Android Photo and Video Apps

AndroVid Video Trimmer by zeoxy (free) - Allows you to trim frames from the beginning, middle, or end of a video, and allows you to add music or effects to a video, and allows you to convert the audio to MP3, and allows you to merge multiple videos and photos into a single video, and so on.

Cymera - Selfie & Photo Editor by SK Communications (free) - Provides numerous tools and effects for editing photos (some of which are not found in the other photo editing apps on this page). Swipe left or right to scroll through each list of features. Also see Photo Editor HDR FX (below), Photo Editor by Aviary (below), and SuperPhoto (below).

F-Stop Media Gallery by Seelye Engineering (free) - After trying out a number of replacements for the stock Android Gallery app, this one is my favorite. It's very flexible, because you can view pictures by date, or you can view pictures by the folders they're in (and create new folders to move/copy pictures to), or you can create albums which contain selected pictures (the picture files will remain in their original folders), or you can view pictures based on your own tags (e.g. "family photos") that you added to the pictures, or you can view pictures based on the rating (number of stars) that you gave to the pictures, or you can view pictures that you've flagged as Favorites, or you can view pictures which are protected with a password, and so on. When viewing folders, you can exclude folders from F-Stop by long-pressing a folder and tapping "Exclude." When viewing albums, you can create a new album by tapping the "plus sign" icon at the top of the screen, then tapping "New album" or "New smart album" (a smart album will automatically be populated with pictures based on the conditions you give it, such a specific date or a specific tag). When viewing an individual picture with its path and size and ratings and tags displayed, tap the stars to give the picture a rating or tap the heart to set the picture as a Favorite.

HDR Camera by Almalence (free) - The Wikipedia article for High-dynamic-range imaging says: "High-dynamic-range imaging (HDRI or HDR) is a set of methods used in imaging and photography to capture a greater dynamic range between the lightest and darkest areas of an image than current standard digital imaging methods or photographic methods. HDR images can represent more accurately the range of intensity levels found in real scenes, from direct sunlight to faint starlight, and is often captured by way of a plurality of differently exposed pictures of the same subject matter." When you take a picture using this app, it quickly takes several pictures at different exposure settings, then it combines them into one picture which should be a more accurate representation of the image being photographed. The downside is that it takes 3 or 4 seconds for the finished picture to appear on your screen, and in the free version you can't zoom before taking a picture. Also see Photo Editor HDR FX (below).

Lapse It • Time Lapse Camera by Interactive Universe (free) - Creates time-lapse images or stop-motion videos, and allows you to upload your projects and view other people's uploaded projects.

Mashcord - Quick Camcorder by Justin Reock (free) - Launches your phone's built-in camcorder, to save time when something happens that you want to record.

Photo Editor by Aviary by Aviary, Inc. (free) - Provides numerous tools and effects for editing photos (some of which are not found in the other photo editing apps on this page). Swipe left or right to select a photo and then tap "Edit this Photo," or tap "Camera" to take a picture, or tap "Gallery" to select a picture from your gallery. On the "Photo Editor" screen, swipe left or right on the toolbar at the bottom of the screen to select a tool category (the Settings menu on the main screen allows you to change the order of the tool categories so your favorite tools are quicker to access). In each tool category, if a tool has a blue "plus sign" symbol then you'll be prompted to download that tool before you can use it. After using a tool, tap "Apply" at the top of the screen to keep the modification, or tap your phone's Back button to cancel the modification. On the "Photo Editor" screen, tap "Done" to save all your changes. Also see Cymera (above), Photo Editor HDR FX (above), and SuperPhoto (below).

Photo Editor HDR FX by Lyrebird Studio (free) - The Wikipedia article for High-dynamic-range imaging says: "High-dynamic-range imaging (HDRI or HDR) is a set of methods used in imaging and photography to capture a greater dynamic range between the lightest and darkest areas of an image than current standard digital imaging methods or photographic methods. HDR images can represent more accurately the range of intensity levels found in real scenes, from direct sunlight to faint starlight, and is often captured by way of a plurality of differently exposed pictures of the same subject matter." This app allows you to add an HDR effect (or other effects) to an existing photo. When you edit a photo, the right half of the photo is modified but the left half remains unmodified so you can see how the photo looks "before" and "after" the modification. At the top of the screen, tap "BEFORE" to see the full photo without the modification, or tap "AFTER" to see the full photo after the modification, or tap "BEFORE & AFTER" to return to the split-screen view. Tap the "X" icon to cancel the modification, or tap the "checkmark" icon to keep the modification (when you press the phone's Back button you'll be asked if you want to save the image). Also see Cymera - Camera & Photo Editor (above), HDR Camera (above), Photo Editor by Aviary (below), and SuperPhoto (below).

Photography Tutorials by Anton Gregory (free) - Contains numerous tutorials on how to take good pictures.

Reduce Photo Size by shoozhoo (free) - Reduces the size of photos, allowing you to upload or email a smaller file. Open the menu to reduce, crop, rotate, save, or share the photo.

SuperPhoto - Effects + Filters by Moonlighting SA HK (free) - Provides numerous special effects, such as turning a photo into a jigsaw puzzle or a kaleidoscope image, and so on. After selecting a photo, tap the category title at the top of the screen (e.g. "New additions," "Favorites," "Filters," etc.) and select an item in the list. Now scroll the thumbnail images up or down and tap the thumbnail for the desired effect. Also see Cymera (above), Photo Editor HDR FX (above), and Photo Editor by Aviary (above).

TouchRetouch Free by ADVA Soft (free) - Does an amazing job of removing unwanted things from photos. After you open a photo, tap the "hand" icon at the bottom of the screen, which allows you to use pinch-to-zoom to resize the picture and slide your finger around the screen to move the picture around. To remove something from the photo, tap the "brush" icon (the slider bar allows you to adjust the size of the brush). Use your finger to draw on the photo with a red brush, highlighting the object to be removed. Tap the "triangle" icon to remove the object. This works amazingly well if the object is covering a solid area (e.g. a table or floor or wall). The "lasso" icon allows you to draw an outline around the object to be removed, and the entire outlined area will be highlighted in red. The "pencil eraser" icon allows you to erase the highlighting by drawing over the highlighted area with your finger.

Wondershare Panorama by Wondershare Software Co., Ltd. (free) - Makes it easy to take a panorama photo (a wide picture). Aim your camera at the left side of the image to be captured, then tap the "camera" button at the bottom of the screen, then slowly move your phone to the right. As your phone moves to the right, the "square with an arrow" icon (just above the "camera" button) will move to the right along with your phone. The panorama picture will end when the "square with an arrow" icon reaches the right side of the rectangle that it's inside of, or you can end the panorama picture by tapping the "camera" button. Use pinch-to-zoom to enlarge the picture, then swipe your finger to move around in the picture. Swipe left or right in the dark area outside of the picture to see the other panorama pictures you've taken. The "flash" icon at the top left corner of the screen will turn your flash on or off. The "grid" icon next to the "flash" icon will show or hide a grid on your screen to help you keep the phone level as you move it from left to right. The button at the bottom right corner allows you to select an effect (e.g. black and white) to be added to the photo.

YouSpin Lite by YouSpin (free) - Allows you to create a photo which you can spin 360 degrees. You can either hold the camera in one position and take several photos as you rotate the object, or you can keep the object in one position and take several photos as you walk in a circle around the object. After the photo is saved, swipe left or right to rotate the photo.

• August 08, 2013 - New page.