What is SpinWarp?
It is an iPhone photography app for creative photo image manipulation. The results can be reminiscent of a kaleidoscope, but can go far beyond that. Not only does it offer a variety of settings that create literally millions of variations, but you can cascade effects to open up billions of possibilites. Despite this power, it is easy to use. A thumbnail image immediately shows results, so you can quickly play with different variations to discover wonderful creations.
Check out these example images or see some user creations here!
Share your own SpinWarp creations on Flickr
Available on the App Store.
Getting Started with SpinWarp
One of the best ways to learn to use this app is to simply play with the controls. A thumbnail version of the image you are working with appears in the top left corner of the screen. Every time you change a control, the thumbnail shows the effect of that change. When you run the app for the first time, a pre-set image is supplied. You can replace this image with one of your own by using the camera or "Load" buttons on the toolbar at the bottom of the screen. "Snap" uses the iPhone camera to capture an image, and "Load" lets you select an image from your photo album. You can tap the "Enlarge" button to see a full screen version of your current work (and save it to your album if you wish).
Check out these example images or see some user creations here!
Share your own SpinWarp creations on Flickr
Available on the App Store.
Getting Started with SpinWarp
One of the best ways to learn to use this app is to simply play with the controls. A thumbnail version of the image you are working with appears in the top left corner of the screen. Every time you change a control, the thumbnail shows the effect of that change. When you run the app for the first time, a pre-set image is supplied. You can replace this image with one of your own by using the camera or "Load" buttons on the toolbar at the bottom of the screen. "Snap" uses the iPhone camera to capture an image, and "Load" lets you select an image from your photo album. You can tap the "Enlarge" button to see a full screen version of your current work (and save it to your album if you wish).
With the one exception of the "Recycle" button (that shows a box with an arrow pointing back to itself) all of the effects are reversible. That is, you can return the controls to a previous setting, and the image will go back to the way it was with that setting. Note also that the app uses its own copy of your original source image, so you will not change any image that is already in your album.
Coordinate Selector Buttons - SpinWarp converts normal rectangular pixel coordinates into polar coordinates as the first step in working its magic. The group of four polar grid buttons (in the top right corner of the screen) let you select one of four alternative polar conversions. If this makes no sense to you, don't worry -- just play with the buttons to gain intuition about their effects.
Picker Wheels - these select the mathematical operations that create various image effects. These settings work in combination with each other, so that each combination of wheel positions produces a different result. Since language that would describe each and every effect in a word or two does not exist, we have resorted to using pictograms to represent them. As you experiment with different settings, you will gain a feel for what different settings do. Note that there are two clusters of repeated icon types. That is, the icons on each of the left three wheels are repeated on a corresponding wheel in the three right hand wheels. That is because the left wheels affect the radial coordinate, and the right wheels affect the angular coordinate. In other words, corresponding wheels on the left and right sides select the same operations, but apply them to different coordinates. Briefly, each of the three wheel types do the following things:
Random Button - this button (on the toolbar at the bottom of the screen) randomly sets the picker wheels and coordinate selector buttons (and the preview image is updated accordingly). It is a great way to quickly explore different effects.
Recycle Button - replaces SpinWarp's copy of the original image with the result of applying the current settings. Because this works on the full sized original image, this operation can take several seconds to finish, depending on the image size. When it completes, you will usually see the thumbnail image change -- because the current settings are now being applied to the previously warped image. This allows you to "stack" or "cascade" a whole series of manipulations, providing the possibility of a nearly endless variety of effects.
Coordinate Selector Buttons - SpinWarp converts normal rectangular pixel coordinates into polar coordinates as the first step in working its magic. The group of four polar grid buttons (in the top right corner of the screen) let you select one of four alternative polar conversions. If this makes no sense to you, don't worry -- just play with the buttons to gain intuition about their effects.
Picker Wheels - these select the mathematical operations that create various image effects. These settings work in combination with each other, so that each combination of wheel positions produces a different result. Since language that would describe each and every effect in a word or two does not exist, we have resorted to using pictograms to represent them. As you experiment with different settings, you will gain a feel for what different settings do. Note that there are two clusters of repeated icon types. That is, the icons on each of the left three wheels are repeated on a corresponding wheel in the three right hand wheels. That is because the left wheels affect the radial coordinate, and the right wheels affect the angular coordinate. In other words, corresponding wheels on the left and right sides select the same operations, but apply them to different coordinates. Briefly, each of the three wheel types do the following things:
- left wheels -- choose combinations of coordinate directions and edge effects. In the pictograms, a arrowhead pointing up indicates the "normal" direction is used; pointing down indicates the reverse direction. Sideways arrowheads pointing in opposite directions indicate that images are extended at the edges by reflection; pointing in the same direction means that edges "wrap around" to the opposite edge.
- middle wheels - these select how the affected coordinate is warped by stretching or shrinking the image in various ways. Mathematically, the warping is a function of both coordinates, and the icons are actually color-coded maps of these different functions.
- right wheels - these control how many times the image is duplicated before it is warped.
Random Button - this button (on the toolbar at the bottom of the screen) randomly sets the picker wheels and coordinate selector buttons (and the preview image is updated accordingly). It is a great way to quickly explore different effects.
Recycle Button - replaces SpinWarp's copy of the original image with the result of applying the current settings. Because this works on the full sized original image, this operation can take several seconds to finish, depending on the image size. When it completes, you will usually see the thumbnail image change -- because the current settings are now being applied to the previously warped image. This allows you to "stack" or "cascade" a whole series of manipulations, providing the possibility of a nearly endless variety of effects.
Export Screen
This screen (accessed by tapping the "Export" button on the main screen toolbar) lets you see your current manipulation in more detail, and optionally export it from the app. Tap "Unwarp" in the toolbar to see the original image. Tap the same button again to go back to viewing the warped image. If you like what you see, tap the "Album" button to save the warped image in your photo album. Or tap "Mail a Card" to create a physical postcard and have it mailed anywhere using the Popcarte service. The "done" button returns you to the main screen.
Have Fun!
So now you should be more than ready to try things yourself. SpinWarp can transform the most mundane images into dazzling abstract patterns. In fact, the best results can come from a very simple source image. So have fun playing with your photos!
Have Fun!
So now you should be more than ready to try things yourself. SpinWarp can transform the most mundane images into dazzling abstract patterns. In fact, the best results can come from a very simple source image. So have fun playing with your photos!