Hashtag no filter! This latest update has been a long time developing but adds great features for those with newer devices
Price: $1.99 / £1.49 (Free for a limited time following release of v. 301)
Version: 301
Size: 66.1 MB
Developer: Hipstamatic, LLC
With over 4 million users and a formidable ecosystem of lenses, films and flashes, Hipstamatic has been around the block and has the photo album to prove it.
So it’s just another batch of filters? Well instead of adding a filter that someone else has designed, Hipstamatic encourages you to find your favorite bits of kit and combine them to create distinctive visual characteristics. There is also an extensive store because who doesn’t like adding new toys to their collection every now and then?
The latest update takes advantage of the bigger screens of the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus by including full resolution editing and offering 3D touch options to let you quickly access menus.
The new pro mode is much more practical and opens the app up to everyday use
When taking a photo you can either do so in classic or professional mode. Classic gives you well, the classic experience of taking a photo an old film camera; tiny viewfinder, poor framing options, awkward controls. Professional mode is more akin to a modern digital camera and an altogether better experience – providing you with an accurate manual focus control on one side and a light meter on the other.
Other big updates include the ability to change the lens, film or flash after you have shot and ‘always high quality’ image editing. In previous versions you were able to edit on a lower resolution image if your device struggled. With the huge increase in processing power in the last few years, if you are having issues editing a few pictures then you’ve got bigger problems.
You’ll soon start building your favourite kit bag full of lenses and film types
The combination of lenses such as ‘Lotus’ and ‘Jack London’ give a more accomplished and eye-popping aesthetic than you would find on other photo apps, giving a better impression that your images were created from the sum of the parts rather than just layer over the top. With an almost endless amount of combinations and new features being added, there are plenty of reasons to keep going back to Hipstamatic.
Ditch the square, you… square. With Instagram dropping the fixed aspect ratio, Hipstamatic follows suit, allowing you to share in a variety of sizes. Because choice is the spice of life. Sharing right to image heavy platforms such as Instagram and Facebook is built right into the app and you are able to see how many likes you have from within Hipstamatic itself.
Social likes are visible right from the camera roll
For the scores of dedicated fans, this newest Hipstamatic update is the best yet. When the first app was released, we were still in an era when manufacturers were scrambling to make phones smaller, but with more power and larger screens, maybe it’s finally the time that Hipstamatic framed itself as your preferred photo tool.
No wonder Hipstamatic has a loyal community, the end effects are some of the best achieved with an iPhone