Category Archives: iPhonography

Before and After – Post-production in iPhonography

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Earlier this week I posted the images on the left of those below straight from my iPhone without any post-production adjustments. I hope you will agree with me that the adjusted versions are an improvement.

The photos were taken pretty much as snapshots. I did not spend any time in setting up the shots and next to no time looking at different angles or alternative compositions. The best work you’ll ever do in post-production will always be with those images that need least doing to them. It is useful, however, to be able to make some improvements to shots taken on the fly.

The photos were taken with the iPhone app ProCamera. Initial adjustments were made on the phone using the same app and further adjustments made in Adobe Lightroom followed by some sharpening and noise removal with Google’s Nik software.

before and after - railings

before and after - reservoir

before and after - overflow

 

Slow Shutter Effects – iPhonography

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My day to day photography is often done using my iPhone and lately I have been experimenting with one or two different camera apps. The set of images below were taken using Slow Shutter Cam which, if you can be sure to keep the phone steady is nifty little app.

Fountains

The problem with long exposures being used to achieve that misty / ghostly effect or smoothness in flowing water, is that everything else gets the same length of exposure. There are various ways of dealing with this but the Slow Shutter app simply uses thevideo setting on the phone camera rather than the stills setting. It is, however, a still image that is saved.

It is a clever answer to the exposure issue and there are options to take images up to the full resolution of the camera (8 megapixels). I have had a few issues with the handling of colour which can be seen above but I suspect this is something that I will be able to manage better with time and practice. These images have had some post production adjustments applied but the main issue in taking them was that I did not have a tripod with me and had to rely on keeping the camera steady with the aid of the railings round the fountains.

The fountains are in the centre of Middlesbrough in the NE of England which is, according to some, one of the ugliest towns in Britain – I disagree and suggest they take another look, this time with their eyes open and no prejudicial blinkers!

 

Hopping About from Day to Day – iPhone Photography

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This little fella was sitting on the wall by our front door when we came in after a walk at the weekend. He stayed there long enough for me to get a quick snap with my iPhone before hopping away.

I have a folder on my computer called “Day to Day Images” – a lot of the photos in it are taken on my iPhone and almost always I do some post production editing with one or other iPhone app. These would often be ProCamera and/or PhotoshopExpress, but I use others as well.

Today’s photo had some heavy cropping and a little sharpening was necessary as a result but I decided to leave it at that on this occasion. The images in yesterday’s post had no editing done at all – and that is fairly obvious. I think I will repost those images later in the week after I have made the necessary adjustments.

cricket

Retreating from the Hurricane

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Yesterday we felt the last remaining vestiges of Hurricane Bertha in the form of a brief sandblasting on the Millennium Park footpath on the seafront at Llanelli.

We were not long out of the car before we changed our minds about a place to go for a walk and headed for the woodland walk up to the reservoir in Swiss Valley instead.

The sand being blown off the beach felt like needles on the skin and although it wasn’t raining at the time, the locals clearly knew not to venture on the seafront when the wind is up as the place was empty of people. Swiss Valley on the other hand was relatively busy!

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Elliptical Illusions

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I saved the images below from those I took recently while away visiting family. I used my iPhone for all my photography while away and posted images to Instagram.

I wanted to post these images here because, despite my familiarity with the design of MIMA and the obvious link in the arrangement of shapes in the interior around the cafe area, the illusion that is created by this arrangement when seen from a specific angle did not properly register with me until I looked back at the photos.

mima cafe floor

mima cafe

mima cafe

Monochrome Madness

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In an additional post today, I would like to point you to this week’s Monochrome Madness post by Leanne Cole Photography where you will find one of my photos amongst a mosaic of others in this genre.

The image is one I took  a few weeks ago on my iPhone using Camera Pro. If I remember rightly, it was Adobe Photoshop Express on the phone that I used in post-production.

Light and contrast was adjusted, a sepia filter tried out but discarded for manual colour and saturation adjustment, and finally some grain added.

Wool on Wire

 

If you go down to the woods today . . .

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. . . you’ll find some strange wooden serpents slithering through the undergrowth. This Loch Ness monster like  fallen branch is classic shape from the crooked oak trees of the woods in Coedbach Park.

It is not the first time I have photographed this particular piece of wood, but it is in a different position in the woods now, so it is obviously on the move!

Wooden Serpent

Crooked Oak Trees

Flags in the pond

The Second Surprise

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My second surprise find in the old burnt out abandoned building I found while crossing a field on a recent evening walk were these old cars. I have some enquiries to make in order to find out what the car is. I thought about an MG Midget and a friend suggested a Sunbeam but if anyone out there recognises it as something else, please let me know in the comments.

rusty car

rusty corrugated iron