Photography apps to save you time and help you create magical effects without costing you an arm and a leg...
We all know the frustration of having to take a photo in the spur of the moment, and then looking at it and thinking what a waste of a good moment that was... the photo might be blurred, the exposure might have been too light or too dark, or the photo might just simply need a touch of pizzazz to enable it to pop... (pop in photography slang simply means that the colors and contrast become vibrant and it becomes magical :-) )
I have a few go-to apps on my mobile phone, which is available for both Android (Google Play Store) and iPhone (App Store). Here is a list of 4 of my favorites that you might want to give a try.
1. SNAPSEED
Snapseed is an amazing app and the best part of it all - it's FREE! The app is developed by Google, and is a user friendly, powerful app to have on your mobile phone. I can guarantee you hours of fun while playing around with all the different filters and effects.
Snapseed boasts with 29 tools and filters, and includes Healing, Brush, HDR, Vignetting, Lens Blur, Glamour Glow and Retrolux to name but a few.
You can even edit RAW images and work with curves. (Keep reading this blog to find out in one of the upcoming posts what this means if you now find yourself with a frown on your face)
2. VSCO
Another powerful app when it comes to easy photo editing.
This app comes in a free version with limited functions (10 different presets to choose from), or a paid version at $19.00 USD per year with access to the complete VSCO library containing 170+ presets and tools. The paid version also includes video editing, Kodak vintage photo effects as well as tutorials.
The hidden beauty of this app is that you get the opportunity to connect and share your photos with other creatives and you might even get the chance for your photos to be curated by VSCO.
It is worth trying the free version, and you get a 7 day free trial on the paid version, which gives you enough time to play around and see if this will do what you want it to do.
3. ADOBE LIGHTROOM CC
This app might sound a bit intimidating, but it is suitable for both beginners and experienced photographers. I would really encourage everyone to try it out and see what it can do. Here is a short video to show you some of the tools that Adobe Lightroom CC has in store for you...
The Adobe Lightroom CC app is FREE for both Android and iPhone and offers in-app purchases for extra functionality if you feel the need to access the premium functions.
Choose from many filters and Lightroom Presets to edit your photos, or use the split toning, curves, color mixer, dehaze or clarity functions. This app offers a bulk editing feature which is super cool when you have many images to edit in the same style. This feature saves you hours of editing with the push of a simple button.
Last but definitely not the least is an app that most of you probably know and use on a regular basis, but don't use it to it's full capacity...
4. INSTAGRAM
I bet most of you reading this have got Instagram accounts set up and even post to the platform regularly. But did you know that Instagram has a powerful and super easy editing side to it? Yup, that's right and you need to look no further!
Besides the amazing filters that it offers you, it has many other added fun elements such as loop, boomerang and some other creative effects. You can adjust brightness, contrast, exposure and add various filters to your photos to give it different atmospheres. The best of all is the fact that with the press of a button your photos can directly appear in your Instagram profile grid, or even feature as an Instagram story (which stays visible for only 24 hours after posting).
Keep an eye out for our Instagram photo challenge that we will be running later this year and make sure that you join in the fun.
In summary, you don't need expensive apps and tools to make your photos look professional. Try using these 4 suggested apps and let us know in the comments what you think of them...happy snapping!