iPad Street Photography

I went out today with my iPad to take street pictures. No phone but let's try and make the most of what I have.

Hong Kong is just the most interesting place to take photographs because there is so much street activity. Canteens right on the street, shops with complete open fronts.  As well as this it has the advantage of overhead walkways and trams.

So today I got a couple of street shots and also managed to get a seat in the front of the tram so I could take pictures.

'Watching the World Go By'

When I was taking this picture, I was waiting for an interesting couple to come around the corner but they must have stopped. Anyhow I loved the cat sitting outside and took a couple of pics nonetheless. When I got home I just loved the way both the cat and man on his stool reading the newspaper were both eyeing the passing man up and down.  The photo was pretty busy so I decided to grey out most of the picture and give it a blur leaving the man and cat intact.

I took it into Snapseed and had to crop it quite a lot and then enhanced it a little, using the Selective Adjustment just to brighten the man on the stool who was quite dark. Then into iColorama to turn it black and white and to give it a blur under Effects. I then took it into Superimpose with the coloured version as a background so that I could use a mask to bring the coloured objects back in.

'Letting the World Go By'

Outside the Western Market there is a painting which I suppose is a Trompe-l'œil. So many people walk past it without even seeing it so I stationed myself across from it and started taking pictures every time somebody walked past. I got two interesting shots and decided to use this one which was of a man totally engrossed on his mobile phone. I wanted to do something interesting so did the usual clean up in Snapseed and then into iColorama where I used option number 8 under the Form>Escher. I then used a brush mask to bring him back in.

'Dreaming of a Better World'

Then it was onto the tram to see if I could get any good pictures perched in the front of the upper deck.  There was another tram in front and I loved the way this chap was staring into the distance on a tram which was going to 'Happy Valley'. I started off in Snapseed but this time finished it off in Noir.

Christmas Bauble
Finally I wanted to get a picture where quite a few of the walkways were showing with the other tram still in front. I also wanted to try and get some of the Christmas decorations that are now lining some of the walkways. I took the picture into iColorama and greyed out everything except the closest walkway and then I turned it into an old Christmas Bauble again under the Form Effects.

Not bad for a day's work.

iPhoneography: out on the street

I have been hesitant to get into iPhoneography because up until now I don't think the cameras in smartphones and devices have been good enough. I always carry a point-and-click with me so I still get the unexpected shot. Also, although I have an old Samsung Ace smartphone I actually use an ordinary Nokia which has a dual sim (allows 2 sim cards) which I need and love. It also only costs me £7 a month to run! On the other hand I couldn't do without my tablets and these easily and more conveniently take the place of a smartphone.

However, now the apps on the smartphones and tablets for photo manipulation have become so good and are such fun I am in a quandary.  If I want to get more seriously into iPhoneography, what now?? The new iPhone '6' is due to come out any moment which is purported to have a much improved camera. But it is also rumoured to cost a bomb. Can I honestly justify buying a phone plus special lenses which will amount to the cost of a decent DSLR!!? Especially as I am not interested in buying it to use as a phone.

Anyhow, I have to make do with what I have at the moment so I went trotting down to Hong Kong Park late afternoon on a lovely day to see what I could do with my Samsung Ace. I realised very quickly that I use my zoom lens constantly and getting any decent shots was a challenge although I quite enjoyed that. Usually after a photography session like this I would come home with quite a few shots that I would be very excited about and be inspired to do something with but anything which was clear was quite ordinary and many shots I couldn't take because the subject was just a little too far away. Disappointing.

Last night my hubby was out for supper so I decided to go out early evening with my iPad this time and see if I could get some candid shots in a coffee bar or restaurant. These weren't great but I did get some interesting shots on the night streets. I was so tempted to pull out my proper camera and felt like I missed some great opportunities to get some clear shots. I used the Procamera 7 app on my iPad to improve the shots and realised that I need to understand the app a lot better. I took 176 shots and found about three that I might possibly use.

So here is my first try. I love the shot itself even if it isn't as clear as I would have liked but not convinced that the final manipulation is quite right. It is so important to know your tools WELL and I am not quite at the stage where I know where to go to get that special filter or tint or whatever but I am getting there and thoroughly enjoying the challenge.

Here is the original shot. I loved all the black and white lines and the fact that the pizza maker was wearing a striped shirt too although it isn't evident in this shot:

Here is the final manipulation. The apps I used were Procamera 7, Snapseed, Noir and iResize.

I did another one adding textures and grain but decided I like the simple black and white of this one.