iPhoneography: Photo Studio in Your Pocket

Yesterday I took a break from cataloguing strands of beads to start an online course in "iphoneography" at CreativeLive with Jack Hollingsworth. The world has recognized that most photography is coming from people's phones these days. Photo professionals and enthusiasts have realized the creative potential in the limited format. The fact that you can create, edit, and share photos right from the palm of your hand -- well, a new art form is emerging.

Any phone can snap a picture, but iPhone dominates -- probably because it offers something like 9000 photo-editing and alternative camera apps. Instagram is a social-photo app that's getting 300M pages views per month. Available only for iPhone, you can take pictures with it, apply some cool filters, and share it with social networks. (Facebook just established Instagram folders for uploads there.) Camera+ app provides a camera superior to the native camera software in iPhone, with a fairly sophisticated set of editing tools and filters, along with sharing options. I've been testing them out for awhile... now I want to push myself a little more.

I'm beginning to understand how iphoneography is different from regular camera-based photography. The idea is to tell a quick story, convey a feeling, express an emotion -- be in the moment -- get it done NOW. It's the kind of immediacy I need to work on. Making my photos more expressive is one of my goals this year. Below is a close-up of one of our art deco statuettes.

Then, of course, you can practice your art at the local diner while your mate is visiting the rest room:

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Resources and Inspiration

iPhoneography blog. Includes iPhone videography.

iphoneart - advocates of the mobile art revolution

iphoneography central - "the place to learn how to make amazing pictures on your iphone." Tutorial and ideas.

Mobile Photo Group. "International collective of mobile photographers dedicated to promoting their work and presenting mobile photography as an important and evolving form of photography."

Instatips. "Mobile photo tips, served bitesized & chewy."

What I See Now. "What I See Now is all about tips, resources, and news about iPhone photography (and the iPhone camera)."

Mobile Photography Awards. If you want to compete or just be inspired.

Life in LoFi: iphoneography. News, app reviews, showcases, musings.

Jan 17, 2012