The art of etching is hundreds of years old. Etching is the process of using a strong acid to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in the material). It’s similar to engraving and remains in wide use today. We see etchings every day in our paper currencies.
We’ve got a preview of Etchings, a new app for iOS which will be released soon. It’s a unique app which adds the look of this classic artisan style to your photos. Read on more info and photos. >>>
The art of etching is similar to commercial halftoning. Before the photographic arts, it was used for hundreds of years to give shadow and depth to printed illustrations. It’s still used as one of the security measures in currency today, and is still widely practiced by many artists and craftspeople.
Etchings is super easy to use. Import or shoot an image, choose your style, adjust the line weight if needed, then share. That’s it. No sliders or other adjustments.
The first release of Etchings features eight variations of etching styles — from classic to more complex variations. Each etching can be adjusted more by tweaking the weight of the lines in the etching, from very thin to heavy. The middle weights worked best for me. There are a couple of styled etchings, including an old postage stamp style, and yes… there’s even one that looks like money (that’s really cool!). The effects — the etchings, the crosshatching and the rendering — are all very detailed and look great.
Images only save in square format at 1200×1200 pixels in this first release. The developers are working to increase that in a future update. Fortunately, the original, pre-filter images shot using Etchings’ in-app camera are also saved to your camera roll. Another great feature is Etchings supports Apple’s Send To App protocol, meaning you can send the image directly to other photo apps to work further without first saving it to your camera roll.
There are a lot of sketch and halftone apps, but Etchings is the first to add these effects. Etchings adds a unique, stark, high-contrast effect to your photos. It’s a cool effect and the looks Etchings adds are classic. There’s nothing else like it in the App Store.
Etchings should hit the App Store soon. We’ll keep you posted. Until then, check out more images below.
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