Make it vanish with MagiCrop

MagiCrop is billed as being able to seamlessly remove part of a picture without distorting the image, but can it really?

Before I begin this review I would like to raise the fact that the app comes with no in-built help, which as this app is not intuitive is a big minus point.

The App

Having launched MagiCrop you are presented with a blank screen with 5 icons across the bottom of the screen, which going from left to right are:

• Camera icon - use this to take or load a photo in to MagiCrop.
• An eraser icon - use this to undo any highlighted areas.
• Preserve - use this to mark areas of the photo you want to remain unchanged.
• Remove - use this to mark the the parts of the photo you want removing.
• MagiCrop - this applies the desired action.

In Use

Having launched the app and selected a photo, you begin marking out the areas you want to remain unaffected, and the area/areas you want removing. The preserved area is marked out in green, whilst the area to remove is marked in red. When I first used this app I was quite impressed as the balloon in the picture below disappeared before my eyes,leaving only a discoloration in the sky where it had been, however upon a second more closer look I was a little shocked and disappointed at the way the results were being achieved. The developer states that "MagiCrop uses a cutting-edge algorithm developed by researchers in computational photography in 2007", which may be true. Now in the developers description it does not say how the affect is being achieved, but I had hoped it was by using some clever cloning process (which would have been really cool), but no, unless my eyes deceived me, what was really happening was the photo was shrinking! yes shrinking. The graphical way in which it does this is quite neat, as a jagged line reminiscent of a lightening strike works its magic, however another developer statement "MagiCrop allows you to seamlessly remove part of a picture without distorting the image" does not really hold true as the photo of the hotel corridor clearly shows the passageway is distorted compared to the original.

Above: The original photo showing the balloon
Above: Balloon removed by MagiCrop

Above: Photo of hotel corridor with maids trolly

Above: Photo of hotel corridor with maids trolly removed by MagiCrop. Notice how the corridor is distorted.

So what did I think of the app?

In a nutshell not much. What I had hoped was going to be an app that self cloned the area around the subject that I wanted removed, turned out to be nothing more than a poor illusion.

AppStore Link: MagiCrop - Price £0.59 ($.99)