Click to download TiltShift in iTunes

(see update at bottom of post, 11/24/2010)

I heard about this iPhone app called TiltShift this morning (though it’s been out for some time now)… and had to try it out for myself. From what I’ve seen there are a few of them out there… but this one looked to me to be the most interesting one. It’s $1.99 on the Apple app store… so you can see my first impressions here before taking the plunge. ;)

Tilt shift movements in photography were originally provided on large-format view cameras… then Nikon introduced a lens for 35mm cameras in the 60′s and Canon in the 70′s. It was originally used to correct perspective shifts in photography such as in architecture… but most recently tilt shift used much more often for creative effect. When used properly you can make real-life scenes look like miniatures or toys… which is fun.

Unfortunately tilt-shift lenses aren’t cheap. Canon’s tilt shift lenses are both over $1k and I’m sure Nikon’s are around the same. So… people usually resort to Photoshop. You usually can’t get the same effect out of your images… but if they are shot perfectly and Photoshopped perfectly… you can get the tilt shift look without having to actually buy the lens (and learn to use it properly).

Enter the iPhone and the billion apps for it. Now you can do tilt shift photography right on your phone… and it actually looks pretty neat. Not perfect, not professional… and certainly not like a real tilt-shift lens. It is, however, very cool for something that can take less than a minute from capture to Tweeting your latest faux tilt shift masterpiece… and all from your beloved iPhone.

Check out the TiltShift app on iTunes. For $1.99 it’s pretty darn cool.

These are images I shot today at Disneyland and edited directly in the TiltShift app.

Click to download TiltShift in iTunes

UPDATE

Michael Krause, author of Tiltshift app, emailed me to explain some things and let me know about the recent update!

“To clarify the erratic behavior of the save function and the missing want-half-size-dialog:

The dialog appears only for photos that take a long time to process (more that 20 seconds) for example. This only happens with high-resolution photos and lens blur. What probably happened to you was that you saved a high-resolution photo in half-size and you got the dialog. Later you loaded this saved half-sized photo and saved it again. Because the source was no longer high-resolution it was automatically saved as is without asking for resolution reduction again.

Regarding the Bokeh possibility this is not well documented but the three main points are:
1) Lens blur must be on.
2) Bokeh is best with night time images with isolated light points
3 )The blur level and blooming factor must be high enough that blooming kicks in.

A third issue you mentioned was that the parameters are not reset when loading a new image. You can reset all parameters at once with a tap-and-hold gesture on the button to the left of the slider.”

Version 2.1 was released on Oct 21, 2010.

Thanks for the answers and for the new software update, Michael!

WHY

I am visiting O’ahu for a week as I do the Hawaii Photo Fusion tour with the wonderful model and makeup artist, Tracie Cotta. We are being sponsored by SmugMug to come out and spend a week shooting photos and videos to create a series of video tutorials and behind-the-scenes looks at some of our lighting, posing and shooting techniques.

I did a small photography and lighting workshop in March of 2009 the last time I was out here… it was literally thrown together at the last minute at the request of a few people… and I was happy to have had 26 people attend and spend a few hours with me at Magic Island, Ala Moana Beach Park, as the sun set. This time I thought I’d go all out and cover everything I think is necessary to light and capture great photos AND videos and meld them together into what is now being called photo fusion videos.

WHAT

The workshop will begin indoors at the ING Direct Cafe in Honolulu (map), light refreshments will be served and we’ll spend a couple hours in-class. We’ll then head outside for a 2.5 hour hands-on lighting workshop.

Bring your camera, we will have a live model (the gorgeous Tracie Cotta) and you’ll be shooting her in various scenes using some natural light, some flash-lighting. (you can also see Tracie in the iJustine video above, she is the makeup artist!)

Fusion Workshop

“Fusion” is probably a term you’ve heard a lot recently. With the proliferation of DSLRs with video features it’s now easier than ever for photographers to capture GORGEOUS video while shooting photos without worrying about taking along an additional device. This allows for the simple “fusion” of photography and video for wonderful videos of weddings, events and photo shoots.

We (The Bui Brothers) also use it in other ways. The last few high profile photo shoots we’ve done we’re accentuated by behind the scenes videos that have actually gained more attention than the photos themselves. We actually attribute more than half of our recent photo business to these videos. When watching them, potential clients are able to see not only how we work but also who we are.

Here is the behind the scenes video we shot during our photo shoot of iJustine at the Ritz Carlton Laguna Beach:

CONTENT

• photo editing workflow
• basic video editing software (iMovie)
• video editing techniques
• how to create simple music for your videos (Garage Band)
• how and where to find legal free music online
• how to publish your content on SmugMug and share it on your blog or other sites

Photography Workshop

The questions we get most often from people are regarding the lighting techniques we use in our photographs. We typically do outdoor shots using a combination of ambient and flash lighting supplied either from small flashes or Alien Bees lights.

On this trip I’ll be shooting with two Vivitar flashes and a brand new set of Radiopopper JrXs. They are all as affordable as it gets! I’ll also be using some homemade modifiers to properly control the lighting, and will spend a couple hours setting up multiple sets for you to photograph.

In this part of the workshop I will show you exactly how to light your subject and why I make certain choices to get the effect I want. You’ll have the opportunity to photograph Tracie in each set with the lights I set up.

CONTENT

• choosing your location using the available light
• using flashes to fill against the sun
• using a single light for portraits
• posing your model
• using direct sunlight to backlight your subject
• using light modifiers for complete control
• a bunch of other stuff that will come up as we work

WHERE

Fusion workshop (1st part of the workshop)
ING Direct
1958 Kalakaua Ave.
Honolulu, HI 96815

Photography workshop (2nd part of the workshop)
Fort DeRussy Park
right across the street from ING Direct

WHEN

The photo fusion workshop will be held:

September 24th – Thursday
2:00 PM – 7:00pm (it may go a little later)

RESERVATIONS

In keeping with the low-budget nature of my trip and this workshop… I’m pricing it at an absolute no-brainer $35.

Due to the size of the venue and in the efforts to keep this workshop reasonably small and intimate, seating is limited. Click to reserve your place now:

Note: Purchase is non-refundable.

SUBSCRIBE FOR UPDATES

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MORE INFORMATION

Visit the Facebook event page
Visit the upcoming.org event page

Hawaii Photo Fusion tour
Ritz Carlton Photo Workshop
The Bui Brothers shoot Felicia Day