EclecticGuy

I got my iPhone 4 the day it came out – replacing my iPhone 3GS, which replaced my iphone 3G, which replaced my original iPhone (see a pattern here?). With each iPhone, the camera has improved markedly. The camera in the new iPhone 4 is really nice, well, both of them are! There is the standard camera on the back-side of the phone and the iPhone 4 introduces a front-side camera for videoconferencing and taking photos of yourself.

This new camera is 5 megapixels (back, the front camera is VGA) and shoots HD Video – yes, HD Video! The same touch to focus interface works in still and video mode – one of the coolest features of the iPhone camera. The back-side camera also has a 5X digital zoom – however, I recommend not using a digital zoom, take your shot and crop later. The other new – and cool feature – is a built in LED flash on the back!

I’ve started to assemble a collection of iPhone photo apps that are worth considering. Here is what I use:

Camera+ – I use this instead of the built in camera for several important reasons. The first is, Camera+ allows you to tap-to-focus AND tap-to-set exposure! Using a 2 finger tap, one finger sets the focus and the other the exposure, the newest release allows you to move these separately after setting – way cool. Another great feature is “fill light” mode for the LED flash. Basically, you can turn on the LED continuously. Great for focusing in the dark and other tasks. The software also has a stabilizer which works reasonably well. Finally, it supports cropping and dozens of photo effects. For $1.99, it is well worth it!

360 – this new app takes 360 degree panorama photos just like that Sony camera in the commercial with Taylor Swift! Very cool and works great.

Pano – a traditional panorama stitching app that works very well. Overlay of the previous frame helps you align the next frame in the pano.

NightShot – improves the night time performance. Sometimes useful.

iMovie – Apple’s iPhone iMovie app for editing movies right on the phone! Still simplistic but you can see where this app is heading. You can make a decent movie with it though.

Finally, myZenfolio. I use Zenfolio as my photo sharing (and remote backup) site. This app gives me direct access to my photos. Very cool!