iPhone iMage pRocessing

Ireland Stream, Mac Processed

As most of you know I am non-traditional when it comes to processing my images solely on the iPhone or iPad. There are so many ways to get to the end result why limit yourseslf.

Lately I have been using several iPhone/iPad application on my Mac - both desktop and laptop. The ones used the most are Photo Studio, Sketchmee, Grungetastic and Artista Haiku. Being of the older generation this also helps keep my eyes from getting tired and losing concentration.

Original iPhone Image

In addition to the application mentioned above there is also Color EFX4, Silver FX Pro2 and whatever other third party software you currently are using. Add this to some elegant sharpening techniques and you wil find your creativity expanding. Not to mention when printing I find it best to sharpen and make various local  adjustments on the big screen.

Today's images are from a trip to Ireland last year.

All of this is covered in The Last Pixel Show iPhone/ipad workshops. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION.

Death Valley, Mesquite Dunes

Mesquite Dunes, Death VAlley, iPhone4

'Forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair'.....Khalil Gibran


The Last Pixel Show is planning a destination iPhone Photography Workshop in Death Valley next February. We wil be posting information on TheLastPixelShow.org shortly. We are, however, running a workshop next week in Napa, California with a few spots open. 

iPhone/iPad App-stract

NYC App-stract

'Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one'............Albert Einstein

The Last Pixel Show is doing destination iPhone Photography Workshops. Click here for more information..... Next workshop starts April 5 in Nappa, California - there are a few spots still open....Come learn how to create using your iPhone/iPad - and learn from all the workshop participants....

'If you want to learn something - you should teach it'.....

Caifornia Coast, iPhone4

California Coast, iPhone4

'I am poor and naked but I am the chief of a nation. We do not want riches but we do want to train our children right. Riches would do us no good. We could not take them with us to the other world. We do not want riches. We want peace and love'......Red Cloud, Oglala Sioux Chief

Yosemite Falls

Yosemite Falls

'I must return to the mountains - to Yosemite. I am told that the winter storms there will be easily borne, but I am bewitched, enchanted, and tomorrow I must start for the great temple to listen to the winter songs and sermons preached and sung only there'.........from a letter written by John Muir in 1869

The Last Pixel Show is presenting destination iPhone/iPad workshops. Click here for more information. 

Nature

Mesquite Dunes, Death Valley

Yesterday I was up and out at 5AM to start driving to Los Angeles for a few meetings. The sun was just rising and it dawned on me how much I really like being out there in beauty we call Mother Nature.  The best time of day for me - no one awake - no phone calls - just the deafening silence and quiet color. Of course I made a few images but mostly just enjoyed being able to see the day unfold....
 

iPhone Photographers or iPhoneographers

The Brooklyn Bridge

I am responding, well maybe just offering another point of view, to my friend Teri Lou Dantzler's blog this morning about the subject above. And I thank her for pushing me to finally get out what I have been pondering and pontificating on for quite some time.

I believe that first and foremost we are all photographers and the tool we use to capture, make or take a photograph simply does not matter. Also, it simply does not matter how we get to our final image, photograph, composite or whatever you want to call it. IN THE END IT IS SIMPLY ART - NOTHING ELSE NO MORE.....It can make you feel sick, uneasy, happy, sad, jubilant and many other emotions. You might want to burn it, buy it, tell your friends about it or not pay attention at all.  STILL IN THE END IT IS ART.

As for the restrictions of just using the iPad or iPhone to make your art, well, that is a personal choice. I see pages, blogs and contests that have rules for what is entered and once again that is a choice. For me if a tool will get me where I want to go then I will try it and if I like it will add it to the workflow and see where that takes me.  I have been processing old rock and roll concet images from the 60's and forward on the iPad for quite some time and I like the added dimension they give to those old Ektchrome and tri-x images.
 

I guess what I am saying is follow your beliefs and see where they take you no matter what the path is..... Bob Dyan once said, 'Don't Follow Leaders, Watch your Parking Meters'.....he was so right....when he went electric the folkie crowd thought music was over.'How did that work out'. I look at iPhone photography the same way - here to stay.......there will be those putting rules on what you can and can't do....I respect that but don't really choose to do that....nothing good ever comes from being the pack....

I am ending this blog with a quote by Julia Cameron who wrote the Artists Way which was a huge influence on me when I started drifting to the dark side - AN ARTIST....just kidding

“It is all too easy as an artist to allow the shape of our career to be dictated to us by others. We can so easily wait to be chosen. Such passivity invites despair. To remain healthy and vital, artists must stay proactive in their own behalf'..........Julia Cameron

Today's image was shot with a Nikon F Camera, scanned into the digital world using an Imacon/Hasselblad Scanner, processed on the iPad, Photoshop, NIK CFX4 and exported using Lightroom4. Needless to say I am a fan of 'whatever it takes"....

PS: I do understand that using any tools exclusively will help in learning what their limits are -I fully subscribe to that....but all through history when the rules were broken great things happened.....and limits were changed... Also to be clear Teri Lou is a friend of mine and we teach workshops together....

App-Stract Images

Wow, I have been missing the fun
of abstract iPhone images. Must say I never understood them mostly because
I felt they were random in nature. But over the weekend my friend Sam showed me a few things and I just might be addicted. Stay tuned - not sure what else I can come up with but I am on a 5 hour flight to Vegas - and then of course the apps tract
quality of those Vegas lights.

Also Photo Forge 2 was updated today adding a clarity filter.

Iceland Church

Iceland Church

Just finished the weekend workshop at Foto Care in New York City. I was running through a few processing tips using today's image and was really liking the results. This is not at all rare in workshops as one usually starts pushing sliders to make sure the results show on the screen - and of course - happy accidents happen. This is something to remember - don't be afraid to push those sliders as far as possible to see the outer limits of what they do....it is a valuable learning tool.

I did a bit more work on this image this morning and decided to post to the blog. As I was moving rather quickly in the workshop all I can remember is PhotostudioHD, Artista Haiku, Sketchmee HD, possibly a bit of ArtistaOil, NIK Color EFX4, PhotoKit Sharpening and I did some retouching in Snapheal for the Mac. Not my usual workflow - hardly ever use this many applications......

The old adage holds true - if you want to learn something......teach it.....

check out The Last Pixel Show  for destination, one on one and online iphone/ipad training.

Death Valley Composite Image

Desert Composite, Adobe PS TOuch

Had a few minutes this morning and played around with Adobe PS Touch for the iPad this morning, and, albeit low resolution (c'mon Adobe) it has some fabulous features. This image is three separate images selected and combined easily and quickly in Touch....Stay tuned for a few tutorials once my weekend workshop is over.

If you want to learn more about Touch and other creative uses for your iPad/iPhone and Mac look into our destination, one on one and online workshops at The Last Pixel Show....

Why I Love my iPhone/iPad

New Logo for The Last Pixel Show Workshop

8MP camera and can be more with proper handling
alarm clock
black and white images
blending
blogging
skypeing
calendar
receive calls on my camera
camera choices
composite capability
camera placement
creativity
currency exchange rates
darkroom in the pocket
depth of field calculator
e-books
flights
restaurants
GPS
HD Video
HDR
image adjustments
infrared camera
IOS Synching
translator
maps
model releases
panoramics
pass time on long flights
paytpal
the square for credit cards
prints
retouching
screen captures
selections
sharing
sunrise - sunset
transfer images
you can talk to it -
it talks back
viewfinder for bli boy/girl cameras
visual diary

The iPhone is a Polaroid camera and swiss army knife all rolled into one body.... And I have just touched the surface with this list...

The Last Pixel Show runs several types of workshops to help you get creative with your iPhone and iPad...you can like us on FACEBOOK.

New Applications.....

Fairy Tale Field

I am preparing for a weekend iPhone/iPad class in New York and thought I would share a few new applications I have been playing with.

HDR Fusion is free today - excellent HDR camera application.

Photo Verse - a great place top find photo related information. It includes reviews, tips and tricks and so much more. You can also follow them on facebook.

Kyoobik Application: Turns your images into geometric gridded images. Another good one from Jixi-Pix who brought us Grungetastic, NIR Color, The Artista Group and so much more.

AntiCrop: You can crop of expand your image at will. Add background easily....Or you can simply crop your image. Worth taking a look at...

Come to my workshop this weekend. There are still a few spots left in this weekends workshop at Foto Care, 41 West 22nd Street.

iPhone Update Available

IOS 5.1 is now available....for iPhone and iPad....

New York, IAC Building

Frank Geary IAC Building

The Frank Geary IAC building on the west side of New York is always a visual treat. Yesterday I was driving into the city for my show the light on the north side of the building was spectacular - of course had to stop and make a few iPhone exposures. One could spend an entire day just making images in various light of this amazing structure...

Gallery Show Today

Rock Show

OK, here are two more of the images that are in the iPhone Gallery Show opening today at Foto Care in New York City, 43 West 22nd Street, NYC. The show was put together to highlight the possibilities that exist when using this 21st century technology, the iPhone and iPad. The prints in this show were made on traditional inkjet papers, metallic paper and stretched canvas.

Playing Real Good for Free

Additionally, there are two canvas prints from my rock and roll days that are signed by the artist, John Mellencamp and Roger Daltry. Any money made from the sale of these two prints will be donated to 1Matters.org a group that moves the un-housed into domestic autonomy. A bit about 1Matters below.

About 1Matters

Started in Toledo, Oh, in 1990 as the Homeless Awareness Project (HAP) by formerly homeless-turned-entrepreneur-turned-philanthropist Ken Leslie, the volunteer organization has become a global advocacy group creating real time collaborative solutions to move unhoused (homeless) individuals and families off the streets and into domestic autonomy.

In 2008 HAP became 1Matters after a visit by singer John Mellencamp to their annual Project Connect/Tent City event. John was moved by the collaboration and invited all of the guests to his concert that evening where he talked with them from the stage. One guest returned to Project Connect and said, "Ken, John talked to us from the stage; I guess I really do matter."

1Matters was born.

While working on the road with Mr. Mellencamp, Harry Sandler met Ken and fell in love with the mission of 1Matters and joined the Board of Directors.  Harry is working to grow 1Matters into a national organization and engage others in the music industry.

In addition to the global advocacy of “World Homeless Action Day”,  1Matters has just funded a new program, “Veterans Matter” which partners with the VA and HUD to move veterans into housing. 

For more information visit www.1matters.org

Every 1Matters!

Also Foto Care is sponsoring an iPhone/iPad workshop on March 10 and 11 at their main store, 41 west 22nd Street, NYC. 

Gallery Show

Renaissance Gallery, Carmel, Indiana

A bit more shameless promotion for my gallery show that opens in New York on Tuesday, March 6. There is an artist reception from 630PM - 830PM. The show will take place at Foto Care, 43 West 22nd Street, NY, NY 10010.

On March 10-11 there is an iPhone/iPad workshop, also at Foto Care. Click HERE for more information.