Several iPhone Risks In Review: Apple Is About To Show Declining iPhone Shipments

Summary

This article shows how some of the risks Apple has been toying with regarding iPhone specs are now catching up to it.

Together with overall smartphone weakness due to a "good enough" effect, these risks allow for a significant prediction.

The prediction is that by Q2 FY2016 at the latest, Apple will probably be seeing year-on-year shrinkage for the iPhone 6s.

I've often written about how Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) is taking some risks with the iPhone which are, in a way, new. They are new because with Steve Jobs and up to the iPhone 4/4s, Apple tried to keep ahead of the spec race, deploying the most advanced solutions available at the time, including such things as the display resolution, camera resolution and quality and even the RAM size and storage size.

That all ended with the iPhone 4s. Since then Apple has let iPhone specifications lag those of most Android flagships. While rational tradeoffs can somewhat explain such lag, the lag is nonetheless real.

I've talked about these risks in such articles as "Apple: Android Photography Is About To Take A Huge Quality Jump" and "The Android Blunders That Helped Apple". Some time has passed since then, so now might be a good time to revisit how things are evolving regarding this thesis and whether some of these risks are materializing.

In the meantime, Apple has launched the iPhone 6s, and while some of the risks were addressed, many remain. It can be argued that due to Apple's leadership in SoC design, as well as the strength of its brand and ecosystem, the Apple iPhone is and remains the smartphone to beat. Yet, something is slowly changing.

The Camera Risk

As I said, I've already written on how Android smartphones were going to get a whole lot better in the camera department in general. Up until the iPhone 6, Apple was the undisputed leader when it came to cameras. The iPhone had a resolution of "just" 8 Megapixels, but it made up for it in image quality and ease of use. Android phones, try as they might with their higher pixel counts, came up short. This iPhone advantage was well-known in the market, and a subject of many articles claiming it as a powerful reason to get an iPhone, such as this one from TheVerge, titled "To beat the iPhone, you have to beat the iPhone's camera".

By then, however, there was already an inkling of change. Competitors were drawing near, and Samsung (OTC:SSNLF) with the Note 4 in particular seemed for an instant to have matched or surpassed the iPhone with a smartphone of the same generation. Yet, if you were going to choose based on cameras, you could get the iPhone, or a single Android smartphone out of the dozens or hundreds of different Android models.

Their just being an exception would not stop the iPhone juggernaut when it came to the camera. Hence the relevance of what I described in my article - that soon many Android handsets would get much better cameras, even down to the midrange of the market. Such a thing happening would, obviously, eliminate the camera advantage when the camera came to be the deciding factor.

Well, for the most part that day arrived. The iPhone lost its top camera spot. This happened both because Android smartphones evolved rapidly as predicted, and ironically because Apple, in trying to up the pixel count while remaining stingy with its costs, managed not to improve the iPhone 6s camera at all (while moving from 8 Megapixels to 12 Megapixels).

There is an abundance of reviews which will argue that the iPhone is still on top or was just matched at the top. However, the most objective and renowned photography/mobile photography website seems to have confirmed what others had already been saying subjectively.

I am talking about DxOMark. Previously any beating of Apple was sporadic and quickly erased. However, now Apple is left behind even though the next generation of several of the Android devices which surpassed it will be out before the next iPhone model.

Also, very relevantly, the iPhone was not just matched or surpassed by competing flagships. It was also surpassed by smartphones which will cater to the midrange, such as the $379 Nexus 5X (same camera as the Nexus 6P listed in the table) or the Motorola X Style / Pure Edition which while being a flagship, comes at a midrange price ($399.99). This trend, of course, is likely to soon expand even to Chinese midrange smartphones, now costing around $200-$300.

How did this ultimately happen to Apple? I think there were two factors at work beyond Android cameras simply getting better. These were:

Apple cheapening out on the component specs again. Apple went from an 8 Megapixel sensor to a 12 Megapixel sensor, probably because the low pixel count was beginning to constitute a marketing problem. Apple needed a spec bump to convince customers to upgrade, and the low pixel count was also beginning to show its age in some reviews due to less detail captured by the iPhone. But while Apple bumped up the Megapixel count, it didn't change the sensor size. Result: it stuck with a 1/3" sensor in a mobile world which had moved to 1/2.6"-1/2.3" (Samsung S6 - Nexus 6P/5X), putting itself at a disadvantage in light collection right there.

Then, to make things worse, Apple has a lens cover made of Sapphire. This has a purpose in avoiding scratches to the lens. However, with Sapphire's lower light conductivity, this is probably also the reason why other Android brands now have lenses with f/2.0-f/1.8 apertures, whereas Apple is still stuck at f/2.2. Again, this compounds the light-collection problem.

To sum things up, the camera risk which was identified has slowly materialized. Today getting one of the best camera smartphones no longer requires buying an Apple iPhone. Indeed, it's starting to even be possible to choose a mid-level Android phone and get a competitive high-quality camera with it.

The Virtual Reality Risk

One of the other risks I've mentioned is how Apple had been shipping unnecessarily low-resolution displays with its top-end phones including the iPhone 6s. At this point, the Apple iPhone 6s has a display resolution of 750x1334 pixels. This is nearly the same as 720p (720x1280 pixels). 720p at this point in time is only found in the lowest rung of Android phones. This means budget phones costing little more than $100, unlocked.

The reasoning is that the user might not see the difference anyway, though even Apple uses a higher resolution (1080p, 1920x1080 pixels) for its larger iPhone 6s Plus. This reasoning may at times make sense in power consumption and speed, but one also needs to remember that even if the user cannot really see the difference, this is still a high-end product and as such it becomes strange when it fields such obvious low-end specs.

The problem, however, becomes even more evident when the difference can actually be seen. This might happen because of the phone having a non-standard display resolution. The iPhone's resolution is slightly different from 720p, so 720p content needs to be adapted either by not using all the display or by scaling to a non-native resolution which will destroy some of the detail and contrast. But that's just a "might". There's also a "definite" to talk about.

I am talking about VR (Virtual Reality). The virtual reality boom is slowly taking place and awareness should explode during early 2016, when Facebook launches the Oculus Rift. Mobile phones can also provide a good VR introduction since they have all the requisites, including the movement sensors, high resolution displays and powerful mobile GPUs.

Now, when using a mobile phone as a VR display, you use a headset where the mobile phone is inserted. This headset includes 2 lenses for one to be able to comfortably focus on the display at such close range. These lenses expand the display to fill your visual field, and thus immerse you in its artificial reality. When the lenses magnify the display, it becomes a lot easier to see the pixels, creating a kind of grid effect. This grid is much more visible the lower the display resolution is. By now you see where I am going. The following image exemplifies the problem:

(click to enlarge)

Click on that image to see it in full size. The left side of the image shows a VR headset running at 720p, while the right side shows a headset running at 1080p. As you can see, the effect is much worse on the 720 display, as is to be expected.

The same thing happens with VR using smartphones. So even if you couldn't see the difference with your naked eyes, now you can see it when the VR headsets hit the market en masse. One such headset is the recently-launched Samsung Gear VR, retailing for just $99:

(click to enlarge)

(Source: Samsung)

So, this particular headset isn't even compatible with the iPhone and it showcases Samsung's superiority at a very cheap price. To have it, you'll need a recent Samsung smartphone. Maybe it's also symptomatic why Apple doesn't have the equivalent product -- because it would expose the iPhone's weakness.

In this or any other more generic VR implementation (like the very basic Google Cardboard), one thing will become painfully evident during the VR boom: that iPhones are awfully inadequate.

(Source: Google.com)

So here, again, Apple is running an unnecessary risk. And one which will be most evident for the younger generation, the generation defining what "cool" is. Do you reckon it will be cool to experiment the latest revolution using an inferior device by design? I don't think so.

The "Good Enough" Risk

On top of the risks Apple is taking with its iPhone breadwinner, there's a general effect taking place which hits both Android handsets and the iPhone alike. It's just that like PCs, these smartphones are increasingly getting "good enough".

If you hold a flagship smartphone from two years ago, be it an LG G2, Nexus 5, iPhone 5s or any other phone built to similar specs, you'll notice that it can do the same things as today's flagships and the speed difference isn't deal breaking. These phones actually remain competitive with today's mid-end phones, and today's mid-end phones are entirely usable and will remain usable for years.

Except for battery degradation, which will be cheap to solve, and some general care with software, these phones should thus start eliciting longer substitution cycles. This should drive a stagnated or slow-growing market both for Android and the iPhone.

The Result: Possible Q1/Q2 year-on-year Drop In iPhone Shipments

Where do all these risks lead to? They lead to the chance that all smartphone flagships start having trouble showing year-on-year growth rates.

The iPhone is particularly vulnerable because it finally sated the demand for a larger-display iPhone with the iPhone 6. It might thus not be surprising that by Q1/Q2 FY2016 Apple will have difficulty in seeing year-on-year growth in revenues and profits. Present consensus already only allows for weak +3.7% and +4.1% year-on-year growth in revenues for Q1 and Q2 as we can see:

(click to enlarge)

(Source: Yahoo Finance, red highlight is mine)

But it can easily be worse. For instance, there are reports of iPhone 6s sales dropping up to 15% year-on-year in Japan, and "declining meaningfully" as per Pacific Crest. Q1 FY2016 might be the first quarter to show this, and if not then Q2 FY2016 will certainly be it.

While AAPL is already priced for some demand weakness, it should be evident it's not priced for stagnation or shrinkage of iPhone sales. The consensus estimates say as much, AAPL will not have rising year-on-year EPS if the iPhone posts negative year-on-year sales.

Relevance

As always, Apple is the iPhone. Apple's stock will mirror the iPhone's performance. The iPhone represented 2/3rds of Apple's FY2015 revenues, and due to its higher gross margins it likely represented 80%+ of Apple's operating and net profits.

(click to enlarge)

(Source: AAPL FY2015 10-K)

With such a large relevance for Apple's financials, anything that happens to the iPhone will be determinant to what happens to the stock. Talk about Apple Pay, the iPad Pro, the Apple Watch and anything in between is basically irrelevant for the stock right now. When it comes to the stock, the iPhone is all that matters.

Conclusion

The risks about which I've talked in the past are materializing, rendering Apple's iPhone unique competitive position weaker and weaker. By now, the iPhone has been matched or surpassed by several Android handsets in the camera department. At the same time the iPhone risks being "uncool" when the VR boom hits in full, since its lowly display resolution will show the handset to be inferior for that purpose.

These risks are also compounded by the fact that increasingly smartphones have less and less to offer in terms of added capability justifying upgrades. Their life cycle will be extended by this effect, slowing down replacements and overall demand.

For Apple stock, this is tremendously important. The iPhone is so dominant in Apple's financials that any failure to show continued growth is sure to have an outsized impact on them.

Given the risks, both specific and general to the smartphone market, along with Apple's pent up demand which inflated FY2015 iPhone sales, it's now likely that by Q2 FY2016 at the latest, Apple will be showing year-on-year declines in iPhone shipments. This is not yet in the share price, so AAPL is likely to underperform until July-August 2016. By then, of course, the focus will change to the upcoming iPhone 7.

Source: Several iPhone Risks In Review: Apple Is About To Show Declining iPhone Shipments

How to Edit Photos on iPad Pro

The larger screen on the Apple iPad Pro gives photographers a beautiful mobile photo editing platform. Add the wonderful apps now available for photo editing using the touch user-interface as well as the Apple Pencil for precision work and the iPad Pro can handle the average photographer's editing platform. Amateur enthusiasts could make use of the iPad Pro exclusively. Professionals could use it while they're away from their desktops or laptops for quick edits, organizing photos and sharing them.

We'll look at some of the best photo editing apps. Then we'll list a few accessories that can make photo editing easier. Finally, we'll suggest a simple workflow for beginning iPad Pro photo editors. We'll focus on beginners since the pros will likely have a good workflow already.

Apps for iPad Pro Photo Editing

There are several useful and powerful photo apps for the iPad Pro. Let's start with Pixelmator ($4.99) which does a great job of photo editing all by itself. Users can import photos from the iPad's camera, iCloud Drive, Photos or create an image from scratch. This last option lets you create something using the artistic tools in the app.

Pixelmator includes:

Painting tools – will make the Apple Pencil a useful accessory

Retouch – used to remove spots, annoying distracting background elements, fix red-eye, sharpening photos and more

Distort – tool used to create crazy looks or even some fine touch up

Adjust Colors – fix color problems like tint, temperature and adds filters. This also shows a powerful curves function like you'd find in high-end photo editors on a computer

Select – to do things like cut or copy parts of an image

Crop – start here to get the best composition

Pixelmator brings with it iOS 9 compatibility which lets you access the app's filters from within the iOS 9 Photos app. You can't use the more advanced Pixelmator features unless you open it directly in Pixelmator. If all you want to do is add filters, this is a great way to efficiently do so from within the iOS 9 Photos app.

The iOS 9 Photos app organizes your photos and offers some simple photo editing and sharing. However, the Adobe Lightroom Mobile (Free) app does a better job of all three.

Use the built-in preset filters to quickly add a certain look to a photo.

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Mobile works like the computer program. Organize photos and group them into collections. Adobe gave the demo below at their 2015 Max conference.

These collections can sync with Adobe's Creative Cloud apps installed on other mobile devices or on a computer. Users will need a Creative Cloud subscription which starts at $10/month and costs as much as $70/month with all the Adobe apps plus access to Adobe Stock photos.

The built-in editing tools transform an average photo into something special with the right adjustments. Once the user learns how to use the program, they can do some amazing things all using touch. Moving the adjustment sliders using touch feels more organic that trying to drag them with a mouse on a computer.

I took the photo below recently on Ocracoke Island along the North Carolina coast. I edited it using Lightroom. It wasn't a great shot, but thanks to the tools in Lightroom, it's not bad for 15 minutes of work on an iPad Pro.

A third app that deserves mention comes from Google. Snapseed (Free) also handles iPad Pro photo editing with some advanced features as well as simple tools. Each editing tool comes with X and Y axis manipulation. Slide up and down to choose the editing tools in that section. For example, under Tune Image slide up and down to choose from …

Brightness

Ambience

Contrast

Saturation

Shadows

Highlights

Warmth

Slide until you see Shadows. Then slide left and right to decrease or increase the levels of the darker areas (shadows) of the photo.

The app also includes filters that quickly apply several adjustments at once. Once the user applies a filter, there's a series of thumbnails across the bottom of the screen. Select them and then fine tune the filter by sliding left or right to decrease or increase the degree to which the filter is applied.

Snapseed's touch-focused adjustment tools makes editing photos easier than using a mouse on a computer or a trackpad on a laptop.

A couple of other "honorable mention" editors include Polarr Photo Editor (Free), an advanced photo editor with pro-level editing features. Also, the great Camera+ ($2.99) app from Tap Tap Tap includes some awesome photo editing tools.

Accessories for iPad Pro Photo Editing

No one needs any accessories to edit photos on an iPad Pro, but a few will make life easier. First, get the Lightning to SD Card Camera Reader from Apple. At $29 it's the fastest and easiest way to import photos from your point-and-shoot or DSLR camera.

It plugs in to the iPad Pro and when the iPad Pro finds pictures on the card it opens the Photos app and offers to import all of them or just the ones you want to work with.

Next, get the Apple Pencil ($99) because it gives the user fine control over drawing and touch up tweaks. Adobe supports it in some of their mobile iOS creative apps. At launch the Pencil was hard to find, but availability may loosen up by the time you read this.

A third cool product comes from TwelveSouth, makers some of the best iPad accessories. The TwelveSouth ParcSlope ($49.99) stand holds the iPad Pro at a nice 18-degree angle, perfect for working with your pictures on the iPad Pro, whether you're using the Pencil or your fingers.

An Eye-fi card (starting at $29.99 for 8GB) will help users easily move photos from camera to iPad Pro. The SD card includes Wi-Fi built into the card. Be careful because this drains the battery more quickly than a traditional SD card.

iPad Pro Photo Editing Workflow

Photographers use different steps in their photography work flow. However, here's a few general steps everyone needs to follow.

Get photos onto the iPad Pro and back them up.

Organize them and select the best shots to edit first while marking the ones you don't want to bother with.

Process the photos using digital photo editing tools.

Share the best photos.

Go back to the shots you didn't select or reject in step 2 and find photos you'd like to work with further to turn them into usable images by repeating steps 3 and 4.

We don't have the time or space to cover the above steps in detail, but lets look at them briefly.

Import Photos and Back Them Up

A photographer will import photos and back them up differently depending on the source of where the shots came from.

Shot on a point-and-shoot or DSLR camera – use the adapter above and import them to the iPad. Back them up using iCloud photos sync, using a service like Dropbox, OneDrive or some other app that automatically backs up all of your photos.

Shot on an iPhone – set the phone to sync your photos using iCloud (Settings, iCloud, Photos, turn on iCloud Photo Library, Upload to My Photo Stream, iCloud Photo Sharing and any others you wish to turn on).

Shot on an Android Phone – use a service like Google's Photos app or Dropbox on the Android phone and then load the iOS versions of those apps on the iPad Pro. Then save the Photos you want to work with to your iPad Pro Photo library.

Shot on iPad Pro – nothing needed. They're already on the iPad Pro. The iPad Pro's camera isn't the best choice for taking quality shots, but you can use it when there's nothing else available.

Organize Photos

My favorite photo organization tool on the iPad is the Lightroom Mobile app. Follow the link to learn more about it and how to use it.

The above video shows off the iPhone app, but it works the same way on the iPad Pro. It also syncs with the desktop version on Mac or Windows.

If you don't subscribe to Adobe Creative Cloud, consider doing it. It's only $9.99/month to get Lightroom and Photoshop on the computer and the mobile versions. The full suite will cost $40/month for the programs and access to mobile apps. Add Adobe Stock Photos for another $30.

For those who can afford an extra $10/month, the Lightroom Mobile app offers the best solution for organizing photos, doing basic edits and syncing with your desktop system.

After you import photos, tag or select the best shots that you want to work with. Also tag the shots that you don't want to bother with, like blurry shots or images that just don't work. Lightroom mobile calls this rejecting the photo.

Once you finish selecting the best shots and rejecting the useless shots, take another look. This second round focuses on images that you could turn into quality works of art or that you want to save for memories, even if they're not the best pictures.

In Lightroom or Photos, the user can create collections and tag shots with subjects or locations. In Photos, do this by hitting the Select button and then choose the shots you want to work with and tap on Add To button and either add the shots to an album or create a new one. Lightroom offers a similar feature.

Photo Processing

We won't talk about Photo Processing in detail. Each app works differently and the user should learn how to master their favorite app. Here are the steps most users should follow:

Crop the image.

Fix photo temperature (warm or cool).

Fix exposure, color and saturation.

Correct blemishes, like dust spots, distracting backgrounds or red-eye.

Add creative touches like Photo filters or lens flare.

Share the image.

Share the Best Photos

Find a good online photo sharing service. The pros like 500px (Free), but that can get intimidating for a beginner. The best shots online often come from 500px. Flickr also offers a nice photo sharing service. Some like to use Facebook, iCloud photo sharing, or Google Photos. Flickr's app will automatically upload photos from the iPad's Photos. Next, select the photos from within the app and create a collection, make them visible publicly or with Flickr followers, and/or share a link to the photo collection with social networks like Facebook or Twitter.

Don't forget you can still share photos in printed form. Users can either grab a nice photo printer that supports iOS printing or use a good photo printing service. One of our favorite services for printing digital photos is Apple's photo printing service. The photographer can make nice prints, photo books, cards and digital sharing using iCloud sharing.

Apple's service won't let photographers print directly from the iPad Pro. Users will have to edit the shots and then sync them using iCloud's sync services built into Photos. Then open the Mac OS X version of Photos and select the photos. Choose to Create a Photo Book, Card, Calendar, Slideshow or Prints from the Photos File menu.

Upload your photos to SizzelPix! to get a large beautiful metal canvas print.

SizzelPix! offers a beautiful and unique way to display your works of art. They print your photo on a large piece of "durable, though lightweight metal base." The company prints the images on a metal canvas from 18-inches to 6-feet starting at $199. One of the best Photography podcasters/bloggers, Derrick Story, recommends them on his website. The company offers multiple hanging and framing options. They look amazing.

A few other services come with apps that you can install. They include…

Many of them will also force the user to sync the photos to the service and use the browser to order prints.

Finally, consider a Mosaic photo book. Upload the photos using the service's app. Then order the book, which costs about $20 and arrives within a week.

Source: How to Edit Photos on iPad Pro

Twin Cities software developer starts StickyApps to enable photographers to become website developers

In 2012, Nate Grahek had a corporate training and development job and was building a small portrait photography business, an avocation that helped justify an occasional splurge on expensive camera equipment.

To give his photography customers a little perk — and to hone his own tech skills — he started building mobile apps that enabled the customers to load his photos of them on their phones to show to friends. Those customers loved it and Grahek saw opportunity.

"I knew right away this was a business model," he said.

With the use of mobile devices soaring the opportunities seemed endless, but Grahek's mentor, Clay Collins, the co-founder of LeadPages, offered some important advice: "Don't stray outside of your expertise."

Grahek heeded that advice and launched StickyAlbums, which focuses on selling mobile photo albums to photographers who in turn sell them to their own customers.

"It's like a digital business card," said Grahek. "The key problem I'm solving for photographers is helping them market themselves more effectively and differentiate themselves from the competition."

After building a website to promote the business, Grahek ran an online special. Within three days, he sold enough apps to gross about $10,000 in fees, but he had to build the galleries by hand because he promised his wife he wouldn't go into debt to pay for the software that could do it automatically.

After he signed up the first 500 customers, he decided to leave the corporate world and six months into the venture he was making $40,000 to $50,000 a month.

Grahek quickly noticed that some of the photographers who were using StickyAlbums were using it to build a quasi website for their clients, including caterers, florists and DJs.

Grahek polled his customers: "What if we let you build something so awesome you can sell it?"

The response was overwhelming, so Grahek created StickyApps, which gives photographers a digital platform and online instruction that enables them to build websites via mobile apps for other small businesses.

StickyApps, which functions like a mobile website, targets the estimated 14 million small businesses across the country that don't have a website, don't have the time to use the many do-it-yourself web builders and don't have the resources to pay a professional designer. Grahek said a custom website can cost upward of $10,000, not including photography and monthly maintenance fees.

"My grandma can build a website," Grahek said. "But professional images are the most important aspects of doing business."

The site also creates an important revenue stream for photographers, whose income is seasonal.

"Ninety percent of professional photographers have another source of income," Grahek said.

StickyApps has already received professional praise. Professional Photographer magazine gave it the Hot One Award and it was recently featured on Shutter Network, an online photography show.

It's also gathering a national audience. Kate Treick, a portrait photographer in Pensacola, Fla., started using StickyApps a few months ago to supplement her income and to promote her 2 year-old business. In July, she sold her first website to the owner of her daughter's dance studio, which had already commissioned her to take photos.

"She loved it because it told the story of the dance studio through these images," she said.

Since then, she's sold 13 websites and is gathering string on several sales leads.

Selling the service, Treick said, isn't difficult because it doesn't require a major upfront investment. Like StickyAlbums, StickyApps charges customers an upfront fee followed by a monthly maintenance payment, which is shared with Grahek.

That income has helped Treick move into a new studio without going into debt.

"It's not for every business," she said. "But for those who need a place on the Internet to tell their story and connect with clients, it's perfect."

 

Source: Twin Cities software developer starts StickyApps to enable photographers to become website developers

Black Friday in Mobile

MOBILE, AL (WALA) -

Fox Ten News is committed to you having a safe and fun shopping weekend.

Black Friday kicked off early at stores around Mobile.

People began lining up outside Academy Sporting Goods in the Festival Centre before the doors would open at 5 am.

Linda Kelly of Turnerville was asked if it was worth getting up this early.

She said, "It may not be worth it, but you only do it one time a year so, why not? It's fun" 

Ceselie Blankenship of Satsuma and friends had been shopping all night.

She said, "After Thanksgiving, we came down and just went shopping and just took a little nap in the car. They did. I didn't actually. I've just been up all night."

At the front of line were Stephen Walker and his wife.

Walker says this is the seventh year he and his wife have come down from Washington County to go Black Friday shopping.

Walker said, "I keep saying, 'Baby, I've got to quit. I've got to quit doing this:  you're killing my time off. I can't rest.' She's like, 'Baby, I need your help. I need your help. We got to get this, that.' I'm like, 'Okay.' I fall for it every time."  

When the doors opened, Walker was the first one inside.

He was quickly followed by 157 other people:  some having a very good time.

Many customers knew exactly what they wanted and dressed in comfortable clothes for the long day ahead.

One group of people had shirts on said, "Black Friday: Challenge Accepted"

Stephen Walker certainly accepted the challenge.

We ran into him and his wife as they were checking out.               

When asked if he was going to go home or do more shopping, he said it was up to his wife.

All content © 2015, WALA; Mobile, AL. (A Meredith Corporation Station). All Rights Reserved. 

 

Source: Black Friday in Mobile

Apple Acquires Motion-Capture Startup Faceshift

Faceshift's technology, which creates animated avatars and characters, has been used in movies such as Star Wars, according to reports.

Apple has acquired motion-capture technology startup Faceshift, which builds applications that capture human facial expressions as animated avatars or characters.The acquisition of Faceshift, which is based in Switzerland, actually occurred earlier this year but was only recently confirmed by Apple, according to a report by iPhoneHacks.Faceshift's motion-capturing technology "allows animated characters to capture the facial expression of a person in real time, the article said, and has been used in the making of Star Wars movies. In addition, Faceshift has also worked with Intel and Pepsi on previous marketing campaigns that used the company's motion-capture technology.The terms and price of the deal were not announced. The purchase of Faceshift appears to be continuing an acquisition spree by Apple this year as the company spends some of the more than $178 billion in cash it has amassed in recent years for research and acquisitions. In October, Apple bought Perceptio, an artificial intelligence startup that works on ideas that could be integrated into future iPhones. Perceptio's technology helps smartphone owners more easily organize and store photos on their iPhones, making them easier to find and use. The price of the acquisition and terms of the deal were not announced.In September, Apple reportedly acquired Mapsense, a mapping visualization startup, for $25 million to $30 million to bolster its mapping assets as it continues to develop better map tools in iOS 9 and other Apple products, according to an earlier eWEEK story. Mapsense works to help customers create data-driven maps for a wide range of business uses, while also offering mapping visualization tools and services to developers and enterprises. Apple has been struggling with mobile mapping services in the last several years, especially compared with Google Maps and its offerings.In May, Apple acquired Coherent Navigation, a Silicon Valley startup th at has been using the Iridium satellite network to develop a commercial, high-precision navigation service for a wide range of industries. The price of that deal was not revealed.In April, Apple paid about $20 million to acquire LinX Computational Imaging, an Israel-based company that focuses on designing and selling tiny cameras for use in mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets, according to an earlier eWEEK report. According to its Website, LinX "brings revolution to mobile photography" on smartphones, tablets and Ultrabooks through multi-aperture imaging technology. LinX combines innovative image processing and advanced sensor and optics technology to create cameras that offer improved image quality, better low-light performance, improved color fidelity and less shutter lag than competing technologies, according to the company.In March, Apple acquired the startup behind the Foundation DB database in a move that could be aimed at helping Apple continue to improve and sup port its own services to its own customers. The companies did not announce financial terms of the acquisition. FoundationDB is a high-performance database that provides NoSQL and SQL capabilities for users. Such databases have become more popular in recent years compared with traditional relational database management systems because they better serve the emerging generation of interactive applications, according to an earlier eWEEK report.Apple has been spending some of its huge cash pile on other ideas, as well. In February, it was learned that Apple has been looking to diversify its business into electric car production, possibly by 2020, as it explores new business opportunities outside its core consumer technology and computer, tablet and smartphone businesses. 
Source: Apple Acquires Motion-Capture Startup Faceshift

Hot new app helps aspiring musicians be their own Justin Bieber

The path to pop stardom has just taken a surprise turn — and it goes through your iPhone.

A new, free mobile app called "Acapella" allows aspiring Adeles, Lil Waynes and Rihannas not only to shoot videos of themselves singing songs, but also back themselves up by layering in multipart harmonies, rhythm tracks and musical instruments.

"Where are you now that I need you?" a geeky-looking teen in glasses croons, channeling Justin Bieber in two-part harmony inside a pair of adjacent panels that he recorded, one by one.

Meanwhile, the would-be Beeb keeps rhythm with a ballpoint pen, toilet lid, a box of Minute Rice and his head banging on a desk — across five panels arranged below.

"This is the beauty of Acapella — it gives you a chance to showcase your skills," says Daniel Vinh, who with cofounder Ihung Tu launched the app less than two months ago.

Since then, the app has seen more than 6 million downloads, having topped the free charts in Apple's App Store for 10 days straight before recently settling back to the top 30.

Viral Acapella videos are scoring millions of views after getting posted on Twitter. In one hilarious clip that has been retweeted more than 10,000 times, a teenage girl recreates Shaggy's "It Wasn't Me" in five parts, pulling faces as she acts out dialogue and lays down beats.

Many clips are impressive, and look like they were made by professional singers, guitar players or classical violinists taking a break.

Still, while other apps like Four Track have catered to musical talent, Acapella's designers wanted to make an app anybody can use.

"I thought it was going to be easy to do it," says Tu, noting that a key challenge is making sure audio tracks sync perfectly when they're being layered in.

"I thought if your audio's off by one 100th of a second it wouldn't be noticeable," Tu said. "I was wrong — it's more like one 10,000th of a second."

With everything clicking (including a built-in metronome), Acapella — part of Tu and Vinh's larger mobile photo —  and video-production platform called Mixcord — now has more than 10 million monthly active users (MAU).

"The growth potential is huge — we can absolutely reach 1 billion MAUs," Vinh predicts.

While Acapella's free version imposes a one-minute limit on compositions, users can buy the ability to compose opuses of three and 10 minutes for $1.99 and $9.99, respectively.

Still, 95 percent of Acapella compositions are under 60 seconds, the app's creators say.

Mixcord's other apps include Picplaypost, a video-collage app; and Square video, which right-sizes rectangular video footage to fit an Instagram frame.

Mixcord has raised $1 million in seed funding led by Los Angeles-based Mucker Capital.

Source: Hot new app helps aspiring musicians be their own Justin Bieber

Qualcomm Explains How Snapdragon 820 Chips Improve Low-Light Photography

In a new blog, Qualcomm stated how its recent chips, such as the Snapdragon 810 and Snapdragon 808, found in the LG G4, One Plus 2, Nexus 6P and Nexus 5X, can improve low-light photography.

Although high-end smartphone cameras can now deliver amazing pictures when taken outdoors in good lighting conditions, there is still much work to be done when it comes to low-light photography and video recording.

Smartphone camera sensors are much smaller than those in professional cameras, which means they are able to capture much less light. The smaller their pixels are, the less light can be captured. This is why Google decided to go with only a 12MP resolution for a 1/2.3" sensor, while others have started using 16MP or 23MP on similarly sized, or smaller, sensors. Google managed to increase the size of the pixels to 1.55um this way, while competitors' pixels are still only 1.0-1.1um.

This gives Google's new Nexus phones such a large advantage in low-light situations that the company thought it could do away with the Optical Image Stabilization found in the previous Nexus 5.

Even so, Qualcomm said that sometimes there's just not enough light for the pixels to capture. As a response to this, most smartphone cameras try to raise the light sensitivity for those pixels, but that comes with an increase in noise.

The company said that it tries to reduce noise in pictures with the help of a fast Image Signal Processor (ISP) and through technologies such as wavelet noise reduction (WNR) and temporal noise reduction (TNR) that clean up noisy areas in the photos. The Snapdragon processors also use a local tone mapping (LTM) to brighten areas where it's needed, without any compromise in the exposure or detail of the photos.

The upcoming Snapdragon 820 promises to boost low-light performance and image clarity even more. The new Spectra ISP, the Hexagon 680 DSP and the Adreno 530 GPU will all work together to improve the quality of photos in Snapdragon 820-powered smartphones. In the future, we should continue to see significant gains in smartphone photography from new sensors, but also from the ever more powerful smartphone chips, which aid with the image processing.

Mastering low light mobile photography with Snapdragon

______________________________________________________________________Lucian Armasu joined Tom's Hardware in early 2014. He writes news stories on mobile, chipsets, security, privacy, and anything else that might be of interest to him from the technology world. Outside of Tom's Hardware, he dreams of becoming an entrepreneur.

You can follow him at @lucian_armasu. Follow us on Facebook, Google+, RSS, Twitter and YouTube.

Source: Qualcomm Explains How Snapdragon 820 Chips Improve Low-Light Photography

T-Mobile cries copycat as Sprint flies banner over its Bellevue headquarters

Sprint flies a plan over T-Mobile's headquarters. (Sprint Photo)

We just saw the latest episode in the T-Mobile-Sprint wireless rivalry, as Sprint flew a promotional banner over its competitor's Bellevue headquarters on Friday afternoon.

The marketing ploy came shortly after Sprint named Annette Jacobs its new president of the Pacific Northwest region. In an internal email announcing the promotion, Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure wrote that she's "eager to take on a challenge that will be one of her most important assignments: Beat T-Mobile in its own backyard!!!"

T-Mobile wrote "end overages now" in the sky above Basking Ridge, New Jersey. (T-Mobile Photo)

Sure enough, it looks like Jacobs has taken those marching orders to heart. The only problem: this isn't exactly T-Mobile's first rodeo.

The company that wrote the book on these kinds of stunts seemed unimpressed on Friday, pointing out via Twitter how similar the banner was to that time T-Mobile hired a skywriter to write a message above Verizon's campus in Basking Ridge, New Jersey.

.@sprint Cute plane! Let us know if you want to borrow the rest of our marketing guidebook to copy. pic.twitter.com/o4OqYSo9IC

— T-Mobile (@TMobile) November 20, 2015

Skywriting seems a little bit cooler than flying a banner, though it appears neither really had the impact the companies were hoping for.

Er @sprint if ur going 2 fly a plane around the TMUS campus get a bigger banner so we can read it? #beentheredonethat @JohnLegere

— Serena (@SGlossey) November 20, 2015

@sprint is a bit of a joke right now. Plane buzzing the @tmobile campus and banner so small, cant read it. https://t.co/yOVDnm7iVH

— Brian Luke (@briangluke) November 20, 2015

What's more likely to get T-Mobile antsy this holiday shopping season is the resurrection of Sprint's half-off promotion, which drove a record-setting quarter for the company last year.

But T-Mobile has the lead in the battle for third place right now, and it's probably going to take a lot more than a few stunts to turn that around.

Source: T-Mobile cries copycat as Sprint flies banner over its Bellevue headquarters

FotoWeek DC brings the District’s photography scene into focus

Get your cameras (or phones, if we're being honest) ready for FotoWeek DC 2015! Every year, Foto DC and Brightest Young Things host a festival celebrating photography. Local and international artists will converge to host workshops, exhibitions, lectures and film showings all over the city from Nov. 7 until Nov. 15.

The festival features work from AU professor Leena Jayaswal, adjunct professors Alexandra Silverthorne, Iwan Bagus and Rania Razek, AU Manager of Photographic Services Shaun Schroth and alumni Amy Hendrick in an exhibit called "Photographers@Work" which runs until Nov. 14 at Studio Gallery.

Be sure to check out other local talent. The Women Photojournalists of Washington Juried Competition Exhibition showcases female photographers focusing on women's issues. Conflict photographer Louie Palu will show his directorial debut of the film "Kandahar Journals" based on his time spent covering the war in Afghanistan. Two time Pulitzer prize winner Lucian Perkins and National Geographic's Karine Aigner will give presentations...and much more!

For a more hands on Foto Week experience, the American Institute of Architects is hosting an "I See DC" Instagram competition based on places people may encounter in the District during their daily commutes. So, for those interested in learning more about mobile photography, Foto Week also includes a panel discussion on Saturday that covers the value of photography and the art of capturing moments on a mobile device.

For a full listing of Foto Week DC's calendar of events, check out Foto DC's website.

thescene@eagleonline.com

Source: FotoWeek DC brings the District's photography scene into focus

Active userbase in India doubles in one year: Instagram

NEW DELHI: Instagram today said its userbase in India has doubled over the last year as an increasing number of youngsters turn to Facebook's mobile photo-sharing service to express themselves.

Instagram, which has over 400 million users globally with 75 per cent of its userbase outside the US, does not give country-specific user details.

"Instagram has gained immense popularity and people are using it to express themselves. Our monthly actives in India have more than doubled over the past year (as of September 2015) and the momentum continues to build," Facebook India MD Kirthiga Reddy told reporters here.

In India, 18-24 age group is the most active on Instagram, she added.

Instagram has grown to more than 400 million users this year and among the last 100 million to join Instagram, more than half live in Asia and Europe, Reddy said.

In 2012, Facebook had acquired Instagram for USD 1 billion.

Instagram commissioned a study to understand the usage pat tern in India and found over 90 per cent of its users in the country to be under 30 years of age.

"Indians on Instagram are mostly young, mobile-first users with high spending power. They follow brands to keep in touch with the latest products, learn about deals and shop for products online and over 50 per cent of Indian Instagrammers have frequently purchased products and services from the brands they follow," the study conducted by Nielsen said.

Also, Indians use Instagram to express themselves artistically among like-minded people, follow celebrity trends as well as to discover and share food and travel options, it said.

"These insights are useful as we get a better understanding of our audience. In September, we opened our platform to businesses of all sizes in India and helping advertisers drive results," she said.

In India, advertisers on Instagram include P&G, Nestle, Paper Boat, Grofers, TrulyMadly Matchmakers and Sportskeeda, among others.

Source: Active userbase in India doubles in one year: Instagram

FotoWeek DC brings the District’s photography scene into focus

Get your cameras (or phones, if we're being honest) ready for FotoWeek DC 2015! Every year, Foto DC and Brightest Young Things host a festival celebrating photography. Local and international artists will converge to host workshops, exhibitions, lectures and film showings all over the city from Nov. 7 until Nov. 15.

The festival features work from AU professor Leena Jayaswal, adjunct professors Alexandra Silverthorne, Iwan Bagus and Rania Razek, AU Manager of Photographic Services Shaun Schroth and alumni Amy Hendrick in an exhibit called "Photographers@Work" which runs until Nov. 14 at Studio Gallery.

Be sure to check out other local talent. The Women Photojournalists of Washington Juried Competition Exhibition showcases female photographers focusing on women's issues. Conflict photographer Louie Palu will show his directorial debut of the film "Kandahar Journals" based on his time spent covering the war in Afghanistan. Two time Pulitzer prize winner Lucian Perkins and National Geographic's Karine Aigner will give presentations...and much more!

For a more hands on Foto Week experience, the American Institute of Architects is hosting an "I See DC" Instagram competition based on places people may encounter in the District during their daily commutes. So, for those interested in learning more about mobile photography, Foto Week also includes a panel discussion on Saturday that covers the value of photography and the art of capturing moments on a mobile device.

For a full listing of Foto Week DC's calendar of events, check out Foto DC's website.

thescene@eagleonline.com

Source: FotoWeek DC brings the District's photography scene into focus

Mitek Signs Top Five Insurance Company for Photo Fill

SAN DIEGO, Nov. 12, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mitek (NASDAQ:MITK) (www.miteksystems.com), a leading innovator of mobile capture and identity solutions, today announced that a top five insurance company has selected its new Photo Fill™ Mobile Web solution to improve the process of obtaining a quote for new auto insurance by using a mobile web browser on their smartphone to capture information from a driver license photo. In addition, Photo Fill will enable the insurer to improve customer acquisition through the mobile channel by significantly increasing the number of completed quotes.

"Optimizing the mobile channel for consumer convenience is a key competitive differentiator for businesses across many industries. Delivering a high quality, fast and easy experience through a mobile browser is extremely important to increasing revenue from mobile," said James DeBello, president & CEO, Mitek. "This is why one of the top five insurance companies has sele cted our Photo Fill Mobile Web solution to enable pre-fill of a quoting form with accurate personal data in seconds by snapping a photo of a driver license."

Mitek's Photo Fill Mobile Web is the industry's first browser identity capture solution to provide a fast, accurate and seamless user experience for consumers.  Because there is no application to download, users interact with the camera directly from their mobile browsing session, causing no disruption in the mobile application process. Photo Fill Mobile Web uses Mitek's proprietary mobile capture technology to provide real-time guidance to consumers during the image capture process to insure optimal image quality. It also ensures that no images are saved to the consumer's mobile device to maximize security.

A recent Zogby Analytics survey found that Millennials want to digitize all commerce through their mobile camera, and that they love the convenience of taking a picture for data capture. In fact, 68 p ercent said that they would rather always use mobile capture instead of manually typing information on their smartphone. Photo Fill provides a fast and easy user experience to consumers and a significant value proposition for any business seeking to more efficiently and effectively acquire new customers via the mobile channel.

About MitekHeadquartered in San Diego, CA, Mitek (NASDAQ:MITK) is a leading innovator of mobile capture and identity solutions. Mitek's mobile photo technology enables consumers to use the Camera as a Keyboard™ to reduce friction for mobile check deposit, account opening, insurance quoting, payments, and ID document authentication. This innovative mobile technology is licensed by more than 4,100 organizations and used by tens of millions of consumers. In June of 2015, Mitek acquired IDchecker, a global provider of cloud based identity document verification and facial recognition solutions. The acquisition broadens Mitek's global presence, expands d ocument coverage to more than 3,500 document types and adds international customers in payments, financial services and information services. www.miteksystems.com (MITK-F)

Follow Mitek on LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/mitek-systems-inc.Follow Mitek on Twitter: @miteksystemsConnect with Mitek on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/MitekSystemsSee Mitek on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/miteksystemsRead Mitek's latest blog post: http://www.miteksystems.com/blog

Mitek Contact: Ann Reichert Senior Director of Marketing pr@miteksystems.com Investor Contacts: Todd Kehrli or Jim Byers MKR Group, Inc. mitk@mkr-group.com

 

Source: Mitek Signs Top Five Insurance Company for Photo Fill

T-Mobile gambles consumers will go lower def for free viewing

T-Mobile gambles consumers will go lower def for free viewing

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T-Mobile CEO John Legere announcing free video streams--with a catch, at a press event in Los Angeles(Photo: Jefferson Graham)

LOS ANGELES — Give T-Mobile CEO John Legere credit. He was the first to call for an end to two-year wireless contracts. Thanks to him, it's now easier and cheaper to buy smartphones.

But with his latest "Un-Carrier" stunt, Legere's got a much tougher sell.

T-Mobile, beginning Sunday, will offer selected video views from providers such as Netflix at no charge. That sets it apart from AT&T, Verizon and Sprint, which count video viewing against the monthly data caps in customers' wireless plans.

"This could be the biggest thing we've ever announced," Legere boasted Tuesday.

USA TODAY's Jefferson Graham reports from the T-Mobile anouncement in Los Angeles that the new "Binge On" service has a catch. Robert Hanashiro, USA TODAY

But there's a catch.

First of all, the videos on your high-resolution iPhones, Samsung Galaxys and other devices will be displayed in low, 480p standard definition.

That's way down from the 720p and 1080p HD we tech lovers have come to enjoy.

Remember what it was like just a few years ago when YouTube videos were presented in grainy, fuzzy, 320p and 480p definition? Anyone want to go back to those days again?

And second, only certain apps are part of the T-Mobile "BingeOn," program. Yes, there's Netflix, Hulu, HBO Now, Showtime and 20 others, but missing in action are some of the biggest players, including YouTube, Amazon Prime and the CBS, NBC, ABC and Fox prime-time apps.

John J. Legere at the Shrine Auditorium announcing new products. (Photo: Robert Hanashiro)

Legere on stage Tuesday dismissed that concern, and he played up the irreverent persona that T-Mobile has used to help define the brand against bigger, more established competitors.

Sporting a pink T-shirt with matching shoelaces, Legere held a Red Bull in one hand, shouted multiple f-bombs, made several references to online porn and bad-mouthed the competing wireless carriers, which he calls "dumb and dumber."

During the Q&A, we asked Legere how consumers would take to SD on their HD phones. "Don't get hung up on 480p," he replied, adding that customers wouldn't be able to tell the difference, because their devices of choice have small screens.

And besides, he added, "BingeOn" is a free feature. If subscribers don't like it, they can turn it off, and return to HD streaming, which of course counts against monthly data caps, which start at 2GB for $50 monthly.

One assumes T-Mobile really understands the customers it has courted so assiduously and is right thinking they're willing to swap lower  monthly bills for watching videos that would have looked great on phones in 2007. If other carriers follow suit, the gambit will look savvy and innovative.

T-Mobile CEO John J. Legere at the Shrine Auditorium announcing new products. (Photo: Robert Hanashiro)

His basic sales pitch in his presentations is that the wireless carriers are anti-consumer — "overages are evil," he said several times Tuesday.

While Legere railed against the evils of his competitors in his presentation, he didn't go all the way with the one feature consumers would kill for: a basic, monthly and understandable rate, without any extra data charges, throttles or billing semantics.

T-Mobile's latest is a "cheap sales trick," says Matt Wood, the policy director of Free Press, a consumer group that fights for consumer tech issues. "First you fabricate a problem for customers," in data caps.  "Then you make that problem go away and act like you've done them a huge favor."

On paper, Legere's latest move does sound great. T-Mobile has found a solution to massive mobile video consumption, by optimizing the video streams for playback.

But the big question is whether consumers respond in the manner of the T-Mobile employees Tuesday with a resounding "yeah," and dramatically increase video viewing on his network, or take a look at the low-res SD video, and then skip it altogether.

Audience watch T-Mobile CEO John J. Legere at the Shrine Auditorium announcing new products. (Photo: Robert Hanashiro)

Follow Jefferson Graham on Twitter @jeffersongraham

Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1iTWkgg

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Source: T-Mobile gambles consumers will go lower def for free viewing

Windows 10 Mobile Photo apps updated with OneDrive folder option

The native Photo app on Windows 10 Mobile has received an update that add a couple new features, including some more control over displaying Onedrive content, and good use for an image's geographical info.

The first new feature, originally reported by Nokiapoweruser, adds a drop-down menu under "Show my cloud-only content from OneDrive" in the "Settings" section of the app, that allows users to choose whether the slideshow shows only photo sourced from the whole OneDrive storage or only the Pictures folder, the former being the only option previously. This will certain helps avoiding unwanted photos from showing up on your slideshow.

The new Onedrive option. Image courtesy of NokiaPoweruser.

Another new feature, noted by WMPowerUser, is akin to the old Storyteller app, in which photos will be shown on a map according to their geographical information. The feature can be accessed under the "File info" section. Note that you need to have location settings turned on for this to work: go to Camera > Settings > Choose whether camera can use location settings > turn location on, scroll down > Choose apps that use your location > Camera. Any photos taken without this option being on will not have location data to display.

Shot location shown on a map in the File info section..

..but you need to first turn on location settings before taking pictures.

Both features appears to not have come to the Photos app for Windows 10 on PC yet, so this seems to be a platform-specific feature and not an update to the universal app experience. Stay tuned for more updates and news.

MicrosoftOneDrivePhotoWindows 10 Mobile

Source: Windows 10 Mobile Photo apps updated with OneDrive folder option

Galaxy S7 said to sport 20MP camera, Pro mode and RAW support

Stay Connected with Us! Follow TechnoBuffalo

The Galaxy S7's camera is likely to be of its key features with a bigger sensor or even more megapixels. Now a new leak suggests the device could also add a popular photography feature that we've seen on other recent flagship phones.

According to S_leak, the Galaxy S7 will pack a 20-megapixel camera with RAW support and a few more new options. RAW refers to an image file that's been processed as little as possible. That makes it easier to edit your pictures later without losing any of the original image. It's popular with professionals and is also great for anyone who loves showing off their mobile photography.

A few phones from companies like LG and HTC already offer RAW photo support, so it makes sense that Samsung would want to do the same. This is the first time we've heard from S_leak though. The new Twitter account seems to have popped up overnight with a focus on Samsung rumors, so we'll treat this claim with a grain of salt for now.

Beyond its camera, the Galaxy S7 is expected to pack a USB-C charging port and a next-gen processor (either the Snapdragon 820 or Exynos M1 depending on region). It may also come in 5.2 and 5.7-inch size options, both with a curved-edge display.

The Galaxy S7 is expected to arrive early next year. Samsung may even unveil the device at the start of February, about a month ahead of its regular schedule, though that's also just a rumor.

Source: Galaxy S7 said to sport 20MP camera, Pro mode and RAW support

PhotoBomb reinvents traditional photo booth

By Chloe Riley

news@oxfordeagle.com

One of the newest additions to the Square, Oxford PhotoBomb has reinvented the photo booth experience by providing a one-of-a-kind backdrop and enough props to put on a play.

The Oxford PhotoBomb is a 14 foot long 1973 Broken Arrow Travel Trailer that has been converted into a funky mobile photo booth.

Long-time friends turned business partners, Hiram Eastland III and Jeff Crow, both agreed the Oxford Square would be an ideal location for the unique photo booth when it isn't booked for private events.

While Crow already ran a mobile photo booth business in Nashville, Eastland wanted to open another location in Oxford.

"Crow was telling me about this side business he had in Nashville, and I said, 'Man that would really do well in Oxford. I'm going to buy a trailer, and I want you to decorate it like you did the one you have, only Oxford-themed,'" Eastland said.

A musician whose career was taking off, Crow was offered a spot to play the keyboards in Sturgill Simpson's band.

Suddenly, on a worldwide music tour, Crow called Eastland up and told him to stop looking for a trailer to buy and, instead, turned over the Nashville trailer to Eastland to bring to Oxford. Eastland rebranded it as the Oxford PhotoBomb.

"It was late June when I got the trailer," Eastland said. "Jeff played at Bonnaroo on a Saturday and met me in Jackson, Tennessee, on the following Sunday, and from there, I brought it to Oxford."

Located across the street from Funky's and parked in the Jones at Home driveway, Eastland began operating the photo booth on the Square late August.

As awareness of the new business increases, Eastland said the photo booth has already had multiple bookings for private events.

"Our first booking was a charity event called the Leap Frog Firecracker Bash, and it was kind of a test to see how the photo booth would do," Eastland said.

"We were also asked by the Oxford Charger Booster Club to do the Oxford School District Foundation Tailgate as another charity event. The money we raised there went to the Junior High School Cheerleaders," Eastland said.

Oxford PhotoBomb has also booked several weddings, a sorority's bid day party, homecoming events at the student union and Oxford High School, and they're scheduled for a Christmas party at local restaurant, Volta.

"We are now getting emails or calls almost daily inquiring about booking the PhotoBomb. We've got events booked all the way out to May of 2016 right now," Eastland said.

Eastland, a practicing attorney, had to balance his full-time job with starting the photo booth business.

"As a lawyer full-time, this side business was initially really time-consuming," he said, "but now that I've found a good team to help run it, it's become much easier."

Operating Thursday through Saturday on the Square, Eastland needed a team that could help with events and take over the late-night shifts.

Eastland also plans on expanding Oxford PhotoBomb with multiple trailers.

"It's a really fun business, and we plan on having multiple trailers in Oxford one day, as well as probably in other college towns," Eastland said. "I think you get more events through a college campus and college town than any other area, so it's a great setting for a business like this."

Recognizing Oxford's population as predominantly college students, the cost of the photo booth when it's set up on the Square reflects their budgets.

Free of cost to get your picture taken, and $5 for each high-quality 4×6 print, Oxford PhotoBomb is budget-friendly.

"One customer asked me if we would print pictures from her camera instead of having to go to the drug store to do it. She said it's faster, and the pictures are better. I told her I'd be glad to," Eastland said.

Customers, who opt not to print their photos, can find their pictures uploaded to the Oxford PhotoBomb Facebook page for download, free of charge.

Satisfying customers and enhancing their experience while on the Square are some of Eastland's favorite things about running the business.

"The other night, I just sat across the street and watched people walking out of the photo booth and listened to them say how fun it was, and that they will definitely go back," Eastland said. "It makes people happy, and they have a good time. That's what's important; our customers walk away with great pictures they will have for years to come."

Chloe Nelson, a senior at the University of Mississippi, is one of those satisfied customers.

Learning about Oxford PhotoBomb through Instagram, Nelson was instantly intrigued by her friends' pictures from the photo booth that kept showing up on her feed.

"My friends kept posting these adorable pictures on social media from the photo booth, and I just thought the whole thing looked so cool," Nelson said. "It made me really want to go and see it for myself."

Visiting the photo booth for the first time, Nelson was pleasantly surprised at the price of getting your picture taken.

"When they said it was only going to cost $5, I thought it was an awesome deal," Nelson said. "They take multiple pictures per group, and you get to choose which ones you like best and how many you want to print, and they print them for you on the spot."

Like many other college students who have already visited the photo booth, Nelson loved her own experience and documented it on her own Instagram account.

"I think the idea itself is awesome, especially for a place like Oxford," Nelson said. "I think the photo booth will be very successful on the Square, especially among girls.

"When we go out, we look our best and want to get plenty of cute pictures. Add a fun backdrop and random props, and you're bound to create a lot of business that way."

Source: PhotoBomb reinvents traditional photo booth

Instagram Star Shares His Mobile Photo Editing App Workflow

If you're curious about what it takes to do well on Instagram, Connor Franta can tell you. He's one of the biggest stars on the photo sharing service, boasting over 4 million followers. Franta recently published the 6-minute video above with his tips and tricks for shooting and editing photos that attract eyeballs.

Franta's mobile photo workflow on his iPhone consists of VSCO Cam, Afterlight, Facetune, and SKRWT.

Source: Instagram Star Shares His Mobile Photo Editing App Workflow

Facebook Reaches Record as Sales Top Estimates on Mobile Ads

Facebook Inc. shares rose to a record after the company notched another quarter of revenue that beat estimates, thanks to stepped-up mobile-advertising efforts.

The stock jumped 4.6 percent to $108.76 on Thursday, the highest level since the social-networking company went public in May 2012. The surge sent Facebook's market capitalization to about $307 billion, making it larger than Johnson & Johnson and General Electric Co.

Facebook isn't just relying on more users -- it's also putting more ads in front of this vast, growing audience. The company brought its full marketing firepower to Instagram, its mobile photo-sharing application, for the first time in the quarter, while boosting the number of video ads on its main application. Such efforts are working: the average revenue Facebook earned from each user climbed 24 percent to $2.97 in the latest period.

"It's difficult to restrain our optimism on the growth potential for the foreseeable future," Brian Wieser, an analyst at Pivotal Research, wrote in a note to investors. He estimated the stock can reach $134 in 2016, adding that Facebook's performance was "remarkable" considering how high expectations were, and how many new businesses Facebook has yet to monetize.

Daily Visitors

Facebook, which runs the world's biggest social network, late Wednesday reported third-quarter sales of $4.5 billion, compared with the $4.37 billion average analyst estimate, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. There are now 1.01 billion daily visitors checking on other people and sharing status updates, the Menlo Park, California-based company said in a statement. Monthly users jumped 14 percent to 1.55 billion.

Profit excluding some items was 57 cents a share, compared with analysts' prediction for 52 cents. Net income rose to $896 million from $806 million.

Founder and Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg had $2.4 billion added to his fortune in the first 15 minutes of trading on Thursday, given him a net worth of $47.8 billion. He is the eighth-wealthiest person on the planet, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Co-founder Dustin Moskovitz gained $500 million, putting his fortune at $10.7 billion. Sean Parker, Facebook's original president, gained $390 million. He is worth $7 billion. The wealth of Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg rose $38 million to about $1.3 billion.

Ad Quality

Facebook has been working to improve the quality -- and therefore the price -- of ads as Zuckerberg invests in newer initiatives, from WhatsApp to scientific projects such as virtual reality and artificial intelligence. Zuckerberg said that although virtual reality is an exciting investment area for the company, he expects it to grow slowly. David Wehner, Facebook's chief financial officer, said the company would continue to spend on virtual reality, artificial intelligence and other moves to prepare for the future, especially as the main business remains strong.

"We are investing aggressively in the future," the CFO said in an interview after earnings were announced. "We see great opportunities."

Facebook now has 12,000 employees, after adding 1,000 in the past quarter. Sandberg, the operating chief, is aiming for the social network to have a large impact in U.S. elections next year, adding that every member of Congress has an account.

Marketing Products

The company is seeking to convince advertisers that it has the most comprehensive marketing products and tools for reaching potential customers on their mobile phones. Because people sign into Facebook using their real identities, the company is better able to track and target them, boosting its appeal to marketers. By bringing Instagram into Facebook's advertising system, the company was able to expand the ad audience by more than 400 million users.

Facebook has more than 900 million users on WhatsApp and more than 700 million on Messenger. The company has been experimenting with ways to get people to interact with brands on Messenger. Neither of those properties is delivering a meaningful boost to revenue, and Wehner said building a business is not a priority.

Facebook is expected to account for 17.4 percent of global mobile-ad spending this year, a market that's projected to reach $72.1 billion in 2015, according to EMarketer. That compares with the researcher's projection for Google Inc. to reach 33.7 percent in 2014.

Zuckerberg said the company is working to improve users' experience on Facebook by working with media companies to make their content easier to consume in small bites. Facebook worked with media companies on an "instant articles" product earlier this year, so their news stories load faster. On Friday, the company unveiled an agreement with Apple Inc. and Spotify Ltd. to let people share 30-second preview clips of songs on Facebook. People who click on the iTunes songs will be able to buy them through Apple.

Growth Abroad

The company makes a lot more money from its users in the U.S. and Canada than it does elsewhere. On average, revenue per user was $10.49 in the U.S. and Canada, compared with $1.39 in Asia-Pacific.

Although Facebook is blocked in China, it's one of the company's biggest advertising markets because exporters there are looking for ways to reach customers outside of the mainland, according to Zuckerberg. Still, he said he's dedicated to entering China eventually.

"You can't have a mission of connecting the world and leave out the biggest country," Zuckerberg said. "That is a situation we are going to need to find a way forward on."

(An earlier version of this story corrected Sheryl Sandberg's title.)

Source: Facebook Reaches Record as Sales Top Estimates on Mobile Ads