Instagram VS EyeEm

 

A few weeks ago a friend shared a link to what seemed to me at the time another photo app  – EyeEm – trying to out shine Instagram. I took a few photos using the app during a recent long weekend in Annapolis, MD then promptly shuffled the app to the back burner.

Recently, Instagram updated their Terms of Service to include wording that appeared to signal their intention of using member photos  in advertisements without notifying or sharing revenue with the creator of the photo. There was no opt-out of this change outside of deleting your account before the new year.  Needless to say, it brought an outpouring of criticism from stunned users.  Cofounder of Instagram, Kevin Systrom responded to the outcry by stating Instagram has no intention to sell you photos.  Which by and large is true, but they have reserved the right to do so.

I get that Instagram has to develop a business plan and profit module. If Instagram content curators happen upon a photo of mine they would like to use for advertising purposes, I’m happy to sell them the  photo for this purpose. To be clear – I want their business to continue to be successful but not by trampling on the content makers that make Instagram such a success in the first place.  How difficult would it be to set up a photographer fee schedule for those users who would be interested in selling photos for Instagram advertising?

Must Have iPhone App – 100 Cameras in 1

Previously posted on PJ Lifestyle

Anyone who has searched online for photography tips has probably come across the work of Trey Ratcliff.

Trey pioneered the use of HDR (High Dynamic Range) photography,  his hard work in the photographic medium has been recognized with his HDR photograph being the first on display at the Smithsonian. He shares his knowledge and passion of photography on his blog Stuck in Customs. If you need a dose of photographic inspiration, read my review, then head over to Stuck in Customs.

When Trey announced an iPhone photo app — 100 Cameras in 1 — I took notice.

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iPhone iOS 5

3 frakking hours to update my iPhone 4.  Keeping my fingers crossed that I don’t encounter the dreaded Update Error 3200 and retain all of my apps.  Luckily, Gizmodo has found the cure for this error.

Below the cut is a list goodies you get for your time and trouble. Yes, you can find more details of this update at Apple.com

South Street Photo Walk

A few weeks ago, on a brisk March afternoon, I had the opportunity to go on a photo walk with my best photo buddy, NeoCon. We strolled along the funky and eclectic South Street in Philadelphia. The only equipment I brought along on this walk was the iPhone. During the photo walk, I used three different photo apps to capture scenes along South Street – Instagram, Hipstamatic and Camera +.  If you’ve never heard of them, I wrote a review on all three entitled ‘Three Must Have iPhone Photography Apps‘.

I took dozens of photos on this walk and would like to share a few from each application before I summarize my thoughts on working with each application on a fairly typical photo shoot. Please note – all photos were edited and shared within the application, no external post processing was applied to the photos.

See pretty photos under the cut!

Iphone Test Post

This is a test post using the Iphone app for WordPress blogs.

I phone Apps You Cannot Live Without – ShoZu

ShoZu. What is it? I can tell you it is not Tofu Turkey, but an integral part of my mobile blogging.

The ShoZu website has a more precise definition :

Shozu means you can share the moment, be it photos or video or a blog. You can send your stuff to friends and family, email or social networks as simply as pressing the button.

ShoZu and I first met when I purchased the 3G iphone. With the purchase of this phone, I lost the ability to send photos and text directly to my blog and Flickr account from my phone. With all the flash and glamour surrounding the iphone, I figured it was a small price to pay for this wonder of modern technology. Humph, you really don’t comprehend the value of a blogging widget until you no longer have use of it.

Desperately missing the ability to mobile blog, I started poking around the Apps Store on the i-phone and found a free and uniquely named application with a description that fit my mobile blogging needs.

This easy to use application has far more capabilities than just a photo up loader, I quickly added a Flickr up loader, a Twitter feed, and my Blogger account. With the ShoZu application, I can Twitter, monitor replies from Twitter followers, upload photos to Flickr including photo tags, descriptions and geotagging. Combining ShoZu with the G3 network, I am now freed from my laptop or desktop in order to blog. All of this from one i-phone application!

Little did I know how huge an impact these features would have on my coverage as a credentialed blogger at the 2008 RNC Convention. Credentialed bloggers at the RNC convention were treated as main stream media, and were expected to fork out between $850 – $52,000 dollars for 4 days of internet access at the Xcel Center. That’s a lot of clams! With the G3 network and ShoZu, I was able to work around this expense and blog from the Xcel center. Sitting in the Xcel Center as Gov. Sarah Palin gave her historic and groundbreaking speech, I was twittering my impressions using ShoZu’s platform. During the four days of the convention, I posted many photos from events in and around the Xcel Energy Center on to Flickr using ShoZu. Without this application, It would have been difficult to get timely stories and photos out to my readers and lurkers on MidnightBlue.

This iphone application is a must have for citizen journalists, bloggers or anyone who wants to share their thoughts with the world.

For more information about ShoZu go to their WEBSITE or check out the Apps store on your iphone.

iPhone Ramblings

As you may or may not know, I picked up the latest version of the iPhone a few days ago. Yes, it is a sweet gadget and will be even sweeter when I have it unlocked for video. Damn you, Steve Jobs!

I’m now in the process of manually importing all my contact information from my beloved Razr to the iPhone. An interesting task, as I am now faced with a plethora of forgotten numbers from my past; former best friends, ex-boyfriends, casual acquaintances, former coworkers, names I no longer recognize, the list just goes on.

It has been quite a walk down memory lane!

What does one do with these numbers? Do you delete them or continue to hold on to them? Okay, I’ll admit some were a joy to delete. I am struck by how easy it is to lose contact with people that mattered to you at various times in your life. In an age of instant communication, we still can be so out of touch with people we invite into our lives.

On the upside is the a new crop of phone numbers to input reveal how blogging has shaped my circle of friends. The current time in Paris, California, Norfolk, and Colorado are now important pieces of information to add to the iphone.

Okay, enough with the rambling, and on to sorting out which numbers stay with me and which ones I’ll leave behind.

Love at First Ring

Here are the i-Phone specs – read and weep with joy.

I-phones retail at $499 and up, the opportunity to heckle the Mayor for poor performance – PRICELESS.

Mayor John F. Street was among the first to get a coveted iPhone on Friday, waiting in line, on and off, for almost 15 hours and forced to defend the effort when a passer-by asked about the city’s skyrocketing murder rate.

He left his spot around 11:30 a.m., soon after a 22-year-old man sporting a mohawk asked him, “How can you sit here with 200 murders in the city already?”

The mayor replied: “I’m doing my job.”

Street had planned to stay in line for most of the day, waiting for the cell phones to go on sale, though he said he would to step out to make some appearances. He returned to his spot briefly around 2 p.m., then again at about 4 p.m.

H/T: Barnyard BBS