In search of that Warhol effect
Tuesday, May 11, 2010 at 10:01AM | Glyn Evans 
Here in the UK the BBC began broadcasting a new series entitled "Modern Masters". In the first episode broadcast on Sunday 2nd May, the program was all about Andy Warhol, and following this inspiring program I went in search of that Warhol look.
Surprisingly in what is an over crowded AppStore there were only a handful of photo apps that promised that Warhol experience, but how did they fair up and which was the best, if any.
As part of this article I have decided to exclude those multi effect apps that promise everything, and decided to concentrate just on those apps that were dedicated to this pop-art effect.
The first thing I did in my search for that pop-art look was search the AppStore for apps that contained the words "Andy Warhol", "pop art" and "pop-art', and from list returned I selected those apps that from their description promised that Warhol effect.
First up there was Pop Art priced at £0.59/$0.99 [AppStore Link], which I looked at way back in December 2008. Pop Art like all the apps in this category is easy to use, simply launch the app, take a photo, or load one from the camera roll, and let the app convert your photo in to that distinctive Warhol style. This app does let you adjusts the intensity of the effect and colour combinations, and when done allows you to save at up to 1200 x 1600 pixels.
Next up was BeFunky FX priced at £1.19/$1.99 [AppStore Link], which I recently covered here on the blog, and whist this app is easy to use, and offers a wider range of effects, both pop-art as well as other looks, this app (in my view) does not offer that recognizable Warhol look.
The third app that I came across was Warhol FX priced at £0.59/$0.99 [AppStore Link], which was hidden away in the 'Utilities" section of the AppStore, which is an area I tend to avoid as photo apps found here are usually of a poor quality. Never the less I decided to try this app out, as its name screamed Andy Warhol at me.
Now whilst this app looked easy to use, with its presets and sliders, I soon discovered its clunky interface and continuos freezing meant it was almost impossible to get any decent results from it, and when I did they were very low res, and not worth the effort.
Finally I came across Pop Artist! priced at £0.59/$0.99 [AppStore Link], which was released back in September 2009. Now this app just like the others is very easy to use, simply launch the app, select or take a photo, and leave the rest to the app. The default settings of this app produces that recognizable Warhol look, but also has the option to adjust the contrast, the colour palette and image resolution (low, medium or high, with the highest saving at 1506 x 1501 pixels).
So which one is best?
OK, Warhol FX because of it chunkiness and freezing fell at the first jump, and should definitely be avoided.
BeFunky FX whilst can produce some nice results (all-be-it not full res) and offers more features, doesn't really offer that true Warhol experience that I was looking for, so don't buy this app if like me you want that Warhol look.
Lastly but not least there was Pop Artist!, which as my sample photo shows, offers the closest Warhol 2 colour silk print look of any of the apps I tested here, and so it is this app that I would recommend if you want to create pop-art on your iPhone.
One last thing.
Whilst testing this app I found I could create even better looking Warhol images on my iPhone if I first turned the photo in to a sketch using ToonPAINT and then processed it in Pop Artist! as my sample of Marilyn Monroe shows.
BeFunky FX, Pop Artist!, ToonPAINT, Warhol FX in iPhone App Review
Reader Comments (6)
@Glyn, so would you say that Pop Artist is worth getting, even though I already have PopArt?
Wow! Really, great informative post that is one of the reasons I make iPhoneography one of my first stops of the day. Thanks so much for reviewing these apps and giving us a well written review. Excellent!
@Tania. I personally prefer the the results from Pop Artist! and especially when combined with ToonPAINT FX.
@Glyn I have to say that your Monroe sample looks sharp and I wasn't able to replicate the general style with the same good effect using ToonPAINT and PopArt, so I guess I'm going to have to buy yet another app. Gee, you really have to twist my arm to do that. :D
Great review. And love the tip about the ToonPAINT. Great result using the two together! Thx!
The latest update of Warhol FX is great ! I like it a lot, it's the best for me :)