The value of "Play" in your photography..Hipstamatic Classic

Last night several members from the Baltimore Camera Club went to the Maryland State Fair to create images. It was a great time with friends, music, lights and lots of energy there! I decided to go without the big camera. So with my iPhone in hand I selected the Hipstamatic App, loaded with the Fashion Lens/Film combo: Tacman Lens (adds motion and energy) and Runway film. I thought it would be perfect for the feeling I wanted to represent in my images. I also experimented with the shutter speed control dial that was added to the Classic Camera interface in January. I have not really experimented with it to any degree of difference but thought this would be a perfect time to play with that feature. I also used the multiple exposure feature that is built into the Classic Camera of Hipstamatic...So the combination of shutter speed control, multiple exposure and the Fashion Pak gave me the exact results I was hoping for, crazy fun images with lots of energy! I then finished the images in Snapseed for saturation, and sharpening.
I was really playing with the idea I wanted to communicate and used some cool features the App has to offer...just for fun! Don't take your photography so seriously that it becomes work or route, experiment have some fun with the art!

Capturing and Teaching High Dynamic Range Imagery on the iPhone

High Dynamic Range photography is not new, but teaching the concept to non photographers is always a "wow" when they see it in action. It is a part my curriculum when conducting the "Getting Started in iPhone Photography" workshops sponsored by Capital Photography Center and my sessions at Johns Hopkins in their Odyssey Program.
I like to capture images with Bracket Mode, even though there are numerous quality HDR apps available. It's easy, it's effective and I can just keep shooting, no need to stop and process while capturing the images. I like to process later; when I am shooting, I just want to shoot. I use the Pro HDR X app to process the two captured images from Bracket Mode. Pro HDR though still available in the app store will not handle the larger 12mp files from the newer iPhones.

When using Bracket Mode you have to make a few simple settings within the app. You have to turn on "Auto Save" images. When you purchase it from the App store, it downloads with the default not to save them, don't ask me why...so you could shoot and never see a file, so make sure you fix that setting, by tapping on the cog like icon on the lower right of the App interface. Camera technique is also important during the capture process, a very steady hand is critical, so when the images blend they will overlay and create a sharp image file.

Below are two examples of the power of this app and its ability to Auto-detect the brightest and darkest part of an image. I will also be teaching two sessions at Johns Hopkins this fall in the Odyssey Program and hope you can join me there or at Capital Photography Center in DC.

Captured with Bracket Mode in Auto Mode (for the brightest area of the scene~ the sky)

Captured with Bracket Mode in Auto Mode (for the darkest area of the scene~ the foreground)

Blended image in Pro HDRx and then further processed using Snapseed for sharpening, saturation, and contrast.

Captured with Bracket Mode in Auto Mode (for the brightest area of the scene~ the sky)

Captured with Bracket Mode in Auto Mode (for the darkest area of the scene~ the foreground and under the roof of the gas station)

Blended image in Pro HDR X and then further processed using Snapseed for sharpening, saturation, and contrast.