Notes from the Studio
-
1|052011
iPhone Photo Apps Revisited
If you're like me, you can never have too many camera apps. I'm always asked what my favorite photo apps are. Here's a run down on some of my favorite and some that I'm just trying out.
Picture show is my favorite photo app. If I could only have one photo app this would be it. It has so many great customizable effects from very basic to crazy. With PictureShow, you have total control of your the outcome of your image.
This is my seconded favorite app. It has really nice effect and borders. What I don't like is you can't import a photo into the app. I put up with this because the app is fast and processes in the background so you can keep taking photos. It also has some nice photo taking tools like a level.
SwanKoLab
This app excels at changing the color of your photo. It makes the photos look amazing. Another plus for this app is that you can import a photo from your iPhone library. I wish this app had an option for a basic white border and an option to bypass the "lab" developing gimmick. It's cool the first few times seeing the mixture of chemicals in the darkroom but sometimes you just want the results instantly.
When I need a quick, good looking photo with out having to think about settings I use this app. It's made by the makers of Shake It Photo.
This app lets you make small posters. Who doesn't like to make posters. It comes with lots of templates that have customizable text.
Normally I use this app in-conjunction with another app. It has a lot of flare options to choose from.
Not only is this app free, it has great effects and borders. It also has a built in social network just for sharing the photos you take. The one negative, and this is a big one for me, is the files are small. If they add support for full size output, I would use this app much more.
When I first got this app I used it all the time. I still like the results but I don't like how long the whole process takes. I would use this app much more if I could import photos from the iPhone library. That being said, the results from this app are like no other.
This app was recently redone and much improved. The big feature of this app is that you can take a photo with the focus point and the exposure points separated. It also has nice borders and effects.
Snow in San Francisco, crazy. This app is all about the effects, some unique like this snow effect. It's not a "Go-to" app. It's more of a secondary app that you mess with if you want to explore options for your image.
Has a nice collection of camera tools for taking photo and video like a level, split focus and exposure. You can use a photo taken by the app or from the iPhone library to apply effects.
I downloaded it hoping for lots of cool effects but most of them are like a rusted piece of metal superimposed onto the image. I wasn't very happy with this app and do not plan on using it any further. The 100 cameras can be narrowed down to 10 cameras.
IncrediBooth is made by the same folks as Hipstamatic. The effects are done really well. It only uses the front-facing camera but that's all I need it for. My kids and I love it. If you prefer to use the back camera, then try Pocketbooth but I don't think the output is as nice.
-
12|022009
Macworld: Puttin' it all togehter
I've just completed the opening photo for Macworld's annual Editors Choice Awards. It was a huge puzzle, because I had to take so many different photos and piece them together. The process of assembling the images is the big moment where you find out if you've envisioned things correctly. As it turns out, just before I took the set of the red carpet down, I decided the photo needed more depth. I took another shot of the red carpet going into the photo rather than straight across the frame. Thankfully, I was able to make this change because when I photographed the people I had them stand to the left, right and center. This gave me the flexibility to move the people around and play with their final positioning.
Recognize that hand holding the award? It's mine. I don't normally use my hands in shots, but because of scheduling it just made things easier. Rob at Macworld will be adding some words to the awning in the final design phase, but other than that the image is pretty much complete. Keep an eye on news stands for the magazine sometime in mid January.Here's a link to the sketch that the photo was based on. http://www.peterbelanger.com/posts/46-the-sketch-that-started-it
-
8|192009
Casual photos part 2
I've posted before about finding time to photograph casually.Well when I'm on vacation I have a similar problem. My kids are still at that stage were they need my attention every waking hour. I've been working better at taking a second here and there to shoot things as I'm out and about with the kids. Here are a couple photos I took from my recent trip. Unlike my last postI kept my camera gear to a minimum. This time I only took the Canon 1Ds MarkIII with a 24mm-70mm lens. It worked well for most of the situations.
-
8|072009
cover creation
After working on the latest cover for MacWorld Magazine I wanted to show what is involved in making a cover. I focused on the three main areas: the photography, photoshop and design. I chose a time lapse format to convey lots of information in a small amount of time. The only drawback of time lapse is that since half a day goes by in 30 seconds, the whole process seam so easy! Lots of details were left out of the design process (like the cover meetings and rounds of layout options). I began to photograph the design process after the layouts had already been narrowed down to just three cover designs.On the technical side, for the time lapse video, I used the Canon 5D Mark II with a 24mm-70mm zoom. I chose the 5D because of its great image quality with high ISO's. Canon's sRAW1 gave me the flexibility of a RAW file with the file size of a jpeg. The actual Macworld cover was taken with a Phase One P65+ digital back attached to a 4x5 Sinar X camera with a 65mm lens.Many thanks to Rob Schultz for allowing me to invade his office and literally shoot over his shoulder.The music was used with permission by The Brokenmusicbox. You can see more of their music at http://www.myspace.com/tbmbAfter working on the latest cover for Macworld Magazine I wanted to show what is involved in making a cover. I focused on the three main areas: the photography, photoshop and design. I chose a time lapse format to convey lots of information in a small amount of time. The only drawback of time lapse is that since half a day goes by in 30 seconds, the whole process seam so easy! Lots of details were left out of the design process (like the cover meetings and rounds of layout options). I began to photograph the design process after the layouts had already been narrowed down to just three cover designs.
On the technical side, for the time lapse video, I used the Canon 5D Mark II with a 24mm-70mm zoom. I chose the 5D because of its great image quality with high ISO's. Canon's sRAW1 gave me the flexibility of a RAW file with the file size of a jpeg. The actual Macworld cover was taken with a Phase One P65+ digital back attached to a 4x5 Sinar X camera with a 65mm lens.
Many thanks to Rob Schultz for allowing me to invade his office and literally shoot over his shoulder.
The music was used with permission by The Brokenmusicbox. You can see more of their music at http://www.myspace.com/tbmb
-
7|282009
Casual photos
Before I had kids I would take time to go out and photograph for myself. The joy of this was I had lots of time and no pressure. Now that I have kids,it's really hard to find the time to shoot for myself. I see lots of things that I want to stop and photograph but with kids, I have other agendas. The other day, we were at a fair and I wanted to spend the time walking around photographing but I had to be a dad and enjoy the rides with my kids. Don't get me wrong, I love the rides! We found oneroller coasterwith no lines and no adults allowed so the kids rode it over and over again. This gave me about 15 minutes to photograph the things right in front of me. It wasn't what I was hoping for but I was still happy with the results.
-
6|302009
South Carolina
When I travel, I am often compelled to photograph unique buildings or structures. Sometimes they speak to me with a strong American style, other times I just see an aesthetic or composition that appeals to me. The places are full of history.The photos below were taken in Charleston, South Carolina. It was so hot and humid I had to drive with the air conditioning off. If I didn't the camera lens and the P65+ digital back would fog up as soon as I stepped outside into the hot air.
