The 20 Photo-Related Apps On My iPad

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Don't judge. Yes, I have 20 photo-related apps on my iPad. While I use my smartphone more to take photos than I do my iPad, I still have managed to accumulate {Read: Hoard.} 20 photo-related apps on my iPad. 

Genealogists and family historians tend to accumulate family photos and family documents, or at the very least, they come into contact with them and then they scan them in order to save them for posterity in some form or fashion. And that can explain a few of my photo-related apps. I also love the photo editing apps where I can take my brand new images that I take on my device and add a filter or two {Or 3. Stop the judging.} and evoke a specific feeling or mood. I can also do that with an old photo I've happened to scan on my mobile device. It's cool. It's easy. And it lets me express myself and then share it with everyone. {What can I say? I have an Inner Artist Muse in me who likes to come out and play. When she wants to, that is.}

I also use these apps to create original images for my blog posts. Because why not? Plus, this way I have something that's professional-looking {hopefully}; that I didn't have to buy {Have you seen those stock photos? The people in those stock images are so fake and happy, it's nauseating.}; and is able to be watermarked and shared {especially} on image-driven social networks {Pinterest, anyone? Are you following my boards there?}.

And then I have a few apps I'm experimenting with that I just might use to make Christmas presents with for family members. {Who says the iPad is just an over-priced consumption device? Puh-leez. An hour with me, and I'll get you actually doing stuff with your iPad.}

So, here are the 20 Photo-Related Apps on my iPad and what I use them for {or in some cases what I plan to use them for}. You ready?

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Some Heavier Duty Photo Editing Apps

• PS Touch ~ If you've ever used Photoshop or Photoshop Elements, you'll already know how to use this app. Working in layers, you can do quite a bit of editing on-the-go or on your couch with a finger {Or stylus or maybe a toe. I'm not judging.} and your artistic imagination. {Not anywhere near what you can do with Photoshop desktop software, but still.} I tend to use this app to add a quick watermark to my blog post images I create on my iPad. Here are some tutorials from Adobe on how to use PS Touch.
• Photogene ~ Like PS Touch, there are quite a bit of editing features packed into this app and it's certainly not for the person who just wants to slap a pre-made filter on an image and share quickly. But if you like the idea of more editing features on-the-go or on your couch, you'll like Photogene. A lot of people do including me.

Some Light and Fluffy Photo Editing iPad Apps
I like all of these for different reasons. Most of them do basically the same thing. It's just that they all have slightly different filters. And I happen to like some of those different image filters. No particular reasons. My Inner Artistic Muse just knows what she likes when she sees it. {She's tempermental like that.}

• Repix ~ Just love the different filters I can add to images. I especially like the Flares and Van Gogh filters.
• Picfx ~ This one is not a native iPad app. Unfortunately. I originally had its awesome little self on my iPhone before I traded my iPhone 4 in for my Samsung Note 2. I absolutely LOVE the filters it has, but, alas! It's not available for Android. *Heartbroken* But I can still use it on my iPad, just not in full-screen.
• Photo Toaster ~ Again, love the filters in this one. Now, this app also has Single Tap Effects {super easy to use} and then it has what they call Full Control where you have some more flexibility in your filter editing. {But I'd say this app is still in the "light and fluffy" category and not in the "heavier duty" iPad Photo Editing App category.}
• Snapseed ~ I like the filters okay in this app, but to be honest, I mostly use it for the Tilt Shift effect to increase depth in an image. Basically, Tilt Shift creates drama and evokes a particular feeling. At least, that's what my Inner Artistic Muse says. It also has some great photo editing features on it like cropping, straightening, and such making it a really good all-around must-have photo editing app.
• Fuzel Pro ~ This one is not a native iPad app, but it can be used on the iPad in its smaller iPhone form {or you can select to zoom it in 2x and use it in its pixelated form, but my Inner Artist Muse doesn't like that workaround. She doesn't like anything pixelated.} I originally had this app on my iPhone and used it to make collages of all sorts including the one I made for my Facebook Cover Image. So while this app looks "puny" on my iPad, its ability to make Facebook Cover Image collages keeps it in my life and on my iPad.

Text on Images iPad Apps
Like the photo filter apps, most of these "text on images" apps do basically the same thing. But? They have different fonts and such. So I keep and use them all. {'Cause why not? When you're hoarding, more is better. Stop the judging.}

• Swipe ~ Okay, this iPad app doesn't, um, "do" landscape orientation, which is annoying to me. But? I like the Architects Daughter, the Nothing You Could Do, and the Shadows Into Light fonts. And the Homemade Apple font too. {Don't judge.}
• TitleFx ~ I like the Daniel and Radiohead fonts the best on this one. It also has a lot of different editing options to get just the right feel to your text for your image. {Again, that Inner Artist Muse of mine knows what she likes when she sees it.}
• Phonto ~ Like the previous two, this one helps you to add text to an image and share it wherever you want to. And it tends to be my go-to one because it was my first text-on-a-image photo-editing app. But I also use its Plain Image effects to create images with solid color backgrounds or block color backgrounds with text. {I bought all the in-app templates that were for sale.} Comes in handy when I really don't have anything relevant to take a pic of but I need an image for a blog post. My favorite 2 fonts on this app are CicleFina {for 4YourFamilyStory.com} and RemingtonNoiseless {for BloggingGenealogy.com}.
• Text Mask ~ This app kinda does the reverse. It allows you to put photos on text. Very cool looking especially if you're looking for a different kind of image for your blog posts. Unfortunately it's not a native iPad app and it's got that I'm-small-like-an-iPhone thing going on, but? It's unique and leftover from my iPhone days. I can also get this effect by using PS Touch as well, but it can also just be easier to use this app if that's all I'm doing. So there's that. {And I used it for the image in this blog post. Clever, eh?}

Photo Scanning iPad Apps
If you find yourself doing a lot of scanning on-the-go {And as genealogists and family historians, duh.}, then you'll want a good photo scanning app on your iPad. I have 4. Try a few, compare the features, and use the one you prefer for your situation. You really only need one.

• Scanner Pro ~ When I first got my iPhone over 3 years ago, this is the photo-editing app I started with. And so it's now on my iPad. However, it's not my go-to photo scanning iPad app. 
• CamScanner Pro HD ~ This is my go-to photo scanning iPad app. Just my personal preference.
• Pic Scanner ~ This one was brought to my attention by the developer in the Google+ Tech for Genealogy Community so I downloaded it and tried it. Works nicely and could be the one for you. So try it out.
• Genius Scan+ ~ Love this app. And I did a full review and tutorial on how to use it in conjunction with the GoodReader App.

Miscellaneous Photo-Related iPad Apps

• Flickr & FlickStackr ~ I use these to access the old family photos I've uploaded to Flickr, and I wrote a blog post about green beer and using flickr, The Best Family Photo Sharing Option. 
• Presstomatic ~ This iPad app allows you to create social and collaborative scrapbooks. I've just begun to play with this one.
• Shutterfly ~ This one has been out for a while. I like the idea of being able to take my photos that I've taken or scanned and make stuff to give to loved ones all from the comfort of my couch or my bed. {'Cause nothing quite says, "You mean a lot to me," like something made while l was lounging on the couch or in bed. *snort*} I'm trying to decide on what images to use for their canvas prints. I think those are rather awesome.
• Shutterfly Photo Story ~ This is a brand new app just launched today for the iPad where you can make photo scrapbooks and then order them from Shutterfly for yourself or for loved ones. This is fabulous, in my opinion, because a lot of family members want to see old family photos and just a few facts or short stories about their ancestors. And? You can lovingly make it from the comfort of your couch. Or your bed. Or anywhere. {Hey, my Inner Artist Muse likes to lounge too. Go figure.} Anywho, I can't wait to try this out. Between their regular app and this one, I think I'm done Christmas shopping. In August. :P

So, that's it for the 20 photo-related apps on my iPad. At least the ones I have up until today. Tomorrow I might find another I just can't live without. {Hoarders are like that.} So what photo-related apps do you have on your iPad and why? Share with everyone in comments below. And? Stay tuned for even more iPad apps that I have and use for genealogy-related activities.

~Caroline

Related Articles You Might Be Interested In:

• 15 iPad Apps I Use for Genealogy and Family History
  
• GoodReader and GeniusScan+ Makes Researchers Smile
  
• The Best Family Photo Sharing Option
  

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