Most of the world’s best photographer use editing apps to create the perfect pictures. Modern photo editing apps do so much more than crops pictures; they can take an average picture and turn it into something magical. Photography takes a keen eye for proportions and dimension, but some of what you lack in talent can be made up for by the use of an excellent photo editing app. Here I will review several of the most popular photo editing programs used by phone photographers the world over.
Snapseed
Snapseed is a Google made app that is desgined to appeal to more advanced photo enthusiasts. When you open Snapseed for the first time, it has a detailed tutorial that is well worth the time to walk through. This program is unique in its gesture-based controls. You select a tool and then swipe up or down to control attributes like contrast, color, and brightness. There are also some gestures that are more finger-intensive, like pinch and tilt for panning and cropping. The controls can seem daunting to the beginner, but if you have used a smartphone much, then you are already familiar with many of the gestures used in the app. The unique gesture interface allows for more subtle correction than is available in other apps. This is the reason that Snapseed is so popular amongst photographers. The level of control is quite amazing; however, the interface is not intuitive and can take a bit of practice to get use to.
VSCO Cam
Often touted as the Anti-Instagram, VSCO Cam is a photo effects app that has natural controls and a remarkable editing ability. The program allows you to manage your photos with fine tuning capabilities. It also has an unpretentious interface that is simple and sleek. Unfortunately, whatever points VSCO Cam earns for its editing ability, it loses in social sharing. The developers of the app recently launched “The Grid”, which is basically a curated newsfeed. VSCO does not have the user base of an app like Instagram, so the news feed feels forced and contrived unlike the user generate news feed on Instagram. There are also no mechanisms in place for liking or commenting on photos, which removes the community feel from the wannabe social site. When all is said and done, VSCO has amazing editing resources, but it is not the place you want to share all your beautiful pics.
Mextures
Unlike the other editing programs in our lineup, Mextures offers a different approach to photo editing. Basically, Mextures allows you to layer actual scans of 35mm film effects into your images creating unusual and beautiful pictures. Although this apps interface is very user friendly, it will take some time playing with textures to learn what is compatible and will produce the effects you are looking for. There are 130 different textures available on the app, and it also has a wonderful layering tool that will help you create wonderful combinations that are as unique as they are beautiful. This app is certainly worth a try, as it lends itself very well to the most creative of us.
There are tons of different photo apps available on the various marketplaces today, and some of these apps are better than others. There is no one size fits all because we all have a distinctive sense of what we find aesthetically pleasing. No matter what you style is though, there is certainly an app that will help you get the most out of your photography. I suggest starting with one or two on the above list and see where they take you.
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