Monday, October 31, 2016

Huawei readies to lift lid on Mate 9 phablet

Huawei. (Duncan Alfreds, Fin24)

Johannesburg - Chinese smartphone maker Huawei is expected to unveil its latest flagship phablet, the Mate 9, at an event in Munich, Germany on Thursday.

The reports come amid a bustle of international online and local sources teasing hints about the new device.

The manufacturer is due for the next smartphone in the series after the launch of the Mate 8 last year. 

Huawei, which already holds the bulk of the phablet market share in South Africa, is expected to bring the next device to the country. 

READ: Huawei SA takes aim at Apple's dual-camera

Fin24 has been invited to attend the global product launch event on November 3, further hinting the next device will indeed enter the country's market.

The next phablet device from the manufacturer is expected to feature bulked-up specifications to better that of the Samsung Galaxy Note 7, which was recently killed-off by the South Korean company amid numerous international explosion reports.  

The device is expected to either feature a 5.9 or 6 inch display fitting into the larger-format display bracket. Rumours also suggest the display will be a QHD with a 1440 x 2560 resolution. 

Earlier this year, Huawei launched the P9 and P9 Plus smartphone which both featured 12 megapixel Leica dual-cameras. These devices are further able to increase the depth of field in images.

READ: Huawei P9's game-changing mobile photography

The company is expected to once again partner with the German optics company and carry-over the feature to the next device, with a bigger 12 and 20 megapixel camera. 

The Mate 9 will likely feature a full-metal body as with previous devices and a fingerprint scanner on the rear of the device. 

The device is also expected to feature a faster 2.6GHz octa-core processor with up to 6GB of RAM and run the Android Nougat operating system. 

The Mate devices, notorious for powerful batteries lasting up two days on heavy usage, suggest the next device will feature an even larger battery.

Huawei have also hinted at a bigger or even faster charging battery in the device with teaser videos uploaded to YouTube. 

Sources also suggest that the next Huawei Mate 9 will be coupled with a new "Mate 9 Pro" or another lower priced device. However, it is still unknown whether the secondary device will be made available in South Africa. 

The company's Chinese rival, Xiaomi have also invited local media to an event to be held in Johannesburg on Thursday, this after the launch the Mi Note 2 phablet and Mi Mix borderless concept phone last week.

Either device likely to be announced to the local market at the event. 

With a gap in the phablet market left by the Note 7 – the Mate 9 will likely defend Huawei's dominating phablet share in country against the next offering by Xiaomi and the iPhone 7 Plus.

Read Fin24's top stories trending on Twitter:


Source: Huawei readies to lift lid on Mate 9 phablet

Sunday, October 30, 2016

Motorola M And Lenovo P2 Release Date: New Smartphones Coming Nov. 8?

Motorola and Lenovo launched video trailers that hint at a common unveiling of the Motorola Moto M and the Lenovo P2 during an event in Guanzhou, China. The event where the two devices will be showcased is scheduled for Nov. 8.

Motorola Moto M Specs And Release Date

Quite a number of leaks depicting the Moto M landed recently. The handset carries the "Kung Fu" nickname and serial number XT1662.

Processing power for the device comes via a MediaTek Helio P10 SoC, which is backed by 4 GB of RAM. Moto M features a 5.5-inch display that is neatly protected by Gorilla Glass 4. The device sports a main camera of 16 megapixels, while the selfie snapper has an 8-megapixel sensor.

The juice keeps flowing through the Moto M thanks to a 3,000 mAh power source. Security-wise, the smartphone features a fingerprint scanner under the main camera, on the back of the device.

Rumors are that Moto M will come with Android 6.0 Marshmallow out of the box, and the gadget will come in two color options: Silver and Gold. Motorola recently released a list of phones that will get Android 7.0 Nougat, but sadly the Moto M is not on it.

Insiders familiar with the matter point out that the phone is scheduled for a December release, and it will come embedded with Microsoft apps.

Lenovo P2 Specs And Release Date

Lenovo showcased its P2 device in September during the IFA 2016. The handset holsters a 5.5-inch screen capable of displaying resolutions of 1,080 x 1,920 pixels.

Below the chassis sits an eight-core Snapdragon 625 CPU. The default storage and RAM size will depend on the region. The European Lenovo P2 model will get 3 GB of RAM and 32 GB of standard space, whereas the Chinese variant will sport 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of native storage.

Potential customers of the P2 should know that Lenovo featured the phone with a microSD card slot, which means that you can ramp up the storage space up to 128 GB.

In charge of the graphics is an Adreno 506 GPU.

Mobile photography fans are looking at a 13-megapixel main camera in the P2, while the selfie snapper only packs a 5-megapixel sensor. The power source of the device is massive, at 5,100 mAh. Security-wise, Lenovo P2 owners are also getting a fingerprint scanner, but the OEM did not place it on the rear of the device. Instead, the fingerprint sensor is embedded in the home button.

We are looking forward to the Nov. 8 event, when more information about the two smartphones should become available, alongside an availability road map.

Stay tuned to find out the latest developments of Lenovo (which owns Motorola, in case you needed a reminder).

© 2016 Tech Times, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.


Source: Motorola M And Lenovo P2 Release Date: New Smartphones Coming Nov. 8?

Saturday, October 29, 2016

Is Tim Cook Apple’s version of Steve Ballmer? Not even close

Earlier this week, I came across a widely circulated article from Steve Blank articulating why Tim Cook is effectively Apple's own version of Steve Ballmer, which is to say that Cook is a non-visionary who is adept at increasing sales but not much else. On a superficial level, the comparison is an easy one to make and, if you're not one who cares about nuance, it might even seem like a fair analogy.

The gist of Blank's argument is simple. Ballmer is a sales guy who helped Microsoft grow but was unable to leverage the company's existing success into new innovative products. Stepping into Bill Gates' shoes, Ballmer was patently incapable of filling them. Cook, in a similar vein, is an operations guy who has taken Apple's financials to record-levels. But, much like Ballmer relative to Gates, Cook is no Steve Jobs and Apple's innovative spirit has struggled as a result.

For Microsoft to have tackled the areas they missed – cloud, music, mobile, apps – would have required an organizational transformation to a services company. Services (Cloud, ads, music) have a very different business model. They are hard to do in a company that excels at products.

Ballmer and Microsoft failed because the CEO was a world-class executor (a Harvard grad and world-class salesman) of an existing business model trying to manage in a world of increasing change and disruption.

Indeed, Ballmer's failures as Microsoft's CEO center mostly on his inability to anticipate and take advantage of any number of important technological revolutions. Two quick examples include Microsoft not being able to compete in the digital music space and in the smartphone space. In a broad sense, Ballmer's fundamental failure as a CEO was his inability to appreciate that the technological landscape that Microsoft grew rich on was changing rapidly underneath its feet. Ballmer's ultimate mistake, to be more specific, wasn't that Microsoft didn't come out with an iPhone-like device first, but rather that Ballmer was unable to grasp that the iPhone was, right of the gate, where the future of mobile was headed. In short, Ballmer and Microsoft completely missed the boat.

Looking at Cook, it's hard to draw any parallels between his tenure as the CEO of Apple over the past five years and Ballmer's stint as Microsoft CEO.

Tim Cook has now run Apple for five years, long enough for this to be his company rather than Steve Jobs'. The parallel between Gates and Ballmer and Jobs and Cook is eerie. Apple under Cook has doubled its revenues to $200 billion while doubling profit and tripling the amount of cash it has in the bank (now a quarter of trillion dollars). The iPhone continues its annual upgrades of incremental improvements. Yet in five years the only new thing that managed to get out the door is the Apple Watch. With 115,000 employees Apple can barely get annual updates out for their laptops and desktop computers.

This argument simply doesn't hold up. For starters, Blank is comparing Ballmer's entire tenure at Microsoft to Cook's 5 years at Apple. Even so, Cook's achievements are for more impressive from a financial perspective. Cook officially assumed the CEO position at Apple in late 2011. From 2012 to 2015, Apple's revenue increased from $156 billion to $233 billion. Without question, Apple's most impressive period of growth has come with Cook at the helm.

Steve Ballmer retired in 2013, but from 2010 to 2013, Microsoft's revenue increased from $62 billion to $77 billion. That's impressive, sure, but it's nowhere on par with what Cook has managed to do.

As for "annual upgrades of incremental improvements", well, that's how innovation typically works. Revolutionary products like the iPhone, almost by definition, are once in a lifetime products. Nonetheless, the iPhone has improved tremendously with Cook at the helm. Touch ID is a complete game-changer and it was implemented with Cook as CEO. Over the last few years, the iPhone has set new standards of excellence for mobile photography. What's more, the company's in-house team of hardware engineers consistently turn out increasingly impressive A-x processors that routinely leave competitors in the dust.

Blank continues:

But the world is about to disrupt Apple in the same way that Microsoft under Ballmer faced disruption. Apple brilliantly mastered User Interface and product design to power the iPhone to dominance. But Google and Amazon are betting that the next of wave of computing products will be AI-directed services – machine intelligence driving apps and hardware. Think of Amazon Alexa, Google Home and Assistant directed by voice recognition that's powered by smart, conversational Artificial Intelligence – and most of these will be a new class of devices scattered around your house, not just on your phone. It's possible that betting on the phone as the platform for conversational AI may not be the winning hand.

This is where Blank's argument effectively falls off the rails. There's absolutely no question that Microsoft missed a number of important technological waves. The same, however, can't be said for Apple. Will AI directed services be the next big thing as Blank suggests? Maybe it will. Maybe it wont. The simple reality is that the next big thing hasn't yet revealed itself. Maybe it will be AI, maybe it will be virtual reality, maybe it will be augmented reality, or maybe it will be something else entirely different that's not even on anyone's radar at the moment. The important takeaway here is that Apple has historically never been first to a given market. On the contrary, when Apple gets a read on what the next big wave in consumer electronics will be, it dives in head first, often late to the game, but with a product that's better and more intuitive than the competition.

Admittedly, Apple is lagging behind in the current battle for AI supremacy. Nonetheless, it's so early in the game that to declare a winner today is on par with proclaiming in 2000 that Apple had already lost the digital music race because it didn't have an MP3 player.

Blank, in a way, acknowledges this, but also adds that he doesn't have faith in Tim Cook to grasp when the next technological wave will hit.

It's not that Apple doesn't have exciting things in conversational AI going on in their labs. Heck, Siri was actually first. Apple also has autonomous car projects, AI-based speakers, augmented and virtual reality, etc in their labs. The problem is that a supply chain CEO who lacks a passion for products and has yet to articulate a personal vision of where to Apple will go is ill equipped to make the right organizational, business model and product bets to bring those to market.

No one is going to argue that Tim Cook's innovative vision is on par with Jobs'. Still, we have yet to see Apple make a serious misstep in the tech space that has caused the company to fall completely behind the rest of the industry. This is in stark contrast to what we saw with Ballmer when he was the CEO of Microsoft.

If Apple misses the next big thing and is left watching helplessly on the sidelines, then sure, one could reasonably call Tim Cook a second coming of Steve Ballmer. But until that happens, such proclamations amount to nothing more than bold and eye-catching statements resting precariously on dangerously little evidence.

And as a final point, to the issue of releasing innovative new products, it's easy to forget that Microsoft's innovations during Gates' tenure as CEO were various iterations of Windows. Software update after software update after software update. In other words, let's not try and pretend that Microsoft back in the late 80s and 90s was a beacon of innovation with forward-thinking new products coming down the pipeline every few years.


Source: Is Tim Cook Apple's version of Steve Ballmer? Not even close

Thursday, October 27, 2016

Mobile Photography / Art Tutorial – Good Hydrations: How Much Water Do You Need?

We are delighted to publish Jerry Jobe's latest mobile photography/art tutorial for our viewing pleasure. This time Jobe takes a look a new watercolour app – Paint Logue and compares it to some of the other current popular watercolour apps.  Take it away Jerry…(foreword by Joanne Carter).

"How many hammers do you need? Given my ability to bend any nail, I definitely need a claw hammer. I've got a pipe wrench with a hammer head on the back, for those frustrating moments when the pipe fitting WON'T BUDGE. But since I'm not pounding dents into or out of metal, I have no real need for a ball-peen hammer. (Besides the fact that I love the phrase "ball peen hammer". It's fun! Say it with me: Ball Peen Hammer.)

Why am I talking about hammers when I should be talking about iPhoneography apps? It just came to mind when I saw that another watercolour app was available for free this past weekend. It's called Paint Logue (yes, there is a space in the middle – it's not Paintlogue) and it is by a company called Nine Curves. It was first released in September, but it's already on release 3.1.

At first I wasn't even going to bother downloading it, because watercolour effects are easily obtainable in many, many apps. To use my analogy, who needs another hammer? It would have to be very special, and Paint Logue is not a special hammer. So rather than go into depth with an app that isn't that deep, I think I'll compare it to other watercolour effects. In addition to Paint Logue, I'll look at Waterlogue, Becasso, Aquarella, and my go-to app, iColorama.

I'll be using this bicycle image that I captured last week at Disney World's Animal Kingdom".

Paint Logue is a universal app. It is also available on the Google Play store, for non-Apple devices. It only works in portrait mode.

When you enter the app, you can choose from nine sample images or access the Photo Library or the Camera.

Once an image is loaded, you can choose from seven different presets. Seven is a low number of presets, particularly when you realize there are not many adjustments to be made.

The first adjustment is a number of borders. To Paint Logue's credit, the preset borders are not a strong suit of other apps.

The borders are not adjustable in size or color. The paper texture applied to the image is not applied to the border. The borders also cannot be rotated. You have to take them exactly as they are

Paint Logue allows you to add a signature. Use all of the square provided to create your signature, because it will be shrunk to place on the image.

The signature is placed on the image below. It is always black, and cannot be resized or rotated.

The two remaining adjustments are sliders for Color (Hue) and Saturation. You can't make any changes to the Edges, Wetness, Strokes, Texture – all the qualities the make a watercolour distinctive. The presets determine all those qualities, and you've only got seven of them.

I decide to reduce the saturation a bit.

The Save/Share options allow you to add a caption, which is placed in the EXIF data on the image. Paint Logue really emphasises the sharing aspect – in order to save to the Camera Roll, you have to tap the "Other…" option.

Here's my finished image. Not horrible, but certainly a watercolour effect that can be improved, if I were allowed to change some aspects of it.

The question I'm left with is, why develop and publish an app that is less than the competitors? Shouldn't you at least take a look at those competitors and find a niche where you could shine? Paint Logue offers borders that most other apps do not – couldn't you work on making them the best in class, and therefore a reason for buying your app over the others?

Paint Logue would seem to be in direct competition with Waterlogue. Waterlogue only offers one kind of border – a thin edge with rounded corners. There are twelve presets, with truly different looks.

There are adjustments to the size of the strokes, from Small to Giant.

There are also adjustments to brightness, from Darkest to Lightest. There are still no Edge adjustments, and no separate adjustments for Hue or Saturation. Where Waterlogue gets an edge over Paint Logue is in the larger variation in their presets.

How about Becasso? There are only six presets here. There are no borders. However, there are adjustments that are specific to the qualities of a watercolour image, including Wetness and Edge. This expands the six presets to an exponentially larger number of "looks" for your image.

The Colourfulness command actually controls the amount of canvas that is covered by color. At low values, a lot of the white canvas shows through. There are still Brightness, Saturation and Contrast controls.

Becasso has a Wetness slider as well. It controls how the watercolour bleeds into the paper. A wetter stroke will spread out more. Look at how the dark at the top of the fender bleeds into the white below.

There are two controls for Edges. The first is Edge Amount.

The second is Edge Stroke Width. The number and width of edges used in a watercolour greatly impacts the look of the finished image, and Becasso takes advantage of that to give the user many more "looks" than the six presets would indicate.

Notice how the adjusted "Frank" preset looks nothing like the original preset look.

Aquarella is a JixiPix app that I have not covered yet, but is worthy of a full tutorial. As might be expected, there are a ton of presets – 60 under the two categories of Aquarella and Two Tone.

But that's not all. You have control over Color Detail, Enhance Colors, Wet Edge Strength and Wet Edge Detail through sliders. There are seven paper styles which control the texture. There are also 63 different washes, which can give you subtle or bold color variation within the image.

There are 41 different Bloom textures. Darker areas within the Bloom texture make your image darker, and adds to the blooming or bleeding within those areas. The Inverse switch effectively doubles the Bloom textures to 82.

The Paper Styles change the texture of the paper, but unfortunately, the intensity cannot be adjusted.

The Two Tone presets give you a duotone look, and the colours are infinitely adjustable. All of these preset, controls, and textures make Aquarella the most powerful dedicated watercolour app out there. It is strange, however, that they offer no borders, since many JixiPix apps do have borders.

But how about iColorama? It's not a dedicated watercolour app, but it does have two different watercolour Styles that are tremendously adjustable. The first is Water-B, which has 16 different paper texture presets.

Below I chose Preset 3, which is a much subtler texture.

The Colors slider performs a "posterisation" of the colours, grouping more of them together as the slider is moved to the right. At the leftmost setting, the colours would not be posterised at all.

The sixteen different paper textures, combined with the Texture slider to reduce the effect, gives you a lot of different opportunities with this specialised water-ish look.

True watercolour looks are found under the Water Style. There are nine different presets, each of which make radical changes to the stroke width and other preprocessing decisions.

Below I just changed from Preset 1 to 2 and you can see there's a radical change in the look. It looks to me as if a Tensor effect was added before the "painting" commenced.

There are three sliders along the bottom, and I zoom in to show the difference the sliders make more clearly.

Below I increased the Distortion, and you can see that the edges become more fuzzy as the paper distorts the paint.

The Edge slider does something no other app does. The center position is no edges, and towards the right is the familiar black edge. But moving the Edges slider to the left end adds white edges instead. This gives a lighter airier feeling to your watercolour.

Of course, you can lessen the Texture of the paper also.

Let's look at some of the other presets. Below is #4, which uses square brush strokes (not a favorite of mine).

The fifth preset is very clean, and I like what it does to the metal along the top of the zoomed-in image.

Below you'll see Preset 6, and you may notice a cloudy mottling of the image, making some areas lighter and some darker. The visibility of this mottling is controlled with the Intensity slider under the Set button at the bottom right.

Preset seven adds some black edges that resemble Sumi-e. these edges are not controlled by the Edge slider. In the example below, I have moved the slider to the left, which outlines the thick black Sumi-e lines with white edges.

Presets eight and nine allow much more of the paper to shine through, and the resulting pastel colours really say watercolour to me.

Of course, there is an advantage to using a full-featured art app for the creation of your watercolours. If you want a border, you can add it. If you need to adjust brightness, contrast, saturation, levels, or even curves and sharpness, all the tools are available to you. Below I painted in a border before using Style>Water, and the border got a painted look also.

I was able to preprocess the shot below by masking a textured yellow background around the blue blooms from my original image. Then I passed the entire image through Style>Water in iColorama before adding the text in Over.

The point I'm trying to make here with this article is that new apps come along every day. It can be hard to figure whether you need a new specialised app or not. First look at the hammers you've got, and see if the new one offers something you don't have. It can be looks you can't get elsewhere, it can be degree of control, it can be ease of use. But if you're like me, with tons of apps already on your device, most apps offered will not have any advantage over what you already have. If you're looking for my specific recommendations on the five apps I showed today, I would keep iColorama, Aquarella, and (most likely) Becasso. I don't know that I'll ever use Waterlogue or Paint Logue again. They just don't offer the degree of control and the variety of looks that the other apps do.

Until next time, enjoy!

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Source: Mobile Photography / Art Tutorial – Good Hydrations: How Much Water Do You Need?

Wednesday, October 26, 2016

DJI Osmo Mobile – Review – Stabilise your Photography in Style

DJI

Welcome to my review of the DJI Osmo Mobile. The DJI Osmo Mobile is the new gimbal from DJI for your smartphone.

The Key Features

– ActiveTrack technology built into the DJI GO app allows the Osmo Mobile to automatically keep your smartphone facing you as you move. (not available on the android app currently, only iOS) – The Osmo Mobile's 3-axis gimbal system smooths out the movements you make, turning every shot into cinematic video. – With a few taps, the Osmo Mobile motion timelapse feature shoots video showing the passing of time. – The Osmo Mobile lets you share special moments in real time using YouTube Live inside the DJI GO app. – Shoot better photos in low light, with powerful camera stabilisation and full manual camera control. – The Osmo Mobile's panorama function automatically captures and blends 9 separate photos together to create one stunning photo. – Used with its range of accessories, the Osmo Mobile can be mounted almost anywhere, giving you even more opportunities to get that perfect shot. – Enjoy more than just DJI GO. Osmo Mobile is open for developers to customise.

DJI

Above is the optional base to quickly drop the DJI into. The underneath of the base also has a standard tripod screw.

The photo below shows the extension arm secured into the tripod base. The tripod legs extend further in one solid movement.

DJI

Video Overview of Hardware, Accessories and DJI Go App

The Lowdown

– The Osmo Mobile supports smartphones measuring from 58.6mm-84.8mm width and up to 8.4mm thick. – ActiveTrack – The fastest it can track is the same as its Max Controllable Speed, 120°/s. – ActiveTrack is a feature currently only available on iOS. – YouTube Livestreaming or Stream Live to Facebook. – DJI Go App – Lots of extra features (see video) but needs update to fully support iOS 10 and the iPhone 7 Plus telephoto lens. – iPhone 6S Plus or 7 Plus does not fit with a case on. – Apart from the normal timelapse mode, there is a motion timelapse option – The optional base has a tripod screw underneath – The DJI Go Movie editing app has a wealth of great music but does seem to degrade video quality slightly compared to using iMovie in iOS. – Connects perfectly every time. With the iPhone 7 and the loss of the headphone jack, it becomes impossible to use an external mic without some trickery or additional hardware.

Sample Video from the DJI Osmo Mobile using the iPhone 7 Plus

My Experience

I have used the DJI Osmo Mobile extensively now and I was surprised that none of the reviews and YouTube videos mentioned that if you are using the iPhone 7 Plus or similar sized phone, it won't fit or stabilise with any case fitted. I tried with the Apple silicone and leather case. Also, at the time of writing this review (I delayed the review too hoping for an update from DJI), the DJI Go app only supports 1080p video at 30fps and not 60fps as per the default camera app. You can use the DJI with other third party camera apps. The iPhone 7 Plus telephoto lens is not supported in the app either yet from DJI. It looks like DJI need to update the app properly for iOS 10! To connect the DJI to a tripod you will need the extension arm. This has a standard tripod mount screw underneath. If I had know this prior to purchase I would not have bought the DJI tripod base, as this used with the extension arm is not still enough in the winds of Dartmoor.

DJI motion

In the photo above you can see the extension arm is attached to my normal tripod and securely. I am keeping the DJI tripod base as this works well indoors as a lightweight alternative. The plastic base from DJI is ideal for placing the DJI Osmo Mobile into for quick use, say on a table for editing VLOGs.

The motion time lapse mode is fantastic. Panoramic shots are spooky good. The gimbal just moves all buy itself to take the panoramic photos. However, the file size outputted is only around 3mb vs the native iPhone app which can be over 3 times this size.

One problem using the DJI with the iPhone 7 is the OIS on the iPhone sometimes conflicts with the DJI. There is not much you can do about this, accept during post processing when this can be fixed. All the footage shown has not been adjusted to enable you to see what you get first hand.

Despite some of the negatives, which will likely be solved when DJI updated their app, I have found the DJI Osmo Mobile a joy to use. The included software adds lots of extra functionality and the active tracking is superb.

Conclusion

Despite some bugs in the DJI Go app, it is one of the easiest gimbals to use and setup. It also works really well and the extra options provided by the software make it a joy to use. Highly recommended.

More detailed information and pricing on the DJI Osmo Mobile – Click HERE.

For the latest pricing on Amazon UK – Click HERE.


Source: DJI Osmo Mobile – Review – Stabilise your Photography in Style

Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Mobile Photography/Art – Pic of the Day (466) – via Instagram – TheAppWhisperer

Here's day four hundred and sixty six of our mobile photography/art Pic of the Day section via Instagram. Each day we will be selecting one image a day for our Pic of the Day section on Instagram with this hashtag – #theappwhisperer. Furthermore, each month we will also offer an overall prize to the image that receives the most love.

To ensure your image receives our attention, please upload it to Instagram with this hashtag – #theappwhisperer

Today, we congratulate @gothic_swan – Kat with this image.

Please view more of her stunning images here.

[Please visit our Artist Directory and find out how we can add you too!]

Donating = Loving = TheAppWhisperer.com

Bringing you (ad-free) TheAppWhisperer.com takes me hundreds of hours each month and hundreds of pounds to sustain. If you find any joy and stimulation here, please consider becoming a Supporting Member with a recurring monthly donation of your choosing, or possibly making a one-time donation. I cannot express what a huge difference this makes. This is a not for profit website and one that can only grow with your support.

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Source: Mobile Photography/Art – Pic of the Day (466) – via Instagram – TheAppWhisperer

Monday, October 24, 2016

3D Cameras Market - Enhancing the visual appeal of the photograph.

Global 3D Cameras Market: Overview

3D cameras enable photographers to capture images that create a depth illusion in 2D photographs, enhancing the visual appeal of the photograph. Incorporation of 3D technology in video cameras is, of course, not a novel concept and has been a mainstay in the entertainment industry for many years. 3D videos allow viewers to immerse themselves into the on-screen action much more naturally than with 2D footage. 3D still cameras are a relatively more recent innovation and took much more time to take off commercially, only becoming a commercial hit around the turn of the ongoing decade. However, 3D cameras are now steadily rising in demand.

Stereo camera technology is a popular method of getting 3D still photographs. Stereo 3D cameras work by utilizing two camera lenses instead of the one that defines the current paradigm of cameras. This allows the camera to function like a pair of human eyes and thus provide depth perception to the photo. The global 3D cameras market is primarily propelled by the enhanced visual appeal 3D cameras provide and the rapid rate of innovation in the industry.

Global 3D Cameras Market: Drivers and Restraints

The rising popularity of 3D content is the primary factor propelling the global 3D cameras market. The engaging nature of 3D photography is becoming increasingly commercially lucrative in the modern market, with many publications trying to boost their user reach through the use of 3D photography. This will be a strong factor boosting the demand for 3D cameras in the coming years. The growing demand for 3D TVs is also a major factor driving the demand for 3D cameras.

The rel atively easy incorporation of 3D cameras in smartphones is another factor expected to drive the global 3D cameras market in the coming years. Due to the ease of carrying a smartphone with an advanced camera instead of a bulky and expensive SLR camera, many amateur photographers are starting to choose mobile phones for photography over SLRs. Smartphone manufacturers, recognizing the popularity of mobile photography, are expected to incorporate 3D cameras as a USP in the coming years. The rising popularity of high-end smartphones in the increasingly urbanized economies in Asia Pacific and the Middle East will thus boost the global 3D cameras market significantly. From the point of view of 3D camera manufacturers, smartphones are the cheapest vehicle for 3D cameras to make a commercial impact, which will ensure rising usage of 3D camera technology in smartphone cameras.

The rising use of 3D cameras in home automation and security technologies is also a major factor driving the gl obal 3D cameras market. 3D cameras provide higher precision in security videos, which is naturally a sought-after attribute. Rise in the demand for 3D scanning is also helpful for the global 3D cameras market.

On the other hand, the major restraint on the global 3D cameras market is the high price of devices that incorporate them. In spite of the growing purchasing power of consumers in developing regions, the 3D cameras market is still largely restricted to developed regions such as North America and Europe. Ongoing technical innovation will help the 3D cameras industry ameliorate this concern, as will efforts by 3D camera manufacturers to expand their distribution network in emerging economies.

Global 3D Cameras Market: Regional and Competitive Dynamics

The global 3D cameras market is dominated at present, as mentioned, by North America and Europe. Major companies in the 3D cameras market, such as Nikon, Canon, GoPro, Kodak, Panasonic, Sony Electronics, and LG al l have well-established sales networks in these regions, in addition to advanced R&D facilities. The future of the 3D cameras market, though, is expected to be dominated by Asia Pacific, as the region contains many dynamic economies that are exhibiting increasing financial clout.

Transparency Market Research (TMR) is a global market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. TMR's experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information.

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This release was published on openPR.


Source: 3D Cameras Market - Enhancing the visual appeal of the photograph.

Sunday, October 23, 2016

Enhance iPhone 7 photography with ExoLens PRO, PRIME lenses

Greg Gazin, Canoe.com Oct 20, 2016

, Last Updated: 1:01 PM ET

Advanced features found in the new iPhone 7 camera are designed to take mobile photography to new heights, but in hopes of taking it even higher, ExoLens is launching ExoLens PRO and ExoLens PRIME, two new lines of external lenses, each targeting a different consumer with products rolling out starting this December.

"We are very excited to launch the high-performance ranges of PRO and PRIME iPhone lenses," says John Fellowes, Chief Executive Officer of Fellowes Brands, which acquired ExoLens in 2014. "The new product lines signify an expanded brand strategy for ExoLens, which will now reach mobile photographers of all levels."

ExoLens PRO

The PRO line will hit the market first, starting with the high-performance ExoLens PRO Wide-Angle and PRO Telephoto Kits for iPhone 7, incorporating technologies created by Zeiss and which are currently used in high-end DSLR lenses.

The ExoLens PRO Wide-Angle kit features a ZEISS Mutar 0.6x Asph T* Wide-Angle lens designed to provide a very crisp edge to edge contrast with virtually no distortion at all – something unattainable from a standard phone lens. The kit will retail for US $199.99 and expected to be available in December.

The PRO Telephoto kit, also with optics by Zeiss, features a ZEISS Mutar 2.0x Asph T* Telephoto lens. This kit offers photographers a narrow depth of field to add a beautiful bokeh (purposeful and deliberate blur) to your photos' background while adding more focus or attention to the main subject. According to ExoLens, "The focal length of the telephoto allows the contours of the face to appear more natural and realistic, making this kit ideal for portraiture or capturing events." This kit will also be available in December and will retail for US $249.99.

To complete the trio of the forthcoming PRO line is the ExoLens Pro Macro-Zoom Kit, again with optics by ZEISS. It features the ZEISS Vario-Proxar 40-80 T* macro-zoom lens, with a variable focal length of 40 to 80 mm.

This lens is interesting in that it works in combination with your iPhone's internal camera. Surprisingly, turning the ring on the lens for adjustment will not actually change the field of view as one expects.

Product Developer Vladan Blahnik from ZEISS best explains.

"Instead…the ring functions much like a manual focus with which different planes can be set. If photographers want to shoot objects that are three to five centimeters away, they turn the ring to the right as far as it will go, and to the left for objects that are five to eight centimeters away," adding, "This allows users to capture objects measuring three to twelve centimetres filling the complete field of view and capture astonishing details beyond what is visible to the human eye to put you impossibly close to the subject."

The ExoLens Macro-Zoom kit will retail for US$199.99 and expected to be available in January 2017.

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All PRO Kits will come with an ExoLens Edge mount made from new machined aluminum and features an integrated cold shoe accessory mount (compatible with some accessories such as external video light) and a key ring loop.

In addition to the iPhone 7, all three kits above will also be available for the iPhone 6/6s and iPhone 6 Plus/6s Plus users.

ExoLens PRIME

And finally, the ExoLens PRIME line. This line will also include three lens kits; the Wide-Angle 0.6X, the Telephoto 2X and the Super Wide-Angle/Macro Combo. While no extensive detail is currently available on these kits, the company says that this line is intended for photographers looking to create unique, artistic and candid snapshots and is designed to allow for, "artistic expression and non-technical social sharing to step up your iPhone photography and videography game."

The Prime product line is expected to be available in the first quarter of 2017.


Source: Enhance iPhone 7 photography with ExoLens PRO, PRIME lenses

Saturday, October 22, 2016

Kodak’s photography special Ektra smartphone with 21 MP rear camera

Kodak Smartphone

Photo: Kodak

Kodak has decided to experiment with mobile phone production as point-and-shoot cameras are facing overwhelming competition from multi-tasking smarthpones or portable devices. The company announced the Kodak Ektra based on one of its old models it had launched in 1941. The phone will be manufactured by electronic manufacture Bullitt, and is priced at £450.

Kodak is playing its card by making it photography special to attract photographers. With a 21 MP (f/2.0) rear and 13 MP (f/2.2) front-facing cameras, the phone offers 4K video, HD with many more modes that a standard Digital Single Lens Reflex.

Kodak-Ektra

The Ektra is powered by a Helio X-20 Decacore Processor and will feature a 5-inch 1080 display, 3GB RAM, 32 GB internal storage. Storage can be expanded by inserting a microSD card into the given slot.

The phone is likely to be available for sale towards the end of this year or in the beginning of the next year. Initially, Ektra will be made available in UK only.

Kodak smartphone 1

It's a tough battle for Kodak as high-resolution camera phones with different modes to facilitate photography are already pouring into the ever-growing pool of digital electronics.

ektra Kodak

Comments
Source: Kodak's photography special Ektra smartphone with 21 MP rear camera

Friday, October 21, 2016

Easily Print Your Photos With This Mobile Printer!

37007150_010_bIt's mini and portable, so convenient!

With this mobile photo printer from Urban Outfitter, you can easily print photos from your phone anytime and anywhere! It comes with sticky back prints, so you can stick the photos wherever you like! Such a cool idea!

Instagram: @urbanoutfitters

Twitter: @UrbanOutfitters

Photo: Urban Outfitters/Website

Related


Source: Easily Print Your Photos With This Mobile Printer!

Thursday, October 20, 2016

Global Mobile Photo Printer Industry Market Report (2011-2021)

——QYResearch focus on Market Survey and Research

PR-Inside.com: 2016-10-19 09:45:35

The Global Mobile Photo Printer Industry 2016 Market Research Report is a professional and in-depth study on the current state of the Mobile Photo Printer industry.

Firstly, the report provides a basic overview of the industry including definitions, classifications, applications and industry chain structure. The Mobile Photo Printer market analysis is provided for the international market including development history, competitive landscape analysis, and major regions' development status.

Secondly, development policies and plans are discussed as well as manufacturing processes and cost structures. This report also states import/export, supply and consumption figures as well as cost, price, revenue and gross margin by regions (United States, EU, China and Japan), and other regions can be added.

Then, the report focuses on global major leading industry players with information such as company profiles, product picture and specification, capacity, production, price, cost, revenue and contact information. Upstream raw materials, equipment and downstream consumers analysis is also carried out. What's more, the Mobile Photo Printer industry development trends and marketing channels are analyzed.

Finally, the feasibility of new investment projects is assessed, and overall research conclusions are offered.

In a word, the report provides major statistics on the state of the industry and is a valuable source of guidance and direction for companies and individual s interested in the market.

Ask a sample or any question, please email to: hebe@qyresearchglobal.com or qyresearchhebe@126.com

Key Topics Covered: 

Chapter One Industry Overview of Mobile Photo Printer

Chapter Two Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis of Mobile Photo Printer

Chapter Three Technical Data and Manufacturing Plants Analysis of Mobile Photo Printer

Chapter Four Capacity, Production and Revenue Analysis of Mobile Photo Printer by Regions, Types and Manufacturers

Chapter Five Price, Cost, Gross and Gross Margin Analysis of Mobile Photo Printer by Regions, Types and Manufacturers

Chapter Six Consumption Volume, Consumption Value and Sale Price Analysis of Mobile Photo Printer by Regions, Types and Applications

Chapter Seven Supply, Import, Export and Consumption Analysis of Mobile Photo Printer

Chapter Eight Major Manufacturers Analysis of Mobile Photo Printer

Chapter Nine Marketing Trader or Distributor Ana lysis of Mobile Photo Printer

Chapter Ten Industry Chain Analysis of Mobile Photo Printer

Chapter Eleven Development Trend of Analysis of Mobile Photo Printer

Chapter Twelve New Project Investment Feasibility Analysis of Mobile Photo Printer

Chapter Thirteen Conclusion of the Global Mobile Photo Printer Industry 2016 Market Research Report

Related Reports:

China Mobile Photo Printer Industry 2016 Market Research Report

United States Mobile Photo Printer Industry 2016 Market Research Report

Europe Mobile Photo Printer Industry 2016 Market Research Report

Japan Mobile Photo Printer Industry 2016 Market Research Report

India Mobile Photo Printer Industry 2016 Market Research Report

Would like to place an order or any question, please feel free to contact me~O(∩_∩)O~

Contact : Hebe;

Email: hebe@qyresearchglobal.com

Web: qyresearchglobal.com (US) | qyresearcheurope.com (EU) | www.qyresearchjapan.co m (JP)

Press InformationQYResearch Co.LtdRoom 2311 VILI International Building No.167 Linhe West Road Tianhe District Guangzhou City Guangdong Province 510610 China

Hebesales managerhebe@qyresearchglobal.comemailqyresearchglobal.com/

# 478 Words


Source: Global Mobile Photo Printer Industry Market Report (2011-2021)

Monday, October 17, 2016

Haute Mobile Disco : Music + VR + Photography

Haute Mobile Disco is a collective that brings together the top talents in the event industry. Our collective was formed out of a shared love of creating the perfect space for a party. For the HMD team, every event is a 'Haute event.' Our DJs & photographers aim to get to know the goals and personal style of each client in order to help create the perfect gathering for those attending.

It is important to us that guests have a good time and are left with a memory of the event.

Contact


Source: Haute Mobile Disco : Music + VR + Photography

Sunday, October 16, 2016

Cell Phone Photography

Eliot School of Fine and Applied Arts

24 Eliot St Jamaica Plain, MA 02130

Learn the basic concepts of photography (composition, exposure, storytelling) applied to mobile photography. Learn how to take the best images with your phone, how to use mobile editing software like Snapped and how to share on Instagram. 

  • If you have questions or if you'd like to register for this class, go to http://www.eliotschool.org/registration, or contact Renan Flores, Registrar, at 617.524.3313 x12 or info@eliotschool.org


  • Source: Cell Phone Photography

    Saturday, October 15, 2016

    The Complete Photography Bundle is BACK!

    It's that time of year again! It's time for the 5DayDeal Complete Photography Bundle for 2016!

    Every year the crack team at 5DayDeal assemble an all-star cast of photographic educators and software makers to bring you a huge bundle of photography products at a ridiculously low price.

    And this year it's even cheaper! This is no joke — they're basically giving away $2,500 worth of photography software and training for just $97!

    giveaway_button-97

    Even if you're NOT a photographer, this is an awesome gift for almost any creative person.

    So, what's in this bundle? Amongst dozens of great products, are…

  • Becoming an Artist – Trey Ratcliff
  • Get To Work: DEDPXL Business Primer – Zack Arias
  • Portrait Composites Workflow Tutorial + HDR Master Class – Serge Ramelli
  • Ultimate HDR Master Class 2017 – Klaus Hermann
  • Topaz Adjust – Topaz Labs
  • And even our newest TWiP School course, PocketShooters! – Mastering Mobile Photography – which retails for $147 alone, but you get it as part of this amazing bundle.

    That's just a few, in all there are over 35 different products included in this bundle! With an average individual price of over $87!

    But there's a catch — this promotion is called the "5 Day Deal" for a reason. You can ONLY get the bundle between October 14th at noon, and October 19th at noon.

    After that, the 5DayDeal team are contractually obligated to dissolve the bundle and turn it off FOREVER.

    So to secure your access, NOW before the deal is over, just head over to TWiP.pro/5DD.

    giveaway_button-97


    Source: The Complete Photography Bundle is BACK!

    Friday, October 14, 2016

    New ZTE nubia phone with 23 MP rear camera, 13 MP selfie snapper leaks

    ZTE is holding an event in China next week, on October 17 to be specific. On this occasion it's been speculated that the company will launch the nubia Z11 mini S, a handset reportedly having a dual rear camera setup. No other details about it have been outed yet, but today an intriguing new leak from China makes us think we might see a different smartphone on Monday - or perhaps the nubia Z11 mini S won't have dual cameras on the back after all.

    The image you can see below has showed up on Weibo, and it's alleged to be showing a yet-unannounced nubia model. The metal construction of the phone is obvious.

    Also, the AnTuTu screen is showing us info about the phone's cameras, and based on this data this nubia is shaping up to be an interesting contender for mobile photography. That's because it has a 23 MP rear sensor and a 13 MP selfie shooter.

    Unfortunately nothing else about this smartphone has been leaked yet, not even its name. So it's anyone's guess what it might be. What is certain is that the resolutions of its cameras are a step up from the 16 MP / 8 MP pair seen in the nubia Z11, the sub-brand's current flagship released in July.

    Source (in Chinese) | Via


    Source: New ZTE nubia phone with 23 MP rear camera, 13 MP selfie snapper leaks

    Thursday, October 13, 2016

    Seattle photographer finally on Instagram — years after his Best Camera app lost the race to $1 billion

    Chase JarvisPhotographer Chase Jarvis, in a YouTube video explaining his Best Camera app. (Via YouTube)

    Seattle photographer Chase Jarvis is a champion of mobile photography and a firm believer that millions if not billions of people around the world want to share pictures taken with their phones. To borrow a well-worn cliche: If only there was an app for that.

    Well, there was an app for that, and Jarvis created it. It was called Best Camera, and for a time, after its launch in 2009, it was the most popular photography app in existence. Until Instagram.

    Jarvis, in a lengthy and revealing new blog post on his website, is finally sharing the tale of what went wrong with Best Camera, what it felt like to lose to Instagram, and why finally — after six years — he has posted his first images to the wildly popular platform that beat him to the $1 billion payout.

    For those who didn't get swept up in the early wave of iPhone photography, Best Camera gained its popularity by being an app that allowed filtering of images and sharing to social platforms such as Twitter and Facebook. Jarvis, a professional photographer who theorized that great images were about the moment, not the gear, writes that he saw the potential in giving millions of amateur photographers a better tool with which to share what they shot.

    Best Camera took off in the App Store, landed on best-of lists and was named by Apple VP Phil Schiller as one of his favorite apps. There was even an online community and a book, called "The Best Camera is the One That's With You."

    But the early praise for Best Camera eventually turned to skepticism as the app was criticized for not releasing timely and significant enough updates. It is here that Jarvis reveals the inner workings of the downfall of his dream, as he explains the structure of a deal he put together with the firm that developed the app, why that firm decided updates didn't suit its financial interest and how it all unraveled from the there.

    The timing couldn't have been worse. In 2010, Instagram launched. Within no time, the free photo-sharing platform had 100,000 users. A year and a half later the company was valued at half a billion dollars. And then, less than two years after launch, Instagram sold to Facebook for $1 billion. This past June, the company announced that it had surpassed 500 million monthly active users — more than 95 million photos and videos are shared, on average, per day.

    Best CameraI hadn't opened my own Best Camera app in years. This 4-year-old picture of a family friend was waiting there when I did. (Kurt Schlosser / GeekWire)

    "Despite my frustration that I missed out on what could have been a massive opportunity, I felt strangely calm — almost peaceful," Jarvis writes about learning of the Instagram sale. "I sat alone in my silent studio, ignored the relentless torrent of notifications on my phone and just sat back, letting it all sink in for a bit. Coming to terms with what was probably my biggest professional failure."

    To be clear, Jarvis didn't wallow for long. His website boasts numerous projects that he's involved in, including CreativeLive.com, which he calls "the largest and best education platform for creatives and entrepreneurs."

    "I've spent more hours than I care to admit beating myself up about how Best Camera went down, but the honest-to-god truth is that CreativeLive is even more exciting to me," Jarvis writes. "What lives will be changed, problems solved, careers and businesses built from that platform?"

    Looking at my own iPhone, on which I've taken thousands of photographs over the years, I admit to having to jar my memory a bit to remember Best Camera. But I found it, in a photography folder along with other camera apps I have long since stopped using. I opened the blue lense with the white arrow and up popped a picture that was apparently the last one I imported into the app — a classmate of my now 9-year-old son's, and the boy appears to be about 5.

    Meanwhile, over on Instagram, I've posted more than 5,000 images over the past four years or so and it's easily the app I check and use most often in my photo-happy life.

    And now @chasejarvis is there.

    For four year, lawyers advising him in his case against the Best Camera developers told him to stay off other similar photo-sharing platforms so as to not devalue his argument if he ever decided to sue for damages. Jarvis said he finally has closure and the gag order has been lifted after "throwing lawyers and dollars" at the problem once again in an effort to settle all matters with the developers.

    His first post on Instagram is a cut from a YouTube video, uploaded Tuesday, that explains how it's all been a long time in the making, as he summarizes the points in his blog post. There are two more images in the feed, as of Wednesday, and he has more than 8,000 followers.

    "It is abundantly clear who kicked my ass in the photo sharing app game," Jarvis concludes on his blog. "Instagram is where everyone goes when they want to share their photos with the world. They built an amazing platform — an amazing business — and I'm happy to say that I'm now able to join in the fun."


    Source: Seattle photographer finally on Instagram — years after his Best Camera app lost the race to $1 billion

    Wednesday, October 12, 2016

    Double The Action With Honor 8: How Smartphones Are Changing Photography

    Sumit Dayal is a freelance photographer covering Afghanistan, India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan. In his work he focuses on the changing landscape and disappearing cultures of South Asia. He is also the man behind the popular Instagram page @Indiaphotoproject.

    In this video, Sumit shares his views on how mobile photography is changing the way we communicate and how Honor's flagship smartphone the Honor 8 is a game changer with its dual-camera technology.

    Honor 8 is loaded with a second-generation 12-megapixel dual camera system that features one RGB and one monochrome sensor, and 1.25 µm pixel size. This helps the device to capture more light, increasing picture quality to produce move vivid colours and crisper details.

    The device also offers a Wide aperture mode that lets you take photographs with a shallow depth of field as well as adjust the focal point of a captured photo to blur the background and make your subject more prominent. For greater control there is a professional mode on offer as well.

    Read the review here.


    Source: Double The Action With Honor 8: How Smartphones Are Changing Photography

    Tuesday, October 11, 2016

    Charming Photo Series Showcases The Smiling Personas of the Elderly

    Images by Ilya Nodia and Irina Muravyova. Used under a Creative Commons License. 

    A smile is probably the most common trait to us humans, and it is a universal language that never gets old. Ilya Nodia was invited by the Senior Group to shoot a small photo project with them, capturing beautiful and very touching smiles of the elders.

    This project takes Ilya to several nursing home visits, spending a few hours in each home shooting portraits of the elders in their cozy living space which was briefly turned into a mobile photography studio. The elders had so much fun putting on straw hats, powdering their cheeks, and looking their best for the photo shoot. Most importantly, Ilya managed to capture the great atmosphere created by the bright, dazzling smiles of his aged models that never grow old. 

    Ilya used a plain background to isolate the elderly men and women in his frame, and filled in with carefully executed external lighting to create a flattering, soft look in his portraits. He intentionally placed his subjects right in the middle of his tight framing to draw the viewer's attention directly into the radiant smile itself. This simplistic and straight to the point approach works effectively in delivering the message that a smile is both simple and beautiful. The portraits show the very human and fragile side of the elders, strong in spirit and enthusiasm with their charismatic smiles.

    You may view the original photo gallery published here. 

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    Source: Charming Photo Series Showcases The Smiling Personas of the Elderly

    Monday, October 10, 2016

    Limelens Camera Lens Set Review: Shooting wider, closer, and sharper

    Thanks to the emergence of smartphones, photography has become more accessible than ever – and some smartphones themselves have begun to rapidly outpace the compact and bridge camera market as well as infringe on the mighty DSLR. That revolution has brought along with it a plethora of accessories designed to heighten the mobile photography experience – and today we've got in our hands on the Limelens Camera Lens Set; a kit which adds two new lenses to a majority of smartphone cameras.

    We've received the Limelens Camera Lens Set from our friends at iToys – one of the few official stockists of the kit in South Africa, where the package retails for R650 ZAR. The question stands; is this an accessible offering for someone looking to expand their photography repertoire? Let's dive in!

    Read: GoPro reveals what its new HERO5 action cameras will cost in South Africa

    Limelens Camera Lens Set Review

    Unboxing the Limelens system

    Unless you've acquired your fair share of Apple products, it's hard to become jaded about a dramatic unboxing – and that's exactly what the Limelens Camera Lens Set offers. Once a slim cardboard sleeve is removed, one is greeted by a svelte carrying case – a great addition which many competitor smartphone lens kits fail to offer. Opening that up, one finds an informational card case in which product information, device compatibility, and most importantly a series of Limeclips are found.

    As the Limelens Camera Lens Set works with a majority of modern smartphones and does away with a harmful magnet, one instead relies on a Limeclip to hold a lens in place. The set is accompanied by three different Limeclips and an alignment disc which serves to help keep everything in focus.

    If there's a downside to the Limelens Camera Lens Set, it's the fact that one is forced to apply a stick-on Limeclip for as long as they want to make use of the system. The Limeclip itself attaches by adhesive, which will most likely disrupt the profile of your smartphone or any case you want to use. The upside of this system is that the Limeclip is far more secure than using a magnet and won't disturb your smartphone's camera housing – securing both the investment of the lens itself and your smartphone's back panel.

    Attaching a lens is simple; once a relevant Limeclip is installed (a handy guide lets you pick the right one for your smartphone model) lenses can be installed by inserting them into the clip and rotating them until they lock in. This, fortunately, feels truly secure and one doesn't run the risk of dropping a lens – and hence breaking it – on a surface like hard concrete.

    Limelens Camera Lens Set Review

    The Limelenses

    In the box, one gets both a fisheye lens and a macro lens. For the uninitiated, a fisheye lens is a wide-angle piece of glass which expands the range of what your smartphone is able to capture. In fact, the wide-angle of the lens is so expensive your images will become nearly spherical – imagine being a fish and looking out of a fish bowl, and you've got the idea.

    Macro, on the other hand, refers to a smartphone lens which can capture fine, close-up detail. While this isn't microscopic – you won't be able to look at the eyes of the common housefly, for example, you'll be able to get up close to a variety of subjects – such as the bud of a flower.

    Both of these lenses offer something your smartphone (likely) can't do – and that's the exciting nature of the Limelens system. Rather than serving a telephoto lens (which, hey, the iPhone 7 Plus now has) or a wide-angle lens (your smartphone's selfie camera can likely suffice for this purpose) the Limelens Camera Lens Set expands the capabilities of your smartphone's camera system.

    Limelens Camera Lens Set Review

    In practise

    The fact of the matter is that Limelens has to work quite hard to add value in a truly crowded market space; if you've wanted a clip-on smartphone lens, you've probably come across cheaper, once-off lenses elsewhere. If you've gone ahead and bought one, it's probably either sufficed for the purpose you wanted it for, or you've grown frustrated by the impracticality of substandard glass on top of your smartphone's camera.

    Something I came to enjoy while reviewing the Limelens Camera Lens Set is that the quality of either the glass found on the macro or fisheye lens greatly surpasses anything I've used before on a mobile device. While there are a few niggles to be found, this is one of the most ruggedly compatible systems I've had the joy of using.

    Let's kick off with the fisheye lens, which likely is the off-the-wall piece of glass you've been searching for to add crazy effects to your images.

    Once one has installed and inserted the lens correctly, the fisheye lens is a tricky one to get used to. Thanks to its wide-angle nature, which distorts the expanse your smartphone is typically designed to capture, you'll likely have to change your approach in how you physically hold your smartphone.

    As I usually steady my device by placing one hand higher than the other, you'll want to keep your hands clear of the fisheye lens unless you really want a blurry thumb or index finger present. If you manage to get used to doing that, you'll be left with some otherworldly images that approximate the offering you might have already used on a bridge camera system or a DSLR.

    Images captured with the fisheye lens usually distort to become circular, and you'll have to make sure you've installed the lens correctly to avoid ending up with a haphazard ring blur on some corners of an image and not others. Another weakness of the system is that – as it relies on a smartphone's small sensor – you might end up having to patiently wait to capture focus on the subject you desire. Otherwise, you might end up with a situation in which one area of an image is in-focus, while another blurs out entirely. See this image for a demonstration of what I've mentioned above:

    Limelens Camera Lens Set Review

    However, if you're able to control the system and can patiently set up whatever it is that you want to capture, the results can be astounding. In a controlled environment, one can use the fisheye system to blur out the background of a subject while keeping the center in focus, which results in some extraordinary image prowess. I'm left to feel that between the two lens offerings, the fisheye system is one you'll want to keep for controlled environments rather than your next instawalk.

    Limelens Camera Lens Set Review

    Conversely, the Limelens macro lens is one you'll pretty want to take everywhere. While most smartphones – increasingly those on the premium end of the spectrum – can approximate some kind of close-up photography, Limelens' macro kit excels in adding additional value to your smartphone arsenal.

    Limelens Camera Lens Set Review

    Whereas one might have to place their hands and subjects carefully when using the fisheye lens, the macro lens is entirely a different proposition; being both smaller and lighter, the kit doesn't disrupt the profile of one's smartphone as readily as its sibling does.

    Instead, this is a lens that's truly a jack-of-all-trades, and is further a master of its own domain. One can keep the macro lens equipped for general purposes, and get in close when the situation allows it.

    Limelens Camera Lens Set Review

    Detail, too, is abundant. In the right lighting conditions (based upon what your smartphone responds to) one can capture some astonishing detail using the Limelens system; as the macro lens relies on a similar focal length to what most smartphone cameras use, you'll likely find that focus and other manual controls on your smartphone are more responsive when using it. As such, it's an easy endeavour to control the focus and lighting in images and capture moments that one otherwise would have to take a step back to accomplish.

    Limelens Camera Lens Set Review

    Shortcomings

    As with many other 'modular' accessories, the Limelens kit isn't perfect.

    While the set can be praised for its compatibility with a wide range of smartphones, this isn't an offering which works on all offerings equally. As a rule of thumb, I'd suggest that you'll probably be happier equipping the kit on a larger smartphone with a greater rear surface area than on a smaller one; in doing so, you'll give yourself more room to maneuver your fingers – especially on the tricky fisheye lens.

    While Limeclip kit is great for securing your investment aboard your smartphone of choice, there's a level of buy-in involved – once you've equipped the relevant Limeclip, you're more or less stuck (pun intended) with the accessory on your device – if you take it off, you'll most likely have to buy a replacement.

    While the glass itself is of a higher quality than on other smartphone lenses I've used, you're going to want to keep the included carrying case around for the simple reason that both tend to attract dirt and smudges like a magnet. While on a DSLR one could equip a filter to minimise this issue, one isn't so fortunate on this far smaller offering. Thankfully, the Limelens kit is accompanied by small microfibre cloths for this very purpose.

    Of course, it also goes without saying that if you have – or plan on getting – a dual-lens camera system the Limelens kit is a moot point.

    Limelens Camera Lens Set Review

    Conclusion

    That being said, if you've been seeking a quality macro or fisheye lens for your single-lens smartphone, the Limelens camera kit is likely the setup you've been pining for.

    The quality and breadth of the lens kit – not to mention the expertise of its presentation or its compatibility with many smartphones available now and in the near future – is one of the strongest offerings I've had the pleasure of encountering just yet.

    Read: Blips lenses turn your phone's camera into a microscope

    As a photographer who loves the modularity offered by DSLR, I grew to love using the Limelens Camera Lens Set – and that's despite the fact that one needs to attach a stick-on Limeclip to their device; an idea I'm generally not fond of.

    While it's not perfect – and I don't believe any comparative system is – the Limelens Camera Lens Set is a great offering which, for its price point, offers heaps of fun which you'll no doubt enjoy on your next adventure or instawalk. While some might call a smartphone lens kit frivolous, I'd call it fun – and it's an investment of great caliber if you're looking to expand your smartphone photography repertoire.

    Score: 8/10

    If you'd like to buy the Limelens Camera Lens Set, be sure to visit our friends at iToys, where the kit is available for purchase in South Africa. 

    What are your thoughts? Be sure to let us know in the comments below!

    Follow Bryan Smith on Twitter: @bryansmithSA


    Source: Limelens Camera Lens Set Review: Shooting wider, closer, and sharper

    Saturday, October 8, 2016

    Mostly Mobile Photography & Mobile Art – Tickle Your Fancy #55

    Welcome back to our fifty third post in our 'Tickle Your Fancy' section. 'Tickle Your Fancy' includes a round-up of between three to five links to articles from around the internet that have specifically interested us during the course of the week. Ones that we feel are relevant to your interest in photography and art.

    Just to explain the title for this section 'Tickle Your Fancy' is an English idiom and essentially means that something appeals to you and perhaps stimulates your imagination in an enthusiastic way, we felt it would make a great title for this new section of the site.

    Enjoy!

    The Ultimate Beginner's Guide to iPhone/Smartphone Photography Apple iPhone 7 camera review: better than ever Wolfgang Suschitzky, photographer and Get Carter cameraman, dies aged 104

    "The celebrated photographer helped establish Britain's first film cooperative and was a noted documentarist of London life".

    Source: The Guardian – read more here

    Wolfgang Suschitzky … at home in London in 2007. Photograph: Eamonn McCabe for the Guardian

    Look Inside the Glamorous Homes of Famed Fashion Photographer Cecil Beaton

    "Photographer, painter, diarist, costume designer—interior decorator. Who else can be described as such besides Cecil Beaton? And although Beaton is most famous for his fashion and portrait photography, his life in and involved with homes was just as integral to his identity…."

    Source – Vogue – read more here

    The famed Circus Bedroom at Ashcombe House. Photo: James McMillan, collection of Andrew Ginger, courtesy of Rizzoli

    EyeEm to make Select Images Available to Adobe Stock

    "EyeEm is linking up with Adobe Stock to give EyeEm users a chance to have their work licensed on Adobe's budding stock market.

    The EyeEm Collection will consist of "hand-selected" images that will be available in Adobe's Premium Collection–the crème de la crème of the Adobe Stock market. EyeEm Collection images are already available on Getty and Alamy licensing platforms as well, making Adobe Stock the third partner marketplace…".

    Source: pdnonline – read more here

    Image credit ©Dawid Garwol

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    Source: Mostly Mobile Photography & Mobile Art – Tickle Your Fancy #55

    Friday, October 7, 2016

    5 reasons why the Pixel may have the best smartphone camera ever

    With a name like Pixel, you expect a great camera. Google says it's delivered that with its new smartphones, going over in meticulous detail all of the capabilities and wowing the crowd with a selection of portraits, night scenes, and action shots at the San Francisco unveiling.

    The kicker was trotting out a score of 89 from DxOMark, the highest ever from what's considered a very reliable camera testing site. That's one point ahead of the Galaxy S7 Edge, HTC 10, and Sony Xperia X Performance while a full three points ahead of the iPhone 7 (the 7 Plus hasn't been scored yet).

    dxo mark colorsDxOMark

    DxOMark put the Pixel through the ringer and crowned it the best smartphone camera ever.

    So what makes it that much better? After some hands on time and staring way too long at sample images taken with a Pixel, I've landed on five core reasons why Google really did knock it out of the park when it comes to building a smartphone camera that you're going to really want.

    Low light performance

    This isn't the first time that Google has patted itself on the back for a phone that can deliver in the dark, as this was a major claim to fame for the Nexus 6P as well. But this time the results are even more impressive, as illustrated by the following photo, taken with a Pixel.

    pixel camera fish DxOMark

    Low-light performance is one of the benchmark features of the Pixel phone.

    The 12.3 megapixel camera has an f/2.0 aperture, which isn't technically as good as the Galaxy S7 and Note7 (f1.7) but it sure seems to do an outstanding job. The Pixel handles the following picture well, which has a mix of different lighting. The photo still has a lot of detail and handles the plants and fencing area in the shadows very well.

    pixel complex scene DxOMark

    In this complex scene the Pixel is able to render good color quality and show details even in the shadows.

    In terms of the full suite of specs, the Pixel camera offers the following, straight from the Google Store:

    pixel specsGoogle Store

    The Google Pixel has a solid set of specs for the phone's camera.

    Some may be disappointed that Google didn't go for the 2X physical zoom capability of the iPhone 7 Plus or left out more advanced features in the camera software itself, like a manual mode to specify shutter speed. The camera app looked very much like the Nexus version, without the advanced features for tweaking the photo that I'm used to on the S7 Edge. If Google wants to truly set itself apart as the king of mobile photography, this is where it needs to go next.

    Excellent detail

    I'm by no means a professional photographer (or even a great amateur one) but I genuinely thought the detail of the many images we got to see was very impressive. 

    dxo mark outside DxOMark

    The detail in the bridge is pretty incredible, as you can see the colors very clearly and specific features of the fence.

    DxOMark even had this to say about how well the Pixel does with detail: "The Pixel does better in outdoor scenes at preserving detail than any smartphone we've ever tested."

    It's a big compliment from a site that's become the benchmark at rating and ranking camera performance of smartphones. Outdoor pictures can be achieved with great performance from many phones on both sides of the operating system divide. If you take most of your pictures outdoors, however, this is another perk that may make the Pixel the right choice.

    Fast picture taking

    I got a good amount of hands-on time with the Pixel in Google's demo area. Google even brought in a professional photographer who had extensively used the phone and said he felt it was the best one he'd ever tried (but of course, he wouldn't be there otherwise). But I was genuinely impressed at the speed of the shutter and my ability to rapidly switch to video mode, to the gallery, fiddle with the settings, and back to the viewfinder.

    pixel phone tableDerek Walter

    There's a reason the camera icon is right there in the dock. Google put a lot of emphasis on camera performance with its Pixel smartphone.

    Anyone who's had a Nexus 6P knows that the shutter lag and shot-to-shot speed can be a serious issue. I've even encountered this at times on my Galaxy S7 Edge, which is (to this point) the best camera phone I've owned. A full test of firing up the camera time and time again over a couple of weeks is needed before a full verdict can be rendered, but I really liked much better the Pixel camera worked.

    Video stabilization

    Google had a lot to say about this, offering a demo video of how superior its video stabilization is to competing products. 

    Again, this was hard to test in the small and controlled environment we were squished into at San Francisco's Ghirardelli Square. But from the demo video you see the movie goes from practically unusable to buttery smooth. That's obviously a best-case scenario, and you're unlikely to get such perfect results.

    The Pixel is capable of capturing 4K video at 30 frames per second, 1080p video at 120fps and 720p at 240fps. These features are dying for a real-world test, so we'll be standing outside the office once we get word that Pixel phones are on their way for us to review. I was able to take a Pixel and quickly walk around the room and try out the stabilization feature, but I did notice a tangible difference. But I'd need some more time to really render a verdict.

    While the Pixel doesn't have optical image stabilization as so many other premium phones do, it's own new custom electronic stabilization might actually be good enough to make us forget about the missing feature.

    Natural colors

    The following picture is one of those cheesy images that you often see with product demos. But to me it was one of the most impressive for how natural the skin tones and colors look in all of the different elements of the picture.

    pixel color photo Google

    This photo of two women outside a bright, red house struck me as a great showcase for the Pixel's camera capabilities.

    From a purely anecdotal perspective, this was one of the many moments where I truly wanted a Pixel and felt it could be an outstanding primary camera. I travel frequently and like to capture a lot of family moments with my phone since I've never been a dedicated enough photographer to pick up a DSLR.

    Could the Pixel be this great? I can't say for sure after just an hour in a demo room, but I think we may be in for a pleasant surprise.


    Source: 5 reasons why the Pixel may have the best smartphone camera ever