Category: Photography Page 23 of 24

When it comes to the year’s best gadgets, you know we’ve got the real deal on the must-haves to make your life easier—and add a bit more fun in some unexpected ways (hello, photo sharing gadgets).

We may not have flying cars or personal jet packs just yet, but we do have the down-low on playful, memorable items that top our must-have wish lists from 2015.

Best Gadgets of 2015

Flower Power — Having a plant is easy: it’s remembering to water them that’s hard. Worry no more with the H20 Smart Pot. This nifty gadget attaches to a water bottle. Then, it accesses a database containing a staggering list of 7,000 plants. It will then provide the perfect amount of water for your rooted darling. In fact, the H20 Smart Pot monitors four basic aspects of plant health (temperature, sunlight, water, fertilizer), and will send you an alert when your plant needs a little extra TLC.

Breville Grind Control — Single cup or whole pot, the Breville Grind Control turns a cup of coffee into something more. It begins with the air-tight burr grinder that evenly grinds fresh coffee beans whenever you need them, keeping those essential oils in and staleness out. Aligning with SCAA (Speciality Coffee Association of America) standards with its 200 degree temperature ensures the perfectly fresh coffee you never thought you could have at home. Whether it’s poured into a carafe or on-the-go, Breville Grind Control makes tasty coffee, period. Bonus: the brushed steel base is a cinch to clean and flatters any decor.

Nixplay WiFi Cloud Frames — Share the fun! Keep friends and family close with Nixplay WiFi Cloud Frames, the best photo sharing gadgets you can find (we won’t lie!). Easily upload new images via smartphone or computer for family and friends to enjoy without any hassle. The smart motion sensor plays images for you, not the dog. You have choices. Not only does it connect to all of the social networks, but you can email photos, or use the Nixplay Mobile App for iPhone and Android. Enjoy the fun of constantly updated photos with Nixplay Seed Frames or Nixplay Edge Frames. Hint: it makes a great gift, too!

NIX Digital Frames — Dusty photo albums and static photo frames are a thing of the past when you have the innovative NIX Digital Frames. You can finally put those images to good use! It’s a smart way to update your home décor in a more personal way while highlighting those special moments. We love a gadget that does double duty (though we could be a little biased). The USB Drive/SD/SDHC Card Ports provide plenty of uploading options. Whether you use it at work or at home, you can remember the fun anytime, anywhere with NIX Digital Frames.

Gadgets for Your Home

As you can see, 2015 brought with it some amazing advances in the form of playful, neat gadgets to fit any home. We are sure that 2016 will be even better!

Make sure to stay on top of all the photo-sharing fun by liking Nixplay on Facebook, following us on Twitter, and reading more exciting news on our blog. We always share the latest news, special deals, and useful tips.

Beatrice Bisais

Bea is Nixplay’s Social Media Manager. She enjoys drinking coffee, reading about wars, and writing stories. Send her a message at beatrice.bisais@nixplay.com.

“Have you packed the camera?” must be one of those things that’s always asked when people are getting ready for some traveling. But more often than not, that’s as much considerations as people give to what or how they want to take photos whilst away on a trip. Here are a few travel photography tips to help you come home with something you’re proud of.

1. Check your gear
It’s a frustrating situation to be in when you are missing that vital bit of kit. Arguably, the most common thing to be lacking in is storage. So make sure you transfer those old photos off your memory card or phone and give yourself plenty of chance to be snap happy. If you’re taking a power hungry camera then consider extra batteries, it’s always a worthwhile investment in my opinion (eBay can be a good source for some third party batteries at little cost).

2. Landscape, street or something else?
Think about where you are going and what scenes you’re likely to encounter. A trip to New York might lead to lots of street photography, most cameras will work well for this style (for the geeks of you out there…something offering you a focal length of 35mm-50mm will be perfect). If you’re off to somewhere like Iceland or Canada then something capable of wide-angle shots will be essential. It must be said that wide-angle shots are extremely versatile, so try working on those wider shots and you’ll find it useful for future travel photos.

3. Get to the right place, at the right time

Do a little research into sunrise and sunset times so that you can capture those golden moments. If you’re on a city break try and see if there are any local markets or events going on during your visit. You might only visit these places once, so make sure you don’t miss out on any once in a lifetime moments.

4. Give it a quick tweak
One of my aims when taking photos is to give the photo viewer a sense of what it was like to view the scene with my own eyes. Sometimes your photo might not come out just how you remember it, so go ahead and bring it back to life in the digital darkroom. Try out a few simple editing softwares, if you’re a phone shooter then go for Adobe Photoshop Express or Flickr (it’s had an amazing update recently). If you’re more adventurous then go for Adobe Lightroom, it’s a wonderful tool for any photographer.

5. Don’t get obsessed by “getting the shot” and enjoy your surroundings
Above all, enjoy your trip! There have been many a time where I’ve not looked up from the viewfinder enough and enjoyed my surroundings. You’ll enjoy those photos more if you have fond memories attached to them, so make sure you have a good time and know when to put the camera down.

There it is: five quick tips to capture great travel photographs for your Cloud Frame. We hope these tips will help you proudly display amazing photos on your frame! Enjoy exploring and clicking away!

Beatrice Bisais

Bea is Nixplay’s Social Media Manager. She enjoys drinking coffee, reading about wars, and writing stories. Send her a message at beatrice.bisais@nixplay.com.

The camera on your phone is as important a feature as anything. Many of us use our phones as cameras more often than we use our phones as… well, a phone.

Here’s a look at some of the best cell phone cameras around to help you find the one that’s right for you.

iPhone 6S Plus

Though many don’t like the size of the phone, the camera on the new iPhone 6S Plus is second to none. It shoots at 12 megapixels, which isn’t the highest resolution out there, but it’s going to do the trick for most any need.

Combine that with a five megapixel selfie camera and the ability to take 4K video, and it’s starting to look like one of the best options out there.

One feature that sets it ahead of the competition is Live Photo, which snaps photos just before and after the photo you’re taking to give you a couple of options to choose from. Photos ruined by a blink are a thing of the past.

Additionally, it recognizes faces to autofocus the camera, allows you to control the exposure quickly and easily, has a timer mode to get that selfie just right and a retina flash to help you get the lighting just right.

Google Nexus 6P

The resolution here is top-notch. It comes in at 12.3 megapixels with an impressive eight megapixels on the selfie camera.

Compare photos from other cameras to the Google Nexus 6P and you’ll notice right away how sharp and vibrant the photos are. It may be better than any other cell phone camera in low light situations as well. The camera is virtually identical to what you get with the Google Nexus 5X, but you’ll get that little extra boost in low light shots.

Like the iPhone, it grabs 4K video and also allows for HD video on the front camera as well. Some don’t love the overall design of the phone, but it’s hard to beat its camera.

HTC Desire Eye

This is a great cell phone camera for the selfie enthusiast. The HTC Desire Eye recognizes that selfies are just as important as the photos taken with the back camera.

With that in mind, this camera takes 13 megapixel shots on both sides with dual LED flashes. It also comes equipped with “selfie tools” to help you do those quick touch-ups before launching your glamour shot out into the world.

Samsung Galaxy S6 Active

The regular Galaxy 6S has a great camera, but the Galaxy S6 Active gives you a nearly indestructible shell that will allow you to take your pocket photography on the road without too many worries about destroying that phone.

It also can withstand being underwater up to 30 minutes, allowing you to do photos underwater, using the physical buttons as triggers, something you aren’t going to find anywhere else.

The resolution is stepped up a bit from the other cameras as well, with 16 megapixels in the back. The front camera is five megapixels, which will get the job done, but has the added bonus of a 120 degree wide-angle lens on the front, allowing you to get everyone you know in your selfies.

Once you find the cell phone camera that’s right for you, don’t forget to take advantage of those great shots, displaying them beautifully. That’s where the Nixplay WiFi Cloud Frames can come in handy.

Send photos from your smartphone to a Nixplay Frame and put all of your favorite photos into action.

Need to get old photos that aren’t on your phone into a frame in your house? The NIX  Digital Frame can import photos from any memory stick or SD Card. Now you’re really getting the most out of your photos.

Need more tips to capture great photos? Check out our tips for photography while you’re traveling to get the most out of your new cell phone camera while you’re on the road.

Beatrice Bisais

Bea is Nixplay’s Social Media Manager. She enjoys drinking coffee, reading about wars, and writing stories. Send her a message at beatrice.bisais@nixplay.com.