Fun With Phoneography {Brought to You by Martine Ellis of iMake}

It sounds cheesy, but one of the best aspects of blogging is getting to connect with incredibly talented and inspirational people. Martine of iMake is one of those such people. I am insanely jealous of her knitting skills, culinary know-how, and {let’s be honest here:} British accent. Enjoy Martine’s tips on documenting life in a beautiful fashion using only your mobile phone; and her knowledge on photography apps, phoneography websites to visit, and photo sharing websites! Without prattling on further, I will hand you over to Martine:

Once upon a time (not THAT long ago!) one of the most important items on a traveler’s packing list would have been a camera, along with rolls, and rolls, of camera film. Due to a lack of handbag space, girly nights out or special birthday parties would often be captured on disposable cameras.

Back then using a camera to document an important event was a dangerous business. What if you didn’t get any decent shots? What if you lost a roll of film? Those precious memories could so easily be destroyed. Even though that trip to the chemist to pick up your developed photographs was exciting, it was always tinged with anxiety.

How times have changed. Today it’s easy to document and share your important (and not so important) life experiences with anyone you choose. In fact, you don’t even need a camera…

Phoneography

Phoneography, or the Apple version, iPhoneography, is the art of shooting, processing and sharing photographs with a mobile phone.

The image quality and resolution achievable with a camera phone has improved dramatically and this, combined with the availability of hundreds of photography applications (known as ‘apps’), has seen the phoneography trend grow rapidly. Even professional photographers, who generally weren’t early adopters of phoneography, appear to be embracing its potential.

Phoneography has a number of advantages over regular photography. A mobile phone takes up considerably less room than a DSLR camera, lenses, tripod and other photography equipment. Also, photographs can be shared at the touch of a button with social networks, including photography-specific websites such as Flickr and Photobucket. Photography apps enable users to edit their photographs extensively and apply a wide variety of filters and frames. So your snaps aren’t just easy to share; they look good too!

Die-hard photography fans might argue that phoneography (in particular, apps such as Instagram) is the death of real photography. I disagree. Phoneography and apps are just additional tools for the hobbyist, and professional, photographer. What is the point of taking a beautiful photograph, capturing everything that was special about your particular experience, if nobody else sees it? Through phoneography, apps and social media, you can share beautiful life experiences, in real-time, with whomever you like.

Recommended Photography Apps

• Instagram (Apple and Android)
• Camera+ (Apple)
• Beautiful Mess (Apple, coming soon for Android) – available on the iTunes store

Great Phoneography Websites

• iPhoneography
• Life in LoFi

Photo Sharing Websites

• Flickr
• Photobucket

About Martine

Martine is the writer behind popular craft blog imake.gg, where she features regular iPhoneography posts (aka iMakeography) and she is the voice of the iMake podcast. Martine is imakeguernsey on Instagram – you can check out her iPhoneography there too.