One of the benefits of being a nightowl is that you get to catch deals like this. This may be one of those freebies that disappears quickly (as in a few hours) so grab this one now.

Here’s the App Store link:

Snapseed is a powerful image editor that gives you overall and selective control over your image adjustments. There is also a good selection of preset filter effects.

The interface has been redesigned from scratch for the gesture-based iOS. It takes a little getting used to, but once you do, you can move through the tools pretty quickly. I think one of Snapseed’s best features (and one of its unique ones) is the selctive adjustments where you can drop a pin on the image and adjust only the area around the pin.

Snapseed supports up to 6.25 MP on an iPhone 3GS and up to 16 MP images for iPad 2 and iPhone 4, 4S.

This is a huge freebie and big savings. Again, no word on how long this will last. The price will probably go back up very, very soon, so grab it now.

Requirements: Compatible with iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPod touch (3rd generation), iPod touch (4th generation) and iPad. Requires iOS 4.2 or later.

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Both versions recently got a big 2.0 update. Now, both the iPhone and iPad versions are free in the App Store. Click past the jump to read more about these apps and a warning from the developer if you’re upgrading from version 1. >>>

The recently released Grungetastic 2.0 is a major upgrade that is rewritten and redesigned from the ground up. It still retains all the power of version 1 with major additions. There are now over 140 “Grungies” that include scratches, grainy, blotches, texture, etc. You can print directly from the app with AirPrint-enabled devices. Version 2.0 has a huge 400% speed improvement on rendering in preview and final full resolution image. The update features an all-new UI that includes categorized grungies and categorized presets

Version 2.0 lets you randomize the effect on a global or per effect basis. The new 2.0.1 update just released tweaks the randomize slightly to allow some less drastic looks to show up while still randomly getting drastic looks as well.

If you are updating to 2.0.1 over an install of version 1.0.1, updating will erase all of your presets. Jixipix suggests that if you need your presets then do not update the app. Updating from 2.0 to 2.01 will retain your 2.0 presets.

Both the iPhone and iPad versions of the app are free right now in the App Store, however the new in-app purchases of additional grunge textures will set you back $0.99 for each new set. I’m not sure if this is a permanent price drop, so grab them both now.

Grungetastic is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 4.2 or later. |

Grungetastic HD for iPad is compatible with iPad only. Requires iOS 4.3 or later. |

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Noir, full screen mode

I bought my copy of Noir Photo by Red Giant Software the day the app was released – no promo copy for me. To this day, I think it’s three dollars well spent. Noir Photo lets you convert your images into luscious, classic, cinematic black & white and then adjust the vignette to “light” the image or draw attention to one element of the photo. You can read my review of the previous version here.

Noir just got an update. While not a major one, it adds a couple of good, new features to the app.

The big new feature is fullscreen editing. Touch the spot at the top right of the control panel and the image fills up the screen to give you a larger canvas to work with. You still have access to the six presets, but the control dials are now hidden. Another touch quickly and easily returns you to standard view. It’s a left-handed fill, though. The screen rotates so that the home button is on the left side of the screen, not the right.

Noir now also preserves EXIF data including camera and geotag info. Be sure to let the app access the iPhone’s location services.

While not a huge update, this is a good reason to talk about Noir again. While expensive for this class of app, Noir quickly and easily creates rich and cinematic monochrome effects.

Noir Photo is $2.99 in the App Store. Noir is a universal app. It’ll run great on any iOS device including iPad. Requirements say compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 4.0 or later, but the app description says it requires iOS 4.2.

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Iris Photo Suite for iPhone and Iris Photo Suite for iPad are both FREE right now in the App Store. They’ve been reduced for a couple of hours now. This giveaway won’t last very long. Click the links above and grab them now.

Snapseed for iPad, a pro-level iPad-only photo editor, is on sale through July 4th for only $1.99 — that’s a huge discount off its normal $4.99 price tag.

Within the free app Adobe Photoshop Express, the in-app purchase for the Adobe Camera Pack featuring the excellent Noise Reduction tool is now only $1.99 — a savings of $2.00 of the normal price of $3.99. I’ve reviewed it previously and at $1.99 the noise reduction tool becomes a much more attractive purchase.

And the great Halftone app is on sale for $0.99 through July 4th — a savings of $1.00. It’s a fun app and I think the best pulpy, comic-like, halftone generator in the App Store.

If you’re celebrating this weekend, have a safe and Happy 4th of July!

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Thanks to Misshapen Joy for the email that tipped me off to most of these sales.

There are a couple of things we can extrapolate from this announcement…. First, a new update is coming. Second, it looks like the next release will finally have native iPad support.

With this along with the release of the newly updated Filterstorm 3, the image editing apps category just got very interesting. Your move, Photogene….

PhotoForge2 is easy enough for beginners to start getting creative, yet powerful enough for iPhoneographers with any level of experience. PhotoForge2 requires at least iOS 4.2. It will run on any device that can install iOS 4.2 or greater. This includes iPhone 3G or newer, iPod Touch 2nd gen or newer, and all iPads.

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Phonto, used with an image created with WordFoto

Phonto
Version 1.0.1
Price: Free, with in-app purchase of $0.99 to remove ads.

Bottom Line: That rare free app that does as good as or better than its commercial counterparts.

Phonto is a great little typography app from youthhr, the developer of Cameramatic and Monochromia. It lets you place text in different styles on your images.

It would be a great app for a buck or two. Instead, the developer has released it as a free app, making this great utility a very highly recommended download.

Phonto is a great app for adding text to images, creating captions, or for adding photo credits. It’s super easy to use. Tap the screen to add text. Choose your fonts and font styles. Size your text block. Then move and place the text. You can adjust the color of the type, its transparency, even the color of the text box behind the type. There’s a very good assortment of over 100 fonts and font styles built into the app… including several that aren’t included in the iPhone’s OS. And more fonts are being added with each update.

Phonto saves images at their original resolution. It supports full iPhone 4 resolution. And, it doesn’t strip out EXIF data.

Phonto is a fully functional free app. It’s ad-supported, but there’s an in-app option for a dollar to remove the ads. If you don’t get the IAP, click the ads often. It’s a great app and it’s more than worth it to support this developer.

There are other apps available for a buck or two that don’t do as much or work as well as Phonto. It’s a great app regardless of the price. For adding text to images, it’s the best deal in the App Store.

Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 4.1 or later.

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Today, GhostBird Software announced pricing and upgrade policies for the new PhotoForge2 update, which hits the App Store this Thursday, May 19. PhotoForge 2 is such a big update over PhotoForge version 1 (it really is… you can see our previous preview here), it’s being released to the App Store as an entirely new app.

Both previous users and new users will be very pleased with the launch pricing. Click past the jump for details. >>>

PhotoForge2 will be available in the App Store beginnning this Thursday, May 19. The normal retail price of the app will be $4.99.

GhostBird writes in their pressie:

“The App Store does not provide an easy way for developers to allow their users to upgrade to a new app.  What we at GhostBird Software have decided to do is provide PhotoForge2 at the lowest price available in the app store for the entirety of launch day. What does that mean? PhotoForge2 will be on sale for $0.99 USD May 19, 2011, one day only.”

After the $0.99 upgrade period is complete, PhotoForge2 will be on sale at $2.99 USD for the remainder of the month of May. Still a great price.

Life In LoFi will have posts, links and reminders of the launch this Thursday here on the blog, on our Facebook page and on Twitter when the update goes live to help you not miss the update pricing.

Unlike the older PhotoForge version 1 apps, PhotoForge2 will eventually be a universal app that takes full advantage of whichever iDevice it runs on. Native iPad support won’t be available on the initial PhotoForge2 release but is planned for one of the early updates to the app.

PhotoForge2 requires at least iOS 4.2. It will run on any device that can install iOS 4.2 or greater. This includes iPhone 3G or newer, iPod Touch 2nd gen or newer, and all iPads.

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Halftone is the fun comic-style app from Juicy Bits that recreates the pulpy, aged, halftone feel of old comic books. It features 21 paper styles, nine built-in layouts, two caption styles, six different speech balloon styles, 21 stamps, and the ability to choose a font (including three embedded fonts). Whew!

The new 1.5 update is out and he new feature list is pretty long. Click past the jump to find out what’s new and a sneak peek at something Juicy Bits has in the works….

Here’s what’s new in version 1.5:

+ New stamp feature with 21 stamps, including BLAM!, Arrrggh!, and others
+ Ability to customize stamp colors
+ Two new licensed fonts, Alter Ego, and Billy the Flying Robot (user request)
+ New fonts include European characters (big user request)
+ Added TwitPic option for image upload (user request)
+ Completely new halftone generation engine
+ Improved “pucker” (pointy) balloon shape
+ New dot gain setting (user request for halftone geeks)
+ Added ability to choose a smaller dot size (user request)
+ Added instruction screens for first-time feature use
+ Ability to reset to original settings
+ Various stability and performance improvements

The new fonts are great. They’re well-chosen and look very, well… comic booky. If you’ve been around printing, the new dot-gain feature is pretty fun. It simulates the spread of the dots as the ink soaks into the paper, making your pic look darker and muddy. Pulpy comic book stock typically soaked up a lot of ink.

Want to start over with original settings? One push of the Reset button and the default halftone settings restore. Edits to your image are saved.

Along with this update, Juicy Bits offers a tease of their next project. It looks like they’re creating an iPad version of Halftone to take adavantage of the device’s larger screen real estate. Here’s a screenshot of the beta:

Halftone on iPad. Image courtesy of Juicy Bits.

Halftone is $0.99 in the App Store. Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 3.2 or later.

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My iPhone 4's memory usage before and after a quit-all and reboot.

I’m not sure why this happens. I just know that I’ve been seeing more of it recently. I’ll download the new update of an app that worked great before. And then when I try to open it… CRASH!

I’m sure it has something to do with memory or how another poorly coded app has made the stack unstable (I don’t know the exact technical specifics). The bottom line is, my app crashes.

If this sounds familiar, here are a few steps you can take to try and bring a crashy app to a usable state before you fire off that 1-star App Store review. >>>

1. Reboot your iPhone

Yes, I preach this, but rebooting your clears up these types of crashes more often than not. As you use your iPhone (or iPad or iPod Touch), its memory becomes fragmented. It may be effected by random fragments of code leftover from a previous app crash, making your device less stable over time. Rebooting your device clears all that. It loads the iOS fresh into memory which may help stabilize cranky apps.

2. Quit all open apps.

iOS 4 introduced multi-tasking and backgrounding to iDevices. However closing out of apps doesn’t mean that you’ve actually quit the app. It’s still in the background using up a chunk of memory.

To quit all of your open apps, double-click the home button to show your recently accessed applications. Press and hold any of the icons. They’ll start shaking. Then just tap the red-circled minus buttons to quit each app. One tap of the home button stops the shaking. One more takes you back to your home screen.

Whenever I do a maintenance reboot of my iPhone, I also quit out of all apps beforehand. Between that and rebooting, I often reclaim about 50% of my iPhone’s available RAM (see photo above).

3. Delete the app from your iPhone and reinstall from the App Store.

When updating an app, you are installing over the previous version of the app. That means that your files and preferences aren’t effected. Pretty convenient. This saves you the trouble of losing photos and reentering login information after each update.

Sometimes, app crankiness is caused when one of these files gets corrupted and that will still cause the app to crash even after the update. Deleting the app from your iPhone removes these files and forces you to create new preferences files from scratch.

To delete an app from your iPhone, press and hold the app’s icon. All icons will start shaking. Then just tap the red-circled minus button to delete the app. One tap of the home button stops the shaking.

WARNING! Deleting an app will cause you to lose any logins you have saved for that app. Those are easy enough to reenter. It will also cause you to lose any photos or files stored in that app’s built-in Lightbox. Be sure to move any files, photos, or videos you want to save into your Camera Roll or save it somewhere else. Once you delete the app, those files are gone forever. Photos and videos already in your iPhone’s Camera Roll are safe, however.

4. Delete the app and reinstall from iTunes.

Sometimes, updating the app in iTunes on your desktop or laptop PC can make a difference and help reduce app instability. For instance, during the recent Instagram 1.6.x updates, users were reporting fewer problems when they downloaded the update in iTunes and then synced to their iPhones.

5. Downgrade back to the previous version of the app.

Okay, you’ve wasted an hour trying all of these tips and the app still crashes. Many times, it’s just a buggy update. Most developers are really good at bug-fix updates, but getting those updated and bug-fixed app through the App Store’s approval process can take a little time. It is possible to downgrade back to a previous version of the app while you’re waiting for an update that works.

We’ve covered that in the past. Read our post on downgrading an app to a previous version.

Most of the time, app updates go smoothly. When they don’t, hopefully, these tips will get your apps back into a usable state.

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Animated layers in Photoshop for iPad? Screenshot © Photography Bay

Photography Bay is reporting that a very slick version of Photoshop for iPad was previewed at the Photoshop World 2011 Keynote yesterday. This is not a larger version of the watered down Adobe Photoshop Express for iOS, but and entirely new build of the app that has more of the powerful features of the desktop version, including layers and some pretty sweet layers animation.

Photoshop for iPad? Screenshot © Photography Bay

In his post, Eric Reagan writes, “One of the coolest things at the Photoshop World 2011 Keynote this morning was the unveiling of the Photoshop for iPad tech that Adobe is working on.  While the recent upgrades for Photoshop Express on iOS adds some horsepower to the app, the stuff that Adobe has in the pipeline for tablet devices looks pretty sick.”

When Adobe Photoshop Express was first released, it was greeted by a resounding “meh” in the iPhoneography community. Although it’s interface was very minimal and sleek, its toolset was lacking many basic functions. Several other iPhone photo apps came much closer to “Photoshop for the iPhone” than the actual Adobe release. Even after several updates and new features, it still lags behind PhotoForge, Filterstorm, Iris Photo Suite and others in terms of tools, power and usability.

This appears to be a completely rewritten app for iPad. In fact, even how the user interacts with the app appears to have been reimagined. This preview is really cool and I hope we see this app soon. From the preview, this iPad version of Photoshop is Adobe embracing the iPad platform and jumping in (albeit a little late) with all the financial and software engineering muscle we’d originally expected from the first Photoshop for iOS release.

No word yet on a release date or pricing. I’ll keep you posted. In the meantime, check out Photography Bay For Eric Reagan’s preview post and the video for the live iPad demo and drool.

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FX Photo Studio HD by MacPhun is an iPad-only photo processing and editing app that brings the feature set of the excellent iPhone version to a native iPad format. The app has been redesigned for the iPad and takes full advantage of its larger screen. Although I haven’t reviewed the iPad version, it’s getting mostly five-star user reviews in the App Store. You can read my review of the iPhone version with a similar feature set here.

I’ve got a few FX Photo Studio HD promo codes to give away. Click past the jump to find out how you could get one. >>>

I’ll give away an FX Photo Studio HD promo code to three random readers who request one in the comments below. To win, request a code in the comments below. You can comment as many times as you like, but only your first comment will count. Cut-off time to enter is 6:00 PM Central Time tonight, Monday, March 28, 2011. This is for the iPad-only version of FX Photo Studio. Winners will be determined by random selection. One code per reader, please. If you’re one of the winners, be sure I can email or DM you somehow.

UPDATE: Thank you all for entering. Unfortunately, I only had three promo codes for this one. They go to commenters Jamelle Bouie, catalonia, and nui. I will get those emailed within a day. I’ll have more promo codes to give away soon. Stay tuned…! =M=

FX Photo Studio HD is compatible with any iPad. It requires iOS 3.2 or later. It sells for $4.99 in the app Store, but is currently on sale now for only $2.99

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Adobe’s Photoshop Express for iPhone and iPad got a new update this week. The 2.0 update is free. Most of the new features — in particular the good ones — are not. They’re a hefty $3.99 which is a lot for an iPhone photo app. Is it worth it? Click past the jump to see what I think.

The new 2.0 update sports very few new features — an improved camera module, full retina display support, and support for multi-tasking and background operations. There’s an optional in-app purchase for $3.99 where all the good stuff in the update is. There is a self-time and auto-review feature which is basic and included standard with every other camera app. There’s also the new noise reduction feature and that’s where the upgrade gets interesting.

The improved camera module is basic but it’s fast. it’s easy to fire off it’s easier to to do multiple captures quickly it’s got a pretty fast refresh rate — faster than most. On an iPhone 4, the refresh rate averages about 1 second. It’s basically the Apple OS camera with a redesigned UI and a 5X zoom lens and access to flash and front facing camera if your hardware supports it.

Auto-review is annoying and really slows down the otherwise speedy camera. It can easily be turned off from the lower righthand side of the viewfinder.

The new noise reduction feature is really the single crown jewel of this upgrade.

The new noise reduction feature of Photoshop Express is amazing. It will immediately draw comparisons to the same feature in Athentech’s Perfectly Clear. In all of my test photos Photoshop Express reduces more noise, in some cases significantly, with very little loss of detail. It’s especially effective with noise and artifacts in the shadows of dark images. Results were visibly smoother with less noise and grain. At both default and 100% settings Photoshop Express’ noise reduction performed better than similar settings in Perfectly Clear. Perfectly Clear’s noise reduction created extremely little blur. Photoshop Express’ has a tiny bit more visible blur, but in a large image, the difference will be negligible. See my sample images below, including my horrible, very dark, worst-case image:

Original image with frame showing detail area

Photoshop Express: 2X Exposure fix, NR @ 100%

Photoshop Express noise reduction @100%, detail

Perfectly Clear: FixDark with noise reduction

Original, detail

Photoshop Express noise reduction @50%, detail

Perfectly Clear FixDark, plus noise reduction

Perfectly Clear does a lot more than reduce noise. Its overall automatic processing is often still much better than what can be done with the basic controls of Photoshop Express. Photoshop Express lacks many of the other great automatic Dynamic Range Correction tools that Perfectly Clear has.

Currently, though, Perfectly Clear saves images at a maximum of 5 MP. Photoshop Express will handle much larger images.

Photoshop Express is still frustrating with what isn’t in this latest update. For instance, there’s no automatic white balance correction which would really help make the noise reduction feature much more usable. As the app gets more advanced features, the screen swipe motion for adjustments without any visual cues is very frustrating. There is no way to zoom in the preview to get a detailed look at how sharpen, noise reduction and other filters really effect your image.

Another frustrating  issue with this app is it still strips out EXIF data and Geo-tag info from your photos, which is critical to many iPhoneographers.

Is Adobe Photoshop’s noise reduction worth four dollars? If you regularly shoot in low light without a flash, it’s definitely worth considering. The new noise reduction filter drastically reduces the noise from underexposed images and can save some otherwise unusable photographs. Even with the iPhone 4′s more light-sensitive camera, the device still captures images that are too dark. Brightening the images or normalizing the exposure creates noise and other artifacts, which is why any good noise reduction filter is a good utility to have in your toolbox.

Remember, the best way to prevent a lot of noise in a photo is to shoot it with good light. No amount of noise reduction will completely fix badly underexposed photos.

Photoshop Express’ new NR feature does a better job of reducing noise, especially in dark areas of a photo, than any other app I’ve tested, including Perfectly Clear, PhotoForge and Filterstorm. But without the benefit of the other killer features, this four dollar update this is pretty expensive. Photoshop Express 2.0 is still an excellent free app. This in-app upgrade with just the one cool new feature is pricey right now for an iPhone app. It may be more of a want than a need for many iPhoneographers.

Photoshop Express is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 4.2 or later.

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Your iPhone is a computer. To help keep it running smooth, rebooting should be a regular part of your iPhone’s maintenance. When I did Mac desktop support, rebooting the computer fixed about half the problems. Seriously.

The iPhone 4 — both the original GSM model and the new Verizon CDMA model — really needs more than just an occasion reboot. On any iPhone running iOS4, also quitting all open apps will help free up even more memory on the device and help RAM-intensive apps run more stable. I recommend this for any iDevice — iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad — running iOS 4.0 or newer.

iOS4 introduced multitasking and background processes to the iPhone. Now you leave apps without actually quitting them — they are “on pause” in the background. More and more apps are working — albeit slowly — in the background. All of the processes still use RAM and CPU clock cycles. With a lot of apps on your phone, it’s easy to have 50 open apps in no time.

Before rebooting, quit all of your open apps. Double-click the home button to show your recently accessed applications. Press and hold any of the icons. They’ll start shaking. Then just tap the red-circled minus buttons to quit each app. One tap of the home button stops the shaking. One more takes you back to your home screen.

To reboot any iPhone, hold the Sleep/Wake Button at the top right-hand corner of the iPhone for a few seconds and run the slider across the screen when it asks. When your iPhone shuts down, wait a few seconds and press the Sleep/Wake button to power it back up again. This will fix many problems preemptively.

Reboot your iPhone when normally rock-solid apps start crashing. Although the iPhone 4 is has much more memory than its predecessors, you should still quit and reboot on a regular basis, even if it isn’t acting up. For the most part, my iPhone just works and it’s easy not to think about it. It’s one of the reasons we love Apple products.

Inside, your iPhone is a computer and as you use it — opening and using apps — its runtime free memory (RAM) can become fragmented over time. Quitting apps and rebooting your iPhone flushes the memory and the fragmentation. Instantly, your apps have a lot more memory to play with (and photo apps can be memory hogs sometimes).

I try to reboot my iPhone at least once a week just to do it — basically, when I remember to. I quit all open apps and reboot when things start crashing on me. Quitting and rebooting helps keep stable apps stable and can help cranky apps behave a little better.

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Photo app Percolator by Tinrocket is on sale again for only $0.99 — that’s half off the regular price of $1.99! Although the user interface has a very retro look, it’s a very Modernist app that makes your iPhone photos look like a mosaic comprised of circles.

I previously reviewed Percolator here on the blog, giving it four stars. It’s easy to use and a fun, modernist app that produces unique colorful effects. In fact, the background image in Life In LoFi’s most recent header (seen above) was created with Percolator.

Percolator works on any iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch running iOS 3.1.3 or newer.

Percolator is on sale is for a limited time.

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As reported last week

Not only does the app now feature full-resolution output, but adjustable, Expandable Layouts are now available as an in-app purchase.

As part of the free update, Diptic now supports full (or high) resolution of the iDevice it’s on, up to 2592×2592 pixels of the iPhone 4. Here’s the breakdown:

• iPhone 4: 2592 x 2592
• iPad gen 1, iPhone 3GS, iPod gen 3, iPod gen 4: 2048 x 2048
• iPhone 2G, iPhone 3G, iPod gen 1, iPod gen 2: 1600 x 1600

Users also have the option of saving in the old, faster, original size output of the app, which was 1024×1024 on an iPhone 4. Honestly, though, they did a pretty nice job coding for high-res and there really isn’t much of speed hit when saving the larger files on an iPhone 4. Nonetheless, the option is there in the updated export screen.

The other big new feature is Expandable layouts, available as an optional feature for a $0.99 in-app purchase. Diptic now allows you to change the aspect ratio of the entire dyptich/tryptich, etc. The layouts are slider-adjustable from 1:2 to 2:1 aspect ratios. There are 5 presets on the slider that you can set to simply by clicking on the icon below. It’s very easy to use.

The high-resolution support should please users who have been clamoring for this since the app’s release.

Diptic is a universal app that currently works on any iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad running iOS 3.0 or newer. It’s $1.99 in the App Store. The Expandable Layouts feature is an additional $0.99 in-app purchase.

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FX Photo Studio
Version 3.1
Price: $2.99

Bottom Line: An impressive collection of filters — something for everyone — with an great UI that helps you keep track of them.

MacPhun continues to step up its game with recent updates of several of their key, cornerstone apps. The recent 3.0 and upcoming 3.1 update of FX Photo Studio continue to improve this extensive collection of photo effects. Even with the large number of effects included and the number of photo effects apps available, there are still some good effects here that you can find in no other app. For that reason alone, this app is worth a look.

The recent 3.0 update was the big update and the new 3.1 update builds on its foundation and adds several new features. In 3.0, FX Photo Studio got a major overhaul which allows the user to easily sort and keep track of the app’s growing number of effects. The several viewing and sorting options make it easy to sort and filter the number of effects by category and save your favorites for easy access. You can also view all of the filters in a list. The new user-interface is amazingly easy to use and very intuitive.

The 3.0 update added 31 new effects and the 3.1 adds another 10, bringing the total number of effects to 181 in the latest update. They’re just a starting point, however. Each effect has adjustable parameters allowing you to tailor the effect to your image. The slider is responsive and slightly oversized — great for larger fingers. Tapping the image toggles the hideaway tools. Effects can also be stacked and applied over each other — effectively giving you endless combinations in image processing. There’s also a random button where you can quickly and easily experiment with effects.

If you create a series of effects that you wish to save, they can now be easily saved as a preset. Version 3.1 adds the ability to share preset codes with other users — a popular feature introduced by Live FX.

The filter collection is impressive overall. There’s something for everyone in the broad range of effects. Effects run the full range from cool lo-fi and analog film effects to grunge effects to “cute” effects like hears, kisses and flowers. While I won’t be visiting the Overlays category much, like I said — there’s something for everyone here. The quality of the effects are good; they are well-rendered, especially the film effects. In particular, I like the lo-fi film effects that the app creates. There’s a wide selction of damaged film filters available and they look great overall. Another personal favorite of mine are the selection of high-contrast grunge filters, which apply in seconds effects it would take me much, much longer to create in Illustrator and Photoshop

There are also several basic photo borders, but nothing like the selection of analog film borders in apps like PictureShow and Infinicam.

You can share your images within the app through Facebook, Twitter and in the 3.1 version Flickr and Tumblr as well. As with all MacPhun apps, there’s excellent online help available, as well as intuitive quick tips that pop up (these can easily be toggled off). Quite honestly, the UI is so intuitive and easy to navigate, I never had to crack open the help.

Although speed has improved in this version, FX Photo Studio still feels a little slower than other apps in this class. Understandable, though, as it’s doing a lot processing. Not all of the effects are going to please all users, but there are a lot of variable effects to choose from and the variety makes this a good app to encourage experimentation. I think user-selectable stressed film borders to compement the excellent analog film effects would be a great addition in a future update.

The new interface, number of well-done filters and easy organization and sharing tools make FX Photo Studio 3 a very well done, top-notch app. Even if you have filter apps, such as Tiffen PhotoFX or PictureShow, there’s still plenty of new and unique effects here. FX Photo Studio is an easy, yet powerful app for novices to add great looking effects, but its advanced features and tool set make this a perfect app for more experienced iPhoneographers as well. FX Photo Studio is an excellent app with something for everyone.

FX Photo Studio is old iDevice-friendly and works on any iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch running iOS 3.0 or newer. The FX Photo Studio 3.1.0 update has been submitted to Apple and should be available for download soon.

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LiveFX allows you to easily create and apply thousands of unique photo effects by means of filter stacking. It features a unique live preview which displays selected effects in the viewfinder before shooting (which was quickly duplicated by several apps since).

It’s a good app. It reminds me of Best Camera with a lot more filters. If you take the time to master the combinations, it’s possible to create some great effects with this app. I’ve reviewed an earlier version of the app — click here for my original review. And it’s gotten better with each update since.

Live FX is a universal app and works in native mode on any iDevice –  iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch running iOS 3.2 or newer.

This is a short sale — this weekend only — and a great price. If you’re thinking of buying this app, grab it now before it goes back up to $3.99. This is a good opportunity to try out the full version of this app for only a dollar.

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PhotoForge for iPhone is on sale now for only $0.99 and PhotoForge for iPad is on sale for only $1.99 – a significant savings off each app.

Of the image editing photo apps, PhotoForge is, in my opinion, the most powerful and the one most like “Photoshop for the iPhone” — something the actual Photoshop iPhone app doesn’t even come close to. Both versions have a very powerful feature set, including full image controls, painting and cloning. The iPad version is written especially for iPad and takes good advantage of the larger screen real estate of the device. In my opinion, PhotoForge also has the best Auto White Balance tool of any of the iPhone image editors.

PhotoForge for iPhone usually sells for $2.99 USD. For iPad, it normally goes for $4.99. It’s a great app and one that I use often. At these prices, PhotoForge is an essential purchase if you don’t have it already. This is a special Thanksgiving sale, so grab it now before the price goes back up

PhotoForge for iPhone works on any iPhone or iPod Touch running iOS 3.0 or newer — that’s pretty much every iDevice released.

App Store links: PhotoForge for iPhone | PhotoForge for iPad

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Filterstorm was one of the first native photo editing apps for the iPad. It was later ported to iPhone as well. This purchase gets you a version of the app that takes advantage of the features of either device.

Filterstorm has a very impressive set of features, including advanced features like layering for multiple exposures, masked adjustments, cloning, and white point adjustments. Although originally designed for the iPad and its larger screen, the app now brings all of these features to the iPhone. I found the interface to be a little cramped for my large fingers on an iPhone but there are many iPhoneographers who swear by Filterstorm as an iPhone image editing app.

Black Friday sales aren’t lasting long. Filterstorm is especially worth considering if you have an iPad or are expecting one this holiday season. Grab it fast!

The link takes you to the universal version of the app — iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch. Filterstorm runs on any iDevice using iOS 3.2 or newer.

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Impression
Version 1.2.2
Price: Free, plus $1.99 in-app upgrade

Bottom Line: Impression is that rare free app that’s fully functional and works great without the upgrade, but you’ll want to upgrade to get the extra fonts and color capabilities.

Impression is the iPhone/iPad version of the photo watermarking software from Blue Crowbar. It’s a free app with an in-app upgrade, but both versions allow you to add high-quality watermarks to photos from your Photo Library.

Impression is that rare free app that’s fully functional and works great even without the upgrade.

A watermark is a graphic or line of text placed on a photo to help prevent copyright infringement and unauthorized use of your images. A good watermark is subtle and doesn’t detract from the image, yet still renders it difficult to use if someone steals it somewhere on the internet. A large, loud watermark is bad in that it draws your attention away from the image itself.

Impression's upgraded color controls

Impression easily adds a line of text to your photos and saves a copy without altering the original. The interface is simple and easy to use. Simply import an image from your photo library. The Text button will take you to the text entry screen to enter one line of text. There’s also a great, easy shortcut for the “©” sign right there on the keyboard.

Sizing the watermark is easy and responsive — use 1 finger to move and place, two fingers to resize. You can easily adjust the opacity of the watermark from subtle to completely opaque. Then save. It’s that easy. Even the free version of Impression supports full resolution saves. Impression also remembers the text and color settings, a great feature to speed up the workflow.

I wish there was some way to pinch, zoom, and scroll around the image. Creating and accurately placing small, unobtrusive watermarks on an iPhone screen is currently a little difficult. The app also doesn’t support screen rotation to better view landscape images. Also, I think it would be really cool if there was a way to import graphic watermarks — slugs. These are not complaints, but more of a wish list for future versions.

A $1.99 in-app upgrade gets you fonts other than Helvetica. You can also change the color, brightness and saturation of your text, which is handy for watermarking very light images.

Never watermark an original image or a finished original — ALWAYS watermark a copy. You won’t be able to remove it later and many gallery websites don’t like watermarked images should you decide to submit to them.

Even if you already have a watermarking app, Impression is worth a look. For free, I highly recommend the download. Impression is easy to use and because of the sizing and opacity features, even the free version creates watermarks that won’t get in the way of your image.

The free version is great on its own, but if you’re serious about protecting your images with watermarks, you’ll want to upgrade to get the extra fonts and color capabilities.

Impression is a universal app, compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad and requires iOS 3.2 or later.

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