When you hear the term 'high-res' thrown about with such abandon when it comes to images for web use, have you ever stopped to think just how big or how high quality and image meant for the web needs to be?
There's an assumption that high-contrast images are more dynamic, more compelling, more inviting. Have a go at some low-contrast photography. You might surprise yourself with the results.
Balance doesn't mean symmetry; it means an internal consistency and tension within your photos. And it's a vital element of composition.
Great photos might be down to a little bit of luck, but most of that 'luck' you make yourself. Don't believe us? Read on...
I've got to say... When the Flickr re-launch happened, I wasn't so sure... But it's really warmed on me. It's good to see that Mayer & co are taking the Flickr property seriously... And they've even been able to inject a spot of personality in the process. Take their 'sorry we are down for maintenance' screen, for example. Very cute indeed.
How the feed looks
Instagram - the dastardly easy photo-sharing app - has been a darling of the iPhoneography community since its launch in October 2010. It had over one million subscribers within a month and two million within six weeks, all snapping photos, applying filters, and sharing them with the world via a live stream. Now, it has in excess over 30 million subscribers and over 5 million photos are uploaded every day. But anyone with an Android phone couldn't join in the fun because there wasn't an Android app. All the fun was reserved for iPhone-owners. Until today, that is, when Instagram launched its Android version. At last, anyone with a camera-phone running Android 2.2 or above with support for OpenGL ES 2 can download the app, for free, and start snapping and sharing.
If you're wondering just how left-out the Android crowd were feeling, there were over 430,000 people who'd signed up to the Instagram-for-Android waiting list.
Whether this is just people jumping on a bandwagon or they are genuinely excited to be able to share snippets of their days photographically, it doesn't really matter. The numbers are incredible. All of Instagram's numbers are incredible.
The same team who built the app for iOS also worked on the Android incarnation, with the intention of making the experience as similar as possible between the two platforms. Although there are a couple of features missing from the Android version that are extant on the iOS version (Tilt Shift/Blur, Share from Feed, Live Preview and Share to Flickr), they should be coming soon; but the filters and the community are the same. There're no features on the Android app that aren't on the iOS version, and this is something that Instagram intends to maintain.
So apart from ironing out a few kinks in the system and bringing the Android app completely up to speed, where next for Instagram? They're being pretty reticent about the future: 'We have nothing to announce at this time, but we are always actively considering ways to expand Instagram's utility to everyone in the world.' That could mean bringing it to other phones, but it could also mean making an app suitable for all those millions of beautiful tablets that are sliding their ways into people's bags and onto their coffee tables. Wouldn't that make sense?
Wherever Instagram goes next, I can't see it being in a hurry - after all, it took over a year to develop a non-iOS app - but if it's even half as eagerly anticipated as the Android version, then the astonishing rise of the photo-sharing app will take another - slow, but carefully placed - step towards social media domination.
Back in 2006, when Blurb entered the brave new world of publish-it-yourself photobooks, it offered one type of paper, one size of book, and a plain black linen cover. How times have changed. Blurb grew in popularity, and so did its range. And from today, with the launch of the new ProLine, there’s even more swanky and professional-looking choices. You can choose from two new types of cover (charcoal or oatmeal, in linen), five new end sheets (charcoal grey, dove grey, warm grey, black and white), and two new types of paper from Mohawk Fine Papers.
Eileen Gittins, Blurb’s CEO seems really quite chuffed with the new ProLine and the degree of customisation it allows people. They’ve listened to their customers and given them more professional choices. That included making Mohawk papers available for Blurb’s customers. There’s a heavy uncoated paper that’s an organic-y feel, or the pearl photo paper, which makes it feel as if you’ve a personalised book of photographic prints at your fingertips.
This is the ProLine, it has been designed for professionals wanting to showcase their work and get the oohs and aahs that it deserves, so it has a price to match. But don’t worry, Blurb hasn’t lost sight of what it does best: allowing anyone to create a photobook and tell a story.
Want a make a photobook with Blurb? Head over to the Blurb website.
