![Mikan (Encinitas, CA)
This is the first time a toy camera simulation has wowed me. Let me explain:
For the most powerful factor that drives any amateur photographer to burn $2 for a single Polaroid shot or $15 for quality Holga processing is the serendipitous rendering of beautiful colors and tones. Any master with Photoshop can bring 10 megapixel SLR photos close to the instant film feel, but the fun is lost in complexity and non-instantness. That’s just the way the camera records is exciting.
The App Store delivered a number of apps that simulate vintage/film cameras. CameraBag was one of the earliest entries, delighting users with retro filters and foolproof operation. The latest and greatest entrant, and the software I used to take the photograph above: Hipstamatic.
You’ll really need to view the flashy demo video at the developer’s site to believe it, but a whole new, ridiculous level of throwback is introduced here. Everything from the cheap plastic viewfinder to a spring-loaded slider that charges the flash - complete with sound effect - is simulated. [Note: this app does an eerily good job of simulating a flash without a flash]
But it’s not the shiny-as-marbles interface (filled to the rim with cute puns) and those widely-varying “bad” exposures that photo hipsters enjoy so much. It’s one facet of this app (a restriction, really) that sets the Hipstamatic apart from anything else:
With Hipstamatic, you do not take a regular, raw iPhone picture then pick and choose filters to apply. You take a shot with a particular lens (filter) and film (border, format). Changing the look means changing the lens — and taking a new photo. The same picture cannot be tossed into all the filters and you can’t see the filtered image live. This forced deliberation restores some of the (mainly perceived) creative control, but most importantly: it makes every image one of a kind.
Hipstamatic ($1.99) brings serendipity back. And makes me hungry for the 3G S’s sharper lens.](http://30.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_kvj661HWxw1qztwz7o1_500.jpg "Mikan (Encinitas, CA)
This is the first time a toy camera simulation has wowed me. Let me explain:
For the most powerful factor that drives any amateur photographer to burn $2 for a single Polaroid shot or $15 for quality Holga processing is the serendipitous rendering of beautiful colors and tones. Any master with Photoshop can bring 10 megapixel SLR photos close to the instant film feel, but the fun is lost in complexity and non-instantness. That’s just the way the camera records is exciting.
The App Store delivered a number of apps that simulate vintage/film cameras. CameraBag was one of the earliest entries, delighting users with retro filters and foolproof operation. The latest and greatest entrant, and the software I used to take the photograph above: Hipstamatic.
You’ll really need to view the flashy demo video at the developer’s site to believe it, but a whole new, ridiculous level of throwback is introduced here. Everything from the cheap plastic viewfinder to a spring-loaded slider that charges the flash - complete with sound effect - is simulated. [Note: this app does an eerily good job of simulating a flash without a flash]
But it’s not the shiny-as-marbles interface (filled to the rim with cute puns) and those widely-varying “bad” exposures that photo hipsters enjoy so much. It’s one facet of this app (a restriction, really) that sets the Hipstamatic apart from anything else:
With Hipstamatic, you do not take a regular, raw iPhone picture then pick and choose filters to apply. You take a shot with a particular lens (filter) and film (border, format). Changing the look means changing the lens — and taking a new photo. The same picture cannot be tossed into all the filters and you can’t see the filtered image live. This forced deliberation restores some of the (mainly perceived) creative control, but most importantly: it makes every image one of a kind.
Hipstamatic ($1.99) brings serendipity back. And makes me hungry for the 3G S’s sharper lens.")
Mikan
(Encinitas, CA)
This is the first time a toy camera simulation has wowed me. Let me explain:
For the most powerful factor that drives any amateur photographer to burn $2 for a single Polaroid shot or $15 for quality Holga processing is the serendipitous rendering of beautiful colors and tones. Any master with Photoshop can bring 10 megapixel SLR photos close to the instant film feel, but the fun is lost in complexity and non-instantness. That’s just the way the camera records is exciting.
The App Store delivered a number of apps that simulate vintage/film cameras. CameraBag was one of the earliest entries, delighting users with retro filters and foolproof operation. The latest and greatest entrant, and the software I used to take the photograph above: Hipstamatic.
You’ll really need to view the flashy demo video at the developer’s site to believe it, but a whole new, ridiculous level of throwback is introduced here. Everything from the cheap plastic viewfinder to a spring-loaded slider that charges the flash - complete with sound effect - is simulated. [Note: this app does an eerily good job of simulating a flash without a flash]
But it’s not the shiny-as-marbles interface (filled to the rim with cute puns) and those widely-varying “bad” exposures that photo hipsters enjoy so much. It’s one facet of this app (a restriction, really) that sets the Hipstamatic apart from anything else:
- With Hipstamatic, you do not take a regular, raw iPhone picture then pick and choose filters to apply. You take a shot with a particular lens (filter) and film (border, format). Changing the look means changing the lens — and taking a new photo. The same picture cannot be tossed into all the filters and you can’t see the filtered image live. This forced deliberation restores some of the (mainly perceived) creative control, but most importantly: it makes every image one of a kind.
Hipstamatic ($1.99) brings serendipity back. And makes me hungry for the 3G S’s sharper lens.
