Back in May the people behind Hipstamatic Classic announced Oggl, promoted as “a community for creative people to capture and curate their lives through photography”.
Hipstamatic and Oggl app icons
As previously mentioned in the Hipstamatic vs. Instagram post, one of the main grumbles from some Hipstamatic users is that by setting the filter combinations before you shoot, you risk ending up with photos that just aren’t looking their best. Of course, that is part of the charm with Hipstamatic – you can wander around shaking your phone to randomise the gear and stumbling across a really good photo with a combination you’d never have chosen yourself – but there are those times when you just wish you could changed the lens or film afterwards.
Shoot first, ask questions later
Now, with Oggl, that’s one of the main features. Oggl is a camera-first app, so you take the photo and can then change the gear for different effects. It’s quite nice, knowing that you’ve chosen the right gear to produce the best photo possible. And compared with Instagram there are far more options and combinations as you can import your gear from Hipstamatic Classic.
Oggl capture and edit interfaces
Another bonus working in Oggl’s favour is the option to shoot from the front-facing camera – making those all-important selfies far easier. I’m still not sure why Hipstamatic hasn’t included this in one of it’s updates, although I suspect that it’s to do with the low-res quality of the front camera, and also that it’d kind of betray the spirit of Hipstamatic – no cameras ever shot from the front and back, and selfies are a bit self-indulgent anyway… Besides, if you want to take a selfie, just double tap the viewfinder so it fills the screen, then you can turn the camera around and just tap to take a photo. It takes a bit of practice but isn’t too hard to get the hang of.
Oggl also makes use of the favourites feature, allowing you to choose specific lenses and films to save for situational photography. These can be named (sport, sunset etc.) and are easily selected from the main camera interface. There’s also the option to change the exposure and focus before you take a shot.
Share the love
Now onto the curate features. To rival Instagram, Oggl allows you to share your photos (you can share directly to Oggl from Hipstamatic) with other users, employing hashtags and creating user profiles. Other photographers can ‘love’ your shared prints and follow you if they like your style. It’s all very slick and well designed, clearly based around not just the photos but the photographers as well. I think in comparison to Instagram, Oggl feels a lot more friendly and intimate – it’s just a shame that the market is already so dominated by Instagram (now owned by Facebook).
Oggl photo stream, profile and activity interfaces
In addition, you can connect your Oggl account to Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and Foursquare.
Pitfalls
Whilst Oggl certainly brings something new to the table and will no doubt entice a lot more people into the world of Hipstamatic (there’s a Windows phone version as well), it does lack some of the features that make Hipstamatic great.
Firstly, there’s no software flash, meaning that there are no more Dreampop light leaks or silvery tints from Tasty Pop. Flash is simplified to on or off, using the hardware flash. And then there’s the portrait orientation, which makes it feel like you’re using a phone rather than a camera.
Additionally, the app interface is very functional – there are no quirky design elements that invoke nostalgia for toy cameras, no camera cases just for the sake of being able to change the look… It’s a bit more simple and practical, and due to being able to change the photo effects afterwards, it’s fairly idiot-proof.
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In summary, I’m starting to find myself using Oggl instead of Instagram – when you’re low on time or not sure what gear combo to use, it’s easy to snap a photo and mess around with the affects afterwards. Hipstamatic Classic requires a bit more skill, time and patience, and I think that switching between the two apps will make the heart grow fonder for it.
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