Ditching the digital SLR: pro photographers use iPhones instead
Singer-songwriter Rachael Yamagata turned away from an expensive digital SLR camera, and opted for an iPhone app called Camera+ to shoot her latest album cover for Chesapeake (out October 11) and the artwork in the packaging. "A lot of the best spontaneous moments of making music happen when no outsiders are around and this includes photographers," Yamagata told Mashable. "It's been pretty standard in my experience to keep the studio a sacred space of sorts, and it's surprising how even the best intended energy of someone new can throw off the vibe of the session. That said, it was a perfect thing to be able to capture these moments in photographs on our own."
Damon Winter's Hipstamatic photos of soldiers in Afghanistan
For photographer Damon Winter, it doesn't matter what type of camera he uses. He can capture the essence of incredible moments with anything - even an iPhone. He took photos of soldiers in the First Battalion, 87th Infantry of the 10th Mountain Division while they were in northern Afghanistan. The photos were featured in the New York Times, and everyone was in awe. "Composing with the iPhone is more casual and less deliberate," Winter told the New York Times. "And the soldiers often take photos of each other with their phones, so they were more comfortable than if I had my regular camera."
Martha Stewart's Everyday Food magazine spread using Hipstamatic
Everyday Food magazine, part of the Martha Stewart franchise, hit newsstands on July 4 with an interesting spread of photos. The picnic recipe feature was shot by photographer Lucas Allen using the Hipstamatic app on an iPhone 4.
iPhone photo exhibit at Orange County Center for Contemporary Art
From March 31 to April 28, the Orange County Center for Contemporary Art showcased breathtaking iPhone photographs in an exhibit entitled, "Pixel: The Art of iPhone Photography." "From minimal to abstract, black and white to extreme color, subtle to hard graphic, true emotion can be found in these photos," said the flyer.
Macworld magazine's iPhone 4-shot cover
On September 2010, Macworld put their money where their mouth is (claiming the camera on an iPhone 3GS can do wonders in a professional photo shoot). The technology magazine shot that month's issue cover with an iPhone 4. "They wanted something original rather than a resort to stock photographs and press images," Geek.com reported. So they hired photographer Peter Belanger, who has worked with HP and Apple, to shoot a high-quality image.
David Guttenfelder's photo of a marine fighting the Taliban
Associated Press photographer David Guttenfelder caught a very incredible moment of a marine in the middle of a firefight against the Taliban while in Afghanistan's Helmand province. He used his iPhone camera for this picture (and other amazing shots) despite the fact that he had all of his professional equipment, and enhanced the photo using a Polaroid film filter app.
Fashion photographer Lee Morris uses his iPhone 3GS and fools fans
Fashion photographer Lee Morris tried to pull a fast one on friends and fans back in July 2010. He shot a full fashion shoot with his iPhone 3GS, posted a few of the images on a forum and asked people to critique them (never telling them they were shot with his mobile device, of course). Some readers said they were the "best photos they've ever seen."