Create Works of Art with JixiPix Apps (Pt. 2) – PadGadget iPad Photography Series
Part of PadGadget’s continuing series Become An Expert With PadGadget’s iPad Photography Series.
As I mentioned in part one of my series on Jixipix’s set of photo enhancement applications, sometimes an app that completes one function exceptionally well is better than an app that does several functions moderately well.
This second set of apps from JixiPix is the Artista series, designed to help you turn ordinary photos into art.
These apps are only for applying filters, and do not have tools for rotating, cropping, and resizing. You will need another photo editing app for those features. However, these filter apps are perfectly done and provide professional level effects to add to your photos. Each one of these apps comes with multiple presets, as well as the ability to save your own. They also export in high resolution mode to produce beautiful, printable works of art. In these examples, the original is on the right, while the images produced by the apps are on the left.
PhotoArtistaHD – Sketch
Photo Artista Sketch converts your photo into a carefully constructed sketch with soft, wispy lines and delicate shading for a realistic rendered drawing. With the right photo and proper settings, Artista Sketch can closely imitate hand-drawn artwork. Sketch worked really well for my photos, especially portraits and landscapes. It is better to use photos with strong outlines, but with adjustments, I was able to create beautiful sketches of all of the photos that I tried. There are 27 presets, and each can be adjusted for outline accuracy, outline strength, shade variation, shadow strength, and pencil color. In addition, there are 30 papers, and endless possibilities for great looking photos.
PhotoArtistaHD – Oil
Photo Artista Oil converts your photo into a beautifully rendered oil painting in just a few simple steps. Your photo can be changed into several different styles, from highly realistic to less realistic and Artista Oil allows you to fine tune texture, brush size, stroke variation, color shift, color tone, canvas texture, and canvas color. You can also add artistic edges and special lighting effects. There are 40 presets, and adjustments for brush shape and size, bristle depth, stroke variation, tone, light, and color shift. There are also multiple borders to select, and the canvas texture can be altered. Using Artista Oil was completely effortless, and no matter what I put in and what settings I selected, the outcome was very much like an actual oil painting. I couldn’t make a bad looking picture even when I tried.
PhotoArtistaHD – Haiku
Photo Artista Haiku allows you to combine several artistic techniques to create a unique painting that captures the hidden meaning within your photos. Using the colors from your photo, Artista Haiku blends watercolor shapes, india ink, and aged and stained paper for a look that can’t be replicated in any other app. There are 16 presets, more adjustments than I can mention, and 54 gorgeous paper types. This app was the most difficult to use and took the most adjustment. I didn’t have a lot of luck with landscapes without a lot of detail, such as beach scenes, but it was excellent for portraits and close-up shots.
All of these apps made for some very unique photo alterations, and I don’t hesitate to recommend them if you’re looking for something different. My only complaint is that there’s no undo button, which would be hugely useful. Of course, these apps would also benefit from a few minor enhancements, such as crop and resize, but as is, they’re a lot of fun for experimenting and creating unique looking photos that not everyone will have. Make sure to check out the first set of JixiPix apps in part one for even more filters.
