Every time we think that the market for take-a-photo-apply-a-filter-share-it type apps is saturated and there is nothing more that can be done now that hasn’t already been done in one way or the other, an app like Etchings comes along that offers a bunch of never-before-seen filters that make us go wow. Check it out after the jump!
Etchings is a photo-editing and sharing app that lets you create, well, stunning etchings of photos on your iOS device. The procedure is very simple, and the results are pretty amazing!
When you launch the app, you’re presented with the option to load an image by taking it with your camera or loading it from your Camera Roll under the Photos app. After that, you can choose from a nice variety of filters in an Instagram-like layout; scrolling horizontally, tapping a filter to preview, and finally tapping the green tick on the top to finalize. The last screen lets you share the photos to the usual list of networks and services like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter (among others). You can even open up the finished photo in apps like Camera+ for more advanced editing options and to Dropbox for quickly pushing it to your other devices.
It’s all handled extremely well, and it was a joy seeing my photos turned into etched illustrations. This is what I love about iPhone apps; they may be one-trick ponies, but they are one-trick ponies that perform their one trick admirably well. To get this on a desktop computer, you’d have to download or purchase much more advanced and expensive software. Etchings only costs a buck.
The only downside we noticed was the lack of an option to export the edited image in its native resolution. For now, images are saved at 1200 x 1200 pixels, which is fine for sharing online but not for much else. Higher resolution exporting is planned to be included in a future update.
For some people, this may appear to be just another one of the dozen photography filter app that “ruin” photographs; this app is not made for them. They can use apps like Camera+ and Snapseed to refine their photos without making them look cartoony or excessively washed out.
If you’re the type who likes fun photos every once in a while, we highly recommend adding Etchings to your Photography folder.
Etchings supports all iOS devices running iOS 5.0 or later. It can be downloaded for $0.99 from the link below.
(Source: Etchings for iPhone and iPod touch on App Store)
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