14 DAY TRIAL // For most of the users applying beautiful artistic effects to images is a task for the professionals. Providing a numerous set of effects that can be combined to get to really awesome results PhotoBling, comes to say otherwise.
As far as its purpose is concerned, this application is similar to PostworkShop as there are no editing tools to help you tamper with the photo. Its price has been set to $22 by the developer and the only limitation is a nag screen informing you that the version you're using is a trial and that you should purchase a license.
Installation is a process as straightforward, clean and simple as can be. The interface, on the other hand, although pretty original looking by my standards, may not fit the taste of some users. For them, there is the possibility to unload the skin and leave it as plain as an Explorer window.
Actually the entire layout does resemble Windows Explorer, as all the presets are stacked in categories in the left hand side of the application window, while the controls are in the lower part. The largest space of the panel is occupied by the preview window, in the right side. This is where you get to see how a preset you apply blends with the image.
The most important in PhotoBling are the artistic effects it provides to the user. These are ordered in categories that hint at their utility. Thus, you have the image softening items that can also be used for blurring or the plug-ins that add some sort of light or light effects to the picture (glitter, in this case).
More categories cover options for adding a frame to the photo, which can be a combination of glitter and a border. As turning portraits into sketches has always been a cool image manipulation, PhotoBling makes available no less than nine different possibilities.
But the richest section is the one holding the “artistic” options (22 choices). From this category you'll be able to cartoonify the images, or apply effects such as comic, retro, frosted glass or canvas. This is the part where we spent the most time transforming our test images from plain snapshots to real works of art.
Besides giving the artistic feel, PhotoBling can also be used to adjust the pictures in terms of contrast, luminosity or sharpening the edges. These are all found under “other” category.
Despite the fact that you have more than 100 effects to try and choose from, the developer allows you to create presets yourself and save them for later use. Thus the default number of presets can be expanded as much as you want. You can create combinations of as many default presets to reach a result of your own and save it.
Handling PhotoBling is not at all a tough job, as the small number of buttons should be clear to any sort of user. The only options in this sense are to make an applied effect permanent (Accept), compare the current result with the one before (keep “Compare” pressed) or you can dismiss a filter with the “Reject” button. If you have multiple filters applied and want to scrap them all and return to the original image, under “File” menu there is the revert command that does just that.
Input image formats accepted by the program are JPG, BMP and PNG, while output can only be BMP or JPG. Although the array of supported pictures is not very large, this should not be an inconvenient to the average and beginner user whom the program targets.
The default interface layout offers no control over the various presets available. However, among the minimal preferences there is the possibility to show more than the filters. The result will be a bunch of tabs holding options that allow you to control how glitter is applied, or how edge detection is done for sketch effect as well as frame shape.
On the downside, PhotoBling's preview is not real-time so all the adjustments you make are visible only when they are applied. Having a live preview of your actions would allow finer control over the result, especially since there is a magnifying glass built into the program, so that you can see the edges better.
Though it issues awesome results, PhotoBling is not an instrument for the professionals, simply because it does not provide the necessary level of control for the presets and implicitly the output result. On the upside, it offers the possibility to blend various effects into wonderful results.
It is extremely easy to use and provides some control over certain effects. Among the presets there are also some options to adjust the images in terms of luminosity or contrast. The price is not at all high considering what the software can achieve. The only major issue is handling the preview. Note: Image processing requires more power than normal tasks, so make sure you equip your computer with enough RAM for the job.
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