Chase Jarvis Blog: The Best Camera: iPhone App + Book + Community

The Best Camera: iPhone App + Book + Community

9/22/2009 04:20:00 AM

Today I’m really pumped to share with you the results of many months of hard work, a whole lotta fun, and--in many ways--a dream come true. It’s a trifecta of projects that I’ve just launched moments ago:

Introducing:

1. Best Camera = An iPhone photo app that allows you to shoot, add creative effects, and share your images more simply and powerfully than ever before. Virtually limitless creativity, and the ability to share photos directly from Best Camera to Facebook, Twitter, via email at a new iPhone photo sharing site, www.thebestcamera.com. I’ve poured all my experience into creating this app, and I’ve partnered with my ubersmart software developer friends, Ubermind, to bring you Best Camera. Read more and/or buy it from iTunes here.

2. The Best Camera Is The One That’s With You = A book of my iPhone photography from around the world. The first of its kind. It’s both a playful celebration of mobile photography and a serious artistic endeavor. It’s the production of my ideas and the way I see the world. It’s real and it’s RAW. I hope you dig it. Learn more and/or buy it here on preorder now - should be shipping this week.

3. www.thebestcamera.com = This is the hub of this ecosystem and a new photo community. It gives you the how-to videos for the app, the nuts and bolts of the book and is the support and feedback center. But most importantly, it’s a living, breathing feed of images from around the world created with Best Camera iPhone app. From within the app share your iPhone work here at the first photo community of its kind. Buy the app, login from your iPhone and join the revolution.

That’s right--you’re getting the picture--each of these elements is tied together with that goofy-but-strangely-sticky phrase I ~~inadvertently coined~~ rallied a while back, "The Best Camera Is The One That’s With You". This is the first ecosystem--app, book, community--of its kind, and I’ve put a heckuva lot of work into creating it. I’m dying to know what you think.

A complete video tour, some informative links and a free, unlocked iPhone 3Gs after the jump... [click the 'continue reading' link below]
--

If you buy the app, book, or both and like what you see and experience, please consider doing the following things:

a. Tell your friends. Unlike my commercial photography, this is entirely a community-based endeavor and it depends on your patronage and good will to succeed. If you believe in this, please spread the word.

b. Rate the app and the book at iTunes and Amazon or wherever you purchase. Being in your favor is in large part an indicator of how good of a job I’ve done in creating this ecosystem, and it tells those who aren’t in your immediate network what you think. I want it to be fun and I want it to be good and I want it to evolve. Your feedback matters.

c. Participate in the community. Snapping photos everyday with my iPhone changed my life. I am more in touch creatively now than ever before. It’s contagious in the very best way, from professional artists to my 63-year-old mother. Take pictures and share them. It can change the world.

And here's some fun that might get your attention: On Monday Sept 28th, I’m choosing my favorite image that’s been created using Best Camera and posted to www.thebestcamera.com , and I’m giving away a brand new, unlocked iPhone 3Gs, loaded with the Best Camera app. That’s right. I look at your pictures, I like one, and then give you an unlocked iPhone 3Gs loaded with my app. Can’t wait to see your photos.

Here's a video tour of the iPhone app Best Camera:

Lastly, lots more details and behind the scenes to come this week. Until then, some helpful links:

[Buy Best Camera app via iTunes.]
[Buy The Best Camera Is The One That’s With You via Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Borders.]
[Visit www.thebestcamera.com, the hub that tells you more about the app, the book, and the community.]
[Visit the new iPhone portfolio on my website, created entirely using Best Camera.]
[Big thanks to the gentlemen of Mad Rad for their track on the video. Buy their beats on iTunes here.]
[And of course a huge thank you to my development partner Ubermind, and my book publisher Pearson/Peachpit. You guys/gals rock.]

--
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Labels: books, industry, inspiration, iPhone, videos

190 Comments:

Ilan said...: Oh, wow!!
Congrats! Too bad I don't have an iphone (yet)

Kudos on the hard work!; 4:31 AM
Rhyees Wedes said...: Chase,

Awesome!.. I remember talking to you about this in Sydney!.. Have been hanging out for this project to air!!..

Definitely going to check this out!..

Hope all is well bud!..

Rhyees; 4:34 AM
Oskar said...: Looks really nice! :); 4:35 AM
The Nothing said...: awesome man! Thanks and congrats!; 4:37 AM
Christopher said...: Hey Chase,

will there be a version for android based phones, too? That would be great :-)

Chris; 4:40 AM
Geoff said...: Looks great! Will definatly pick up a copy of the books, shame my iPod touch has no camera!; 4:44 AM
Rhyees Wedes said...: One thing i forgot to mention mate was when is the release date for the book.?

Amazon still says that it is coming soon and there is no release date.
Any chance of getting one direct from you..??

Rhyees; 4:45 AM
Jeroen Berkenbosch said...: Pretty cool app, just downloaded and tried it.

I'm missing two things though.

1) It would be great if it was possible to drag the frame around so you can choose your own 'crop' when selecting the 'square' option.
2) Please add something like the tiltshift app to create a fake DoF.; 4:46 AM
Chase Jarvis said...: To order the book, simply click "pre-order" on the Amazon page. I'm told the books are literally on a truck from indiana to the Amazon warehouse as of Monday, so it's likely that you can have them within the week if you "pre-order" (buy) now. Thanks!; 4:56 AM
AteljeDigital said...: This is superb!
I bought it right away, and it's soo amazingly good. You can really tell that a real photographer has been a big part of the development.

I can take my pictures, edit them, and upload them in one app! Good quality, good workflow, I can't find words :-)

Good work!!! I will blog this for sure. It's taking the iPhone photography way up!!!; 4:57 AM
Rhyees Wedes said...: Sweet As!..
Thanks Chase for the info!

One book shortly on its way to Sydney, Australia! :D; 5:03 AM
Anonymous said...: you are a genius chase! thanks for inspiring us always!; 5:04 AM
Simon Sticker said...: Hey Chase,
good one! Comes at the right second. I'm planning a photoworkshop in Rwanda right now for students there. Everyone has a cellphone down there and most of them with a camera, so why don't let them tell the stories they think are important and share it with the world... And not the stories that the western media is focusing on mainly, like crisis and war.
Thanx for this, gives me even more the feeling that i'm on the right track!

Simon; 5:06 AM
matt_kersley said...: This is possibly the most excited I have been over an iphone app...

I was getting sick of doing all of this in multiple apps!

awesome concept and execution!; 5:09 AM
Edward Suhadi said...: A very smart move Chase. You'll make millions. I think you will ever need to shoot jobs you don't want again :)

Again, a very smart move. Congratulations.; 5:09 AM
Pri said...: Wow chase, you are such a pioneer! Are u serious? A book and an iPhone app. That is sick!!!!
Can you imagine how many photographers lives u r changing by inspiring them to take more photos? I am speechless! Just awesome!!!!; 5:10 AM
Christian said...: I cannot believe how good the photos coming through already are. I think it will drive huge amounts of creativity everywhere. Great work!!; 5:11 AM
Johannes said...: how cool is this?
just bought the app - will give it a try soon.; 5:15 AM
bdeane said...: I Just tried to find it on ITunes and it doesn't come up?? How do you get it??; 5:18 AM
Scott R. said...: search the itunes store for Best Camera, then narrow your search to applications, and it should be the third one you see.; 5:20 AM
jkpaul said...: Hey Chase, this is great stuff - I can't wait to download it and start connecting with the community ... thanks for all the information, advice and details on your blog - you're an enabling and inspiring tog! Paul, UK; 5:20 AM
DCP said...: Chase, you're a genius. It's great to have a real photographer make a real photography app. Great Job!; 5:27 AM
Ryan said...: Good stuff. Took some rainy day shots on the way to work and the app works really well. Stackable filterw FTW; 5:42 AM
Darren Newbery said...: Simply Awesome App clearly designed with photographers in mind by a photographer! Thanks for the awesome, & inspiring work again Chase! Only 2 things i'd love to see, its been mentioned already but, more control with the crop tool, and a T/S lens effect would rock!
Cheers
Darren; 5:55 AM
Eight Espino said...: this is great... all in one combo...

if i may suggest something...

for it to have something like a "top 10 pick of chase"

would it work?; 6:06 AM
Rob said...: Great site, found it through AllMyFaves.com under Blogs.
I always welcome new info, techniques, etc.
What camera do you use for your video? Wondering if it's a web video cam like Flip or something a little more high end....
Thanks!; 6:15 AM
Scott R. said...: These videos were shot with a Panasonic HVX 200. We're also having a lot of fun shooting video with the Nikon D300s with the Rhode stereo mic piping sound into the aux in.; 6:19 AM
FOOSE said...: Hey Chase bro,
first thing first congrats on the book, app and the new site. I am so excited about all these.
love how easy you can stack filters in the app and the sharing to twitter, facebook and the new thebestcamera.com simply amazing.

I have been promoting to everyone about the idea the best camera is the one you have with you. (thanks to you) now the task becomes even easier with your new project.

you are truly the high octane fuel to my creativity. now let's share some photos.; 6:20 AM
Nick Burton said...: Wow. This is an amazing idea! I have not been able to justify the expense of an iPhone, but now...; 6:38 AM
scott neumyer said...: This app is ABSOLUTELY AWESOME! There's only 2 things I wish it had:
1) Ability to modify the STRENGTH of each filter applied. Maybe I only want a LITTLE bit of Light or Dark, etc etc... Maybe this can be done with sliders.
2) Ability to swipe to the next photo when browsing the bestcamera.com Recent or Popular photos. The way it is, you have to go back and then the recent photos refresh... Too fast sometimes.

Mind you, those things are very tiny and otherwise this is totally awesome!; 6:40 AM
Theis said...: Then you just need to do a windows mobile version for all ass people that don't like apple to control our phone.; 6:44 AM
Alex Rodriguez said...: This app is sweet, can't wait to mess with it some more.; 6:46 AM
Jeremy said...: Great project idea and at first glance well executed. I've bought the app and will have fun giving it a try.; 6:48 AM
Christian R said...: Chase, are there any plans to release the app for Windows Mobile? If not, why not?
First: You would broaden you customer base by a large extent.
Second: A Windows Mobile Marketplace is on the way with Windows Mobile 6.5. It is going to be released October 6th and it is similar to the Apple Appstore, thus you could also charge a fee for the program. I am sure there are thousands of amateur photograhpers longing for such an applicaton. Me included.; 6:51 AM
Chase Jarvis said...: @ scott n: you CAN alter the strength of each filter -- just apply it more than once, as many times as you like! who the heck needs complicated sliders to mess with your slick iPhone user interface ;); 6:55 AM
Wayne said...: So, you need an iPhone to post, and you are giving away an iPhone as a prize?

hmmm....

Would you consider porting this app over to the Palm Pre? It looks pretty cool.; 7:09 AM
Adham said...: Hey Chase, that's awesome. I love the concept :)... so true.; 7:10 AM
James Pratt said...: Uh, sorry to burst your bubble, but that phrase "the best camera is the one you have with you" has been around for over a decade that I know of, and probably longer. I don't think you will have much luck defending that trademark and it is a bit pretentious to claim that you coined the phrase, don't you think?; 7:16 AM
scott neumyer said...: @Chase good point... Sliders do just confuse the interface... What if you want LESS of a filter though? Like I want just a tiny bit of LIGHT, but not all of it? I guess you could combine LIGHT with something else... Maybe 2 LIGHTS and 1 DARK or something... I'll experiment around. Good point on the sliders though...; 7:19 AM
Chase Jarvis said...: @ wayne. HA! i'm told there are many jealous spouses, brothers, + friends out there who tell me they'd like an unlocked iphone with best camera loaded on it ;); 7:21 AM
Paul Sherar said...: chase, killin' it!
love this app, and the community. was just telling my buddy this is motivating me to delve into my creative iphone side; 7:26 AM
Will Duris said...: DUDE the best app ever... is an addiction at this point.; 7:34 AM
Ray said...: Crazy good. Can't wait to get the app.; 7:45 AM
Aaron said...: It's downloading now.

Well done Chase. I'm sure it feels really great to get an app launched.

Some iPhone Snaps here:
http://jaarongreene.com/portfolios/iphone/

Mobile Blog here:
http://m.jaarongreene.com; 7:46 AM
circlew said...: I know the iPhone is a great phone. But, some of us are not on that exclusive carrier. SO I use a Palm smart phone, the Palm Centra. How about doing a port to the PalmOS for us?; 7:49 AM
Carl-Johan Rådström said...: Awsome! Thank you Chase!; 7:49 AM
Brian Biggs said...: Hey, terrific app. Glad to have it. But regarding your "coining" the phrase about the best camera, you're crazy. Every photography teacher I ever had in high school and college used this. Don't mix up trademarking it with originating it.
Also, a glaring omission on the app is Flickr.
Otherwise, lovely.; 7:58 AM
Josh Zytkiewicz said...: @Brian Biggs You can use the e-mail sharing options to do an e-mail upload to Flickr.; 8:43 AM
Duke said...: Chase,

I'm totally stoked about this. Talking about fucking brilliant!

Cheers,

Duke; 8:43 AM
Poagao said...: I bought and installed it and then realized....no Flickr? Seriously? Please include an update, because this really makes it a lot less useful for me.; 8:46 AM
Miss U said...: Cool App and congrats!
Make one for the Palm Pre please :-); 8:52 AM
Chase said...: Man. Dude.

Chase.

Thank you.; 8:54 AM
Dov said...: EPIC! Freak'n awesome Chase. Im gonna say it again, you're my hero revolutionizing the world of photography!

What developer did you use? I've been thinking for the past yr. to create a handy app. for my high end photo event company.

dov; 9:01 AM
Chase Jarvis said...: @ dov: Ubermind is my development partner in this project. Can't say enough good things about them. Smart folks who rock.; 9:14 AM
Chase Jarvis said...: @ dov: Ubermind is my development partner in this project. Can't say enough good things about them. Smart folks who rock.; 9:14 AM
szabiakanich said...: Hey Chase,

First of all congrats on this amazing software/project! Everybody is tweeting about it and facebooking about it etc. It's awesome. I was just checking out the site and one thing that caught my attention is that there's no "next picture/previous picture" button when you're browsing someones photos. You always have to go back to their galleries and pic another photo. Wouldn't it be possible to somehow integrate a more flexible browsing experience? Or maybe have a filmstrip like view at the bottom of the current photo. I don't know. There's many ways to do it. But at this point in time you just have to go back and forth and back and forth to browse the pictures.

Thanks again for all your hard work and awesomeness! Keep it up!

Szabi; 9:19 AM
Dixon Hamby said...: Awesome Chase. Thanks for the great app. Spread the word to fellow iphoneographers.; 9:23 AM
Chase Jarvis said...: @szabi: great feedback. that feature is on our radar, as are a lot of others...just a the time/money equation for v 1.0. we'll for sure work on some server-side stuff and integrate as much feedback as we can!; 9:23 AM
Gordon said...: app sounds good. Bit of hubris in claiming to coin a pretty well worn saw in most photographic circles, but if it helps sell things I'm sure its worthwhile.

Hopefully flickr/ facebook integration will be along soon too, get it on the more popular places to share images would be great.; 9:29 AM
Glyn Dewis said...: Frickin' awesome App Chase. Dunno what else to say except this is soooo what we needed.

Just pre-ordered the book too from amazon UK http://bit.ly/168DWa

Awesome!!!

Cheers,
Glyn; 9:53 AM
Jason Lindsey said...: NICE!

Although I guess this is the beginning of the blog being commercialized. I hope it does not change the character of the blog.; 9:54 AM
dov said...: Seriously, you should host a fun workshop solely using this app. To bad you can't attach strobes to you iPhone! There's your next project ;)

-dov; 9:54 AM
Ryan Smith said...: Congratulations Chase! A very admirable project to have completed.; 9:58 AM
Gage Thompson said...: Chase,

So awesome man I just went out side and took a bunch of pictures. It preformed magnificently! Thank you!

-Gage Thompson; 10:16 AM
Nathan Black said...: It is a good app, but I am still leaving the app for certain effects/filters. The provided filters are interesting, and I assume that more filters are on the way through updates.

Compare the results from Best Camera: http://bestc.am/cZj

To what I did with a combo of photogene and CameraBag:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/thenathanblack/3884083886/

I do appreciate the quick editing and being able to see how people created an effect, but I would appreciate a little more control over editing.

That being said I am enjoying the app, I just have some feature requests.

My main complaint is actually about the sharing side of things. No flickr upload is a shame, but not being able to log into the site and edit/remove your photos is a real no-no. Also a lack of clear terms of service is dangerous. There is no clear demarcation of our rights as users or your rights/responsibilities as site owner. Without a ToS you could (not that I think you would) make a book of the photos, sell it and not give credit (or royalties) to the original posters without seeking permission.; 10:22 AM
Virginia Wind said...: 22-05-2007, 07:14 PM
thunder
Commander of the Wild Empire
march 2007
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 1,441
Re: What is the best camera?
The best camera is the one that feels 'right' to you and that you don't mind carrying with you all day. The most expensive Canon/Nikon/Fuji/Olympus in the world is a worthless piece of junk if it stays in the case at home all the time!

henrya; 10:24 AM
John Taylor said...: Very cool app! I'm a long time photographer and definitely know which is the best camera! So thanks for making this, i can hardly wait for an iPhone… and i already have a request for a feature lol! an on screen slider to adjust the intensity of any given filter… oh oh and an ND filter that you could spin around and use touch pinch etc to adjust… and and lol! Love it!; 10:30 AM
Valtteri Korpela said...: If i would have a iPhone i would get this app! but i dont. =(
will there be a nokia phone version of it? it would be cool!; 11:02 AM
pixelmixture said...: the best camera is the one you carry with you all the time....i can' agree more....this is why i dream to buy a leica M9; 11:04 AM
triplight said...: If the iPhone isn't already the Polaroid of our time, it certainly will be when Apple gets around to adding a camera to the Touch. Nice to see a pro acknowledging the value of capturing the moment, regardless of the gear used.; 11:16 AM
steve said...: "The Best Camera Is The One That’s With You" is a phrase that's almost as old as photography itself. Did you invent the rule of thirds, too?

To my mind, the app is quite good - the weird claim of ownership of this phrase only detracts from what's a pretty damn nifty tool.; 11:17 AM
Scotty D. said...: Can you be any more creative and savvy!
Cheers to you-; 11:20 AM
Daniel Solorio said...: @Steve, please don't be jealous of this guy, I think that most of us have been infected with by his passion, inspired by his encouragement to go out and create. And if you don't want to, you don't have to buy the app, or the book, or participate on the website. If the phrase is old, at least it looks that it wasn't registered, and it's fair that beacuse of the new meaning it has taken, he has credit for it. Chase congratulations for showing us that intention is the only thing needed to do great things.; 11:33 AM
Ben Hopper said...: dude cmon!! after buying 'camerabag' now this!! :P

bad chase!!! :D
£1.79 here we go.; 11:42 AM
Inspir8tion said...: Okay. I love the concept (I already have a cameraphone blog linked to my main blog), but what about the nerds? I have a G1 Android and am not planning to switch to the iphone anytime soon. Any plans to expand to the G1? I'd buy the app!; 11:52 AM
steve said...: @Daniel Solorio: Where did I come off as jealous? I bought and enjoy the app. I only commented because I believe that I might not be the only one turned off by the seemingly arrogant attempt to trademark a phrase that has been common in photography for a long time.

He can do and say whatever he wants, I was merely trying to offer helpful criticism for a guy trying to sell a nifty product that doesn't need trademarked phrases to be cool.; 12:16 PM
About Mike Carroll said...: Thanks man. You've inspired a veteran shooter to shoot more and to continue loving the art form.; 12:16 PM
kobak said...: Thebestcamera.com is cool. As soon as I saw and heard your famous “the best camera…” sentence, I started to use my phone as a camera aswell. Since then, I capture moments, earlier I just passed by. The “sad story” is, I don’t use an iPhone. Is there any way to be part of the thebestcamera.com community using an android phone? thanks.; 12:21 PM
Chase Jarvis said...: @nathan: my belief is you can get def get that styling with best camera by stacking different filters. Lay off the contrast, work in fade a bit. Stack multiple iterations of filters. It's in there.; 12:50 PM
Christoph said...: that´s a really cool app..
if i only had a iphone yet hehe
but im sure gonna buy the book :); 1:35 PM
Daniel Larsson said...: This is really great! Thanks and I hope this will be big!
Greeings from sweden.; 1:50 PM
Anonymous said...: A link to the App store should be the front most button on this page. I shouldn't have to look for it.; 1:54 PM
andrei said...: The only thing I don't like is you have to have the iPhone & the App in order to even qualify to get the iPhone & App. The rest is great.; 2:14 PM
Jeremy said...: Love it, great initiative Chase!; 2:40 PM
Anonymous said...: Chase, this is fantastic! I didn't even finish reading your post before grabbing it. I've enjoyed Camera Bag for a while now, but the sharing features on this one really make it a great app.

Thanks,
Mark D; 2:55 PM
janequigley said...: As someone who has a page and 1/2 of photo apps on my iPhone, congratulations on a really great app. I can't wait to get out tomorrow and start using it!; 3:14 PM
Harry said...: Does this strip the EXIF data out of the image after applying the effects and saving the image?; 4:09 PM
Andy said...: This is great, I'm downloading it immediately. I do have a suggestion that goes hand-in-hand with the app's community-related aspects.

What about allowing the end user to upload not only their photos, but allow them to add and share their own filters? Either by sharing particular combinations of settings, or even allowing the user to write full-blown scripts.; 4:26 PM
Mat said...: Just bought it, shot a couple of photos......can pretty well scrap about 5 other apps now..

Nice work Chase and crew..; 4:27 PM
Mike said...: Chase the app is cool, but I hate the fact that when I post a photo to Facebook, it adds a banner stating that it was edited by Best Photo. That's not cool at all. Had I known that before, I would have never bought the app.; 5:19 PM
arnold said...: Awesome, will definitely check out your app as I'm also into iPhone photography having downloaded some good iPhone photo apps. In fact I started this little project...http://www.flickr.com/photos/arnoldzafra/sets/72157621948294911/; 5:19 PM
Dimples said...: Android!

I can't get the iPhone until Apple breaks from the evil empire. :-(; 5:24 PM
Kevin said...: Fantastic buddy. You're friends at BUILD are very excited about this. We're setting up our own kudos blog post for you now. May be time to enshrine our first member in the BUILD hall of fame...; 5:24 PM
Chase Jarvis said...: @ mike: v sorry for the surprise. it was a surprise to us to, but I'm accept responsibility. this phenom is a bug that only occurs if you have captions in facebook and decide to share to facebook and thebestcamera. it wasn't intended, it was note was written by the programmer as dummy copy to be overwritten with users facebook update, and this was not discovered in testing. it is the first thing that will be addressed in our ver 1.1 THIS week.; 5:46 PM
Tom McKenzie said...: Great app! Played with it all day. I should have been working but like you said there are at least ten cool things to shoot right where your at. One thing led to another, then another, then........

Gang buster, great marketing, I have been pushing it on all my channels, Facebook, twitter, myspace.

How do you remove pics that are online?

One little thing...
Keyboards need their own little section.
:); 5:51 PM
clinch said...: Chase. You just made me buy an iPhone. I've been holding out since they came out, and your app made me crumble.

The Best Camera just cost me $3 + $200 + a 3 year data plan.; 6:41 PM
mjk_photo said...: This sounds so sick! Really want to check out your book and new app. Continue rocking the photography world bro!
All the best
-Micah
www.micahkvidt.com; 7:21 PM
Poagao said...: I just also realized that the app insists that my 16Gb 3G doesn't have enough memory to output anything over 600x800....WTF? The no-flickr thing I could deal with with other programs like pixup, but this....well, I won't be using this app until that's resolved.; 7:24 PM
scott r said...: Poagao: Thanks for the feedback. We'll be looking for ways to improve the app in timely updates. More to come.; 7:57 PM
Daniel Regueira said...: This post has been removed by the author.; 8:09 PM
Daniel Regueira said...: Chase this is an absolutely awesome app, looking forward to getting the iphone 3GS within the next few months to use it. I can't wait. Seems like an absolutely kick ass app. The only thing I'd like added would be a way to not only upload the pic to facebook, twitter and the community website but also flickr, but I know flickr has a mobile phone page where you can upload the pics so that's fine.

good job man!!; 8:20 PM
Phat Baby Photographer said...: Awesome app. I'd much prefer being able to put in my own FB comment as opposed to the default one.; 8:43 PM
Brandon said...: Need Flickr! but other than that SOO AWESOME thanks!; 9:19 PM
Marco said...: I'm liking it so far, Chase! For a next release, here're a few features that would be great to have:

1) ability to reorder the filter sets; or
2) disable/hide some that we don't normally use
3) ability to save presets.
4) ability to further tweak the crop, i.e., move the crop frame, shrink, etc (and save it!)

what's on the roadmap anyway? cheers!; 9:41 PM
J said...: Hey Chase,

Great App, love your work, but come on man, when I post to FaceBook, your title comes up with it.

Please! change that aspect of it, its just a bit too blatant for me; 11:07 PM
Chase Jarvis said...: @ Phat Baby and @J:

regarding Facebook "branding"- (I addressed once above but it seems it got mixed in with the rest of the comments...)

very sorry for the surprise. it was a surprise to us too - 100% unintentional, this phenom is a bug that we've found occurs if you put captions in facebook and decide to share to facebook and thebestcamera. you're right to be concerned. it was never intended, it was note was written by the programmer as dummy copy to be overwritten with users facebook update, and this was not discovered in testing. this is not an excuse. we should have found it. I can assure you it is the first thing that will be addressed in our ver 1.1 THIS week.; 11:52 PM
J said...: Thanks Chase,

Your a class act and appreciate your action on this.

Thanks!

Jeff; 11:58 PM
Anonymous said...: Hello Chase!
Very nice app!
We have to have this App
for the android market too!!
Greetings from Germany
Marc; 12:03 AM
Néstor said...: You ROCK Chase!; 12:20 AM
Chase Jarvis said...: @ Phat Baby @J again - just got offline with our dev partner. the bug in the code has been fixed.

because it was hard coded in the app it requires greenlight from Apple to update the code before it translates into a visible change for you - should be soon... thanks!; 12:29 AM
Andrew Woodhouse said...: Hey Chase this sounds like a great app. Might have to buy an iPhone after all!

Thanks for all your effort.; 1:43 AM
Marc Forrest said...: This is such an awesome awesome app. I just can't seem to put it down :)
I would love to see Posterous support, that way I can upload to all my sites, incding my blog, twitter, facebook & more...
Thanks again for a fantastic app :); 1:54 AM
Linda van Rosmalen said...: Big fan of yours (and fellow Seattle photog), and have been taking pics with my cell phone since I first had a camera in it (2005) unfortunately I don't have an iPhone and uploading my photos is still the same pain as uploading my DSLR photos :) Cheers! Oh and if you need someone to make you coffee or help you on a shoot, hit me up!!; 2:18 AM
Lyndon maher said...: inspiring work chasejarvis inc.

beat me to the punch - i wanna print a book as well

here is my current iphone ART

http://www.flickr.com/photos/aussiedingo/sets/72157620810584620/; 2:21 AM
TenisD said...: This iphone camera ir a modern digital LOMO hehe
It even makes me want to buy iphone.
Even i dont realy need it now.
U rock.

Probably I will just buy the book instead, for more inspiration :); 3:26 AM
Jimbo said...: It's a great idea and I like the App, but I feel like the website is still in beta. I'm getting this message a lot: "[object XMLHttpRequest]".

The photos of the hour/day etc have voting figures, but for the life of me I can't figure out how you vote for a picture, or how those pictures earned those "votes".

If I'm missing something obvious, please let me know.

I"m going to stick with it, though, and look forward to some improvements!

Jim.; 5:16 AM
Jimbo said...: It appears you can only vote via the App, not through the website. Now everything is a bit clearer. Website voting to follow soon, hopefully; 5:22 AM
Bob said...: Curious to see some stats from day one release. Number of photos uploaded, number of users etc. Would be interesting to see how fast this app is taking off. Looks like I am photog 800 something and I saw one that was in the 1200 range. Great job!; 5:28 AM
::BS Productions:: said...: There is no way to view MY photos on the website? Or a perticular photographers. I'd like to be able to search by name or something.

And some Terms of Service would be nice!!!!; 5:35 AM
::BS Productions:: said...: I see the Terms of Service on the site now, Thanks!; 6:39 AM
Beh,YC said...: Great Apps~! Purchase one myself but I face the problem where it don't have the rotate function. Hope the next version has the following in it...:); 8:10 AM
Ed said...: You are a mentalist. Love it, want it, need it. Of course an iPhone would be useful too in this case ;-); 10:03 AM
Marcus Stafford said...: This post has been removed by the author.; 10:40 AM
Marcus Stafford said...: It's a pretty cool app, but having it override my Facebook caption with your plug for "Chase Jarvis's Best Camera" every time I upload a photo is annoying. I'm hoping that is a bug... otherwise I will not be using this very much.; 10:41 AM
Anonymous said...: Lovely! Flickr? Once that's added, you've got a new customer.; 10:48 AM
scott@chasejarvis said...: Marcus:

We have discovered a bug in the app that affects Facebook in two ways.

First, if you do not write a Facebook when uploading your image via the sharing page on Best Camera, your caption says “Uploaded from Chase Jarvis’ Best Camera”. This text was created as dummy text in the development of the app and and was not intended to act as your default caption.

Second, if you do enter a caption for Facebook and then share your image to BOTH Facebook and thebestcamera.com, your Facebook caption is being replaced by the default caption. The current work around is to upload your image to thebestcamera.com and Facebook separately, thus retaining the Facebook caption you’ve entered.

We have built a 1.01 release which will correct both of these problems and is currently in the approval process at the App Store. We’ll announce as soon as the new version is available.

Thanks for your feedback.; 10:59 AM
Marcus Stafford said...: Thanks, Chase. On another note, please add functionality that allows us to specify (or at least rename) what album the app uses on Facebook. I get (and generally agree with) your whole "Best Camera" concept, but having every photo I upload from my phone labeled "Best Cam Photos" sounds a bit pretentious when people aren't familiar with your book or app.; 11:03 AM
Wind Diesel said...: This post has been removed by the author.; 12:36 PM
Wind Diesel said...: This looks like the perfect iphone camera solution.. once flickr upload is there ! - then i'll buy it !; 12:37 PM
Jake said...: Very nice app, I have been using it a lot the last couple of days. The only downfall is not having control over the opacity of the filter being applied. Sometimes it is just way too much, so I return to an app like Photogene to make edits... With that addition (maybe even with an "advanced functions" item in the settings to turn the extra features on and off) I might not need any other photo apps... but I still find myself returning to other apps pre or post Best Camera in some situations...

Thanks for creating this app though, I am sure future releases will be even better. Awesome...

Thanks; 2:02 PM
andrew said...: You have a small problem with thebestcamera.com - the charset declaration in the header is showing as PHP, from a WordPress template.; 2:13 PM
Scott Margetts said...: Flickr upload can be attained by using the email feature - each flickr account has a unique email address which you can use for uploading images.

Go to Your Account>Email and see the upload email address for your account shown there. Use this in the Email sharing tool...; 2:24 PM
Aimee Greeblemonkey said...: Downloaded it last night - very awesome. I think I mentioned to you that I own a web dev company and we do major usability ion our stuff, and I was really impressed with the way the app worked. Add the social aspect - killer!

Congrats!; 7:05 PM
Poagao said...: I would also suggest a slight weakening of the various filters so that we have greater control of the degree with multiple applications of the filters. As it is, one application is often too much and cannot be toned down.; 8:08 PM
Chris said...: Thanks for the shout out on your twitter feed and thanks for creating such a simple and creative photo app, now to just keep click that shutter! Thanks!

Chris; 2:40 AM
::BS Productions:: said...: Agreed with Poagao!

Suggestion: The filters all seem to be kinda heavy. Especially Lighten, Dark, and Contrast. Since there is NO way to minimize the effect of a filter, it would be VERY helpful to weaken their effect. Then, if we want to apply a stronger effect, we can just stack the filter on several times.

With this addition, I would be completly psyched!!!; 6:07 AM
GT animation said...: Awesome APP and talk about being getting ahead of the competition! Great Job.
Tried it last night.
I see you are already getting some suggestions and hopefully some will come to us in the near future. But I have no doughs that you are already working on them even before you had these suggestions above!
I didn't see this one, or I just skim over the comments to quick but what about Flickr?
Still Impressive how you come up with all that stuff. Photography wasn't invented for you, you where invented for photography!!; 7:55 AM
Nancy Lehrer said...: Excellent. I've been rallying the same cry to my "serious" photo friends too. My book is "2-Mega Pixels (or Less)" - all images created on an LG Shine.
http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/479479/
I look forward to studying yours.; 8:18 AM
Anonymous said...: Thanks for this app Chase. I am enjoying it much more than I thought I would. Can't wait to see what else you have in store for this app. Thanks again.; 11:12 AM
Garrey said...: I bought it and like it.
But, I am upset with the crop feature. Why is the crop function limited to just a square. I would like to make custom crops.

Garrey; 11:29 AM
John Tucker said...: Love this app, Chase! Makes using the iPhone camera a lot more fun. One thing I would like to see in an update is the ability to go landscape for easier keyboarding. Oh, yeah, and the ability to crop too (I'm using "Crop for Free" right now). Thanks for your contributions to the photography community!

John
Fort Worth, TX; 1:58 PM
3Horn said...: @Scott Margetts: Thanks for the heads up about flickr, I had no idea!

Chase: Great work, and thanks for sharing it with all of us!; 2:07 PM
marc said...: Chase, lovin' the app. Quick suggestion for the square crop, is it possible to move the square around? What happens if the square I want isn't exactly in the centre and i don't have the option to retake the photo?

Keep up the good work!; 2:13 PM
Linda said...: I'm addicted. Downloaded it as soon as it came out. The dishes are really piling up in the sink...; 2:36 PM
Will said...: Very cool app. and I love the idea of the website and the book. I looked through my photo library and almost all my photos were utilitarian - reminders and such. this app has inspired me to start thinking of using my iphone for actual artistic purposes.

Here are the things I would like to see in an the next version.

As has been mentioned before some of the filters are quite strong. Given how easy it is to stack filters I would like to see them less strong to begin with, or maybe you could add a filter that cuts the intensity of the previous filter in half.

flickr support would be great.

Crop control would be cool too.

Ideas for new filters:
cross process
bleach bypass
Infared
ND grad

Nice work!; 3:01 PM
Lola said...: love the app, but i guess i'm confused about the "community" site. i can't log in and actually DO anything. so, it's not feeling much like a community to me. just a bit confused...; 3:25 PM
BWarman said...: Agree with @Will about a few ideas for new/other filters, especially bleach bypass. I love that effect. A lomo effect would be great also.

Also, would it be possible to remove the "Book" button in the gallery? It looks like it's a feature but all it really is is an advertisement. Most apps have an "About" section or something like that. It would be more suited there.

Great start though!; 3:26 PM
Stephen Faust said...: Loved it when I first used it, but then.... all my photos are labeled with 'Photo taken with Chase Jarvis best camera' or something similar, as well as creating an album on my Facebook account with a similar name. Why? Can't I use something more meaningful to me, rather than the 'developer'! Thank goodness Canon, Nikon, etc, don't follow suit!!

I really wanted to keep it and use it, but this issue make more work for me having to get on the upload sites and fix the album names and captions. So it ends up as far more work that I had in the past.

So the apps is now sitting on the last app page on my iPhone hoping I'll see an update fixing this so I can start using it again. Disappointing for such a nice app in other regards.

Please make the upload album and caption user settable with a user defined default, and a why to over ride that prior to upload. It would definitely take my rating from a 3 to a 4 or 5. As is, I just stopped using it.; 9:05 PM
Chase Jarvis said...: @ stephen: really sorry man. if you read extensively in the comments above, what you're experiencing is a bug. and we missed it in testing we fixed the bug and resubmitted the new code to apple for approval inside of 24 hours of launching the app. please hold tight, should be approved and fixed very shortly. thanks.; 11:36 PM
Kurtis said...: Perhaps in the next version we can get, I dunno... Full frame sensor, f/1.4 lenses of alternate focal lengths, maybe image stabilization? Okay maybe the IS can e left for version 3. ;)

Great work, Chase and Ubermind and Scott and whoever else had a hand in this. Really nice to be able to replace multiple mediocre apps with one solid one. You know you have something special when everyone says "why didn't I think of that...?"

By the way what was your process for printing the iPhone images for the book and how big are they printed? My iPhone images look like crap printed on my large format printer even if I print them pretty small.; 12:01 AM
IAN AITKEN said...: man Chase you are on the case, you are already featured on apple hot tips, http://www.loopinsight.com/2009/09/23/ten-apps-for-taking-photos-and-editing-images-on-the-iphone/; 2:43 AM
Romescu said...: One more bug: cannot login to twiter account no matter what!!! And Twitter doesn't ask for e-mail as username, but only a username!
Great app Chase, congrats!!! Fantastic work and achievement!!! Hope all the bugs fix on next update!
Greetings from Romania!
Romeo; 3:15 AM
Stephen Faust said...: @Chase, just caught the fact its a bug and not a feature on the best camera page. That's good to know, and its back on my first apps page! Wish I had the time to read all the comments here and catch it before I posted. Looking forward to the update. Thanks.; 6:34 AM
Marcus Stafford said...: Well, I've seen that the auto-caption on Facebook is a bug, but I haven't seen the album title issue addressed.

Come on, let us specify the album for uploads (or at least specify the title of the album that Best Camera creates.) Otherwise this app is of limited usefulness.; 7:37 AM
Anonymous said...: Those that profited the most from the gold rush of 1949 were those that sold picks and shovels. Photography as a profession is going through a very tough era no matter how you look at it. This some neat selling by Chase, but keep in mind that you're buying a shovel and it's unlikely to get you gold.; 8:39 AM
Demetrius Freeman said...: Does the book come with an Iphone? jk! Cool App!; 9:52 AM
Jim said...: Cool app. tnx; 10:05 AM
Anonymous said...: Guys, please, you just have to ask. Why is Chase selling to photographers who are struggling so badly? And in fact encouraging you to run around shooting with an iPhone which has a toy camera. It amounts to wasting YOUR time while making dough off it. The lovefest here is bewildering. Ask yourself how doing this is putting food on your table or just a distraction.; 9:20 PM
Anonymous said...: To the Anonymous ones at teh bottom of the page...yoiu are just sore you didn't think of it first.

I'd GLADLY trade my Nikons for a "toy camera" if I could have an eye like Chase's.

It's the eye, not the camera.

Although I refuse to drink the apple-flavored kool-aid, good job Chase!; 11:08 PM
AlexH said...: Hhmmm, maybe I should upgrade my phone. I don't think my current thing even takes pictures!; 4:36 AM
luminocityphotography said...: Cool idea, but you have to have an iPhone to get an iPhone???????

Uhm, that doesn't make sense. I guess you could re-gift. Okay I get it.

On the other hand this goes in my pro column for getting an iPhone.

Will check out the book as soon as I can get my hands on it.; 9:00 AM
ines said...: just downloaded the app - would love to see other sharing platforms added - how about flickr? posterous?pikchur? your photo platforms are missing or the ability to upload directly to your WP blog (many have photoblogs)

Will check back with you as I use it; 7:31 AM
JimDoss said...: Cool looking app, but won't be a buyer until all the branding is removed.; 9:08 PM
Chase Jarvis said...: @ jimdoss

Yes, there is bug that adds dummy text 'uploaded from Chase Jarvis' to some facebook postings. It is a bug, was not intended, and is well documented on our FAQ section of www.thebestcamera.com. There are a couple options for very simple work arounds. Within 24 hours of launch we submitted updated code to apple for approval, and we expect that approval soon.

In the meantime, I'm hoping for the members of this community to support us by using and enjoying the app- especially given the super easy work arounds- and actually spreading the correct information about the bug.

I've worked hard to spread good, free information in this community for many years, and I'm hoping some good folks will get our backs on this one. Thanks!; 8:42 AM
Erlenmeyer Photography is Sharon & Caleb Erlenmeyer said...: I'm pretty sure I just read an article in the AAA magazine about you using your Iphone to photograph everything beginning with bacon and eggs etc...then i read about your new app on a blog clicked over to your blog and noticed ther best phrase/advice a photographer ever had-the best camera is the one that is with you-brilliant. My husband and I have been photographing for two years now and the last two weddings I was a bridesmaid while he was photographing with both our cameras. That can make for one anxious bridesmaid (though glad I could be a part of someones special day in anyway) However this past Saturdays wedding had us wearing dresses with pockets (ingenious!) I had a blast fulfilling my photographic desires with another bridesmaid running around in 4 inch heels photographing the bride and grooms rings(that we had confiscated ;-) in different locations all over the farm they were married at-because (thanks to our pocketed frocks)the best camera is the one that's with you-and a small reason why I got an iphone in the first place-SLR's just don't fit in your back pocket as well! I can't wait to download your new app!; 2:23 PM
Bill Draven said...: Love the app but need a couple more features.

1. Capture long/lat data in EXIF when taking pictures.
2. Allow for edit of title/caption so I can send to Picasa/Blogger as a complete post with appropriate data.

Keep up the good work.; 5:32 PM
Jonthan said...: Was just about to buy... but then realized no flickr integration. I know you can email, but full integration would be nice. Then I'm definitely a paying customer.

Thanks!; 7:41 PM
André Weigel said...: "The dirty secret of photography is... you take lot of pictures !"

You're right !
;-); 8:13 AM
Photographer: Brenda Angel Read said...: Amen! "The best camera is the one that is with you." Just last night we went to a small Mexican restaurant in Angleton, Tx and The great Nolan Ryan was setting at a table next to us. I was not able to get a photo of my 11 year son with Nolan Ryan. :(

Keep up the great work!
Brenda Read; 10:49 AM
Marcus Stafford said...: Hmmm... just got the updated version and was looking back through my email notifications on this thread. It looks like a couple of critical comments have been removed. I hope that isn't the case. Since this is an app that depends upon social media, I'd hope that Chase would understand the importance of not filtering non-obscene comments, be they good or bad.

The app seems to be headed the right direction, though, so hopefully the next version will fix the last couple of glaring issues.; 11:20 AM
ATougasTest said...: Five words:
IT IS GREAT!
and
FLICKR PLEASE!; 9:55 AM
Clay said...: I know I'll get killed for asking this, but is there ANY chance that this app could be developed to work with my blackberrry? No chance of getting an iphone right now but would love to purchase this app! Thanks!; 7:13 AM
Annalynn said...: Awesome! Can you create an app for Android too, please?; 2:39 PM
Anonymous said...: Hey! Please check out out 100 mile iPhone Photoscape: http://stream.tellart.com/2009/10/13/the-100-mile-photoscape/#more-322; 8:25 AM
Anonymous said...: Please, make an Android version, some of us are stuck with Verizon.; 1:16 PM
Migs Cabral said...: are there plans of making this available for Android? :); 1:12 AM
Victor said...: Ahhh I remember you taking that chair / lounge photo in Sydney @ the meetup!

Waiting to see if this comes out on Android before I choose my next phone ;).; 10:44 PM
jeux psp said...: That's grate foe me!
I just got new iPhone 3GS as a gift. I think i found this site at right. I was looking exactly this kind stuff since a few days. I am glad that now i access book on my iPhone. I will surely follow your article and will post feedback again.; 10:52 PM
Blake said...: Great App.

Gave you some props here:

http://nola.humidbeings.com/posts/detail/57443/Experimenting-with-a-new-iphone-app-Best-Camera; 11:09 AM
Anonymous said...: Hey - for those of you on Windows Mobile, Adobe recently launched a great version of Photoshop for Windows devices, and it's free :)

http://mobile.photoshop.com/

They make a great version for the iPhone too:

http://mobile.photoshop.com/iphone/; 12:54 AM
Chris said...: Kind of disappointing...Whenever I try to upload to Facebook, the application terminates and won't upload. Very limited responses from tech support--Once they "troublshooted" the problem (told me to reboot/reinstall) they have not responded to my repeated requests for assistance...Buyer beware!; 2:07 PM
Chase Jarvis said...: @ chris: only time we see anything like this that an uninstall/reinstall didn't fix its one of two things.
1. facebook is having hiccups (which it regularly does)
2. your facebook login is incorrect.

email direct to info@ chase jarvis dot com if you're still having probs and we'll get on it.; 2:17 PM
Chase Jarvis said...: @ chris: only time we see anything like this that an uninstall/reinstall didn't fix its one of two things.
1. facebook is having hiccups (which it regularly does)
2. your facebook login is incorrect.

email direct to info@ chase jarvis dot com if you're still having probs and we'll get on it.; 2:17 PM
Chris said...: @chase jarvis The password is correct because I don't get the "invalid username/password" error and unless Facebook has been down for the last three weeks that is probably not the issue, either. I did forward you the email chain (which has been ignored by your support staff for the last two and a half weeks despite two requests for assistance).; 6:38 PM
Sheila said...: Just grabbed this app today. :) I'm really liking it.; 5:18 PM
holly said...: i like this; 4:22 AM
katakan said...: This is excited I have been over an iphone app..; 4:27 AM
Ben R said...: Hi I've been using the app for a couple months and I've slowly fallen in love with it. I do not have an iPhone (and mobile phones are low on the expenditure priority list in our household!) so I use a somewhat irksome and circuitious route: take photo on my mobile phone (windows mobile HTC phone, btw), email photo to my gmail from the mobile phone, pickup the email on my iPod Touch, download the photo to the iPod's "saved photos". Then it's loaded up in the Best Camera and the fun starts with the filters. The sharing works well to Twitter and Facebook and bestcamera.com.

I've a few suggestions:

- Workflow-related: (1) Important to have rotate option and crop control, (2) Nice to have selective defocus and selective desaturation. (3) Geo-tagging (I've not explored this as using it on my HTC phone in the first place seems a nightmare). (4) Agree with others that filter strength control would be nice (could be stepped, like "Jewel 60%" for example). (5) Generally making the process more smooth and less steps for non-iPhone users would be fantastic. After all, it's not about what camera we're using, yeah?

- Sharing-related: (1) am I missing an option to add a title/caption to the photo when uploading to bestcamera.com? Captions seem available and work well for Twitter, Facebook uploads and often the caption/title chosen helps to give context to the shot (for mine, at least). (2) Is it possible to add a description/free text/blurb against everyone's photographer page on bestcamera.com? For some reason I feel I'd like to state/explain/confess that my pics are not coming from an iPhone (it's not an anti-Apple thing; truth be told,I love my iPod). Don't know why I feel I want to do that (ie add a blurb) but anyway.

Well that's about all. I'm really enjoying using the Best Camera program and wanted to say thank you to you all for making it. It really has changed the way I use my phone camera and my iPod! I just wish I could be involved (professionally) in something so creative and artistic like this. One day maybe. Hopefully.

Cheers, Ben; 6:52 AM
Josh said...: Please, please, please, make an Android version!!!!
I had this app on my iPhone and used it more than all my other apps!
I love it.... but had to swap to Verizon for better coverage in my area. I miss this app so much I bought an ipod touch just to still have it. But it stinks without the camera built in. I have the stood ERIS now, and would love to see this app for Android.

Thanks,
Josh.; 3:44 PM
Scott said...: Chase, I will buy the book and the app if you can get your programmers to port it over to Android.; 9:53 PM