I keep coming back to Photoshop Express. It’s simple, quick, and gets the job done.

Paul Octavious

Who’s Paul? Gorgeous lovely photographer. You might have noticed we really like him.

What’d he say?

Instagram
Gives me that excitement of a new relationship. I find it amazing how differently people are looking at objects & angles that they wouldn’t have given a second look to. It is pretty amazing.

Slow Shutter
Lets you create long exposures. Flash Light + iPhone + Glif = Awesome Sauce

360 Panorama
Its kinda like the Spinner 360 camera but you perform a slow spin while holding your iPhone. Totes worth it!

Dane Sanders

Who’s Dane? Very pro photographer; author of 2 Fast Track Photographer books.

What’d he say?

Instagram
There were other great photo sharing apps before Instagram showed up on the scene but none quite got the experience right. Instagram felt more like a twitter did only instead of photos being an add-on, it was central. I like that.

Pro HDR [Android friendly!]
I think HDR is just beginning and I love what it’s pointing to. When friends like Trey Ratcliff are creating epic HDR art, it’s tempting to tap out but apps like Pro HDR make making ghetto HDR pretty accessible and fun.

8mm
I know it’s moving pictures but I really do dig the old school feel of the videos it makes. Awesome.

Kevin Systrom

Who’s Kevin? One of the smarties that founded Instagram.

What’d he say?

Diptic
I love stringing together a series of events in panels to post on Instagram. Best part? It’s already square format.

TiltShift
I love playing with faux depth of field, contrast, saturation, etc. Makes my food pictures look even tastier

Instagram
Of course you didn’t think I wasn’t going to mention this right? 3.75 million users in 6 months. Love the community. It’s inspiring to see.

Read our article on 10 new ways to play with Instagram, plus our intro to Instagram.

How to Use Your Android as a Photo Tool + Top 10 Apps Nikon vs Canon, Mac vs PC, Rebecca Black vs Justin...

How to Get Super Slow-Motion Effects with Any Camera

lisbeth — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 10:00:16 +0000

Of all the motions in the book, slow motion is the one that really gets your photo mojo (jojo?) going.

But woe is you — the price tag on a high speed camera averages about $100,000 (ohai Phantom Flex).

Will you ever get to play with slo-mo effects? Oh heck yes, you will!

Twixtor is a simple After Effects/Final Cut Pro plugin that will make your video look like it was shot at incredible 1000fps levels. It adds frames instead of merely slowing down your footage.

In other words, you’ll get epic montages that capture every gorgeous detail you’d otherwise miss in normal-time. Even super ordinary actions look phenomenal at 1000+fps.

Twixtor’s paving the road to making this creative effect available to more folks (not just ones with tons of moola), and we think that’s pretty rad.

A few not-to-be-missed samples of Twixtor in action: BMXer on a Canon 7D, roof jumping on a Canon T2i, puddles on a T2i, and a fire-breather on a 7D*.

[FYI Twixtor runs around $300-$500, thousands cheaper than a fancy camera, but another alternative are speed adjustment tools like Time Warp which comes with After Effects, as seen here.]

Get Rad Slo-Mo Effects via Twixtor

p.s. We’re headed to Hong Kong! Know any cool camera shops we should visit? (Or anything else amazing we should see?) Tell us!

*Videos via kottke, fstoppers

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Instagram: Share Phone Photos with Friends, In the Moment

lisbeth — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 13:11:08 +0000

We’ll never stop <3ing our DSLR, polaroids, or film cams.

But it's our camera phone that's always with us. Like when we spotted a pug trotting down the street sporting goggles or that guy unicycling up the steepest hill of all time.

Enter Instagram.

Not just another camera app or more filters for your pix. Instagram is THE way to share the fleeting moments of your life.

What makes it different? It’s simple and fast. Take a photo, choose a filter (optional), you’re done. It uploads automatically.

Or tap the feed and see all your friends’ everyday lives through their eyes in about 20 seconds. The lack of editing + the immediacy of phone photography makes the experience raw, addicting, and kind of magical. In short, Instagram is what the camera phone was made for.

Download it, then peep our getting started guide (with help from Kevin Systrom, co-founder of Instagram) for who to follow and the best tips for Instagram.

Our Instagram Tips and Best Users to Follow

p.s. Yes, it’s iPhone-only, but versions for other phones are in the works! (Let ‘em know you want them.)

p.p.s. Today only, we’re running the 1st-ever Instagram photo contest on Instagram! Follow Photojojo to learn more!

Why we love Instagram:

It’s a real time, photographic glimpse into our friend’s lives that we’ve never quite had before.

Phone-ography taken to the next level; having an audience = thoughtful and creative phone photos.

Simple format means no frills, just photos.

Option to keep our photo filter-free is perfect for when we’re in a purist mood.

11 free filters and a square format frame will never let us forget our analog roots.

Joining this rapidly growing community at its very beginnings makes us feel special!

All kinds of fun and creativity yet to be had with this app; see our tips below.

If you’re just getting started on Instagram, we’ll show you who to follow and all of the awesome ways to play with it!

Who to Follow

(AKA these guys have amazing photo streams!)

Click handle names that are linked to see Instagram photos from a specific user.

To find people from our list on Instagram, go to “Profile,” then “Find friends.” There, you’ll be able to search for and follow these noteworthy Instagram users!

Photojojo

Photojojo
Superamit (Amit Gupta, Photojojo founder)
Lokate (Laurel Kate Sittig)
Heyamberrae (Amber Rae)
Lisbetho (Lisbeth Ortega)

Photographers

Colerise (His photo site. See his aerial photos!)
Robertjosiah (His artwork)
Danrubin (See his Flickr)
Laurenlemon (Lauren Randolph’s site)
Lbm (of Pictory and Phoot Camp fame, Laura Brunow Miner)
Joey (Of Leica iPhone skin fame; his site)
Gnuhaus (His photo Tumblr)
Neo121 (Project 365 via Instagram)

Design + Tech

Chris (Chris Messina)
Swissmiss (Of Swiss-miss.com)
Everyplace (known as Erin Sparling)
Grex (See his night photography; his site)
Jayzombie (Her site)
Simplebits (Their site)

International

Naomiatkinson (Sheffield, UK; her site)
Monospoon (Tokyo, Japan)
Kiseracera (Japan)
J_ota (Japan)
Cipher (Japan)
Sethw (Europe)

Take Your Instagram Photos Further:

365 project: Post one great photo a day for 365 days. Challenge yourself!
Pre-edit your photos in other apps, like Camerabag or Photoshop; create diptychs, triptychs, add text – endless possibilities here.
Play theme games with friends; set a theme for the day (example: Things that start with the letter H). Watch your friends’ progress throughout the day.
Use our cell phone lenses for fish-eye, wide-angle, and macro pics. Your photos will stand out, for sure!
Upload photos taken with other cameras besides your phone for a fun mixture of hi- and lo-fi.
Post something other than photos. Some people have been posting text as notepad screenshot. This has us thinking of other kinds of images we can post (like design!).
Use screenshots to run your photo through Instagram filters multiple times to overlap filters or to intensify a single filter.
Play a photo scavenger hunt with friends; watch your stream to see who’s winning.
Don’t have friends on Instagram yet? Post your photos to Twitter, Tumblr, or Facebook to show them how epic it is!
If you’re looking to connect with users who you don’t know, follow them, and they’ll usually follow you back. (Try our list above or check the “Popular” section).

Photo credit: Jory on Flickr (bike lane, slides, kids at pool photos), Takeshi Kimi (office building photo), and Simplebits (green door photo).

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Photojojo’s Ultimate Hipstamatic Guide

kelly — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 13:00:19 +0000

Extra photos for bloggers: 1, 2, 3

We’ve been addicted to Hipstamatic lately, this iPhone app that lets you take retro-look photos with your future phone. You can change up virtual lenses, flashes, and even films.

Thing is, since each lens, film, and flash produces a different look, it can get overwhelming. You know, like, what does the Jimmy lens look like if you use Pistil film and the Dreampop flash?

6 lenses + 7 flash options + 8 films = 336 different combinations. YIKES!

So we took 336 photos with every possible combination of the Hipstamatic arsenal. (Because we love you.) And we’ve even broken it down into an easy guide to tell you which combos go together. (Ditto.)

Photojojo’s Ultimate Hipstamatic Guide
Here’s where we break it down by lens, film, and flash

Big Wall of 336 Photos
Find the look you like, click it to find out how to do it!

p.s. We’re hiring in San Francisco! Must write sharp copy, know how to spread ideas, and eat social media for breakfast. info…

p.p.s. Thanks to reader Kara for heppin’ us to Hipstamatic!

Lens: John S

Package: Standard Equipment

Color Cast: Blue-green, especially in shadow areas

Tone: Dark

Contrast: High

Focus: Sharpest

Use with: Standard flash, BlacKeys films

Full details: John S Lens

Lens: Jimmy

Package: Standard Equipment

Color Cast: Light yellow

Tone: Light

Contrast: Medium

Focus: Blurriest

Use with: Laser Lemon Gel flash, Berry Pop flash, Float Film

Full details: Jimmy Lens

Lens: Kaimal Mark II

Package: Standard Equipment

Color Cast: Faded reddish-orange

Tone: Light

Contrast: Low

Focus: Sharpish

Use with: Laser Lemon Gel flash, Berry Pop flash, Alfred Infrared film

Full details: Kaimal Mark II Lens

Lens: Helga Viking

Package: Williamsburg Hipstapak

Color Cast: Slightly blue-violet in shadow areas

Tone: Medium-light

Contrast: Low

Focus: Blurry

Use with: Cadet Blue Gel flash, Float film

Full details: Helga Viking Lens

Lens: Lucifer VI

Package: the Portland Hipstapak

Color Cast: Red

Tone: Medium

Contrast: High

Focus: Blurry

Use with: Dreampop flash, BlacKeys films

Full details: Lucifer VI Lens

Lens: Roboto Glitter

Package: Shibuya Hipstapak

Color Cast: Blue shadows, greenish highlights

Tone: Light

Contrast: Low

Focus: Sharpest

Use with: Berry Pop flash, Float film, Alfred Infrared film

Full details: Roboto Glitter Lens

Film: Blanko

Package: Standard Equipment

Special effects: NONE — border only

Border: Minimal, white

Use with: Everything

Full details: Blanko Film

Film: Ina’s 1969

Package: Standard Equipment

Special effects: NONE — border only

Border: Polaroid-look, textured, off-white, rounded corners

Use with: Everything

Full details: Ina’s 1969 Film

Film: Kodot Verichrome

Package: Standard Equipment

Special effects: NONE — border only

Border: Rough edges, artsy-lookin’

Use with: Everything

Full details: Kodot Verichrome Film

Film: BlacKeys B+W

Package: the Portland Hipstapak

Special effects: Monochrome black-and-white

Border: Rough black frame within white border with date stamp (from 30 years ago)

Use with: John S lens, RedEye Gel flash, Laser Lemon Gel flash

Full details: BlacKeys B+W Film

Film: BlacKeys Super Grain

Package: Camden Hipstapak

Special effects: High-contrast, gritty black-and-white

Border: Minimal black border with rounded corners

Use with: John S lens, RedEye Gel flash, Laser Lemon Gel flash

Full details: BlacKeys Super Grain Film

Film: Alfred Infrared

Package: Camden Hipstapak

Special effects: “Infrared” look: red tint, blue shadows, greenish highlights

Border: White frame with two dots on left edge

Use with: John S lens (to tone down), Kaimal and Lucifer lenses (to enhance)

Full details: Alfred Infrared Film

Film: Pistil

Package: Williamsburg Hipstapak

Special effects: NONE — border only

Border: Black border with numbers/letters, like a contact sheet

Use with: Everything

Full details: Pistil Film

Film: Float

Package: Shibuya Hipstapak

Special effects: TTV effect, like looking through a dirty brownish window

Border: Rough, speckly black border with rounded edges

Use with: Roboto Glitter lens (to tone down), Lucifer lens (to enhance)

Full details: Float Film

Flash: None

Package: Standard Equipment

Special effects: NONE

Color Cast: NONE

Use with: Anything (it’s what you get if you don’t swipe the flash “switch”)

Full details: No Flash

Flash: Standard

Package: Standard Equipment

Special effects: Lightens picture, bumps up contrast significantly

Color Cast: NONE

Use with: Anything

Full details: Standard Flash

Flash: Dreampop

Package: Standard Equipment

Special effects: Adds random yellow-orange light-leak flare

Color Cast: Slightly warm

Use with: Anything

Full details: Dreampop Flash

Flash: Cadet Blue Gel

Package: Williamsburg Hipstapak

Special effects: Lightens picture and adds a little contrast

Color Cast: Blue

Use with: Helga and Roboto lenses (to enhance), Lucifer and Kaimal lenses (to tone down)

Full details: Cadet Blue Gel Flash

Flash: RedEye Gel

Package: Williamsburg Hipstapak

Special effects: Lightens picture and adds a little contrast

Color Cast: Red

Use with: BlacKeys films (to add contrast and darken shadows), Lucifer and Kaimal lenses (to enhance)

Full details: RedEye Gel Flash

Flash: Laser Lemon Gel

Package: Williamsburg Hipstapak

Special effects: Lightens picture and adds a little contrast

Color Cast: Yellow

Use with: BlacKeys films (to add contrast and bring out shadow detail), Jimmy lens (to enhance), Helga and Roboto lenses (to tone down)

Full details: Laser Lemon Gel Flash

Flash: Berry Pop

Package: Shibuya Hipstapak

Special effects: Lightens picture and adds a little contrast

Color Cast: Magenta with bluish center

Use with: Jimmy lens (for neat rainbow effect), Roboto Glitter lens (for full-on blue raspberry candy-colored insanity)

Full details: Berry Pop Flash

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The Lensbaby Composer — A Quick â€™nâ€™ Dirty Review

kelly — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 09:20:14 +0000

~
Have a cool photo product or site?
Reach 260,000 photo fans

We’ve been trying out the Lensbaby* Composer lately: it’s an odd little lens that gives you a moveable area of sharp focus, surrounded by a dreamy halo of blurriness.

After knocking around with it for a few weeks, here’s what we think:

The Good:

Easier to focus and sharper optics than the original Lensbaby.

Easier to move the “sweet spot” of focus and get repeatable results.

Good for photos where you want to draw the eye to one particular detail, like food, product or portrait shots.

If you decide you don’t want the Lensbaby “look” for a particular shot, you can reduce the effect dramatically by using the narrowest aperture. A friend of ours uses it as his go-to lens because of the sharp optics and light weight.

Gadgets! Optional, interchangeable optics and wide-angle or telephoto adapters give you lots of different looks from one lens.

The Bad:

Having to change the apertures manually can slow you down a lot.

Manual focus makes it harder to capture fast-moving action, and it’s tricky to focus in low light.

Wider apertures are prone to some pretty serious lens flare.

The Lensbaby takes some getting used to. It’s a good idea to practice with it for a while before taking it on an important shoot.

The Ugly:

Sorry, we’re fresh out of ugly.

Conclusion:
If we got stranded on a desert island with only one lens, we might make it this one (with the possible addition of a wide-angle adapter). It’s light, versatile, sharp (when you want it to be) and really fun to use.

The Lensbaby Composer

*Full disclosure: Lensbaby is a Photojojo advertiser, but our love for them is true. (Their first lens was one of the first things we reviewed when we were just starting out almost three years ago.)

p.s. We put our test shots up here in case you guys wanna see ‘em.

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Supercharge Your Point & Shoot

kelly — Thu, 08 May 2008 10:50:57 +0000

This Photojojo made possible by... ~
Thanks to our returning
sponsor Squarespace
for supporting Photojojo!

Your point & shoot camera has been keeping things from you.

Has it mentioned, for example, that it has a motion sensor for photographing lightning, or that it can shoot in RAW format? We’ll bet it hasn’t even told you that it can shoot at speeds up to 1/25,000th of a second.

Well, if it happens to be a Canon, it can.

The Canon Hacker’s Development Kit (CHDK) is a free download that can expand your camera’s options like strapping a JATO rocket on a Chevy Impala.

CHDK’s been around for a while, but Lifehacker just wrote an article that makes it understandable for mere mortals. What is it? Why do you want it? How do you use it? It’s all there.

Open up communications with your camera. Let the healing begin.

Supercharge Your Point & Shoot

p.s. Free hugs for Twitter friends! Follow Photojojo on Twitter. Recent faves: Photo bombers! Fake infrared photos! & more!

Photo credit: Fir0002

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Lensbaby 2.0 Review: Old-School, Manual-Focus, Retro Novelty Lens Fun

photojojo — Mon, 26 Jun 2006 06:55:02 +0000

If you’ve admired the lo-fi beauty of your bud’s Holga shots but dread returning to the pre-digital dark ages, we’ve got the answer.

Craig Strong invented the Lensbaby to give his snazzy digital SLR shots an aesthetic similar to a Holga’s. The tiny lens fits most popular camera bodies, and it’s decidedly old-fashioned: no auto-focus, no light-metering on many modern cameras, no zoom, no camera-selectable aperture.

Instead, your $150 buys unadulterated photographic fun–a cool effect reminiscent of a Holga or a tilt-shift lens, but totally unique.

Read Our Lensbaby Review and See Our Sample Shots
www.photojojo.com/content/buy-this/lensbaby-2-review/

Let’s get this out of the way at the beginning: The Lensbaby is not a serious lens. It’s not made from German-engineered optics, and it’s not going to give you shots sharp enough to identify people in a crowd from hundreds of feet away.

But photography is supposed to be fun, and fun the Lensbaby does with style. This little guy can take shots that you can’t take with other lenses, and he’ll give you more control over your than most other lenses. Think of using a Lensbaby like painting with your camera.

Overview

This review covers Lensbaby 2.0, a revised version of the original Lensbaby. Lensbaby 2.0 is available direct from the manufacturer for $149.

The Lensbaby is a small, lightweight (3.7 oz) lens built like an accordian. Different versions are available for various camera mounts (Nikon, Canon, Minolta, Leica, Olympus, Pentax, Contax) but they all work the same way. You use your fingers to squeeze the accordion, bringing your image into focus. Then, you bend the lens left, right, up, or down to narrow your focus to your subject. To hold your focus, you hold your lens still as you depress the shutter.

Lensbaby is made from coated glass and approximates a 50mm lens with a minimum focus distance of about a foot. Because it’s is a purely analog device, Lensbaby does not talk to modern cameras’ sophisticated light-metering systems–which means you need to meter the old fashioned way: using your eyes. Finally, aperture control requires removing the lens and swapping in one of several small metal disks (f2.0, f2.8, f4, f5.6, f8).

What’s in the box

Lensbaby arrives in a tiny orange cardboard cube. Inside, you’ll find the lens itself, a screw-on metal lens cap, interchangeable aperture rings, and a ring replacement tool. A friendly accordion-like instruction booklet rides along, as does a soft drawstring cloth pouch to carry your Lensbaby and accessories.

It’s a nice package, and it’s clear that some thought went into the out-of-box experience. Details matter to these people.

(Click on a thumbnail to see it larger.)

How it works

Lensbaby is not your average lens. Not only is it quite a bit smaller than other lenses you’re likely to have, its full manual control makes using it a much more interactive experience.

Focus is pretty easy to achieve (even if you’re used to relying on auto-focus), but holding your focus steady while clicking the shutter requires practice. Maneuvering the accordion lens around to get your subject in the sweet spot also takes some getting used to. But once you get it, you get it.

If you can’t use your camera’s light meter, you’ll probably need to take a few practice shots to get your shutter speed set appropriately for the lighting–not a big deal.

For the most part, we found ourselves leaving a single aperture ring in all of the time. While it was nice to have the flexibility to swap in different rings for different apertures, in practice removing the lens and swapping in parts wasn’t worth the effort.

Even after you’ve logged some practice time with Lensbaby, you’ll still need to take a few shots to get one that works just right in lighting and in focus. And don’t expect them to be tack sharp like the ones you get from your primes, either–that’s not what Lensbaby is about. You can expect good shots, and exercise a fair amount of creative control you couldn’t otherwise.

We were able to get some photos that we could never have gotten with conventional lenses, and would have had trouble achieving even with time in Photoshop. And we had fun in the process!

Here are a few example shots:

(Click on a thumbnail to see it larger.)

Conclusion

Already have an SLR and a decent lens? Then a Lensbaby will make a fun addition to your arsenal, or a great gift for an SLR-toting bud. It’s a whole lot less bulky than a plastic Holga bought on eBay, and at $150, it’s cheaper than most ‘normal’ lenses. You’ll have fun with this one.

(And hey, they offer a full refund within 30 days if you’re not satisfied.)

Lensbaby 2.0
www.lensbabies.com

Amit is 26 and lives in a NYC with four of his best friends. His favorite things include malted milkshakes and photography. www.amitgupta.com

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