iPhone Photo Apps

For the past several weeks I have been reviewing iPhone apps for Current Photographer. While I am having some great fun writing the reviews, there is a bonus advantage to writing these reviews...Because I am purposefully looking for new apps that are helpful for photographers, I download a lot of photo apps and take some time to play with them--and many of them are lots of fun.

While I will not republish the reviews here, I will occasionally share examples of what I am doing with the new iPhone apps I am using as a result of this experience.

The first one was taken and edited on Camera+ photo app. It was taken at about 3:30 pm in Scottsboro Alabama as we crossed the Tennessee River. (I wasn't driving, by the way). You can't really call it a sunset, but the sun was low in the sky and there was a layer of fluffy clouds that really filtered the sun. I applied the vibrant effect and the vignette frame in Camera+. I like the results.

The second photo was actually taken by mistake but I liked it so I kept it. I was out in my front yard while we still had a layer of ice over several inches of snow. As I walked across the yard I found that the ice had cracked. I squatted on the ice to try to get a photo but couldn't see the phone screen because my auto-darkening eyeglasses were so dark. The front-facing camera on my phone was active, so instead of taking a shot of the ice, I took a pic of myself. However, once I took my glasses off (ouch! it was bright) I found that the front-facing camera had captured a shot of me with some cool clouds in the background. My hair is a mess, but it had promise.

Enter iPhone apps. I first cropped the image using Camera+ and then added an additional effect with Pic Grunger. The third photo is the final result. Again, this is not exactly what you are going to use for a portrait, but I think it is a fun photo. Did I just reach the top of Everest? (Yeah, right...) Perhaps I just got out of my vintage WWI airplane? (I wish). In reality I just got off my Kubota tractor, but Pic Grunger makes it look like I just did something much cooler.

I hope you have as much fun with these apps as I have. Click here to check out my reviews on Current Photographer.

Best...MK

Contributor for CurrentPhotographer.com

Through the magic of the connections made on Twitter, I was recently offered the opportunity to become a contributor for CurrentPhotographer. Specifically, I will be writing a regular weekly post reviewing photography-related iPhone and iPad applications. My first post is a review of Pic Grunger, a really cool application that allows you to make your pics look old.

Run by professional photographer Trevor Current, CurrentPhotographer provides "information and resources to help educate and inspire the photo community to make better photos. Our topics include breaking photo industry news, tips, tools, techniques, how-tos and reviews for beginners through professionals." Check it out at www.currentphotographer.com.

I also recently contributed to the FatPhotographer site, which is designed to link photographers worldwide. If you are going on a trip anywhere in the world and want to know (from a local) where to shoot, visit the site to find tips about where to shoot, as well as listings of photo stores, processors, professional photographers and more. I wrote the introduction to the Alabama page. If you find that your state or area has not yet been developed you may get the opportunity to contribute to the site.

Since this is a photo blog, I am including one shot from my recent trip to Louisville, KY. This was shot at a red light looking north toward 4th Street Live.

Until next time, check out my posts on CurrentPhotographer.com and follow me on Twitter (@manualdslr)...Mike

Late Veteran's Day Post

I should have posted this one yesterday, but didn't get a chance.

This is one of my favorite photos of my Dad. It was taken a few weeks ago after 2 of my sons, my brother, a brother in law and I helped him replace the roof on his workshop that was damaged in a recent storm. We were all tired and dirty but I happened to have my camera in my truck. (Imagine that).

My Dad had just walked through the carport and was still partially in the shadows when I got this shot. To me, it really represents him: hands in pockets, wearing a hat, flannel shirt, pencil in pocket (I inherited that one).

It is fitting on Veteran's Day to recognize the heroes (present and past) who have fought for our freedom. For that reason and more, here's mine.

Kenneth Kennamer, Veteran of WWII, U.S. Army, Pacific Theater.

Please be sure to thank heroes like my Dad and others who sacrificed so much for our country. And not just on Veteran's Day. If you have an Honor Flight program in your area, please consider supporting it. Learn more at www.honorflight.org.

All the best!

Just Having Fun

I haven't had much of a chance to take photos recently but I have had some time to think about what I could take pictures of. One of the ideas I had involved my 14-year-old son, Lane, and his sword. What... Your 14-year-old kid doesn't have a sword? Okay, that's a different story. Let's talk about the picture.

I was looking to do something edgy but I didn't have a clear vision for how it would look because I don't spend a lot of time hanging out in the woods. After some really bad poses initiated by me (not sure how we ever got him out of tree without hurting at least one of us), Lane suggested a spot in a thicket next to a tree. It looked good to me so I told him to pretend that he was all alone with only his sword with which to protect himself, and the bad guys are on the way. Here is the result. 

Lighting was provided from my pickup truck, parked about 75 feet away with the lights shining in from photo left. I simply asked Lane to step forward until his face came into the light. The dirty looking spots on his face and elsewhere are actually shadows. He isn't wearing a hat of any kind; the darkness is just from being outside the light. This was shot in manual mode at ISO 1600, f5.6 and 1/6 second. What you see here is what we got from the camera. I didn't do anything in post except to convert from RAW to JPG.

We experimented with using a small LED flashlight but found the light to be too white. The lighting from the pickup truck was quite warm, allowing it to look a bit more natural. My goal was to take a creepy-looking picture that is a little edgy. Though I probably won't hang a 60-inch canvas of this over our sofa, I deem the experience a success for five reasons:

1. I was able to translate a vague vision of what I wanted to do to an actual photo. All too often I take my camera out looking for something to shoot. This time however, I approached it a bit differently. 
2. I got to experiment with light, not in the traditional way of adding strobes or speedlights, but using available light and adjusting the scene. 
3. It was fun!
4. I got to hang out with Lane. 
5. And most importantly, it almost made the purchase of a sword sound legitimate. (Not really. #4 is by far the most important.)

And who knows, it might make a good Facebook profile picture for Halloween.

Until next time...Mike