Tag Archives: layer effects

Clarity Goes Pro In The New Updated Camera+

Camera+ is an app I jump to when I need to do a quick tune of a photo. The app has a large group of filters, that can be layered and each can have their level of application adjusted. As well, there are non filter tuning options, frames and rotate. One of the best known Camera+ enhancements is the Clarify tool. Apply the feature to sharpen colors and brighten dark areas… sort of a clean HDR solution without going full HDR.
01 Camera Plus iPhone
The adjusters for filters more descriptive now via icons and colorization in the slider.
02 Camera Plus iPhone
In addition to the Scenes, Crops, Filters and Frames in now ‘The Lab’ option. Some of the options Camera+ already had like Rotate are in this group now. Also, is the addition of more Power adjustment. This is where Clarify Pro lives, along with DuoTone, SoftFocus and FilmGrain.
03 Camera Plus iPhone
04 Camera Plus iPhone
Depending on the enhancement, there are different and possibly multiple sliders to get the impact to the level the user is looking for. As the Camera+ slider is moved, a percentage number appears above the line (disappearing when the slider movement is stopped).  Notice the other options in the tuning group are available to jump to via the micro icons along the bottom of the page, no need to go back to the overview screen.
05 Camera Plus iPhone
The filter pages still show the different filters applied to the image. The thumbnails look larger and easier to see the photo impact. ‘I heart Analog’ and ‘Hollywood’ are still extra charge filter groups. While Camera+ isn’t a ‘photoshop’ of iPhone, it is an app that adds a bit to any iPhone photo.
06 Camera Plus iPhone

Popular Mac Photo app, Color Splash Studio – Now on the iPhone!

While I don’t own Color Splash Studio on my Mac, I have seen it being used around the office. So, when I saw it was available for the iPhone, I recognized the name and jumped in to take it for a spin. The iOS version is for the iPhone only, or can be run in 2x on the iPad, no specific iPad version available yet.

If you new to the Color Splash phrase, the process is ‘simple’. You are able to have areas of your photo show as their original color and other areas dropped down to black and white. It creates quite an effect when you have a building with a window reflecting a colorful area… drop out the building and have just the reflection in color. Note, I’m not saying ‘colorized’ since the ability to ‘add’ color isn’t supported. You are only allowing the color areas to either have their original coloring or convert to black and white.

For Color Splash Studio, there is also some extra tuning features that are provided to get a bit more out of your photo’s impact on the viewer. Start by taking a picture, importing from your iPhone photo library or import from Facebook. Crop if needed, then tap next to get into the tuning. You can start right off, but you may want to choose the Brush button to tune the tool you will be using to apply the effect.

The next option across the top of the Color Splash Studio work area is FX Effects. The Dramatic Effect adjustments is not something I have seen in other color splash effect apps. Also adjustable is the Monochrome layer.

Under the ‘More Tools’ options of Color Splash Studio is another three items I wish more photo enhancement apps on the iPhone had. The top one I have mentioned before… “Show Mask”. Making the effected area of a photo much easier to see vs the untouched.

A nice feature not seen in other apps is the overlay box showing where your doing your color work. Since the editing is being done under your finger tip, it is often difficult to stay between the lines. The Color Splash Studio’s box makes it much easier to get the job correct the first time. The box jumps to the other side of the screen when you start editing near it. You still have the option to pan/zoom via the button at the bottom of the screen. As well, you can ‘un-color’ an area you didn’t mean to have the color show by using the Grayscale button and coloring black and white over it.

I waited till now to mention the Saturation and Hue adjustment since you need to see it over a tuned photo. The tool is found under the ‘Adjust’ button across the top of the work screen. The two sliders can be used for the Grayscale or Color layers individually, or the full flat image.

The final touched up image is at the full size/resolution that you imported and started with. Color Splash Studio offers a nice selection of options for sharing your finished work too.