Thumbs up for Photoshop express on the iPhone

Over the past few days I have been experimenting with photo editing software on the iPhone. I had heard of all Instagram and PicPlz and tried them both. However, Photoshop express seems to do better for my specific use case - that of editing a photograph that I have already taken on the iPhone, without uploading the photo to another site and without relying on internet connectivity - than either Instagram and PicPlz.

PicPlz, in its current incarnation on the iPhone, does not allow editing of a photograph directly on the phone. Instagram on the other hand gives the user the option of editing without uploading - an important attribute of the app, given that it simplifies my workflow (i.e. eliminates the upload to photo-editing site step.)

However, the only editing that you can do with Instagram right now is cropping and applying pre-canned filters to your photos. In comparison Photoshop express, allows you to not only crop and apply pre-canned filters, but also to change exposure, saturation and contrast (amongst other settings) right on the phone without any uploads.

Overall, Photoshop express is a far more complete package for the serious [sic] iPhone photographer than Instagram and PicPlz. I am a little bit surprised that this neat little app has not received more press compared to Instagram and PicPlz. Perhaps I am reading the wrong press when it comes to in-phone photo-editing applications.

Note1: compare the photograph at the top, edited with Photoshop express, with the one at the bottom, edited with Instagram. Photoshop express' greater editing flexibility allows for better final images - atleast to my eyes.

Note2: You can find larger versions of both these images on Flickr.