Toy camera love - snapping with the hipstamatic

The Iphone 3GS comes with a very lousy camera albeit better than its' predecessors. Of course camera phones do not intend to warm the hearts of serious photographers, but sometimes it is just not practical to lug around a DSLR. And there are photographic moments of beauty, artistic interest, or sheer joy to be captured everywhere. Camera phones have become somewhat indispensable for capturing candid moments of life. Low resolution snaps are the postmodernist mode of instantaneous communication with friends and the world at large.

I love photography, and I was bitterly disappointed that my phone took largely terrible photos. Good images are possible, but only if intended for screen viewing alone, and if they are taken in absolutely perfect conditions. Through perusing a social networking site, I began noticing arty photos taken with an Iphone app called the Hipstamatic. The camera app is based on an actual toy camera designed in the 1980s by Bruce and Winston Dorbowski. The brothers were tragically killed in a drunk driving accident before their toy camera was able to mass produced. You can read more about their story here.

The Hipstamatic hits your hip pocket for just $2.49 Australian, well worth it for all the fun you will have. And it has given my photography a whole new lease of life. When you load up the application, the screen fills with the image of an old school toy camera with a bright yellow button and view finder. With the click of an arrow the camera rotates, and there is an array of choices to customize the photos. The app comes with two different types of "film", lenses and flash options. For an additional $1.19 further film, lens and flash packs can be obtained. I particularly like the Black and White Supergrain film. It gives a moodiness to photos, and the graininess of old style black and white photography. Here is an image taken from my balcony with this film.

The film options provide a range of retro effects, grainy textures, altered colouring. The "Dali Pak" provides a textured finish with a rather interesting lens that mirrors parts of the image. Here is a photo taken with the Dali Lens and the Dream Canvas film.

Random lighting effects can be added by choosing different lens and flash combinations. There are many many possible combinations of lens, film and flash leading to endless creative possibilities. Don't know what to choose? Shake the phone and the Hipstamatic will make a random selection. Like what you did on a previous photo but can't remember how you did it? It is possible to select a photo and copy the settings into the camera.

The trickiest thing for many is that the processing of the images happens as you take the photo. Most photography apps take a standard photo and allow you to select from a range of effects, with the capacity to preview many different options. With the Hipstamatic, pressing the bright yellow button is the last choice you make. Enjoy the old school shutter sounds, and wait for the image to be processed. As you can choose from three image quality settings, it can take a while for the photo to be ready. The processing lag is perhaps is main downfall, as it can be around 20 seconds or so before another image can be taken. The results can seem very random, and at times a bit disappointing. I don't mind this as it means that I have to think about the image before I take it. What effects would suit the subject matter? If the end result is less than impressive, I will just try another combination. I don't usually use the flash options. I tend to favour the John S lens as it is the sharpest. I mostly switch between "Ina's 1935", "Float" and the two black and white films.

I find that this little app is capable of rendering everyday subject matter into arty photos that can be very atmospheric. This tree snapped from my bedroom window for example.

I love this app, and I find myself at times choosing to use it over my DSLR because of the retro effects. Flickr has some great examples of what can be achieved with the Hipstamatic app. I have started researching ways in which I can take similar photos with my DSLR without having to spend weeks in Photoshop. A Diana Lens or the Lensbaby are on my coveted list. Or maybe I should just buy a real toy camera.  

The most recent version of Hipstamatic (2.01) allows for photos to be taken in bursts without any time lag - a welcome upgrade that has dramatically increased the usability of this application.