I have recently discovered Snapseed on Android. Its basically a photo editing application which seems to be able to make almost any photo look incredible (or at least very different).
I went on a trip to Felixstowe beach in the UK on a hot summers day and try out some of its capabilities. A lot of these photos were quite simply a point and click action with Superior Auto on my Xperia Z2. Then running "HDR Scape" on Snapseed, I updated the photos afterwards, which is a great way of doing it, as you don't have to worry about setting the camera up before taking the photograph then having to take a second photo after for a regular shot.
Before HDR
After HDR
The HDR feature gives the sky a really deep blue on this photo and brings out some of the greenery in the front of the picture. You will also notice the sea waves have been brought out more and the flowers are much more vibrant without sacrificing any other colour, which is something I noticed happens with the regular HDR feature on the Xperia camera. Though I would say that the HDR has made the flowers, especially the green parts, a little over saturated so you wont always get it perfect, it depends on what you want.
Luckily though, you have the choice between four HDR settings, Nature, People, Fine and Strong. This is particularly handy as HDR in its default mode (Nature) doesn't always work out the way you want. It also gives us the ability to fiddle around with the parts you might not be happy with, like with the over saturation of the green flower stems in the original Nature shot above. The Strong setting has toned down the HDR effects on the flowers and gives it a little more subtle effect so has worked out well in this example.
Sometimes it is good to have a choice as Nature doesn't always work out best for nature shots and certainly doesn't work well with faces, as you can see above, the Nature setting makes me look like a ghost and brings out a very pale glare in my skin. The People setting has handled it a lot better.
As you can see with the picture of my friends on a bench below, the people mode works out the more subtle option here too. There isn't as much colour saturation as Nature mode, which can be a shame but the setting still manages to bring out the clouds and colours nicely and doesnt ruin the people, who are often the centre point of your picture.
More examples on default Nature Mode.
The Beach
Before HDR
After HDR.
I quite like both photos as much as each other, if I had to chose in fact I might actually pick the original photo. Though I think you will agree that the HDR feature adds such a subtle yet vivid effect to the picture. There are still 3 other settings to use if you aren't completely happy.
The Shacks.
Before HDR
After HDR.
I love the way that HDR brings out the clouds in this photo. This is something you will notice happens a lot with this app. Even the nicest clouds get given a deep dark and dramatic texture. You will also notice that the wood has more of a vibrant and a rough texture which looks great. The HDR feature works so well in this example and I am very happy with this photo.
The Fountain.
The Fountain.
Before and after HDR.
The Superior Auto picture looks a little washed out, the HDR really puts some more shadow and depth back to the photo and brings it back to life. Good save Snapseed!
The Building.
Before HDR
After HDR
As you can see again, the clouds are brought out with the HDR as well as brightening up the front of the picture which removes a lot of the shadows, without much loss of colour depth. Though if you really enjoy deep blacks and sharp images HDR might not always been a good option for you.
The Beach.
The photo is probably the best example of HDR here. Nearly everything looks bolder, warmer and has better texture, especially the sand. The original picture actually looks a little washed out until Snapseed gets its hand on it. This is probably helped by the fact that we cannot see any ones faces in the picture so the Nature setting brings out everything well.
The Pier.
HDR really makes this photo much bolder and brings out the colour and fun of the seaside. The original picture in fact looks quite gloomy in comparison.
Snapseed welcomes Sweep Panorama too.
Before HDR
After HDR
Critisms:
Snapseed offers so much more than just HDR, though it is easily my favourite feature at the time being. Its one of the most exciting photography apps I have ever tried and probably one of the most used apps of any type too...and is completely free!
Though there are still one issues which I have noticed. It doesn't seem to like editing photos when stuck in 20 megapixel mode on my Xperia Z2. This will not effect most users as the Xperia Z2 is a special case, and to be fair, it doesn't really bother me that much either as you can easily stick it in to 16 megapixels.
I think if you dislike HDR then you probably wont be won over by Snapseed because their HDR, though better than others I have seen, still suffer from colour and black washing which is a very common criticism from people I have talked too. Though it is certainly an improvement from other HDR features I have seen and I think most people will be able to find a use for this.
I think the HDR feature on Snapseed is far superior than the stock HDR feature on the Sony camera. If you enjoy HDR or simply want to jazz up your pictures, then give Snapseed a try!
I highly recommend this app.
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