Gear Diary's Best Apps for…Photography

With so many apps in the iTunes App Store it has become all but impossible to find the best of the best. To help you find the best apps we are beginning a series of posts highlighting some of the apps we personally use and rely upon.

Our process is completely unscientific. We ask the Gear Diary team to list up to three apps in a specific category… something like “Best Apps for… Photography” and then collate the responses. Those that get multiple mentions go toward the top.

So what are our favorite iOS photography apps?

Camera+: It’s been at the top of the App Store charts for a while. The clarity filter does wonders for images with low saturation and makes anyone a great photographer.
Get it for iPhone

ProCamera: This app was listed by a few of us. It has a decent zoom, anti-shake compensation, and is reasonably priced. It has both “Pro” and “I’m just taking snapshots, here” modes which offers great flexibility.
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iPhoto: As Mike put it, “iPhoto takes better advantage of the full screen while apps like Camera+ are ‘iPhone’ apps and therefore automatically do not.”

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Get if for iPad

Photoshop Express: This app packs a huge punch, especially for a free app. Obviously it can’t handle drastic image manipulation like its desktop counterpart, but it works great for refining snapshots taken with the iPhone camera.
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Get it for iPad

Touch Retouch: This is an amazing application that lets you, among other things, remove items that are in the picture. It truly is an app the reinforces the notion that “you can’t trust everything you see”. There is a learning curve but first time you use it it will blow your mind.
Get it for iPhone
Get it for Touch Retouch HD for iPad

Hipstamatic: You would be amazed how the simplest items can make phenomenal images when the correct filters are applied.
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Autostitch: The best app for taking panoramas. It is easy to use and allows users to crop and share the final image.

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Photogene: This all on one photo app is a great option for manipulating and refining pictures. It has been a favorite of mine since it was first released.
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Get it for Photogene for iPad

And here are a few apps we use that fall under the category of “Just For Fun”:

Collage: This app makes it simple to create and share a collage from photos you’ve gathered.
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MemeDesign: A favorite of Carly’s, this app lets you add funny sayings and caption to pictures. The results look professional and, with the right caption, will bring a smile to the faces of those with whom you share it.
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Get it for iPad

Colorsplash: With this app you can turn an image into a black and white photograph and then add color back to specific portions of the picture. The results are striking.
Get it for iPhone
Get it for iPad

SketchMee: Not an artist?With SketchMee you can turn any picture into a pencil sketch, a water color painting or something a color pencil artist would create. Fun and impactful.