I came across the website Inkstagram this morning when I was searching for a site to view Instagram photos on a computer. For those who don't know Instagram is this great iPhone photo sharing app (which I already reviewed). Originally you could only view the photos on your iPhone but since Instagram released the API for the app, people have made sites where you can view the photos online and so much more. I like Inkstagram because I can view, like, and comment on other people's photos as well as see all the photos I've liked and see all the photos I've uploaded on one page. So as I was going through my photos I decided to share some of my favorite photos taken with the app here. Oh, and my user name is "brittanny" on there so follow me on Instagram!
Grand Central in ManhattanThis past weekend Shawn and I went to New York City to shoot with Bombshell Clothing. The last time I shot for Keriann was so awesome that I had to go to NYC to work with her again, but I'm saving all that for another post. This post will be reviewing the Instagram iPhone app. I've been using it for a couple of weeks now and I have to say it is super addicting!
iPhone screenshot of the camera taking a photo of this very blog post. Very meta.The cool thing about Instagram is that you can upload your photo directly to Twitter, Tumblr, Flickr, Facebook, and Foursquare. Yes, you can even check in on Foursquare with this app. For me personally that is the feature that really sold me on this app.
You have twelve effects you can choose from. Once you pick the effect you like, you click next and it gives you the sharing options.
Another cool feature of Instagram is you can follow your friends and see their photos taken with Instagram within the app. You can also "like" and comment on their photos within the app. You can also check out the popular photos taken with Instagram and find cool new people from all over the world to follow.
So why did I bring up my trip to New York? I used the Instagram app all weekend to check into Foursquare and to take photos of the city. Here are a bunch of photos I took around Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens.
ShawnShawn and I on the trainUnion Hall in BrooklynBrownstonesThe Chip Shop in BrooklynThe light @ The Chip Shop in BrooklynWindowsBeer @ Bierkraft in BrooklynMAC PRO in ManhattanColors @ MAC PRO in ManhattanMake Up For Ever in ManhattanAll Saints Spitalfields in ManhattanNo exitBehind the scenes of Bombshell shoot with Ashton in QueensShawn making guacamole in Keriann's kitchen in QueensEvacuation Instructions in Hell (I actually checked into Hell on Foursquare when I took this photo)I think this is a great app and the best thing about it is it's free! You can download it here and be one of the thousands addicted to this iPhone app.
I recently purchased the ReelDirector app after seeing the price dropped 50% from $7.99 to $3.99. I was hesitant to buy the app at its original price because I wasn't sure if it sucked or not and if I would ever use it. After using it once I can definitely say it's a good app to invest in if you are a vlogger and need to edit videos on the go. So on to the review...
First off you go to the "New Project" screen where you can input your opening and closing titles and credits, as well as choose transitions and the quality. I would recommend to keep the titles short because if it's too long it will get cut off.
Once you click the done button you move on the "Projects" panel. Here you see the movies you are working on. Click on the project you want and you will see information about your movie like the length and the last time it was modified. The "Produced" line is empty in this photo because that information only shows up when the video has been finished and exported.
When you click "done", you will be taken to the "Edit Clips" panel. Click on the green "add" button and select movie clips already recorded with your camera. Keep adding all the clips you want in your finished movie. You can also add in different transitions in between each clip.
This is where the app gets a little confusing for me. I find it easier to trim clips right in the Photos app then trimming in ReelDirector. It's hard to move the in and out points to exactly where you want to make your cut.
Also when using the "Volume & Fade" editor, I tried changing the volume but I found that it did nothing.
You can also add photos and music to your videos. Photos are simple to add into the video and is easy to pan and zoom the photo.
Music on the other hand is a process to add. You actually need to be near a computer to add music. You first have to go back to the "Projects" screen and click on the musical note at the bottom of the screen that says "Music". Click on the plus sign up top and you will see this screen. You have to type into your browser on your computer the web address they give you (I do not know if it gives everyone a different web address to go to).
Once you do that you will see be asked to choose the song(s) you want to import into ReelDirector.
Choose the song you want. And then upload. Once it is imported the song can be added to your movie.
Once you are done editing your video, "click" on the done button. You'll see six items you can select at the bottom of the screen. When you are completely done with your video, click on "Render". This process can take awhile if your video is long but it shouldn't take longer than a couple of minutes.
Once it's rendered it is able to be played so you can watch your video, but it's still not saved. Click on the "Save" button to save it to your photo album.
Final thoughts: I think ReelDirector is a solid video editing app for the iPhone. I think it's definitely worth the $7.99 price tag but I would jump at it being on sale $3.99. Another great thing about the app is that if you have any questions you can click on the little info icon on the top of the "Projects" panel and it will give you instructions on how to do anything with the app. So like I said before if you are a vlogger and want to upload edited videos to your YouTube page straight from your iPhone, this is a must have app.
And now you can watch the final video I made with my iPhone. I know, it's Oscar worthy.
Yesterday I was sitting outside my friends' apartment building watching the clouds go by. We saw these dark ominous clouds form and then break up within a span of 30 minutes. I took out my phone and used the Hipstamatic app (which I have reviewed before) and took some photos. I took many more of these but I like the variety of this bunch.
When I was thinking of a new photo app to review, I was going to do CameraBag which seems to be a pretty popular app. It's consistently in the top ten in paid iPhone apps. But as I was looking at my photo apps, I clicked on CinemaFX (which I have to admit is an app I rarely used) and realized that it is a pretty great app. It's actually better than CameraBag because not only does it give you the different style options, it actually lets you adjust the settings to your specifications.
With CameraBag, once you choose your style that's it. If the original photo wasn't perfectly exposed, maybe the style you choose will be too dark or too light and it just doesn't look the way you want it to. With CinemaFX you can use the sliders to adject the style to the way you like it.
Another cool thing is that you can layer styles. You can layer styles in other apps as well but normally you have to save the edited photo, then go back to your photo library and select the edited photo, add a new style, rinse and repeat. In CinemaFX you can add a style, click the "CinemaFX" logo up top, press done, and keep adding styles.
This the Charmed Glow style.
This is Egyptian Glow on top of Charmed Glow.
This is Surveillance Cam on top of Egyptian Glow on top of Charmed Glow.
If you just want to edit the brightness and contrast to the original photo, you have that option as well.
There are also options for image size (larger photo resolution for 3GS).
For only 99 cents, this is a pretty great photo app to get. Compared to CameraBag's $1.99, I think this app gives you a ton more options and needs a lot more recognition*.
*as on 3/29/10 it's number 71 out of the top 100 iPhone photography apps compared to CameraBag being at number 9.
From when I shot Dropkick Murphys
Grassman
Can you tell I like rows of things?
The Photos
