MoPho Blog

Why We Love July 4th

Thu, 28 Jun 2012 14:14:34 -0400

The sun, fireworks, the smell of a barbecue, an iced cold beer, maybe a picnic or a concert… Oh and we are celebrating Independence Day. On this holiday we have no obligations other than to enjoy ourselves on a beautiful summer day. Surround yourself with family and friends and make some memories. Make sure to keep your iPhone handy and snap away…

The sale is ongoing straight through July 4th so don’t wait around to take advantage! Enjoy!

Photo Gifts for Father's Day, with MoPho!

Tue, 05 Jun 2012 20:43:08 -0400

What’s more thoughtful than a photo gift for your Dad? We don’t know either. That’s why MoPho is offering %30 off your order this week. Ordering prints and photo gifts from your iPhone, has never been this easy. Want to print Instagram photos? Or perhaps send a custom iPhone case using your most recent iPhone photos? MoPho is the easiest, and best way to get it done (if we can say so ourselves). So pull out your iPhone, take a few photos, download MoPho, and send a gift from your iPhone in no time.

Mothers Day: Time to Show Your Appreciation

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 07:18:10 -0400

Here at MoPho we take Mother’s Day quite seriously. So seriously, in fact, that we decided to slash 30% off orders over $50 for the occasion (just make sure to leave us enough time for shipping).

Use Promo Code “Mom30” during checkout.

Moms have a tendency to get a bit sentimental at times. It might have something to do with all the blood, sweat, and tears it takes to raise a child. Or maybe it’s just to embarrass you. Whatever the case may be, a token of appreciation is in order. It doesn’t have to cost a lot; when it comes to mothers it really is the thought that counts. Frame a memory, or perhaps a small keepsake that lets her know that all of her hard work has paid off. Mom doesn’t have to know that your gift took just a few taps on your iPhone and only a minute of time. After all, it’s the thought that counts.

"Becoming a MoPho": An Interview with Daniel Berman of the Mobile Photo Awards Part Two

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 13:53:00 -0400

By Anton Kawasaki

For Part One of this interview, read it here. Now on to Part Two:

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ANTON: With the Mobile Photo Awards, you were very adamant from the beginning that you only got judges that had already found some success as mobile photographers. You didn’t want any “traditional” photography judges involved. Some people felt this was “ghettoizing” the awards, and that by not reaching out to more traditional photography circles you were limiting mobile photography’s scope and “legitimacy” in the larger photo world. (Obviously these people didn’t realize *I* was one of the judges. I mean, c’mon… how can you get better than ME?!?!) ;-) But seriously… how do you respond to these criticisms?

DANIEL: Interesting question. The first iteration of the Mobile Photo Awards indeed featured a jury solely comprised of celebrated mobile photographers and artists. I had many reasons for choosing to design the MPA in this manner. If the goal was to run a tight competition with integrity then we succeeded. If the goal was to bring the work into the fine art world and present well received exhibits with lots of press coverage then we also succeeded. I’m not sure how having a professor of photography on the jury would provide legitimacy. Would the hypothetical professor or member of a “traditional” photography circle choose different work than our jury? I doubt it. Perhaps we will include some judges outside the community this year - perhaps we won’t. To be honest, I don’t think it matters, I think it makes more sense to present a unified, organic vision to the “outside” world and have the art world accept our work on our terms. In fact, I think the very notion that we should differentiate between “traditional” circles and what we do in the mobile space de-legitimizes our art, as if we are not worthy of judging ourselves and need more experienced eyes to do it for us. Even so, I’m certainly not categorically against it if the fit was right and it made sense.

Panorama of some of the photos at the ArtHaus Gallery in SF

As for “ghettoizing” our art…that would be true if the MPA was a website with no presence in the “real world.” But it’s not. It’s a traveling exhibition, a competition, an open gallery call and a repository of stories and images. To my mind, bringing the work into well-respected galleries is the opposite of ghettoizing. We have features coming this spring in some very important art magazines and a much sought after showcase at the exclusive San Francisco Fine Art Fair. How anyone sees that as inward looking because we didn’t have a photography professor on our jury is, frankly, ridiculous.

ANTON: Agreed! So what would you say was the biggest challenge of the MPA’s so far? And what would you do differently next time? I guess that’s another question to ask….IS THERE going to be a next time?

DANIEL: Absolutely a next time!!! Submissions will begin in September. We have had a boatload of folks come to us offering to partner up and provide prizes. I’m psyched for some of the awesome things we will be doing this year.

“Awesome Sauce” by Sara Tune, winner in the Juxtaposer app category

I learned a great deal about the process and will be making incremental changes to improve the MPA. We will have some new categories, new jury members, a more interactive website and some awesome new features for entrants. It’s going to be really fun and I know people will love the changes we are going to bring.

ANTON: Being part of the judging process was certainly intense at times. First there was the initial round of judging for our own categories, which just involved Sion and I picking our top choices (I think our category, Street Photography, was the second or third most popular after Black and White? So there was a LOT to look at…). I was happy to have another set of eyes, but every other judge just had themselves. And then there was the later rounds where all the judges were asked to step into 2-3 other categories of their choosing to help further reduce the picks down to final winners. So many different judges, all with very strong opinions…it was bound to get heated at times. Though I was pleased to see us all being respectful and making sure that the whole process was fair and that the true cream of the crop rose to the top. Any thoughts about the whole judging process, and is there anything you might change for next time?

“Double Dutch Nuns” by Jose Chavarry, winner in the Street Photography category

DANIEL: To be honest, I felt the system we had for judging was the fairest and best system we could use. It ensured that the images were considered carefully by multiple sets of eyes, and it engendered terrific discussions among the jury members. I feel that the entrants deserved no less than such an intense process. It also meant that nobody could play favorites (not that anyone did, but if they tried they would be derailed pretty quickly.) So, other than bringing in some new faces for MPA II I think our judging system is pretty well set.

ANTON: One of the other judges was Robert-Paul Jansen, whom I mentioned in Part One — the two of you collaborated on a book, right? What was that like, and are there any other type of collaborations you hope to work on in the future?

DANIEL: I adore the work of Robert-Paul — I try and promote his stuff whenever, wherever possible. It helps that he’s a super thoughtful and kind person. We did the book because A) not many others were doing landscape mobile work 2 or 3 years ago so we naturally had an affinity for one another and B) we both photographed a tree in our respective neighborhoods and it made sense to collaborate on a project in order to publicly express our admiration for those trees. I love trees. So noble and strong yet gentle and helpful at the same time. Trees rock.

ANTON: Not only were there so many judges, but also a lot of winners — with the grand prize going to Stefano Pesarelli’s “Indifference.” It was fun to finally put names to images, and realize many of the chosen winners were photographers that we had admired for some time already, while others were brand new and exciting discoveries. Have you been in regular contact with some of the winners — and how do they feel about being a part of all of this?

“Indifference” by Stefano Pesarelli, grand prize winner of the MPAs

DANIEL: The overwhelming response from the winners has been “…WOW! No Way! Awesome!” Part of the post-process for me has been collecting essays by the winners on the back stories behind each image. Not so much “what app did you use” but more “Why? What does the picture mean to you? Could the image have been made on a DSLR? etc…” We publish these regularly on the MPA blog — I have been in touch many times with every winner and have had the pleasure of meeting a few along the way. It’s been a joy to support their work and facilitate the exhibits with their co-operation. We sold our first piece this week and I can hardly wait to see how excited the artist is going to be. What a thrill!

ANTON: That’s awesome!! Speaking of the MPA’s blog, it’s been fantastic to see the essays on the photos, and it’s been such a wonderful supplement to the awards. Was having a blog afterwards always the plan all along?

MPA judge Max Berkowitz poses with his “I Am Sam” image

DANIEL: I always planned on bringing a blog into the process. It’s really important that people see the MPA as something more than a contest or a gallery call. We fill a void in the mobile photography world by offering an outlet for cohesive, thematic photo essays. We are the only ones to offer long form articles about images. We don’t do tutorials, interviews or app reviews. Nothing wrong with those things — I read them all the time and value what they offer, and a site like LifeinLofi is a treasure — it’s just that we are after something different and want to provide people with something they can’t get elsewhere. Otherwise why bother?

ANTON: Good point. And now the best part about all of this, the actual exhibitions, are finally here! What can you tell us about each of the shows, and what are you looking forward to the most with them?

“Carmella” by Helen Breznik, a notable runner-up addition to the MPA show.

DANIEL: I look forward to the thrill an artist gets when they see their image framed at 20”x20” — I look forward to watching as visitors engage with the work, stare and point and talk about what they see. I look forward to art collectors adding mobile images to their collections — and I think that’s the greatest justification for people when they consider whether or not to pay for entry to a gallery show. The benefits are pretty awesome if the work is shown in the right place.

A crowded house at ArtHaus SF

ANTON: So besides a possible Mobile Photo Awards 2 next year, what else is in the cards for ReservoirDan? Any other projects you have planned that you can tell us about?

DANIEL: Sleeping.

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The Mobile Photo Awards are currently being held at:

ArtHaus, San Francisco April 5-June 30, 2012

Orange County Center for Contemporary Art (OCCCA) April 7-28, 2012

The San Francisco Fine Art Fair May 17-20, 2012

"Becoming a MoPho": An Interview with Daniel Berman of the Mobile Photo Awards

Sat, 07 Apr 2012 18:35:00 -0400

By Anton Kawasaki

Daniel Berman — better known as “Reservoir_Dan” in the mobile photography world — has been many things: fine art photographer, TV producer, digital artist and filmmaker. And with the introduction of the iPhone, he’s added “mobile photographer” to his growing list of talents. In fact, shooting with a mobile device became such a passion for Berman, that he created one of the most ambitious mobile photo contests/traveling exhibitions the world has seen so far: The Mobile Photo Awards!

Gathering many well known mobile shooters to be the judges, and enlisting several popular photo app companies to play along, Berman pulled off a truly momentous feat — especially for someone who lives up in the quiet, scenic hills surrounding Milton, Ontario.

Known for his specialty in landscapes, abstractions and people, Reservoir Dan is also now known as a major player in pushing the growing field of mobile photography towards mainstream acceptance — beyond the Instagram “social” hoopla that has dominated the news — as a recognizable art form.

Big Awesome

When Dan asked Sion Fullana and I to be judges of the “street photography” category of a photo contest he was thinking of doing, we immediately said yes. Of course, we figured it would be just another small contest…no big deal. We had no idea of the magnitude of what we were getting into, or how big the awards and ultimate exhibition would be. It was definitely an interesting and fun (and sometimes frustrating) ride for everyone involved — but the amount of talented submissions that came out of it made it all worth it.

Now, months later, and after the winners were all announced, the first exhibitions have arrived! The opening of the Art Haus Gallery show in San Francisco this past Thursday was a smashing success. And now, on the eve of the show at the Orange County Center for Contemporary Art, I present to you the first part of an interview with Berman — where he discusses his own work and answers the first (of several) questions about the MPAs. Dive in….

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ANTON: Dan, let’s talk a little about your own photography first. You’re known mostly for your luscious landscapes, which are the result of living in such a gorgeous area. Some people claim that while mobile photography is superb for street photography or digital art, it doesn’t make as much sense for landscape/nature stuff. What would you say to those people?

DANIEL: I feel that most people take pictures of what they see everyday. That’s simply a result of who we are and where we live. For me, in my eyes, the most interesting images in my area are of the natural world. If I lived in a city I’m sure I would shoot more architecture and people. Mobile photography is very much about spontaneity, see a moment, have a camera in your pocket, shoot shoot shoot whether your subject is a person or sunset. Also, the stealth factor of the phone is such that trees don’t even notice when you’re taking a picture.

More Big Awesome

ANTON: Hah!!

DANIEL: The branches think I’m playing Angry Birds and just continue blowing in the breeze without shedding a leaf.

ANTON: Very sneaky! I’m sure they have no idea you’re there. Or at least pretend to. So…once in a while you’ll travel to someplace like NYC, and we get a glimpse of ReservoirDan: Street Photographer. For someone who doesn’t take “street” shots that often, your work in that area is really amazing. Do you feel that more skilled photographers in general are able to cross over to other genres easily because they have a trained eye? Or is there always a learning curve when trying something different? And do you ever wish you can take other styles of photos more often?

DANIEL: I believe every photographer needs a personal vision — at heart we are storytellers. Without a story an image is nothing. To be sure, some of us have our strengths in certain genres, but if we are truly meant to convey something of interest in our images we will find those stories and tell them. I absolutely love street photography — I enjoy looking at it, I enjoy doing it. I happen to live in a small town and I truly believe the images most worth making there are of the natural world. If I lived in NYC or Toronto I’d most likely find the people to be the most exciting subjects. Either way, if I’m meant to tell a story I’ll find a way to tell it.

The Guy In the Suit

ANTON: I’ll admit I’m mostly been drawn to street or portraiture work in photography — but then I’ll see a drop-dead gorgeous landscape from someone like you or Robert-Paul Jansen and I’ll just be WOWED…transported to a place of tranquility and beauty. So what’s your secret behind a truly effective nature shot? How can people elevate their pictures to the next level?

DANIEL: There are techniques in every genre — all joking aside, stealth and speed are not required in landscape work. It’s about light, time, place and your eye. I believe that learning a technique is always a secondary result of an activity. You play guitar, you love it, you want to get better and dig deeper, you therefore find a way to acquire the knowledge necessary to become a better musician. Likewise, if you love shooting landscapes, you start paying more attention to how the light sprays across a carpet of grass and you learn to find the best ways to capture that image. Skill and technique in every artistic discipline have a direct relationship to necessity and desire. Most landscape photography is dull and repetitive as is most street photography. But a great image is a great image whether it’s of a tree or a person on the street.

The Dude in the Chair

ANTON: Totally agreed! Ok… on to the Mobile Photography Awards! There have been several photo contests since the explosion of mobile photography — which many say started with the introduction of the iPhone and the apps ecosystem, and has gotten more and more popular with each passing year. What made you want to take on yet another contest, and how did you plan on differentiating the MPA’s from all the rest?

DANIEL: My goal is to bring the community of artists and developers together, exhibit the work in galleries, bring the best images into the realm of fine art and create a legitimate way to focus real world attention to mobile artists. The MPA isn’t about having your “winning” image on a website with a stamp on it. The MPA is a combination of an open gallery call and a competition. The amount of press and interest we have generated is a result of presenting a coherent set of exhibits that go beyond one person’s taste. There is nothing else like it in the mobile space.

Westfield

ANTON: Where does someone even begin with planning something so huge? I know at one point you were worried it would be a huge flop and cost you thousands from your own pocket. Thankfully it turned out to be reasonably successful, and now we’re starting to see the exhibitions finally debut. But were there moments where you thought to yourself “What have I gotten myself into?” There must have been an insane amount of pressure on you for this to succeed…

DANIEL: “Insane” and “pressure” are definitely words I would also use to describe this endeavor. At the same time it has been tremendously rewarding. The biggest thrill was seeing the work framed and hanging on the walls at ArtHaus and OCCCA. Visible and tangible proof that the hard work was worth every minute. But yes, it took many impromptu feats of balance to maintain positive vibes with the entrants, the judges, the technical aspects of the web interface, the framing, the printing and on and on and on. It was overwhelming at times to keep it together. And then I looked up one day and said “Hey! We did it!”

The Old Mint

ANTON: When the Awards were first announced, many were taken back by the fact that it was a PAID contest. It was explained that fees would go towards prints, promotion, exhibition costs, and all the other things that are necessary for such a huge undertaking. Also, there was the fact that paid photo contests that result in an exhibition are not uncommon in the traditional photography world. Plus, it ensures more serious, quality work gets submitted. That didn’t stop people from complaining anyway. Any final words you want to say on the matter?

DANIEL: If we are going to bring these images into the fine art world we need to accept certain things. For instance, every open gallery call has a submission fee. That’s not really a point worth debating. Many mobile photographers have no experience with the art world and therefore have unrealistic expectations about submission fees. Galleries are not museums. They don’t have public admission fees or endowments. They are small businesses. They don’t pay for frames or prints any more than they pay for canvasses or paint. If a gallery call or contest is “free” to submit than it’s sponsored by a brand in which case your “free” submission is really a way for a corporation to build an email list and spend their advertising and marketing budget in the hopes that the contestants will tweet and Facebook the heck out it and get even more bang for their buck by having something go viral. There is no free lunch for the entrants either way. Either pay with your PayPal account or pay by helping someone advertise. Also, and it’s a point worth making, if there were no submission fees we would probably get 30,000 images. We’d have to have a corporate sponsor to pay for everything. It would be close to impossible to get that work juried properly and with care. Our judges took their jobs very seriously and professionally — sticking them with 7,000 shots of feet or lunch is not going to help the process.

Hi, Noon

Now, in the case of the MPA we printed and framed all the work. No further cost to the selected entrants. We also gave cash prizes and swag to all the winners. We put on first class exhibits at major galleries. I can assure you that a regular open gallery call will expect the selected entrants to provided a ready-framed printed image, expect you to pay for shipping, and you won’t get an iTunes gift card, free apps and a chance at $500. We are the best of both worlds. I am convinced that anyone who complained was either unaware of the facts or just someone who likes throwing mud around anyway. There are always going to be people who would rather complain than educate themselves — complain about what is built instead of building something themselves. I’m cool with that because that’s just life, as a creative person with an entrepreneurial spirit I’ve seen it before and I’ll see it again.

ANTON: Hear hear! And now, a word from our sponsors…

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Just kidding! But tune in for Part Two of this interview, where I ask Dan all the important questions about the MPAs you’ve always been wondering about…coming soon!

In the meantime, check out more of Dan’s work here:

And for more on the Mobile Photo Awards, check out the excellent and informative MPA blog here:

The mCAM™ - by Action Life Media

Wed, 28 Mar 2012 13:53:00 -0400

If you take photos on your iPhone (who doesn’t?) then you should check out the mCAM™ - an awesome camera case made by Action Life Media.

This iPhone Accessory is one of the coolest we’ve seen here at MoPho, and is perfect for taking those extra special photos. It’s lens allows for taking those wide range photos that are not possible with the standard iPhone camera. Any if you’re into taking movies, the mic and tripod are great to have as well.

It has an aluminum frame, wide angle lens, 180 degree external mic, and the place to mount the case on a TriPod…. How cool, right? Take a closer look and get one for yourself at http://www.actionlifemedia.com and get updates from them on Facebook.

MoPho Madness!: New update brings 1-Cent Prints & Free Shipping in celebration for Instagram support & 3 new products

Mon, 19 Mar 2012 09:55:00 -0400

Our free “MoPho: Prints & Products” app just got a MAJOR new update, and we’re celebrating with 1-cent prints and free shipping (see details below)!

Now with the latest update you can link to your Instagram account and get access to all your favorite IG photos within MoPho! Custom create your own unique photo prints and products on the only iPhone app that has the widest selection of photo items available! No need to hassle with a computer — it’s ALL done on your phone!

Plus, MoPho has now added three brand new products that you’ll absolutely flip over!:

* Canvas Prints: These 1.25” thick gallery wrapped canvas prints are stretched and mounted to a frame, with the image wrapped around the edges to a create a fine art quality masterpiece! Available in 8”x8”, 8”x10”, 8”x12”, 10”x10”, 11”x14”, 12”x12”, and 16”x16”-inch sizes!

* Ceramic Tile Art with Display Easel: A gorgeous 8”x8”-inch tile with a glossy vibrant finish and beveled edges. Comes with a wrought iron display easel with rubber bottom feet. A beautiful way to spotlight and commemorate your favorite photos!

* Keepsake Box: Store your prized mementos in this 4.5” square keepsake box that features a black piano finish and is fully lined. Personalize it with a special photo image on the included 4.25”x4.25” ceramic tile on top.

These awesome new photo products are in addition to the many that MoPho already offers: Regular professional-quality prints of various sizes, iPhone 4/4S cases, iPad cases, 5”x7” Easel Back Panels, Aluminum Art Panels, Coaster Sets, T-Shirts, Canvas Tote Bags, 11oz. Mugs, “Magic” Mugs, Mouse Pads, Keychains, 20oz. Water Bottles, 20oz. Frosted Steins, Re-Stick-Able Posters, and 15-set Photo Tattoos.

To celebrate this MAJOR new update, we’re offering two amazing limited-time offers that you won’t be able to pass up! (Offers end 3/30/12, so hurry!):

* All of our 4”x4”-sized regular prints are only 1-cent each!!* It’s the perfect size for Instagram photos, or ANY photo in your camera roll!

* FREE SHIPPING on all orders!** Yep, order as much as you want, and all shipping is absolutely, 100% FREE. Just make sure to use the following code while placing your order: freeship

You KNOW you want some 1-cent prints!!

Yes, you heard us right — you can get up to TEN quality 4”x4” prints RIGHT NOW for only 10 cents and free shipping! What are you waiting for, mophos? Take advantage of our CRAZY offers within the next week, because they definitely won’t last long. We’ll be sure to come to our senses at some point…

MoPho offers the WIDEST selection of custom-made photo products than any other app out there — and the best thing is you can see a preview of your product BEFORE you buy! We’re also the ONLY company that’s offering many of these products within the convenience of an app on your phone, without having to deal with uploading your photos to a computer and using a web browser. If you haven’t downloaded MoPho already, try it out for free now.

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* 1-cent prints are limited to 10 prints per customer (any prints ordered beyond that are priced at usual $0.29 price), and 20,000 prints overall.

** Free shipping code is not combinable with any other discount code.

“Becoming a MoPho”: An Interview with Greg Schmigel

Tue, 13 Mar 2012 16:03:00 -0400

By Anton Kawasaki

Sometimes people wonder how the whole mobile photography movement got to the point where it is today — where the iPhone is the most popular camera on Flickr, where millions of people share mobile images online, and where over 10,000 apps for photography exist in the App Store. It’s hard to pinpoint its true origins, but it’s just as hard NOT to think of the “beginning” without mentioning the name Greg Schmigel.

Was Greg the very FIRST person to start regularly taking photos with an iPhone and with a more artistic eye?

Probably not.

But he was definitely the first person (that I know of) who created a website devoted strictly to photography using the device — and was probably the first person to start getting some attention for it. So for that reason, he is definitely considered one of the earliest pioneers of “iPhonoegrap…”, er…, ahem — “mobile photography,” I should rather say (see below).

Around the time I was watching Sion Fullana begin to first explore shooting street photography with his own iPhone, we both soon discovered that some guy in Maryland named Greg Schmigel already had a small online presence. We all eventually connected through the online photo-sharing website Flickr, and Schmeegs [as I affectionately call him] became one of our earliest mobile photography allies.

Hair Today

We finally met Greg (and his beautiful wife, Suzy) during one of their many visits to New York City a few years ago, and we all became fast friends. But unlike with many other mobile photography buddies we’ve made over the years since, we’ve never done the traditional “photowalk” experience together. Instead, Greg will devote most of the time that he’s in the city to shooting just by himself (often with Suzy by his side, but sometimes not as she does her own thing). It’s not because he doesn’t want to hang out with friends, but because he’s SO focused and dedicated to his shooting that he can’t afford too many distractions (it’s certainly true — street photographers get their BEST shots when they’re alone). You can’t help but admire his dedication to his craft. In fact, he gets so passionate with his all-day photo taking, that he’ll sometimes wind up with literally thousands of new images in his camera roll by the end of a single night.

Often Greg won’t even look at (or post-process) his photos until he gets back home to Maryland. It’s a much different approach to mobile photography than Sion and I, or most other mobile shooters that I know, who can’t help but check each photo as it’s taken, and sometimes process AND post a photo we like to an online photo sharing community (like Flickr or Instagram) within minutes. Schmigel keeps it “old school” and often waits — much like we ALL had to do when using film cameras back in the day. Using a mobile device is less about the instant sharing for him, and more about the convenience and ability for getting discreet and up-close shots.

Back in July of last year, Greg e-mailed Sion, myself, and nine other mobile shooters he admired to ask us if we were all interested in participating in an experimental cooperative that would be the mobile equivalent of the well known Magnum Photos group we all admired. We all agreed to join, and soon the Mobile Photo Group was born. We spent several weeks in the beginning going over how the group would work, what our goals would be, etc. We knew the group would have to be limited to a few members at first (despite knowing that would probably receive criticism — and it did), but we were already discussing how to slowly expand over the years. Eventually we decided to keep doing what we do best — take photos — and let whatever collaborations we had in mind grow organically.

While not necessarily the leader of MPG, I figured Greg would be a good person to ask some questions about the group that I felt might still be “hanging in the air.” And of course, I wanted to delve deeper into the mind of the man himself…

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Into The Darkness

ANTON: So Greg — your website’s name, and your moniker in many other places, is “JustWhatISee.” How did you come about choosing that name, and what does it mean to you?

GREG: I got my first iPhone in 2007 and honestly didn’t have any intention of using it as a camera — that just seemed to happen on it’s own. But shortly after realizing that the iPhone had potential as a photographic tool (and a very convenient photographic tool, to say the least), I decided that I wanted to be able to share “what I saw” with others. Initially, I was using Flickr to share my early works, but soon built a site dedicated to sharing pictures taken with my iPhone. My site has been through multiple iterations — and I suspect more will come. I’ve been asked often about the name, and my answer is always the same: My photographs are, just what I see. There’s not big philosophical reasoning behind the name. It’s more of a literal name.

ANTON: Your work is as classic as it gets — pure, raw, black and white street photography with very little post-processing done to your photos. Have you ever tried experimenting with a wildly different style — and what was that like?

GREG: First, thanks for those kind words regarding my work. Black and white, as you know, has been a style I’ve stuck with for a couple of years now. I don’t see that changing any time soon, as far as my street photography goes. There something very pure about shooting black and white. I’ve always felt that shooting in black and white removes any pre-prejudice a photo might have. In other words, it strips the photograph of any preconceived message or story that might construe the beauty of composition and tones. Don’t get me wrong, I love color photography as well. But I feel that I have found my own inner peace by creating black and white imagery. And it’s also a nod to the great street photographers who paved the way for so many of us all. I always tell people, “I shoot in color, but I share in black and white.” But to answer your question, yes…I do shoot other, sometimes experimental things. For example, this week, I’ll actually be shooting plated food for a local restaurant … yes, with the iPhone. These shots, for example, will be in color. I’ve shot live band performances as well and have begun recently to experiment with portrait work, thanks to the inspiration of [fellow Mobile Photo Group member] Jim Darling.

Serendipity

ANTON: We’ve discussed this before ourselves, but let’s rehash for people reading this. You’ve been pretty adamant about NOT being called an “iPhoneographer,” but rather a street photographer who happens to use an iPhone as your primary camera. So…is “iPhoneography” a dirty word for you? Why the distinction, Schmeegs?

GREG: You don’t waste any time, do you Mr. Kawasaki? — I kid. But in all seriousness, you are correct. I do not refer to myself as an “iPhoneographer.” That said, let’s not jump to conclusions as to ‘why I don’t do this.’ Is it a dirty word for me? No, absolutely not. Is it an ‘overused,’ ‘misused,’ ‘often misunderstood’ and sometimes flat-out ‘annoying’ word to me? Yes indeed. The term iPhoneography came to be, I would guess, somewhere in 2008 when people wanted to put a name to this new form of photography they were creating with a mobile phone. And for a brief moment, it had an understandable meaning — photographs taken with an Apple iPhone. But, within a very brief period of time, following the birth of the term people started to try to enforce subjective boundaries, rules and/or regulations on what we were doing with our mobile devices, as artists. And soon after that, came the long-winded debate on what iPhoneography was from a post-processing perspective.

ANTON: Yes, I sadly remember all that. It was quite annoying how people tried to define what THEY thought this new way of taking photos should be, and then scoffed at anyone who didn’t fall within their strict parameters.

Hampden, Hon.

GREG: The whole discussion just completely wore on me personally, and on several others I have spoken with. Fortunately, Glyn Evan’s site, iPhoneography.com, kept me from abandoning the term completely. By 2009, I just kind of decided that the term ‘iPhoneographer’ was not really a great fit, for me at least. I still use the term ‘iPhoneography’ for tagging purposes on Flickr and Twitter, and I still use the term ‘Mobile’ Street Photography on my website. But at the end of the day, what am I? What are we? We are photographers. We are photographers who happen to use the iPhone as our main (and sometimes only) camera. Being called an ‘iPhoneographer’ isn’t going to upset me. I (and you, most likely) have met some of the most creative people ever in the last 4-5 years, since the birth of iPhoneography. And some of the things that we have accomplished as artists in the past years — photographically — have been a direct result of this ‘dirty word’. Call me what you will. Just don’t call me while I’m out shooting. I need all the battery life I can get.

ANTON: [Laughs]. Now I know why you always text instead of calling! So…you’ve experimented with many other cameras, though you always seem to come back to the iPhone as your primary shooting device. What’s been your experience with these other cameras, and what makes you prefer the iPhone to all of them?

GREG: I have had my share of camera’s on the street, but for some reason, I do always find myself reverting to my iPhone as my main camera of choice. Weird, huh?

ANTON: Not weird at all!!

The Man in Chinatown

GREG: Honestly, I think it has to do something with the fact that I got into street photography with the iPhone. It just seems like my natural fit for me. Of recent, I picked up the Fuji X10, the sexy, street-shooting little brother to the X100. Now, don’t get me wrong, that camera kicks some serious ass, and I’ve enjoyed using it. But what I’ve come to realize is that whether I’m using the X10, my vintage Yashica GT Rangefinder or my iPhone, my photographs — from a style perspective — all seem to have a consistent look and feel that I’m really happy with. So at the end of the day, I struggle with justifying a new camera buy, especially, when I know it won’t be long before I go back to the iPhone. As I state on my site, “I firmly believe that 90% of photography is what the artist sees in a shot. The camera makes up for the other 10%.” That’s a statement I hold true to.

I’m well aware that from a technical and mechanical perspective, my shots with the Fuji would be superior shots. But from a creative perspective — the iPhone holds it’s own. I’m proud to tell people I do it all with an iPhone. Plus, hey, it saves me some money. No need to buy a bag of lenses for a DSLR.

ANTON: Too true!

So Greg…it’s kind of funny how so many people think you live in New York City because you have so many shots from here. You only make it up here every few months, and sometimes for only a few days at a time — but when you’re here you go on massive shooting sprees where you take literally thousands of shots a day. What is it about the Big Apple that inspires you so much?

Camped

GREG: I’ve had the chance to see some other places in the world — lived in Belgium for a while prior to college — and drifted around Europe for a bit. There are some beautiful scenes to see across the ocean. But ironically, I wasn’t into photography at that time. So I always think that makes a great excuse to get back over there to shoot the street.

Enter New York City, 2002. My wife and I made our first ‘official’ trip to NYC shortly after 9/11 — April 2002 to be exact. And as you could imagine, we instantly fell in love with everything about the city. But even then, I would say, I didn’t really have much of a clue about ‘street photography.’ I remember always bringing a camera with me in the early days, but it was more for snapping pictures of tourist spots and those hopeful celebrity sightings. On a trip in 2008, armed with only my 1st-generation iPhone, I decided to leave my ‘camera’ at home. And that ONE trip was all it took.

But to get back to your actual question, yes…I’ve received quite a few e-mails from NYC-based shooters who have asked to ‘meet up for coffee’ or asked where I live in the Big Apple. I always get a nice feeling out of that question. It makes me feel like the city has adopted me as a stepchild, so to say. We make it to the NYC as often as we can now — maybe sometimes more than you know.

Bearded

ANTON: Oh trust me, mister! We KNOW there have been times you made it here and neglected to tell us or other friends about it [Laughs]. But I also know it’s for super-quick jaunts of non-stop shooting only, so you’re forgiven.

Have you ever considered just moving here?

GREG: Absolutely. That’s something that both my wife and I would love to do. But at this point in time, we’ve got some obligations here [in Maryland]. And to be honest, having Washington DC in our backyard really isn’t a bad deal, at all. Not to mention Baltimore is only 20 minutes north and Philadelphia is a mere 2 hours away as well. There’s a pretty large creative scene down our way, from photography to music to film to just about any type of performing arts — we’ve got it all. So while I’m always sad to leave NYC, there’s always a nice feeling of coming home as well. We like it here. We grew up here. This is home. Suzy (my wife) always mentions retiring in NYC. I guess I better start selling some prints!

ANTON: Yes, get started on that, will ya??

Now…let’s talk about this little group of ours, shall we? What was the inspiration for forming the Mobile Photo Group, and what were you hoping would be the group’s ultimate goals? And more importantly, what are some of the benefits of having a group like this (for those who may be wondering why it needs to exist)?

GREG: This thing of ours? You make it sound like La Cosa Nostra — without getting whacked, of course.

ANTON: [Laughs]. You mean we’re NOT like the mafia???

GREG: Mobile Photo Group was something that I think a few of us had thought about for a year or so, individually. I recall e-mail discussions with some of the members, kicking around the idea for some type of group. But it never seemed to get out of the ‘idea’ stage. So I sat down one night, and created a list of photographers, and put the question to a group of mobile photographers and artists — “would you be interested in forming a creative, collective group where we could support, push and enhance what we are doing with our mobile devices,” or something of that nature.

Connections

ANTON: Well thank goodness you took the initiative, as I don’t think we would have ever gotten around to it. So many of us talked about it, but then we just never let it get anywhere…

GREG: I am also an immense fan of Henri Cartier-Bresson, and I have had a great interest in what he created when he built Magnum Photos with his colleagues. By reading and learning about what they do, seeing how they work as a group (yet also as individuals) and understanding why they formed, I thought that we could form our own more simple, mobile version following their model as a guide.

The initial concept and model of the group, as you can read on our website, was to gather a group of talented photographers as an international collective dedicated to promoting their work and presenting mobile photography as an important and evolving form of photography.

In Her Eyes, I Saw Myself

I think one of the main benefits of forming this group has been the support that we now see for one another from within a group setting. I think we’ve all realized that when you go at it alone, it’s often tough to push yourself harder. I consider the members of MPG some of the best that mobile photography has to offer. These guys (and gals) are passionate about their craft, they’re driven in their work and they’ve helped mobilize (if I may) the entire movement of mobile photography.

I’m sure there are folks who ask the ‘why’ question, and that was something we talked about in depth before launching the group. But at then end of the day, we all felt as artists, that it was something we wanted and needed to do. And it seems to have taken of. Since we launched MPG, we’ve seen other groups forming: AMPT and Juxt to name a couple, both of which are jam-packed with amazingly creative forces!

Two Faced

ANTON: A lot of people are curious about how you selected the original founding members. Can you give our readers any insight into the process that went behind picking the core group?

GREG: As I mentioned, I sat down one evening and reached out to a select group of mobile photographers from around the globe. My process of selection was simple…these were the artists that I was and am greatly inspired by. Jordi, Dom, Sion, Jim, Star, Morgan, Benedicte, Chun, Olly, Misho, yourself Anton, and the latest addition, Aik Beng Chia — these are my mentors. So, in order to ‘form’ a group, I had to reach out, whether it was to one person or to twelve people, or more. I did know that when I compiled the original list, I had to keep it short and containable so that we could get the group established, layout some guidelines and launch. Twelve seemed like a solid number to start, and we could grow that number in time. All members of Mobile Photo Group share equal positions, there is no one person in charge of the group. We approach everything as a group behind the scenes. Who knows — perhaps we’ll have to adjust our structure as we grow, but for now, it seems to work out fine. I just happened to be the guy who sent the initial e-mail.

The Young Girl in Chinatown

ANTON: There was just an MPG membership drive going on, that closed submissions the other week! We’ll be picking a new member soon, with the idea to grow the group slowly and steadily — which may mean only 1 or 2 new members a year. Wanna explain the reasons behind that, and what the group members are looking for in a new member?

GREG: The reasoning behind a slow-growth model is straightforward. We (as a group) agreed that a slower growth would be best so that we could focus more on the quality of our work as opposed to a volume-based group. And again, we look to Magnum’s model. Since forming with only 6 members in 1947, Magnum now enlists only 80 members or so. If you do the math on that timeline increase, I’d say we’re right on track with their growth, slow and steady. MPG was not built to become a simple virtual community for sharing photos made with an iPhone, yet rather, a home to house and support mobile artists who are constantly pushing the proverbial envelope of mobile photography, inspiring others, while learning and being inspired by others. Mobile Photo Group is not only online, but offline as well in group exhibits, solo exhibits, commercial and not-for-profit speaking engagements and more.

I think we’re all looking for the same thing in our current call for submissions. We’re seeking out other mobile photographers who are passionate about what they do with their cameras. We’re seeking other mobile photographers who understand that this new movement is evolving daily and is an integral part of photography in this day and age. As for a style of shooting? Most of us in the group would be categorized as street photographers, by genre. But that’s not a requirement for inclusion in MPG.

Just as the movement is changing, so is MPG, and we’re excited to see how many submissions we’ve received in one month alone. We’re amazed by the diversity of genres people have submitted. The voting and selection process for new members is sure to be a tough one.

ANTON: So what’s coming up next for this group? Some have wondered if perhaps the MPG has been a bit too quiet since its splashy debut. Can you reveal any of the plans the group has coming up in the months to come?

GREG: As stated, MPG has deliberately started off slow, steady and yes — somewhat quiet. But believe me, if you thought it was quiet on the outside, it clearly hasn’t been quiet on the inside. But I say that in a positive manner, or course. As you would imagine, forming a group of a dozen or so artists can be a touchy path to go down. Not only are we artists, but we’re also individuals with different personalities, different views and different opinions. Yet, we all hold a great respect for one another. We’re a tight family, we would say.

MPG formed in June of 2011, so we’re actually still within our first year. A good amount of planning goes into setting up a group like this from creating guidelines for the members, to building and maintaining an online presence, to deciding on a growth strategy — it all takes work. Especially if it’s a project that we all want to see in place 10 years from now and beyond.

We DO have some projects in the works for Mobile Photo Group as we speak, but I’d rather keep those under wraps for now. But I will say, we’re all excited about what we’ve got coming up!

ANTON: Recently your lovely wife Suzy has gotten the iPhone shooting bug. Could the next “mobile photography power couple” be in the making? What do you think of her new hobby?

GREG: Mobile photography power couple? No. You and Sion have that covered. Suzy has been a huge inspiration for me, she’s supported me an more ways that I can even speak. And not only is she my wife, she’s my best friend, so we work well as a team. It’s funny how many photographs I take that accidentally include Suzy somewhere in the shot. We explore the city together, side by side, and she often ends up in a corner of a frame. Every now and then, someone will comment on a photo or message me, asking if that’s her in the background of a shot. What can I say? I’m a lucky guy.

You know, she literally JUST got the shooting bug. I mean, she has always snapped photos with her iPhone, but just recently discovered a love for seeing street activity and capturing interesting moments. I like what she’s doing with her camera. It’s fresh and it’s inviting. It might be time for “Just What Suzy Sees,” but I’ll let her make that call.

ANTON: Well it’s been lovely seeing her stuff on Instagram! Speaking of IG, I have a bone to pick with you! I’ve noticed you’re back on it again for perhaps the fourth time. Or is it the fifth?? I lost count. What’s the deal, Schmigel!?!? Are you going to STAY for real this time, or are you going to abandon it again, deleting all of your pics while leaving the rest of us sad and heartbroken with our Schmigel-less feeds?? [Laughs]

The Bicyclist

But seriously…what’s your take on IG, and your love/hate relationship with it? ;-)

GREG: When Suzy started shooting, I wanted to set her up with an easy, photo-sharing system on the phone where she could test the waters. Well, needless to say, in a rather quick time, she’s taken very naturally to Instagram. She’s established her own group of followers and posting some really nice shots. So, naturally, that made me re-re-re-re-open my IG account.

To be honest, I am more of a Flickr fan, myself. Instagram to me is not personal or intimate. It’s like Twitter…on crack. It’s a way to push your message or photos out there with little or no interaction. (If that’s your way of going.) I’m sure IG works well for others, this is only my own perception. But with Flickr, I find much more interaction among other artists. Flickr is how I met you, and everyone else in the group. I like the community and group aspects of Flickr. I like the “sets” aspect of Flickr. There are lots of reasons I like Flickr. I’m not saying I ‘hate’ IG, nor do I ‘love’ IG, so I wouldn’t necessarily call it a ‘love/hate’ relationship. It’s more of a simple personal preference. IG is growing at an enormously fast pace, daily.

ANTON: Yeah, around 27 million accounts, they just announced at South By Southwest — with over 60% using them just the other day. INSANE!

GREG: Sometimes, I think too fast. Whether we’ll see a crash and burn, I don’t know. But I seriously doubt it. Honestly, I think we should focus more on simply making photographs. That’s it. Sharing our works comes second. And how we do it, well there’s really no right or wrong way.

ANTON: Any sage advice for the up-and-coming mobile street photographers out there?

GREG: When I figure this whole street photography thing out, well, then maybe I’ll have some advice. But at this point, I’m still learning myself…

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For more awesome work from Greg Schmigel, check out:

His official website: http://www.justwhatisee.com

His Flickr stream: http://www.flickr.com/photos/50721844@N03/

His Twitter: http://twitter.com/justwhatisee

Mobile Photo Group Page: http://mobilephotogroup.com/profile_schmigel.html

And his handle on Instagram is @justwhatisee, but don’t expect him to be on there for too long… (I kid, Schmigel, I kid!!!) ;-)

“Becoming a MoPho”: What the New iPad Means For Mobile Photography

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 14:50:00 -0500

By Anton Kawasaki

As usual with any new product announcement from Apple Inc, a great deal of excitement and awe was generated yesterday during the unveiling of Apple’s new 3rd-generation iPad (not iPad 3, not iPad HD, just… new iPad). The shiny new feature that’s gotten most of the media’s and public’s attention, of course, is the gorgeous new Retina Display that packs four times more pixels than previous models, and makes colors more vibrant. It will make your photos, most of all, really pop and appear more gorgeous than ever. Photographers of ANY persuasion will no doubt covet the new device as the perfect portable portfolio for their images.

The other significant feature upgrade that may (or may not) pique the interest of photographers is the new iSight camera. This camera is a bit of a hybrid — it has the same 5-megapixel resolution of an iPhone 4, but the more advanced optics (f/2.4 aperture and five-element lens) of the iPhone 4S, so it captures light better and produces a sharper overall image.

It’s technically a better camera than the one on my iPhone 4! Honestly, it seems weird to know that someone using one of the new iPads will potentially be able to take a better QUALITY photo than I can. But as we all know, taking great photos isn’t all about the sharpness of an image. It’s WHAT you’re able to shoot (and in some senses HOW you’re able to), that matters. So… can the iPad really be used effectively (or be taken seriously) as a camera?

A back camera was first introduced in the iPad 2 last year, but no one really gave it much thought. A front-facing camera made much more sense to take advantage of Apple’s FaceTime feature. But a back camera — with a less than 1-megapixel resolution combined with the fact that it looked utterly ridiculous holding it up to shoot — was considered pretty much useless. That still didn’t stop people from taking photos with it on occasion, of course! Once in a while you would actually see someone using it on the street to take a picture of something interesting that was happening…and you’d think “Really, person? You’re using an iPad? REALLY?!?” One friend amusingly shared with me a moment when someone in front of him at a concert pulled out an iPad 2 to take a picture of the stage, entirely blocking the view of everyone behind. I’ve actually seen people take pics of gorgeous sunsets or family portraits or iconic monuments with an iPad 2, all the while wondering if the terrible and lackluster end result was REALLY worth the awkwardness and humilation the person must have felt while taking it.

However, now that the NEW iPad actually has a worthy, even GREAT camera, we now have to consider the ramifications that people really WILL consider using it more. There ARE many people that still don’t have smartphones with more advanced cameras, and who also don’t carry point-and-shoots, DSLR’s, or any other type of camera around on a regular basis. But these people MIGHT get a new iPad that they’ll almost always have with them…and if they see something that’s worth shooting, they’ll quickly come to realize that the ONLY opportunity they have to capture that moment is to raise a 9.50” x 7.31” piece of metal & glass up in the air, risking embarrassment and shame, while pushing the shutter button.

It’s been said a gazillion times already — that famous Chase Jarvis quote that truly defined the mobile photography movement: “The Best Camera is the One That’s With You.”

And, as weird as it is to admit, that still holds true here…

If I was in a situation where the ONLY photographic device I had with me was a third-generation iPad (my iPhone would obviously have to be drained of battery or something), and an amazing photo opportunity presented itself, than…yes — I’d be forced to use it, knowing I’d look like ridiculous. I would not pass up a great photo, and I’m guessing most people wouldn’t either.

Photo from Have Snark, Will Travel

So now that iPadography is here to stay, let’s look at some possible pros to using the iPad camera (yes, there are some!):

Apple also updated their iOS to 5.1 yesterday, which includes a subtle but nice change to the iPad’s Camera app. Now the shutter button is located in a more more natural position on the screen as you hold it (in the middle of the screen on the right, where your thumb is most-likely to be — though I couldn’t see if there was a way to reverse the side for left-handed people).

One thing that Apple included in the iPhone’s 5.1 update, but did NOT in the iPad version, is the “quick flick” feature on the lock screen that allows you to more quickly access the Camera app than ever before. Apple figured (correctly) that this would be a much more useful feature for iPhone photographers, but that iPad users would probably not be whipping out their device to take a photo so quickly. Taking an iPad picture is most-likely going to be a more conscious, thought-out decision, rather than a quick impulse.

The one thing that most people feel is embarrassing about taking pics with an iPad is its enormous size compared to other cameras. However, the huge screen CAN actually be a benefit in some circumstances. With more details to see, you can definitely compose an image better. There may be distracting elements around that you wouldn’t normally want, and might not be aware of by looking into the smaller viewfinder of an iPhone or DSLR — but in the HUGE screen of the iPad (especially one with a Retina Display), they become way more apparent, and so you can adjust your frame and angle accordingly to get exactly the image that you want!

There’s also the fact that most processing apps are far more easier and better to use on the iPad due to its increased screen real estate. If there’s a situation where taking a pic with an iPad is NOT going to be met with derisiveness and mocking laughter, why NOT use it (instead of your iPhone) so you can then post-process it more easily? There are many processing apps that are ONLY available on the iPad, or have more advanced features then their iPhone counterparts.

I’ve always said that one of the most amazing things about mobile shooting is that it’s a very intimate and personal way to express yourself as a photographer. The “touch” aspect of it — from the initial press of the shutter to manipulating the image with your fingers in post-processing — gives me a closer bond to my “art” that just isn’t the same when using a regular camera. Importing, organizing and processing regular photos on a computer (and then using a mouse) feels so removed to me now — I don’t get that same sense of connection that I do with mobile photography. And because the iPad is so much larger than the iPhone, and more fun to use, I can almost see how photo-taking on it COULD actually be a pleasing thing to do some day…

…provided there’s no one around to actually see me TAKE the photo, of course… ;-)

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So what’s YOUR verdict on the potential rise of iPadography? Will you take the plunge? Write us and let us know!

The MoPho/Penguin Team Participated in Photo Hack Day 2!

Mon, 27 Feb 2012 14:17:05 -0500

Six months after our team from Penguin Digital/MoPho participated in the very first Photo Hack Day in New York City (where we hacked and created the “HappyMug” to a smiling audience), we returned to the second event at General Assembly in NYC this past weekend — this time as one of the sponsors!

Let’s hear more about what went down at the event from MoPho team member Kris Minkstein:

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MOPHO: What was the turnout like compared to the first time? Can you describe the general atmosphere of an event like this for people who are curious about it?

KRIS: I wasn’t at the first one, but other members of MoPho were and said there was an even bigger turn-out this year which was great. There were a lot more hacks (45 last year, 60 this year), bigger prizes given out, it was all very exciting.

MOPHO: What do you think drives people to participate in these type of hackathons? (Besidesthe cool prizes, of course…)

KRIS: The prizes are cool, but it’s really all about the desire to build something cool in a short period of time. You’re sitting there in a room full of people that all like doing the same things you do. You hear new ideas, meet new people, learn something new, likely teach some thing to someone….it’s all a very positive experience. Even though there are prizes given to the best hacks, it’s not really a competition at all. Everyone has fun watching the demos and seeing what people have to show for drinking too much coffee and energy drinks, and too little sleep.

MOPHO: Tell us a bit about the lucky winner who was awarded $300 “MoPho Bucks” for using the Penguin SDK (which powers MoPho) in their hack! What was it called, and what did it do?

KRIS: The hack that won the $300 prize from MoPho & Penguin was called “Swagmitzvah” whose name I think received the most laughter from the crowd and judges. They built an iPhone App that lets people put their faces on various funny photos like a huge muscle man or one of the Kardashian sisters, and then use that photo to create funny photo merchandise swag. Funny ideas like this are popular at parties like bar mitzvah’s so I think they may actually publish it to the App Store and let partiers use it as an activity for their guests to play around with. We loved the idea and think many others will too.

The MoPho Team hard at work….

MOPHO: MoPho’s very own Greg Landweber also participated in the event with his “All Smiles” hack. Can you tell us about that?

KRIS: Greg created a hack to solve a problem almost everyone has had to deal with when taking a photo of multiple people, which is getting everyone to smile at the same time. He used Face.com’s API to analyze the faces in the frame of a photo before it’s taken, and only take the photo when it knew that everyone’s face had a smile on it. I think parents across the globe will be dying to get their hands on this one.

MOPHO: What were some other cool hacks that you saw? And did any of them give ideas to the MoPho team?

KRIS: Oh wow. Too many to even mention. One of the favorites was an App to help blind people identify money by snapping a photo of it, then having the app tell you through the speakers what bill you’re holding. Such a smart concept since this has got to be a difficult thing for blind people to deal with each day. Hopefully this App makes it’s way to the public.

MOPHO: Any word on the next Photo Hack Day? And will MoPho be involved in any way again?

KRIS: There will definitely be more Photo hack Days since the community seems to be growing rather quickly. The MoPho team will definitely be involved one way or another. Whether MoPho/Penguin is a sponsor again, or even just the team attending to hack again with everyone else…

“Becoming a MoPho”: So What’s REALLY Important in Mobile Photography?

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 17:20:00 -0500

The “Becoming a MoPho” section of this blog is about learning to become the best mobile photographer that you can be. While shooting with a mobile device is something that’s been around for years now, it’s still a “relatively” new medium that’s continuing to grow. Even the individuals who have mastered the medium still have new things to learn every day…we ALL do. The best way to approach it (as with most things in life) is to have an open mind.

This column will continue to feature interviews with today’s top mobile photographers (and we have some amazing names coming up!), as well as feature tips, tricks, reviews and news. But I also want to talk about some issues that have been on the back of my mind for a while lately, which I think are important to address for both newbies and pros alike.

Since iPhoneography first began, there have been people saying it will be the death of photography, as well as its future. I obviously fall into the latter camp — it’s definitely reinvigorated a new love for taking pictures for countless people, and changed how we work with images and share them. But I also see the potential for mobile photography to move in the WRONG direction if we’re not careful, so I hope to start a dialogue that will steer mobile photography back on the right track…

“SO WHAT APP DID YOU USE?”

The original iPhone, with its meager 2 megapixel camera, was on the market for a full year before the iPhone 3G debuted (which featured pretty much the same exact camera). And yet, “iPhoneography” didn’t really blow up and become huge until AFTER the 3G’s debut, mainly due to the iOS App Store also arriving at the same time. So, in a way, we basically have APPS to thank for the success of mobile photography. With over 10,000 photo-related apps now available, there’s no question they play a key role with just about anyone shooting with an iPhone. I use several apps myself for shooting and processing (and sharing), and I’m always on the lookout for newer and better ones when they arrive.

However, I feel we’ve become TOO reliant on apps…to a fault. It’s not that people actually USE them that’s the problem, they absolutely should — it’s that they’ve become the MAIN focus in people’s discussions in iPhoneography, as if it’s the apps that are the most important thing that “makes” a picture interesting and nothing else. When someone sees a picture they like from an iPhone, the common question that I (and many other mobile photographers) get these days is usually “What app did you use?” No matter how emotional the pic may be, or what the subject matter is, or how it was composed, the questions are always about the apps first. I rarely get asked about what my intent was behind a photo, or what I was hoping to convey or achieve.

I used 6 different apps for both of these photos. No…I’m not telling you which ones.

When I’m looking at classic photography — whether it’s the true-life street photography of Henri Cartier-Bresson, the gorgeous landscapes of Ansel Adams, the striking fashion work of Helmut Newton, the mesmerizing portraits of Diane Arbus, or whomever — I’m OBVIOUSLY not wondering what apps they used (nor would I if they were alive today and using iPhones)! Heck, I’m not even thinking about what camera they had to shoot with. I might consider the photographer’s choice of B&W versus color, or maaaaybe ponder their lighting choices, but that’s about it. Mostly I’m just looking to see if it’s a compelling image or not, and my thoughts are usually about the artists intentions behind the photo, WHAT they were thinking that moment, WHY they decided to capture what they did, and so on. Yet with mobile photography…the common curiosity stems from HOW it was processed, and with what — and I find that a cause for real concern.

Apps ARE extremely important, of course — they add the “seasoning” to make our base ingredient, the original photo, a more tasty treat. However, in order for top chefs to make a decent meal, they need to have quality ingredients to begin with. If they begin cooking something using JUST canned or frozen goods, then no amount of seasoning is going to give them a fantastic dish. The same goes with photography. You can “app” a photo to death, but if there’s not a quality base photo to work with, it’s not going to end up that interesting.

Apps like Hipstamatic and Instagram have become easy targets to blame for the “beautification” of “average” images. It’s true — the right kind of filter on a rather mundane photo can make it suddenly WAY more interesting, and that’s why these apps have become so popular. But does turning something average into something a little more pretty really make it a COMPELLING photograph over all? If not, that’s not really the fault of the apps. They’re just providing the seasoning. It’s up to YOU, the photographer, to provide the quality ingredients to start with.

Basically, our app obsession is making us stray from what really matters the most — the actual photo itself. If we all start focusing on that a little bit more, we’re going to see better photos period…apped or not. We’ve been preaching for a while that the iPhone is just a tool, just like a Hasselblad or a disposable camera are also tools. ALL of them are capable of taking a great photograph in the right person’s hands. So we have to remember that apps are ALSO just tools. The less focus on tools, and the more focus on the images themselves, is only going to elevate photography in general.

I’m not advocating we stop using apps by any means — there’s too many brilliant ones out there, and I’ll continue using many of them! But let’s just try and change the conversation a bit when we talk about what REALLY matters in a photo…shall we?

FOLLOWERS AND LIKES

Besides apps, the other thing that people seem to obsess most about with mobile photography these days is getting more followers and likes. One of the main attractions to mobile is the ability to instantly “share” just about anywhere — and in most cases, that’s usually some sort of social media. But the same problems that plague social media (“Follow me! I’ll follow too!”) are also found here. That might not seem like such a problem for people who are just simply looking for attention in any way possible, but when you throw in “art” into the mix things get complicated and worrisome.

While it’s lovely to be recognized and to receive admiration for the photos that you take, it’s also important to stay true to who you are if you ever want to become a well-respected mopho. Unfortunately, if you look at what’s “popular” in a place like, say, Instagram for example, you’re probably going to find lots of pets, food, sunsets, and (mostly) teens doing whatever they can to get people to notice them and click on their pics. Despite this very well known fact, it’s still surprising to see many so-called “real” photographers ALSO striving to get on the “Popular” page too — as if it’s the ultimate validation of their work. Of course, truly talented people DO happen to get on the “Popular” page every now and then, but the complicated algorithm that gets them there is impossible to crack — and it doesn’t always seems fair or consistent. But people go out of their way to get there anyway, and will often compromise their own artistic vision (i.e., “dumb down” their pics) in an attempt to somehow outsmart the code and get more eyes on their images.

A sampling of Instagram’s “Popular” page.

That kind of attitude — the “do anything it takes to get more followers, whatever the cost” drive — can only be damaging for ALL of us in the long run. It puts the focus on the wrong place. If there’s one thing that’s always proven true, it’s that people always seek out quality…eventually. It might seem unfair when you see undeserving people get tons more followers than someone with actual real skills — but if that talented person’s work has true merit, it WILL get the notice it deserves in time. Mobile photographers just need to learn patience, and focus on their craft FIRST. When you become the best that you can be, the followers will naturally come on their own.

THE “SOCIAL ART”

Because sharing is such a key component, it means mobile photography is one of the most “social” arts out there. That’s fine, but being social is already its own separate thing, and doesn’t necessarily need to involve art or any discussion of it. I have no problem mixing the two, but there’s a real concern that the “art” of it can get lost in it all.

It gets even more confusing when you consider something like Instagram — is it an app to showcase beautiful photos, or a social app? I’ve been very adamant in my belief that it’s a SOCIAL app foremost, that happens to involve sharing pictures. That’s fine, and there’s nothing wrong with that. However, a lot of discussion these days mixes “mobile photography” and Instagram within the same breath. Sure, there are a lot of great photos being shared on IG — but it’s a very SMALL percentage of what’s actually going on there.

The danger, as I see it, is that whenever mainstream media focuses their attention on photos taken with mobile devices, it’s often more about these sharing apps (Instagram, EYE’EM, Stampzz, etc.) and the social aspect rather than the merit of the photos themselves. Once again, the focus is being shifted away from the quality of the images…and it then becomes difficult to take the movement seriously.

There are also so many real-world meetings going on between users of these apps, which can be quite cool because like-minded people are connecting — but when companies and brands start sponsoring these events (especially ones that have nothing to do with photography at all), it’s hard not to wonder where this photo movement is really going…

We may call it “mobile photography” or “iPhoneography,” for now, but it’s JUST going to be simply “photography” in the near future. Photography is an art form that has been around since the 1800s, and will be around for some time to come. It has served many different purposes — for documentation, historical preservation, journalism, science, commercial use, etc. Oh…and art. It will continue to evolve and grow, and add new reasons for being. But if you want to be considered a photographer, you have to know WHY you’re getting involved, and what’s ultimately needed to achieve that.

Do you want to be a mopho to take really amazing pictures? Or do you want to be a mopho to be social? It’s ok to be both, but doing one doesn’t automatically bring you the other. Each takes work. It’s not enough to call yourself a “mobile photographer” by simply being on Instagram.

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Check back soon for more “Becoming a MoPho” interviews, news, tips, and reviews!

Photo Hack Day is Back, and We’re One of the Sponsors!

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 13:34:00 -0500

Photo Hack Day 2 is coming up on Feb. 25th, and we here at Penguin Digital are super excited to be one of the sponsors of the event! We had a lot of fun participating in the original Photo Hack Day last August, where our team created the “HappyMug” to a smiling audience of developers, programmers and hacking enthusiasts.

Photo Hack Day 2 is a “hackathon” that brings together the brightest minds in photography, photo-editing, web design, computer science, and more! Developers create awesome photo hacks using open API’s (application programming interfaces) contributed from top companies and compete to make the best hack for super sweet prizes, money and of course bragging rights!

This time we’re not only supplying our Penguin Digital SDK (the merchandising platform that powers our very own MoPho app) for hackers, but also contributing 300 “MoPho Bucks” to the growing prize pool! That means $300 worth of swag created and purchased through our own Penguin-powered MoPho app is all yours if you create the coolest hack-of-the-day using our SDK!

So….do you think YOU have what it takes to be the top photo hack? Register today for Photo Hack Day, Saturday, February 25th 2012, at General Assembly (902 Broadway, 4th Fl., NY, NY).

Congrats to Our Friends at FATIFY For Their App Store Success!

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 12:41:00 -0500

FATIFY, a free app from our friends at Apptly, has made it to the #3 position in “Top Free Photo Apps” in the iOS App Store, and the #1 position in “Top Free Entertainment Apps”! Besides making you hilariously chunky and animating your face with interactivity, Fatity also makes use of our powerful Penguin SDK — the same product merchandising platform that powers our very own MoPho App!

Try it out now and and get your Fatified mug on an ACTUAL mug today!

Making the Most of MoPho!

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 17:19:00 -0500

We’d like to extend a huge thank you to all of the people who have downloaded the MoPho: Prints and Products app! Users of our app have been having a LOT of fun creating custom-made photo items to send to themselves, friends and loved ones. So we here at MoPho wanted to give a few helpful tips on how to make the MOST out of the MoPho app.

QUALITY, QUALITY, QUALITY…IS MOST IMPORTANT

Before you do anything, the first thing you need to know is that MoPho requires the highest-resolution photos possible in order to make superior quality photo products. We want your photo products to come out looking the best that they possibly can, so therefore we made it so that lower-res pics automatically won’t work to prevent unsatisfactory items from being created. Quality is VERY important to us!

iPhone 4S users should have no problems using their 8-megapixel images on all MoPho products. iPhone 4 users should be ok with most products too, provided there isn’t too much cropping or degrading of their images happening in another app. Users of older iPhone models can still use the app too, but their product options will be more limited to smaller items. ALL iPhone users can use high-res images obtained through other means on all products.

However, there may be times where you THINK you’re choosing a high-resolution pic, but you’re actually not — and you get a pop-up warning from the MoPho app that tells you it’s too low-res. We’re going to go over the major reasons why this may be happening, and give advice for how to get around it:

PHOTOS THAT ARE IMPORTED TO YOUR PHONE VIA iTUNES/iPHOTO — If you’re importing photos from iPhoto or your Windows PC, iTunes will automatically import them at a low resolution so that more images can fit on your phone without taking up too much valuable space (the assumption being your photos are only there to be viewed on a phone, so there’s no need for them to be large). However, this means even super large high-megapixel DSLR images that you transfer this way will be reduced in size once they’re on your phone, making them unusable on most MoPho products. If you have photos on your computer that you’d like to use with the MoPho app, you’ll need to get them onto your phone in some other way. You can simply e-mail them to yourself and save the images to your Camera Roll, or use other 3rd-party transferring apps that do NOT degrade image quality.

PHOTOS THAT ARE CROPPED TOO SMALL — The more space you crop out of a picture, the smaller in size it gets…and the less chance it will be able to be used for a larger MoPho product. Please keep in mind that many MoPho products have certain shape constraints already. Some products make use of a vertical shape, others horizontal, and some square. If there’s a photo that you think you might want to use for a MoPho product, do whatever type of processing you’d normally do to enhance your photo beforehand EXCEPT for cropping. Then when you import the photo, let the product’s shape dictate what part of the image you want to use, and crop within the app instead.

PHOTOS THAT ARE OUTPUTTED IN A LOWER RESOLUTION IN ANOTHER APP — Many 3rd-party camera or processing apps (including popular ones like Hipstamatic) may output photos in a low resolution by default. Make sure to always access the settings of a new a camera app before use (these can be in different places depending on the app — check within the app first, then the standard “Settings” app on the phone), and make sure the app is outputting at a high or maximum resolution. If it doesn’t offer output at high resolution…then it’s probably not a good app to begin with, and you shouldn’t be using it anyway!

CERTAIN PHOTOS FROM YOUR SOCIAL NETWORK ALBUMS — Most older photos on Facebook (BEFORE the time they allowed for high-resolution photo uploads) won’t be usable for most MoPho products. The same for any Flickr photos from a NON-Pro account, as non-pro photos aren’t stored in a high-enough resolution). Also, if you uploaded photos via the Google+ app to your Google+ account, they will show up in your Picasa folder, but will also be too low-res for use on most products. Please be sure to use more current Facebook pics, Flickr images from Pro accounts only, and Google+ images that were uploaded from a desktop only.

SO WHAT PHOTOS WORK BEST?

The quick answer is…ANY photo you have will work beautifully on whatever product you choose — whether it’s a standard print, a more unique presentation like the HD Aluminum Art or Easel Back Panels, or one of our other fine products.

Whether it’s a picture of yourself or loved ones, a beloved pet, a beautiful sunset, a classic “street photography” pic, a vacation photo, a beautiful object, an interesting pattern, or a “digital art” creation…ANYTHING you have in your photo albums (provided they meet resolution requirements) is fair game.

CONSIDER THE FINAL PRODUCT — There are many factors that go into making the perfect MoPho product. WHO is it ultimately going to? WHAT are you trying to say with your MoPho creation? Answering these questions might help you determine the right type of photo to use and the right type of product, but the two should also go hand-in-hand. Browse the “Products & Prices” section of the “More…” tab and check out the previews of each item first. Try and choose photos that will work with a particular products’ shape. Portraits, or any image where the focus is vertical, work best for something like the iPhone case, for example. Landscapes, or any image where the focus is horizontal, work best for the “Full-Wrap” mug, water bottle and frosted stein items.

HAVE SOME FUN WITH IT — Straight up photos by themselves work wonderfully, but maybe you want to be more creative and do something that’s funny, silly, or even poetic? Try adding text to a photo first by using any number of 3rd-party apps that offer that function (the free app Phonto works wonders). Here are some examples…

….”I HATE GLASSES”….. coaster set…. (get it?) ;-)

Ahem.

Or…. try some funky filters in apps like Photoshop Express, Camera+, or Snapseed. Add extra textural layers in Filterstorm, Photoforge2 or Iris. Play with merging parts of a photo onto another with Juxaposer, or add something stupid like a cat firing laser beams from its eyes with CatPaint (that last one outputs low-res and is really only good for keychains and photo tattoos — but it’s so silly, we can’t help using it…). So many possibilities…

Basically, the sky’s the limit! Have fun creating — and don’t forget to send us a picture of yourself with your MoPho creation for a chance to win $100 of more MoPho goodness!

Sincerely,

The MoPho Team

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Download the MoPho app

Photos used above by Sion Fullana & Anton Kawasaki

"Becoming a MoPho": An Interview with Sion Fullana (Part Two)

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 13:26:00 -0500

You’ve read Part One of this interview with Sion Fullana, correct? Good! Now on to Part Two….

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ANTON: Let’s talk about your “style.” Most photographers seem to strive towards having a certain look and uniformity to their pics, and will also focus their energies on specific fields — whether it’s street photography, studio work, or whatever. You’re one of the few photographers that I know that likes to mix it up as much as possible, and experiment with different styles. And yet…somehow, no matter what you do and how varied it might be, it’s always, unmistakably, a “Sion Fullana” photo. That Cancer sign within you just doesn’t like to be “pinned down” to any one type of thing — I know how you hate being so easily defined! Do you ever feel that too much experimentation in your photography might end up hurting your “identity” as an artist in the long run?

SION: Wow, and here I was, thinking to myself that I was probably not experimenting or pushing enough boundaries in my own work sometimes!!! [Laughs] As we know, there are two main types of mobile photographers using an iPhone to create work: on one hand, the “street shooters,” which strive to work within a more natural look, either straight from camera or with very minimal processing. On the other hand, the “app stackers,” who learn to master and use many types of photo apps to help them create something more “artistic” in nature, tending more towards a digital painting or illustration than a photograph. Though I consider myself much into the first type, I like to take some detours here and there to the other style, and experiment a bit with stuff like textures, double exposures or selective color/blur, etc. to create a final image that is more abstract or poetic than it is a real document of life captured.

“Art Is In the Eye of the Beholder”

I wish I was way more creative in those experiments. Some people out there are producing fantastic stuff that it’s mind-blowing that it comes from a mobile device that fits in your hand, and all done with your finger instead of a mouse or tools and a big screen. But I enjoy trying things when they pop into my head, and even though, like you say, I try to remain faithful to my voice or the stories I want to tell, I think it’s mandatory for anyone working in a creative field to push themselves and never settle down for what you already know well. And I hope that, even when I work within certain types of stories, characters or situations, my work never turns too predictable.

ANTON: Even though you like to mix things up, there are still certain elements you seem to always be drawn towards. Koci Hernandez has his hat men. I’m attracted to unusual NYC “characters.” Our Aussie friends like Misho Baranovic and Olly Lang are drawn towards magical light. You seem to like ALL of those things too, and capture them so masterfully. But I think your biggest fetish may be water, and all that comes with it — rain, reflective puddles, wet surfaces, and…umbrellas! Where does this obsession stem from?

SION: And don’t forget mirrors!!!! I don’t really know how to explain that fascination with photographing reflections. I guess it comes deep down from my unconscious interest in the concept of identity and the different sides of personality: what we see versus what it really is. Working with reflections, when things are present twice in the image, creates a fascinating double universe for me, like an alternate reality. Some authors say that every photograph is nothing but a mirror of ourselves in what we capture. So perhaps every time I’m taking a photograph of a reflection I’m trying to study myself there.

Then there’s the rain… and it’s funny, because I actually prefer to walk on the streets on a sunny day than a rainy one. But when it rains, everything looks so beautiful, so cinematic: the umbrellas everywhere, the reflected lights in the puddles, the dashes of colors in a normally darker urban landscape. It’s poetry. And anytime I’ve been outside in the rain (or snow) and been able to capture something I really liked it’s become some of my favorite photo memories ever!

“The Man Who Dreamed of Mary Poppins”

ANTON: You’re also known for your lengthy texts that accompany most of your work. Many people have become just as hooked to your words as to your images. Though occasionally you’ll get a stray complaint from someone who says to let your photos just speak for themselves. What do you say to those people? And what’s your motivation behind providing both visuals and prose together?

SION: In a way, it has all to do with what started me in photography more seriously. Seven years ago, I used to have a Fotolog.com page in Spanish, where I would upload a post a day, and the main focus was the written story, while the image was either an inspiration or a bonus. My process was simple: right before I went to bed many nights, I would either have an idea for an opinion article about something that was going on in the news or in social politics, culture, etc. and I would find a photo in whatever my archives of the time that would go with it, or I would just browse through those photos, grab one, stare at it for a minute, and start typing frantically a fictional or poetic short story based on that character/situation in the picture. Every now and then, I would have a picture that looked kind of good and I would think “What if?” about maybe pursuing photography more seriously. But I didn’t believe I really had the eye or craft back then.

Later, when I moved to New York, two things happened. On one hand, I was so inspired by the city and the photo opportunities it brought, that the “What if?” eventually became a reality. I simply HAD to take pictures non stop, and I had to turn photography into my new storytelling device. On the other hand, being immersed 24/7 in an English speaking environment somehow took away my inspiration to write in Spanish that much. And as decent as my English may have been, I knew I couldn’t play with the language with the same skill I was able to in Spanish — so at first I decided to let the pictures speak for themselves, since the story they tell is universal, whatever language you speak. Even then, I would always make an effort in trying to come up with a strong caption, whether metaphoric, ironic, or poignant, that would reinforce the message or mood I was trying to convey.

However, I found myself eventually missing the writing part. So I started doing it again. And now, every time I’m about to post some new image, I let my heart and gut take over and dictate what the image needs. Sometimes it’s just a short caption, other times it may be a short story/essay. As you mentioned, some people complain that they don’t want to have to read too much, or they say an image should speak for itself and the decision of deciphering the meaning should be left for the viewer.

ANTON: I never understand why those people simply don’t read the text if it bothers them so much…

SION: And while I understand their position, I don’t necessarily agree with it myself. First of all, in the super ephemeral environment where we work and produce and see imagery in the digital era, it’s good every now and then to stop and take more than the usual two seconds to look at a photo and decide whether to hit a “like” or not and got to the next one and the ones after. If you get to see the image first, and take the time to read a text that reinforces the idea, the overall message makes a deeper impact to me. And then, there’s that notion of the “ideal reader” that Umberto Eco talked about. On how in front of a message, everyone may decode their own meanings (sometimes even wrongly) based on their background, perception, beliefs, etc. while the “ideal reader” would understand exactly what you intended to say or express. If my writing can help me transmit exactly what I felt to whoever sees my photograph, it’s all good. And then, thankfully, there are many more who say they enjoy reading my words than those who don’t. So all is good. Speaking of lengthy, no? My apologies, readers! LOL!

“When Dreams Come True” - photo of Marketa Irglova

ANTON: [Laughs] Don’t apologize! I want lengthy answers! So…one of the coolest things to happen out of this whole photography experience was to meet and become friends with one of our musical heroes — Oscar-winning songwriter Marketa Irglova [from the movie “Once” and the band The Swell Season]. Care to tell my readers how you met, and the photo opportunities that occurred? What other kinds of collaborations like this do you hope to achieve?

SION: Well, that is indeed one of the most beautiful things that’s ever happened to me, and it proves my point that putting yourself out there will help you out most of the time if you’re passionate enough and cultivate good human relationships. As you say, ever since we watched the marvelous musical film “Once” — way before it became an indie phenomenon, way before it would get the Best Original Song Oscar — I was forever hooked to the talent and the raw beauty of the voices of the protagonists, Glenn Hansard and Marketa Irglova, who went on to create The Swell Season and create a great album that turned them into my favorite band. We bought their music, watched the film a few times and went to see them play live in a small venue in New York.

Months later, happily, we saw them win the Oscar, become HUGE and give an unforgettable concert at a sold-out Radio City Music Hall. We kept following their careers and support them and I found out Marketa was on Twitter and very active there, responding to every fan who would write something nice to her. So I thanked her for their music and for being such soulful artists, and she thanked me back. Soon enough, I found myself rewatching the video of her unforgettable Oscar “thank you” speech (where host Jon Stewart brought her back on stage after the music cut her off), which encouraged anyone doing something artistic to carry on their dreams, no matter how impossible they would seem. And knowing she was living in New York at the time, I told her one of my dreams as a photographer would be to take some portraits of her one day. I thought I’d never hear back from her, but Marketa wrote me and said she’d love to meet up some day. So we went to see her play in Brooklyn at a small gig that was a preview of the first solo album she was working on. We met, exchanged info, and a few weeks later, she came to see a photo exhibit you and I were both part of, and she invited us to have lunch at her place, and then spent the afternoon walking by the Hudson River while taking photographs of her with my iPhone and DSLR. Such a gracious artist!

ANTON: She’s really an amazing person and human being besides being an incredible artist.

SION: It was all dream come true, that would only grow bigger when Marketa said she may be using some of those images in her promotional work for her record. Months later, I ended up doing another photo session around the city with her, this time with her band as well. And after that, one of my photos was part of the book in the album “Anar,” and Marketa’s management have used my photos on her press kit and promo tour. And there’s a possibility I may be directing a music videoclip with her this year…. Still thankful every minute for the huge opportunity in both a professional and personal level. And I would really love to have more similar opportunities in the future, to work with people in any cultural field I admire (music, cinema, literature, arts, etc.). Here’s hoping!

ANTON: Is that a hint to all the artists out there reading this? [Laughs] So, I wanted to ask you….every artist has his “muse.” You seem to have SEVERAL people who your photos revisit again and again. Who are these people, and what makes them such great subjects for your portraiture work?

“No Words Could Ever Explain Years of Knowing Each Other” - Yetta & Liam

“Who Said Romance Was Dead?” - Liam

SION: Well, I wish I could take more portraits of my family, because I really enjoy it, even if they’re super hard to pin down and let me photograph them, but living an ocean apart makes it difficult. So there are certain people who have become my favorite muses. On one hand, there’s our actor friends Liam Torres and Yetta Gottesman. I had known Liam for a few years and shot some amazing images with him, and the two of them have known each other for almost two decades. So their chemistry and friendship is fantastic, and luckily I was able to tap into that energy and capture it with my camera ever since the first day I met Yetta having lunch with Liam and I, during an impromptu shoot with only the iPhone while walking through the High Line park in New York. I got to shoot some of my favorite portraits ever with the two of them, together or apart. And now I’m bummed Yetta moved to Los Angeles last year. Can’t wait for her to visit this spring and do some cool stuff. The thing when working with actors is that they know how to “play” for the lens and how to bring it, whatever emotion or situation you ask of them. And that’s great. The fact that those two are very beautiful people doesn’t hurt either! [Laughs]

Then there’s Kristina. We met while studying at the very renowned international film school EICTV in San Antonio de los Baños. We lived in the middle of the country side, 80 students total, for two years (2002 to 2004), so the friendship becomes almost a family relationship. Kris is originally from Serbia and was living with her family in Zimbabwe. She has this very cool personality, fun, wild, playful… I always knew she had been born for cities like London or New York. So I was super happy when, after I hadn’t seen her for 6 years, she moved here to Manhattan. It felt like we had never been apart, and she’s been one of my favorite people to be with and to photograph. She’s so fearless! She even walked by a public fountain (and got all drenched by accident!) just to give me the chance of a good photo. And Kris is the subject of one of my favorite and most successful portraits ever!

“Every Soul Needs Five Minutes of Melancholy Every Now And Then” - Kristina

Lastly, in the past year, I have enjoyed photographing some of the amazing new friends I’ve met, like Giovanni Savino (such a cinematic look and great spirit) or guys like Eric De Fino or John Rey Tecson (“RottenRonin”), who seem tough guys/rock stars on the outside, but bear some of the sweetest characters inside. You guys all rock! Thank you for your patience… including you, Anton… who I don’t forget on my list. I know you hate it, but you are still my go-to photo muse, no matter how much you frown and run away! Hahaha!

ANTON: Heh. I’ve grown used to it. Almost. Although….don’t you have ENOUGH pics of me? I mean seriously! I’m bored of me already! [Laughs]. OK…I’m about to ask you a question that I get asked almost every day, and I know you do too. In an effort to hopefully stem the sheer amount of times we get asked this, let’s put it on record here: “How do you take these candid street shots without people seeing you?” Basically…what’s your secret? Any tips for shooting discreetly that you can share for the mophos out there?

SION: Well, don’t forget the other usual questions that come at least twice every day as well. “Do you ask permission to take this?” or “Did he/she know you were taking his/her photo?” The answers are NO and NO! It’s called street photography because it’s meant to be candid and real and unposed. That could bring you some trouble here or there, but will also produce some marvelous opportunities to capture real human emotion. As for being discreet or daring, I think this is one of the biggest reasons I still REALLY enjoy, three years later, to shoot street mostly with my iPhone. Once you get hold of some technique for how to grab the phone while walking or when sitting down at a cafe or subway, in a way that may lead people to doubt whether you’re taking a photo or doing anything else or even nothing more than holding the phone, then you have gained a lot.

“The Rest of the Ladies”

A good trick as well, when you’re photographing someone who’s standing very close to you, is to look away or even into the person’s face and smile a bit instead of staring at the screen of the phone or your hand (or even worse, back and forth between the phone and the person — that would definitely give away what you’re doing). What else? Standing still in a spot, or at a corner against a wall, and letting people walk toward you and only THEN take your shot will probably help you be unnoticed because people tend to walk by distracted. Or you can grab your phone one handed in front of you, as if you were following a map on the screen, and as you walk, you’re almost about to bump into someone, and at the very last second you move to the side, while you (hopefully) have got a good close up of that person.

Some extra tips: when indoors, keep the brightness of your screen a bit lower and always beware of reflections that can give away your photo taking in your glasses (if you wear them like I do) or a metallic wall or window behind you (like in the subway).

Deep down, it all comes down to the intention behind your photography, which helps you define your approach to shooting people and social interaction. If you want to catch strangers in low moments or make fun of weird characters, you’ll have some guilt and anticipation in your body language that may betray you. The energy always projects. In my case, I always seek to capture my subjects in a truthful but flattering way, always with my utmost care and respect. That’s my ethics. And I like to think that if anyone were to find a photo of themselves I had taken, they wouldn’t feel upset, but would hopefully like the way I had portrayed them. That thinking makes me a bit more fearless when I’m on the streets.

“Dreaming of Mr. Schmigel”

ANTON: OK…Rapid-fire question time!: Apps you can’t live without. GO!!!

SION: Right now, if I was to pick only 6 apps (3 to shoot, 3 to process), that I keep in the first page of my screen, I’d say VintB&W, ProCamera and CrossProcess for the first part, and Snapseed, Monochromia and Camera+ in the other.

ANTON: Most-wanted feature for an iPhone update. GO!!!

SION: More and more battery life, please! Even wearing a battery case like the Mophie that brings up to one whole extra battery charge, I find myself without any power soon enough on days with lots of photo shooting. Also, if they ever fix the damn shutter/focus delay I would light a candle to the engineer gods!

ANTON: Top mobile photographers people should follow that not enough people know about. GO!!!

SION: Uff… that one is always a tough one. But if I was to throw a few names that I like and think are underfollowed for the talent and skills they have, I would have to include people like Giovanni Savino (@magneticart), Stefano Pesarelli (@stefanopesarelli), Xavier Reyé , Vladimir Chirkov (@vladatat), Benedicte Guillon (@iphoneographic), Jordi V Pou (@jordivpou) or Travis Jensen (@travisjensen).

ANTON: Finish this sentence. “You will block someone on Instagram if they ________”

SION: Sorry this may sound harsh… but I have grown a bit more radical in this than many would probably consider nice. People who aggressively come to a photo of mine (or even several in a row) leaving the “Follow Me,” “Everyone check me out” type of comment gets blocked. I find it rude to come and scream while selling yourself uninvited into someone else’s “little house.” It annoys me as much too when I see similar comments in photos of my friends or people whose work I like. I just don’t understand the obsession about followers, likes, numbers, etc. Also, when I notice on my feed, by the thumbnail, that one new follower is underaged, I tend to visit the profile, and 90% of the time, when I realize the type of usage they do of the app, I block them as well. This may sound unpopular from me, but I strongly believe that minors shouldn’t be allowed to be on Instagram, and when I have stumbled upon some profiles of kids pretending to be adults in an inappropriate way (too sexually charged captions or self-portraits, giving their email addresses or ways to be contacted by anyone, etc.) I find it all deeply troubling.

Lastly, I have grown ZERO tolerance with trolls, racist or homophobic people, or extremists who go to someone’s photo and decide to spew some poison of any kind. If you don’t know how to co-exist with others and keep your (close-minded) judgements to yourself, then stay in your own profile and don’t bother anyone!

ANTON: That was hardly a rapid-fire answer, but everything you were saying I agree with so it was hard to stop you! [Laughs] Ok…now I know it’s unusual to get scolded at in an interview, but I’m your husband so I’m allowing it. What’s taking you so long with getting a book of your work out there? I know you’re Spanish, and it’s in your blood to procrastinate — but c’mon! The people demand it! And since I’m asking…what else is in the cards for the future of Sion Fullana? And when are you finally going to update your website! iWeb is soooooo 2007!

SION: I know, I know! LOL! Hopefully a new website is in the making this year… I’m toying with Dripbook and considering some other options to present my work in a cleaner and more dynamic way. Shame on Apple not only for not having turned iWeb into something really extraordinary, but deciding to just give up and discontinue it!

As for the future, well… I’m honored, proud and excited beyond words about the upcoming launch this spring of Stephanie Roberts’ second book about documentary photography, where I’m excited to be featured among some legends of the medium! Can’t wait to see the final book and hopefully get to meet some of those photography masters I so deeply admire!

After that, I will push to be able to put together my first book and perhaps a solo exhibit of my work. And I truly want to find some exciting documentary projects I can work on, both with photography and back as a filmmaker. And some traveling wouldn’t hurt either. Anyone out there with a good gig for me that includes some travel and adventure? I’m all yours!

ANTON: Don’t forget to take me with you!

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For more on Sion, check out these other sources:

Instagram: @sionfullana

"Becoming a MoPho": An Interview with Sion Fullana (Part One)

Sat, 14 Jan 2012 13:46:00 -0500

Fact #1: I wouldn’t be involved in mobile photography today (and therefore you wouldn’t be reading this blog right now) if it wasn’t for Sion Fullana.

Fact #2: Sion wouldn’t be involved in mobile photography today (and therefore the subject of this interview) if I hadn’t bought him the iPhone 3G for his birthday in July of 2008.

Basically we’re both responsible for each other’s current passion for photography — something neither one of us would have even considered just four years ago. I was deeply involved in the comic book industry back then and assumed that I always would be, while Sion was getting occasional journalism work with Spanish TV & radio as a foreign reporter in NYC, and thinking of possible documentary projects to work on.

Flash forward to today, where Sion is widely considered to be one of the pioneers of the mobile photography movement — with an impressive list of accomplishments in just this medium alone that few others can match. He’s been the subject of numerous interviews and articles, his iPhone work has been published in magazines, book covers and music posters/websites, he’s been exhibited all over the world, has been a judge in several important photo competitions, he’s been featured on TV a few times, became the spokesperson for WINg mobile stock, gave presentations at the PMA trade show and at an Apple Store, co-founded the Mobile Photo Group, photographed numerous celebrities, and…the list goes on and on.

Born on the island of Mallorca, Spain, Sion grew up in the small town of Manacor — a place he always described as one where most people seem to know about each other, and therefore gossip prevails. Sion then made a small trip to New York City with his family when he was 16, and at that point on he made a promise to himself to eventually escape his small-town life and one day live in a place like NYC. And, six years ago, he made his dream come true (apparently I played a little part in that happening…). Now he’s one of the most well-known iPhoneographers and his work is synonymous with the Big Apple.

Despite living together, it’s taken a while for me to pin down Sion long enough to get an interview out of him! But it’s finally here…and in two parts. So on to part one…

“The Man From Another Era”

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ANTON: So… I had the first generation iPhone a good 6-7 months before I gave you your 3G. The thing is…my original iPhone and your 3G had the exact same camera. They were both 2 megapixels resolution and not that good at all. And yet… I never bothered using my camera to take any worthwhile pics, while you immediately started playing and experimenting with yours. What do you think drove that impulse in you? Do you feel there was hidden promise there somewhere, or did you come across the camera’s potential by accident?

SION: Well, I think the concept of taking photos with a mobile device was something that had been intriguing me for a while back then. I remember I started shooting some images with my old Spanish Samsung phone (that I lost while shopping one day in Soho) and I was very curious about what could be done. But here in the U.S. I had a crappy phone at first that didn’t even have a camera. When you and some of our friends got the first iPhone, I remember I wanted one very strongly, to see what that camera could do.

ANTON: You were super jealous! [Laughs] I was so excited to have it at first, but then felt super guilty that I had one but you didn’t…

SION: When I finally got my 3G (best birthday present EVER, thank you once again!!), and discovered soon after the arrival of the App Store, I started shooting non-stop with early photo apps like the wonderful VintB&W (a free one, and to this day, still my most used app!) or CameraBag. Soon enough I realized that the iPhone camera defects could be turned into advantages, to create “moody” and somewhat painterly images. Between that, the fact that the phone was always with me while my camera of the time wasn’t, and the way it seemed to work magically — allowing me to be more discreet when shooting street photography — convinced me that this was a path to pursue.

“There is No Better Fantasy World Than Life Itself”

ANTON: Ok, so while you had a mild interest in photography before the iPhone, your main focus was always on journalism and film. Prior to coming to New York, you went to an international film school for two years where you directed a short film and a short documentary. And then you later worked for a Mallorcan TV station as an on-air journalist and also did reports for Spanish radio. Now that you’ve switched gears to focus on photography, how do you feel your former professions have helped you in your work?

SION: I think photography — if anything — has helped me realize that whatever I had studied or done before had one priority only: to be able to tell stories, either documenting moments from real life, telling newsworthy events, writing fiction short stories or directing a visual piece. In a way, photography allows me to work all those things together. I may have not studied the more technical aspects of the craft, but I did know how to tell a story, how to capture an emotion and how to play a bit with the visuals. Unlike reporting or writing that require knowing and mastering languages to communicate exactly what you want, a still image is universal and can reach a further audience.

Then, as I said a few times before, the type of work I like to create with my photography allows me to explore both those fields I was coming from: the journalist/documentarian in me loves to just capture the raw reality of the streets (the ever-evolving characters, clothes, social interactions, architecture of the backgrounds, etc.). When people have told me a few times that seeing my images make them feel like they’re there and they can smell the street or feel the cold breeze, I’m fulfilled in my purpose! On the other hand, my filmmaking/fiction-creating side gets a kick out of creating cinematic images, where real-life characters are presented in situations that make the viewer wonder what the story is, what the dialogue sounds like, who the character is….

“Human Connection”

ANTON: When I started seeing what YOU were doing with the iPhone in those early days of your 3G, I was blown away — and it got me hooked on mobile photography myself. Although another reason I started taking so many pics with the iPhone is that you would always get in these photo-taking frenzies when we were out walking, and I’d get annoyed — so I figured “if you can’t beat them, join them.” You still get in that sort of “zone” to this day (but thankfully I understand it more now). What is it about shooting that gets you so possessed? Do you feel like you are always “on” — constantly looking around you for your next shot? Are there ever times where you consciously decide to be “off”?

SION: I think that when your material is real life and people around you, unless you go to a solitary landscape, it’s quite impossible for me to really switch off — and even then, I think I am always on the lookout for some cool detail to photograph! [Laughs] I’m obsessed, I know. But it’s a good disorder to suffer, don’t you think?

ANTON: …That’s still up for debate…

SION: As for the first part of the question, a good friend of ours said that going out shooting was his therapy. And I think that applies for me as well. When I first moved to New York, I spent too many hours on my own at home, as a freelancer, and the loneliness you can feel in such situations can become a heavy burden. When I’m out on the streets shooting, even if I’m on my own, with music in my headphones and without having a conversation with anyone, I shut my brain off and let my intuition take over, and connect with the energy of the city and the people. And when I find someone really interesting that I take a photo of, that character somehow becomes part of me, no longer a stranger… When I look at my photographs, I have deep respect and affection for those I photographed. And I think that’s a beautiful thing.

ANTON: Indeed! You’ve become known mainly for your street photography, but you’ve also done lots of studio portraiture, documentary work, event and fashion photography. Which type excites you the most, and why? And is there a genre that you haven’t done that you’d like to really try or explore some day?

“In a Cloud of Smoke, I See a Solid Soul”

SION: I think what I enjoy the most is taking portraits, either for head shots, promos or in a more casual, urban/street setting. It allows me to interact with people, to connect with their energy even without words, and to challenge myself to bring out something very real and heartfelt of that person’s personality out, while being creative. That Susan Sontag quote that claims that photographing people is “to violate them, by seeing them as they never see themselves, by having knowledge of them that they can never have” has quite some truth in it, though I’m a bit more positive and think that instead of violating your subjects, your camera can help them explore more about themselves when they see what you captured.

As for the photo genres I’d love to experiment more with, there are two that come to mind. First, music/concert photography, because I’ve done it a few times and I really love that energy you can play with coming from the stage. It’s very raw and very real. And I would love to capture some backstage life as well. I’m sure that would make for some fun stuff… Any band out there interested?? The second one, without question, travel photography. It’s one of my biggest dreams to be able to one day spend a year or two just traveling around different countries and cities doing some photo assignments.

ANTON: Mine too! So you’re probably one of the few photographers who have actually been hired specifically to shoot with just an iPhone — and NOT with a high-end DSLR. For all the mophos out there wondering if there’s any chance of making a living with shooting with an iPhone, what kind of advice can you give them? And what types of services (either now or in the future) might you see requiring the use of mobile devices over more traditional cameras?

SION: This is a hard question that requires a hard answer too. Unfortunately, we live in a world right now where many editors and creative directors want quality images, interesting photo projects, inspiring work…but while also paying the minimum amount possible — or even worse, getting this work for free. And what happens is that they will probably settle for the fifth most interesting proposal in a top five, if that photographer accepts to be published for just credit or exposure only, when the other four refuse to be cheated on for their work to go unpaid. And here’s where many people out there — who already have some other job and keep photography as just a hobby and can afford to work on stuff for free — will come and accept those unfavorable conditions. That way they can tell their friends “hey, I’ve been published here” or “I have an exhibit there.” But because of them, the other four talented creators who try to make a serious living with their photography will have one more closed door.

A fresh example, that totally felt like a stab in the heart for me as a journalist, was the recent announcement by CNN about them firing a bunch of their photojournalists because they prefer to “leach” the free endless well of the regular citizens who send material to CNN’s iReport, which is then aired without compensation or even credit most of the time.

All this ranting is basically to give what to me is the most important advice, to help all of us break this hideous pattern: if you TRULY value your work, if you put time, knowledge and love in doing what you do, if you have invested in equipment or education, don’t sell yourself for free! If a non-profit organization that you like asks you to collaborate, then it’s one thing, but any media outlet supported by advertising has the budget to at least pay you a minimum amount for a photo usage or a commissioned gig. If they want professional quality from you, demand to be treated as a professional as well.

With that said, I would recommend anyone to be constantly creating and to put yourself out there. Network, show what you do, and take the initiative too. Try to study some sources, prepare a proposal for a collaboration you feel could be interesting for both sides, and be forward and talk to the right person. Perhaps they will say NO at the time, if it’s not viable or they can’t afford to, but if the time comes when they or someone they know needs someone with your skills, they will keep you in mind and call you for the job! I know that there are some new doors in fields like journalism, advertising, marketing or fashion that are being opened for mobile photographers right now. Seize the chances and go for it!

Fashion shots for Macy’s Bar III clothing line

ANTON: Some of the mobile-only work you’ve done includes helping Macy’s Bar III fashion brand launch in style, and shooting live events where you could share your photos live on social media. You’ve talked about doing your own workshop for a while too.

SION: Yes! I’ve been toying with the idea of offering my own workshop for a while, and will hopefully have details for you all soon!

“The Dog’s Meet-Up”

ANTON: As we know, most street photography tends to be B&W, though you like to use color just as much. What are your feelings towards black and white versus color, and when is it more appropriate to use one over the other?

SION: Upon investigating some quotes on street photography recently, I stumbled upon this quote from author Ted Grant: “When you photograph people in color, you photograph their clothes. But when you photograph people in black and white, you photograph their souls!” I think somehow it helped me understand the concept that I was feeling so far but didn’t know how to put in words very well. I think, in a nutshell, that there are certain things that obviously scream to be taken in color to pop up or reveal a detail about a person or a place. But for most images, black and white brings character, draws you into the story or the emotion and eliminates possible distractions from other colors throughout the frame, and has somehow a feeling of perdurability, of history, of memory.

I find myself quite often thinking “I should keep this image in color, it looks nice.” And then, when I’m about to post it somewhere, something in my gut pushes me to pick the black and white version of it instead. Perhaps that’s one of the main reasons I go to the street and default more and more to shooting straight in black and white with apps like VintB&W, ClassyCam in mono mode, or Hipstamatic with one of the powerful mono combos like the BlacKeys Supergrain “film” with the John S “lens.” That way, the decision is already taken and my images will be ready to post the way they often are supposed to.

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Check out PART TWO of my interview with Sion Fullana, where he talks about his style, shooting technique, his muses, meeting one of his musical heroes, and all those words that go with his pictures…

The “MoPho: Prints and Products” App Is Now Available!

Sun, 08 Jan 2012 09:29:00 -0500

“It’s the photo kiosk in your pocket!”

Have you ever taken a picture on your iPhone that was so incredibly awesome that it needed to be immortalized in print? But then…it just ended up staying on your phone forever, quickly forgotten as the more pics you took just made this amazing shot get buried deep in your camera roll?

Well don’t let this photo injustice ever happen again!

Introducing MoPho: Prints and Products — the fantastic new (and free!) app for the iPhone that allows you to upload any picture that’s in your camera roll and instantly create and buy prints and other photo products…all within minutes from the convenience of your phone!

:::: HOW IT WORKS ::::

★ START by snapping a photo or importing one from your iPhone’s album, Facebook, Flickr or Picasa account.

★ CHOOSE a product: Prints (both regular & HD Aluminum Art), iPhone Cases, Photo Mugs, T-shirts, Coaster sets, Mouse Pads, Keychains, and much, much more!

★ EDIT your product if necessary by rotating or cropping the image and making it look its absolute best.

★ PREVIEW how your print or photo product will look before buying.

★ CHECKOUT quickly and securely, and have your product shipped directly to you or anyone else in the U.S. or Canada as a photo gift!

Photo Products Include:

• Prints of various sizes

• HD Aluminum Art

• Full Wrap Mug

• Full Wrap Magic Mug

• Key Chain (Double Sided)
• Mouse Pad

• Coasters (set of 4 with stand)

• 20oz. Frosted Glass Stein

• 8.5” x 11” Re-Stick-Able Poster

• Performance T-Shirt (White)

The MoPho app is a fun-to-use tool that you will LOVE creating with! Unleash the artist within you as you discover countless ways of coming up with new, unique and personal products by using your very own photos:

• While on vacation, instantly send a print of the gorgeous scenery you just captured to your mom!

• When you’re at a party with friends, and you want to make T-shirts out of that goofy group photo that was taken — MoPho makes it possible!

• When you take an adorable pic of your friend’s new baby, now you can instantly send them a cool photo mug that they can cherish every day with their morning cup of coffee!

• After you take a pic of that really beautiful street scene, now you don’t have to bother with transferring it from your phone to your computer and going through all the hassle of a website service. With just a few clicks on MoPho, it can be an instant aluminum metal print that you can send to yourself and hang on your wall!

The possibilities are endless! Don’t let your gorgeous photos sit in your phone’s camera roll forever. Let them come to life as real, tangible, beautifully produced photo prints and products from MoPho.

(NOTE: The MoPho App is currently only available in the U.S. App Store, and items are limited to shipping to the U.S. and Canada. Our goal is to open up to more international markets soon, in a way where international customers won’t need to pay high shipping costs — so please stay tuned!)

Download the app from the U.S. App Store now here!

What would you like to see from the MoPho: Prints and Products app? Contact us and let us know!

"Becoming a MoPho": A Look at Mobile Photography's Past & Future

Fri, 06 Jan 2012 12:40:00 -0500

So as I wrote in my year end review, 2011 was rather eventful as far as mobile photography goes. It’s clearly reached the mainstream, and that can be both a good and bad thing.

Let’s face it — shooting with mobile devices is the future of photography. It doesn’t mean “traditional” photography is going away any time soon, or will become any less important. There will always be cameras specifically made to be just that…cameras (and no, they won’t also make phone calls and play Angry Birds). There will also always be new innovations made to cameras that may not be possible on a phone yet due to its size limitations, such as the recent introduction of the Lytro (where you can choose where the “focus” goes on an image AFTER you’ve shot it). But the fact remains that cameras on smartphones and other portable devices are going to continue to improve, and the “always with you” convenience of them will ultimately propel and advance “mobile” to the forefront of photography.

As the New Year begins, I can’t help thinking about where mobile photography is headed to next. But it’s also made me reflect on its origins…

So when did the birth of mobile photography REALLY start? Well not with Instagram, which, sadly, many people actually believe today. Heck, it didn’t even start with the iPhone for that matter. The technology to have a “camera on a chip” was actually developed by Dr. Eric Fossum while working at NASA in the early ’90s — but while it would become the basis for all camera phones to come, it would still be several years before it would actually materialize on working cellphone units. In 1995, a dozen years before the debut of the iPhone, Apple even experimented with a Videophone PDA that they showed at Macworld ‘95, which could have easily popularized mobile photography a good decade before it became a “thing” — that is, if the device had ever actually come out…

Apple’s Videohone PDA that never was

While there’s some debate as to who really created the first camera phone, the first RECORDED occurrence of someone using a phone to transmit pictures to other phones was on June 11, 1997. Technology innovator Philippe Kahn jury-rigged his cell phone with a digital camera and wirelessly transmitted photos from a maternity ward of the birth of his child Sophie to all his family, friends and associates. (The 11-97 date was the impetus for the name of the first conference on mobile photography — the 1197.is show that happened in San Francisco this past October).

But I’m not sure if Kahn, or many of the innovators that followed with newer camera phone technologies, were really thinking of the potential artistic merits that could come from such devices. After all, the first camera phones had such low-resolution, and the resulting images were so blurry, that they really weren’t good for much. Perhaps they were used as quick proof to show that you really WERE at that rock concert. Or to take a pic of a loved one, to always have them with you. Or to document that weird found object that you saw on the street. Or to take that sneaky pic of Lindsay Lohan at the Starbucks. (Although…was it REALLY her? The picture was usually too fuzzy to really tell…)

So when did people actually start using camera phones to create actual ART? It’s hard to say — who knows what people might have shot with their phones and simply didn’t share with the rest of the world? There could be tons of mobile photography versions of Vivian Maier out there that we don’t know about now, but could discover later (Maier, a recent addition to the “masters” of street photography, didn’t become well known until AFTER her death in 2009 — as she never showed her work to the rest of the world).

One unexpected pioneer of mobile photography that we DO know about is the actor Joel Grey. Perhaps best known for his Oscar-winning role as the Master of Ceremonies in the classic 1972 film version of “Cabaret,” the actor — now turned photographer — had already published two traditional photo books by the time he took a trip to Florida in 2007. But on that trip he realized he had left his camera behind, and all he could shoot with was what he had in his pocket: a Nokia 133 phone. Grey had disdain for people that used the cameras on their phones before this — why would you bother with such a “crappy” device to take a picture of anything, he thought. But in this situation, he had no other choice. The results he obtained surprised and fascinated him, and eventually took the shape of a book called “1.3” — referring to the exact resolution of the phone’s camera: 1.3 megapixels. I don’t think he realized it then, but a door had been opened…and a lot has gone through it in the last four+ years.

Photos from “1.3” by Joel Grey

When Mr. Grey was having his first exhibit in New York, iPhones didn’t even exist yet…and the whole story was just curious (if somehow exciting) news in the arts sphere. Over a year later, with the introduction of the iPhone 3G and the App Store, the “iPhoneography” movement was becoming a real thing with early pioneers such as Greg Schmigel, Sion Fullana, and the already well-known Chase Charvis making real headlines for taking pics on their iPhone and appearing in American Photo Magazine. Blogs like iphoneography.com and lifeinlofi.com started popping up, photography apps became more sophisticated, camera phones became more advanced, photo sharing sites/apps became hugely popular… And the rest, as they say, is history.

So where does that leave us with the FUTURE of the art form?

Well I, for one, predict a day when the term “mobile” will no longer be relevant. It shouldn’t even matter NOW…but what camera you use is still very important to a lot of people — whether it’s an iPhone or a Hasselblad. But I believe people will start to care less and less about that over time…though it may take a while.

“Sharing” sites like Instagram will continue to be quite popular, but in order for mobile photography to be taken seriously in the rest of the art world, there needs to be more critical discussion happening too. Right now, these sharing sites and apps are focused on photos receiving only “likes” and positive comments — just like everything else in social media is structured right now.

But there’s a huge problem there in terms of camera phone pictures making a real impact in art circles. While getting just “likes” make sense for a picture on, say, Facebook (after all, who would leave a negative comment on someone’s FB pic? They would just seem like a mean jerk), it doesn’t allow for any true analytical debate about a photos merits and faults…which is absolutely crucial for any emerging art form to truly evolve. If sharing mobile photos continues to be limited to places like Instagram, then there’s no hope for the medium to really grow.

So how do we solve that? I’d love to see an app developer create an app for people to share images that actually encourages critique and debate. The problem there is that very few people would probably want to use it — who would want to willingly subject their images to critique…knowing there may be the possibility for unfavorable comments? Well…people that actually want to grow and evolve as artists, for one. To really put yourself out there and be seriously considered as an artist, you need to be open to criticism of your work, and not take it as some kind of personal attack. It also doesn’t hurt to offer critique to the work of others who you might see have potential but may have some areas of weakness. As long as it’s helpful, friendly and CONSTRUCTIVE, of course. (There’s nothing more annoying than people who feel the need to be nasty and tear other people’s work apart and not explain why — especially if their own work is questionable, which seems to always be the case with the more offensive people). I’m not sure what the best solution is here, but I’d love to hear what others think about this.

Also, like ANY movement that suddenly gets hugely popular very quickly, there are inevitably the outsiders who come in to try and take advantage and make a profit off of people’s newfound enthusiasm. We’re unfortunately going to see more and more of this in the coming months ahead. While I don’t see a problem with finding a way to make money from something new, I would hope that a real quality service, product, or app is given in return that actually fills a real need that people might have. If there are talented, well-known mobile photographers providing a good service at a cost, I think that’s great! (I know of some to be announced soon that I’m very excited about). Or if there’s an app geared towards iPhoneographers that does something really cool and useful, then I’m all for it. But I’m also very wary of some of the things I’ve seen from outside sources that have been marketed towards the mobile photography community that just seem like obvious money-making scams with no real value to them.

Another annoying thing I’m seeing is many photographers who have made a living in more traditional ways (from shooting weddings to food to fashion) suddenly jumping on the mobile bandwagon because it’s popular and claiming to be “experts.” They’ve shot a lot with their “traditional” cameras, and also happen to own iPhones — so they hear of this mobile revolution happening and they suddenly think they’re advanced mobile users. Well…not necessarily. Just because an iPhone seems simpler than your advanced DSLR, doesn’t automatically make you a master with it. In fact, I’ve been a bit shocked by the simplicity of the iPhone images by a lot of these so-called “professionals.” I predict a lot more of these types coming in the next year or so, but instead of helping the medium I think they’ll only hurt it — unless they really start taking mobile photos as seriously as their other photography.

Barack Obama on Instagram

I also see a lot more gallery showings happening and a lot more mainstream press attention in the future. Barack Obama just joined Instagram, so who’s next? But all of this will come with more debates about mobile’s “legitimacy,” more egos clashing as people try and get a shot in the spotlight, and a greater divide between more serious photographers and people just “having fun” that could end up with a few hurt feelings along the way. It happens — the birth of any new artistic movement is full of growing pains, and those can last for years before things finally “gel” and a medium becomes truly accepted. But I’m way more positive than worried about what lies ahead. I see a very bright, bright future to come…and expect to be blown away by a lot of really talented mophos…

So what do YOU hope to see for mobile photography’s future? Drop me a line at anton@mophoapp.com and let me know!

"Becoming a MoPho": A Last-Minute iPhoneographer's Shopping Guide!

Sat, 24 Dec 2011 18:08:00 -0500

Oh no!! It’s the eve of a major gift-giving holiday, and the procrastinator in you might have completely forgotten to follow my earlier shopping guide, right? Now it’s too late to order anything online to be delivered to your favorite mobile photographer in time…

But fear not! That’s why we have APPS! If you go to any app’s page on the App Store and scroll to the bottom, you’ll see a handy dandy “Gift This App” button that allows you to instantaneously send an app to anyone at any time. And they’re all quite affordable!

So which apps would an iPhoneographer love to have the most? I’ll give you a quick rundown of some of my absolute favorite shooting and processing apps below. But hey…don’t just give them away to others only. Treat yourself to a little gift as well and include these apps to your mopho arsenal…

FILTERSTORM

Do you want to have Photoshop on your iPhone? Well you’re NOT going to get it with the free Photoshop Express app that Adobe has put on the App Store. PS Express is ok if all you want is the most basic editing abilities, but it’s severely lacking in the type of power and control that its desktop counterpart has. If you’re looking for truly ADVANCED editing capabilities, look no further than Filterstorm.

The list of things Filterstorm can do is massive and can be a little intimidating at first. Besides all the stuff you’d expect (control over exposure, saturation, color, sharpness, noise reduction, vignetting, cropping, scaling, the list goes on…), Filterstorm takes it to a whole ‘nother level, and then beyond even that. With this app, you can mask parts of a photo, and apply effects to only a certain area. You can apply gradients and adjust the location of how a gradient will flow. You can work with multiple exposures, and layers (up to 5!), and curves — where you can fine tune a photo to absolute perfection.

You can do DOZENS of actions too numerous to name here that can adjust a photo to be exactly how you want it. But Filterstorm has a bit of a learning curve, admittedly. Thankfully the app makers have some online tutorials (accessible within the app) that show you all that you need to know.

Filterstorm is about as advanced a photo imaging tool as you can get on the iPhone, and it’s also “universal” so you can work up your images on the iPad as well in order to take advantage of the extra screen real estate.

Filterstorm U.S. App Store link - $3.99

SNAPSEED

Sometimes you want something that’s powerful and can do a lot of stuff, but that isn’t too overly complicated like Filterstorm. Snapseed has a lot of the most-used editing tools that you’d need, and with a fantastic user interface that’s also fun to use. Just choose an editing option, then scroll up and down with your finger to select the TYPE of adjustments you want (i.e. brightness, contrast, saturation, etc.) and then scroll sideways to adjust the STRENGTH of it (left for less, right for more). The KILLER feature of Snapseed, however, is the “Selective Adjust” option — allowing precise adjustments on just a portion of your image. Is your picture close to perfect, but someone’s face is a little too dark? Well now you can highlight JUST the face and brighten it up to give it that little bit of change that makes ALL the difference.

Snapseed has a bunch of of other helpful tools including cropping, straightening/rotating, frames, and various filter adjustments (numerous B&W, vintage, grunge, tilt-shift, and others to choose from). One particularly useful filter is “Drama” — which is hard to describe but needs to be played with in order to see the dramatic results in can produce. And the ability to adjust the intensity of any filter is incredibly helpful too.

The one drawback to Snapseed is that there’s no way to zoom in on a pic to better see the results of what you’re doing on an iPhone. But the app is also “universal,” however — so if you have an iPad, try editing on that for a bigger surface that can show more details.

Snapseed U.S. App Store link - $4.99

TOUCHRETOUCH

If you’ve used the latest version of Photoshop on your desktop, or know anything about it, you might be aware of the amazing “Content Aware” Fill feature that allows you to magically remove unwanted elements from a photo. It’s a brilliant way to clean up photos by getting rid of distracting elements in oder to focus on what’s truly important in the image.

Don’t want to spend several hundred dollars for this feature on your computer? Or do you just want to be able to do this all on your phone? Well you’re in luck! TouchRetouch by Adva-Soft gives you similar powerful editing abilities for just 99 cents (U.S.)! Just brush over the part that you want to get rid of (the selected area will be bright red), and erase any part that you might have brushed over by mistake. Then hit the “Start” button, and see the element disappear right before your eyes!

Keep in mind TouchRetouch can’t remove EVERYTHING. It can’t get rid of your ex in that picture where the two of you are hugging, for example. It CAN get rid of a lot that you wouldn’t expect it to get rid of, though. It doesn’t JUST get rid of an element in a mostly single-colored background. That’s easy. But TouchRetouch is SMART, and has an incredibly powerful algorithm that determines the background elements (and any surrounding patterns), and figures out how to correctly fill in something that looks quite complicated. It can’t create something that just isn’t there (for example, if someone is blocking a car, and you remove the person, the app can’t recreate the parts of the car) — but it will do its best to mimic what’s around.

If the element you want to get rid of is touching a pattern you DON’T want it to duplicate, then you have the option of using the “clone stamp” tool that will duplicate an area (pre-selected somewhere else) wherever you “brush” upon. So do this to draw a patterned “line” next to the pattern you don’t want, to further separate the unwanted element from it. This will allow you to more easily select the unwanted element and use the TouchRetouch magic on it, without worrying about copying the unwanted pattern as well.

TouchRetouch U.S. App Store link - $0.99

PRO HDR

My secret weapon in photography! “But Anton,” I hear you say, “…why would we use a Pro HDR app when the built-in Camera on the iPhone seems to have an HDR function already? And what is an HDR anyway?!?” Well, my dear mophos, the built-in HDR ability is…just ok. It’s really only good for landscape shots where you want absolute clarity, or when a friend is willing to stand completely frozen for a picture (because the slightest movement is going to create a weird ghost-like effect with the HDR setting on). The Pro HDR app is a vast improvement in quality to Apple’s HDR, as it perfectly combines overexposed and underexposed versions of the same image into one beautiful “high dynamic range” version.

But honestly…I almost never use this app for that.

Instead, I like to use a function of the app that many people don’t even realize is there. Besides using the app to shoot an HDR pic (which can be done automatically or manually), you can also combine two pictures in your camera roll for the desired effect — by touching the “Actions” button and then choosing “HDR from Library.”

The two images don’t have to even be overexposed/underexposed versions of the same image. They can be two completely different photos, resulting in a handy dandy double exposure. (The two pics need to be identical in size, however, for this to work). But honestly, there are better double exposure apps out there, and what I REALLY like to use Pro HDR for is actually as a “processing equalizer.”

Sometimes I’ll be processing a picture, and I’ll go through several variations of a single image and not find a single version that I’m 100% happy with — and I’ll wish that I can get a result that’s somewhere in-between the two versions I’m just half-ok with. That’s when I break out the Pro HDR app and use it to combine the two, and…voila! The PERFECT version appears before my eyes! Pro HDR also has a handful of adjustment sliders to further perfect the brightness, contrast, saturation, warmth and tint, plus other tools like cropping, filters and frames to give your photo the final touches it needs!

It may seem strange to get a powerful app like this, and only use it for a simple adjustment/tweaking the way I do — but considering I use it for more than half the images I post in order to get a result that I’m 100% happy with, others might find this app quite useful beyond its advertised function.

Pro HDR U.S. App Store link - $1.99

NOIR PHOTO

“Ooooooh, how did you get that moody black and white effect on your pic, with all those dark shadows and perfect highlights??” Chances are, the Noir Photo app was used.

Noir can magically transform a photo and give it a wonderfully cinematic feeling that gives it a whole new life. You can create a completely different “story” for an image, simply by how you end up using this app. Photography is very much about light, or in some cases, the lack of it. How it’s used, or how it’s manipulated in the case of Noir, can provide various “moods,” depending on what you’re going for.

When you import a photo in Noir, you’ll notice an adjustable circle/oval over the image that can be moved around however you want. Play with it and try to get it so it perfectly highlights only the areas of the image you want focused on. Now, adjust the three sliders on the bottom to control the “inner” and “outer” exposures of the circle, as well as the contrast of the overall image.

With enough adjustments, you’ll be able to find that perfect contrast of light and shadows to bring real drama to your images. You can also choose between regular black and white, or three other monotone colors. You can even save presets for converting multiple images the same way — however, most images are different, and unless you have a bunch of photos that are extremely similar (like a bunch of portraits where everyone is posed exactly the same), you won’t really have use for this feature.

Noir can be a brilliant tool in any iPhonographer’s camera bag — just be careful not to overuse the app or go too extreme with it where the effect looks too fake and unreal. The trick is to get that perfect balance that subtly enhances an image without going too overboard.

Noir Photo U.S. App Store link - $2.99

CAMERAMATIC

I’m not talking enough about apps you can SHOOT with here. That’s because I’m used to mostly shooting with the built-in Camera of the iPhone. Yeah, I know there are better cameras in the App Store, but most of my pics need to be taken as quick as possible, and so I default to the Camera app because I don’t want the chance of losing a specific image I’m trying to capture.

That said, one shooting app that I absolutely ADORE is Cameramatic. It’s the perfect camera for those that like to shoot in squares (hello Instagrammers!), thanks to the perfectly square viewfinder. With tons of filters to choose from, you’re probably wondering what’s so special about this app — and what makes it different than something like, say, Hipstamatic for example.

Well here’s the thing…Camermatic allows you to import photos from your library to apply an effect to. And even if you don’t like an effect…you can always change it later. Yep, that’s right! Even if you set Cameratic to shoot in black and white, you can decide later (as long as it’s still in the app’s “Light Box”) to change it to something else, like a color effect or a different B&W!

But wait! That’s not even the coolest thing about Cameramatic. So…don’t like any of the dozens of filters it comes with (or even the extra ones you can buy as in-app purchases)? Well that’s ok, because you can just CREATE YOUR OWN. That’s right…you can custom build your own unique filters! How awesome is that?!? All you need to do is start with a pre-existing filter, and then touch the little wrench icon in the corner which brings you to a filter-mixing setup that allows you to adjust it to your hearts content — changing tones, colors, textures, layers, vignettes, light leaks…the whole shebang. You can create, save and name as many custom filters as you want, and apply them to all your photos to give them a unique, uniform look. Your photos will now be uniquely yours…

Cameramatic U.S. App Store link - $1.99

OTHER APPS!

There are so many other cool photo apps out there, so I’m just going to give a quick shout-out to some of my other favorites (U.S. App Store links for all):

CAMERA+ ($0.99) — One of the most popular photo apps out there…for a reason.

CROSSPROCESS ($1.99) — A beautiful adjustment of colors. I use this with 90% of my color pics.

PROCAMERA ($1.99) — One of the best “camera” apps to shoot with.

DIPTIC ($0.99) — One of the best apps for combining 2-4 pics in a cool collage.

PERFECTLY CLEAR ($2.99) — Makes dark or under-exposed pics bright and brings them instantly to life!

PHOTOFORGE2 ($1.99) — Another very capable photo editor packed with features!

And there you have it! Now you have no excuse NOT to get something last-minute for your favorite mobile photographer…

(…even if that ends up being yourself). ;-)

"Becoming a MoPho": 2011 - The Year in Mobile Photography!

Thu, 22 Dec 2011 13:47:00 -0500

2011 is about to come to a close, and there’s no question this was THE year for mobile photography! So much happened, that to write about it ALL would take multiple blog posts and probably extend this column well into 2012. So instead, I’m just going to touch upon the highlights, and give some of my own thoughts and opinions on what occurred in one big post:

INSTAGRAM EXPLODES!

While the popular photo sharing app actually debuted in October of 2010, Instagram really blew up to epic proportions in 2011 — and was featured in countless media outlets around the world, including The New York Times. The app proved to be so popular, that it dramatically changed how many already well-known mobile photographers chose to share their photos to the world…both for the good AND the bad.

The best thing about Instagram is just how EASY it is to use. It makes sharing photos FUN again, and has also opened up a whole new world to people who have never shot photos on an iPhone before. The worst thing about Instagram is, well…just how EASY it is to use — which means everyone in the world seems to be joining it. The rapid growth this year not only caused some growing pains in terms of expansion (the app would often have “down times” — which thankfully has become less of an issue of late), but it also brought complaints of an onslaught of “average” to “awful” pics. Images of food, pets, and awkward teenagers inappropriately trying to look sexy seemed to dominate the app’s “Popular” page. Most users seemed more concerned about getting more likes and followers than actually uploading anything of quality.

To be fair, the makers of IG never once made claims of Instagram being for SERIOUS photographers only, but the app’s early adopters still hoped that it would replace Flickr and other sites as the premiere destination for the ever-growing field of iPhoneography. And yet, as moments like “Biebergate” began to be more common (teen idol Justin Bieber tweeted a pic from his Instagram account which literally brought a flood of new users to the app and overloaded their servers), the frustrations with IG among more “serious” photographers grew.

Things came to a head earlier this year when a Spanish TV station was reporting on the traveling EyePhoneography exhibit in various cities in Spain. The mobile photographers involved had been taking photos with their iPhone long before Instagram was around. But when the station’s sloppy reporting implied that the photographers had been “squeezing the best of Instagram filters and the app,” it caused an uproar — and sparked a growing concern among iPhoneographers that IG was becoming the center for ALL things related to mobile photography. And as the medium was getting more popular than ever, media sources kept contributing the success to Instagram, which irked many.

A few known mobile photographers have decided either not to use Instagram, or only on a limited basis. I, for one, have used it almost exclusively for sharing my photos this year — which was more laziness on my part than a full endorsement of the app. (However, I recently asked the IG team if I could be taken off their “suggested user” list in order to make the app more manageable for me again). Most mobile photographers (and even some “traditional” ones) have embraced the app, and find that they are reaching their biggest audience yet — but… is it really the audience they WANT for their photos?

One thing’s for certain: With the possibility of IG going to Android phones in 2012, it just means the audience will get even BIGGER. That could be a good thing, or a bad thing, depending on your perspective…

EYE’EM 2.0

Before Instagram, Berlin-based EYE’EM was at the forefront of mobile image sharing. After delivering a few successful gallery shows in various cities (including one in New York, which featured a few of my photos among the dozens of amazing images), EYE’EM looked poised to become bigger than ever — especially with the promise of a new version of their mobile app on the way. But then…they remained quiet for most of 2011 — while some app named Instagram showed up and stole their thunder. By the time EYE’EM got around to re-launching their app in August this year, they almost seemed like an IG copycat, which was…unfortunate. The new app had some technically cool innovations like “live” previews of filters (if that’s your thing) and “automatic tagging” — but some felt it was the wrong direction to take, and made EYE’EM less “serious.” Many hoped that the app would veer away from becoming too much like IG (at this point, with IG having a 10-month head start, they just couldn’t compete), and instead they should have really set themselves apart as a more unique entity…

The first week of December brought a 2.0 update to EYE’EM with many improvements, and a slow and steady increase in new members. And while the number of users is nowhere close to the 12 million+ that IG seems to have, the overall quality of photos uploaded there still seems to be a little better. Despite the unnecessary app additions, EYE’EM users are at least TRYING to share more interesting stuff there, rather than just what they ate for breakfast (though you’ll see that there too). It’s quite possible that if more and more “serious” photographers become disenchanted with the quality of pics on Instagram, they might start flocking to alternatives like the EYE’EM app (which unlike IG, also has an Android version). And if the guys in Berlin are smart (and having met them, I KNOW that they are — passionate about mobile photography too, which I admire), then they’ll have to focus future versions of the app around sharing the BEST images out there, rather than just trying to capture Instagram’s success.

APPLE FINALLY ACKNOWLEDGES “US”

For the longest time, Apple Inc. — whose iPhone device is clearly dominating the mobile photography scene — seemed to be ignoring the exploding iPhoneography community that had started as early as 2008 with the introduction of the iOS App Store.

But things began to change in late 2010. Pixels at an Exhibition did a series of Apple Store presentations in places like New York, Chicago and L.A. — and while those shows received mixed reviews, people at Apple saw great potential in iPhoneography and how it could drastically change the way we capture images. So in 2011, Apple began inviting more individual photographers and groups to talk about this exciting new approach to photography in their Apple retail stores around the world.

New York definitely had the largest number of presentations, beginning in February with Sion Fullana’s talk at the SoHo Apple store to a packed, standing-room audience that listened to him discuss his approach to shooting photos, what apps he used, and how he’s actually making a career out of shooting with an iPhone. More presentations followed later in the year, with Allan Hoffman in April (author of “Create Great iPhone Photos”), myself in June (where I was interviewed by Fullana and did a live example of some processing), as well as individual events from visiting photographers Greg Schmigel and Jim Darling (both from Washington D.C., and co-members of the Mobile Photo Group with Fullana and I), and portrait photographer David Graham.

Apple Stores around the world also presented exhibitions with multiple iPhoneographers in cities like Zurich, Sydney and London. These events were like a big stamp of approval from Apple, and gives me hope that they’ll keep iPhoneographers in mind with future versions of their phone and iOS. (Any improvements are welcome — as long as they always keep it a very simple, point-and-shoot camera)

GALLERY SHOWINGS GALORE!

Apple Stores weren’t the only places displaying iPhone images! While gallery exhibitions dedicated to strictly mobile photography certainly didn’t START in 2011, there might have been more this year than all other years combined. Just a small sampling of the exhibits this year included three shows at the annual “Atlanta Celebrates Photography” festival (the Eric DeFino-curated “#iPhoneography” show, an exhibit featuring the contributors of Stephanie Robert’s “The Art of iPhoneography” book, and “365 [A Photo a Day]” by John Enslow), my own solo show “All These Little Stories” at the Haus of Hipstamatic in San Francisco, the “My World Shared” exhibit in London, FX Photo Studio’s “International iPhoneography Show” in NYC, Aik Beng Chia’s second solo show “SWIPE(D) - Stolen Moments From The Streets Of Singapore,” and many, many more shows featured in New York and London, as well as places like San Juan, Seattle, Denver, Salzburg, Johannesburg, and Ankara. And probably a dozen other cities I don’t know about because there were just so many!!

Unfortunately a new trend popped up this year that seems to be gaining popularity…that of the “digital” gallery. Many exhibition spaces showing these works have numerous screens instead of actual framed print-outs. I’m of a mixed opinion about these myself, however. I don’t necessarily have a problem with actually showing these works on screens themselves — after all, they were created on digital devices and are usually either viewed on other devices or people’s computers. My concern is more about HOW these images are chosen to be presented…

First, these screens are at a “fixed” ratio — so the resulting images, depending on their own ratios, are often either cropped to fit the whole screen (which is quite unfortunate), OR, they are letter-boxed within so that the full image is shown with black borders around (much better…but still not perfect). Second — and perhaps the most harmful decision that digital gallery curators seem to make — is the decision to bundle more photographers and/or images than there are actual screens. So basically multiple photos are cycled through on a single screen — which often means not having enough time to truly sit and appreciate a work before it goes to the next one, or having some images overlooked altogether. Who really wants to sit and wait on one screen while it rotates through all the pictures?

Call me old-fashioned, but I love the idea of printing out images taken on an iPhone. I know digital is the future, and it’s inevitable that more and more of these types of galleries will pop up — but there’s just nothing like seeing a photo in print.

That said, if digital galleries MUST be used, I would hope that curators would be more respectful of the images being presented. If they HAD to present more than one image on a screen, than at least make them all of the SAME photographer. Also, it’d be wise to invest in better technology — like an iPhone-like touchscreen so that viewers can swipe through photos at their own pace.

THE BEST CAMERA PHONE YET!

There’s no question that a new version of the iPhone dominated many people’s discussion throughout the year. “iPhone 5” was one of the most searched Google terms in 2011, and the fact that a new phone was pushed back beyond its usual Summer-release timeframe meant anticipation for a new device reached a fever pitch. When Apple finally debuted their new phone in early October, many people were disappointed to discover it wasn’t a “5,” but rather a “4S.” Mobile photographers, however, had a LOT to rejoice about — not only did the megapixel count jump from 5 to 8, but it had an improved custom lens with a larger f/2.4 aperture that captured low-light conditions much better, and it was just faster all around.

The new phone with improved camera wasn’t the only thing Apple gave mophos this year. They also added many features to their 5.0 iOS update that truly benefitted photographers. Some of these — like native cropping, rotating, enhancement, red-eye removal and other editing solutions — were already familiar to many of us through 3rd-party apps. But other improvements proved to be quite valuable, including the ability to use the “volume up” button on the phone or headset to take pics, the quick shortcut to the Camera app on the lock screen (accessible by double-clicking the home button), and the “Photo Stream” feature on iCloud that insured your photos would always be safe somewhere.

I haven’t gotten a 4S myself yet, but I’m terribly jealous of all of you that have it!

THE WORLD’S FIRST MOBILE PHOTOGRAPHY CONFERENCE

It was bound to happen! Whenever there’s a growing community focused around one thing, there’s always a convention that pops up to bring these like-minded people together. The 1197 conference (named after June 11, 1997 — the day the first camera phone photo was taken) was conceived by Nate Bolt & Jessica Zollman, who teamed up with Blurb to put together a one-day event in San Francisco. I won’t go into too much detail, as the MoPho blog already discussed attending it here.

While the conference was moderately attended (290 people showed up in person, 61 remotely), it was deemed a success — and as Koci Hernandez hinted in my interview with him, there’s bound to be more such conferences in the future. I, for one, can’t wait!

MOBILE PHOTOGRAPHERS…UNITE!

This was definitely the year for mobile photography “super groups” to assemble and join forces. Although the first major one that popped up in July — The Mobile Photo Group, of which I am a founding member — is not actually a group, but more of a “cooperative.” That’s an important distinction…and one that’s apparently caused some confusion to many. Yeah, yeah, yeah…I know what you’re thinking. Perhaps we should have called ourselves “The Mobile Photo Cooperative” instead — but that doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue…

The idea behind MPG was not to be “yet another” place for anyone who shot with a mobile device to share photos. It wasn’t an EYE’EM, or a Flickr Group, or even a certain secret group on Facebook. It wasn’t meant to be open to everyone, but it’s not necessarily “closed” either. It’s true that we were loosely modeling ourselves after Magnum Photos — whose co-founders included the likes of Henri-Cartier Bresson and Robert Capa. But Magnum is considered the most prestigious photography cooperative in the world, and I think many assumed that WE must have thought of ourselves as the most important mobile photographers in the world — which wasn’t the case. That didn’t stop the HATE from flying our way in the beginning. People took issue with the way our introductory text was worded, and felt it was dissing other photographers. That wasn’t our intention at all, but some people had hurt feelings anyway. Despite a few grumblings, most people “got” what we were about and gave us a warm welcome.

Many wondered if we were ALL good friends beforehand and agreed to join forces together all at once. Not quite. Some of us had been discussing the idea of such a cooperative for some time, but nothing had advanced beyond the talking stage. Then one photographer took the initiative and got the ball rolling. This person chose the initial roster of twelve, but some of us had never even communicated with each other prior to that point. And yet we quickly realized we all shared similar ideas and goals, and that if we didn’t take this member’s offer then, a cooperative — which we all agreed made sense — was never going to happen. So we decided to make a go of it!

Sure, there have been some growing pains, but that was to be expected. We’ve had many individual accomplishments since, but as a group MPG has been recently featured on Instagram’s blog and in a feature about photo apps in Apps Magazine, and is working on their first collaborative book for 2012. MPG also has every intention of expanding their membership…but very slowly, because something like this just doesn’t work when too many members are involved. Expansion will probably be 1 or 2 new members a year, tops. This isn’t to make ourselves seem “elitist”…FAR from it. But MPG is about promoting each other’s work and advancing ourselves as a cooperative — so careful consideration needs to be taken to make sure the group members “gel.”

Before the end of this year, at least two other major mobile photography “super groups” were born: AMPt (Advanced Mobile Photography Team) and the (mostly) Seattle-based JUXT. They seem to be taking very different approaches than MPG, but I’m quite pleased to see both in action. Any time I see PASSION behind mobile photography, I get very excited. I’m really looking forward to see what AMPt, JUXT and MPG do in 2012. And who knows? There may be more “super groups” coming! There are certainly enough talented individuals in the mobile photography community to have more…

MOBILE PHOTOGRAPHY TAKES OVER PHOTOJOURNALISM

More and more instances of photojournalists using smartphones popped up in 2011 than ever before. It’s no surprise: A device like an iPhone is much easier to use and quicker to take out when an event occurs. Since it’s also a phone and so many other things, it means less stuff a photojournalist has to carry. Plus, it’s much less intimidating to photograph actual people with a smartphone than a “real” camera, allowing closer, more intimate shots to be taken because people tend to feel more comfortable.

Foreign Policy magazine ran a 5-part series in July showcasing the lives of U.S. Marines in the Helmand province in 2010 and 2011. Most of the images were shot with an iPhone, using the Hipstamatic app. The experiment, conducted by Teru Kuwayama and four other photographers who embedded themselves within a Marine battalion, resulted in a project called Basetrack. Damon Winter also garnered headlines for his war photography, also taken with Hipstamatic…which drew some controversy. Regardless, smartphones were poised to be the future of photojournalism…

At the same time, news agencies around the world have been firing many of their established photojournalists in favor of relying on user-submitted photos — most of which are often taken on smartphones too. CNN let go fifty members of their staff just last month. With “iReporters” sending in what they see for free, and the photos used being often uncredited, it’s opened up a huge debate about “the professional eye” and its importance in being able to cover news events effectively. This brings up mixed feelings for many who don’t want to encourage the firing of paid professional photojournalists, but who also don’t want to refrain from capturing and submitting a news-worthy event should it occur right in front of them. It seems like these news agencies are very aware of this quandary, and have got us right where they want us…

THE MOBILE PHOTO AWARDS

While not the first contest for mobile photography, the Mobile Photo Awards were certainly the biggest of its kind. Created by Daniel Berman (known to most as “Reservoir Dan”), the idea behind MPA was to have as wide a selection of categories as possible, and put known mobile photographers as the judges of whatever category they were best known for. Besides cool prizes (including a grand prize of a $500 Apple Gift Card), winning entries were also included in a multi-city traveling gallery show.

Initial reaction to the contest was mixed, as some people were put off by the entry fee for images. However, many didn’t realize that part of winning included being part of the exhibition — and some sort of fee is a pretty common practice for open gallery call submissions. The money would go towards not only the prizes, but the printing, framing, and other expenses needed to put on such a show. The fee also ensured that only serious participants entered the contest, and that the level of quality in submissions would be high. Check out the shortlisted categories here.

THE COMMUNITY COMES TOGETHER!

The mobile photography community itself has had its share of ups and downs in 2011. While there were numerous debates and even heated arguments happening online in places like Twitter and Facebook, events in real life showed photographers peacefully coming together in droves to share their passion for picture-taking and to make new friends. Mostly sparked by the Instagram community creating “Instameets” worldwide, these real-world get-togethers keep happening at an increased rate…with many mophos even traveling around the world to meet their fellow photographers in person, and many long-lasting and tight friendships forged along the way.

One dark moment, however, came in July…with the tragic death of Nacho Cardova — one of the nicest individuals in the community and a truly talented iPhoneographer. Despite all the bickering that had been going on online amongst iPhoneographers, it was touching to see so many people put their differences aside to come together for a moving tribute to Nacho.

WHAT’S NEXT?

Whew! That was a lot of stuff in 2011, and I felt like I barely scratched the surface.

With even more exhibits, conference and workshops planned, plus the much anticipated debut of the iPhone 5 (although isn’t it technically the 6th iPhone?), the coming year is sure to top this one in regards to mobile photography.

So what do YOU hope to see in the coming year? Drop me a line at anton@mophoapp.com and let me know!