SUBSCRIBE
SUBSCRIBE
SLJ Blog Network +
  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal: A Mock Newbery Blog
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About TLT
  • Reviews
    • Book Reviews
    • A to Z Book Lists
    • Book Review Policy
  • Teen Issues
  • Middle Grade Mondays
  • Programs
    • TPiB
    • Tech Talk
  • Professional
    • Teen Services 101
    • Things We Didn’t Learn in Library School
  • MakerSpace
  • Projects
    • #SVYALit
    • #FSYALit
    • #MHYALit
    • #Poverty in YA Lit

July 22, 2015 by Karen Jensen, MLS

App Review: Candy Camera

July 22, 2015 by Karen Jensen, MLS   1 comments

Knowing my obsession with pictures – my last smart phone had over 14,000 of them saved by the time it bit the dust – The Tween and The Bestie came to me a couple of days ago and shared that their new favorite photo app is Candy Cam. They declared it better than Instagram – gasp. And if you work with Tweens or young Teens you know that Instagram is incredibly popular.

I tend to take a lot of pictures one, because I’m a mom who loves her kids and two, I use them on the blog, to make posters and signage for the library, etc. You can also upload pictures and use them to make GIFs, ads and short movies. So I care a lot about high quality photos. To be honest, I tend to take a regular photo and edit them afterwards so that I can manipulate the same photo over and over again until I get the picture I like. So the primary appeal of Candy Camera for traditional users, that it takes real time photos, isn’t a strong appeal for me. The app description says it is good for editing photos but I can not speak to this feature because I am not interesting in laying down $7.99 to try that part of the app out.

SCROLL TO KEEP READING THIS POST

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

candycameralogo
Info page http://www.jp-brothers.com/#!candy-camera/c1j5v

So why Candy Cam? The Bestie says it has better filters and it allows you to choose a filter before snapping your pic. The Tween says it just makes the best pictures.

Candy Camera is available for both Android and iPhones. There is a free version, which is what we downloaded to review. You can purchase an upgrade for $7.99, which is kind of pricey for a camera app in my opinion. But the upgrade allows you to have more editing capacity and add stickers. I don’t care about adding stickers, but I am always interested in finding quality post photo editing options for my smart phone or tablet. However, as I mentioned, I thought $7.99 was kind of a steep asking price for a photo app.

Here are some selfies that The Bestie took using Candy Camera:

candycam1

candycam2

candycam3

Here are a couple of pictures I took of The Tween:

candycam4

candycam6

What I liked:

Candy Camera allows you to select your photo size. I am fond of the square size pictures used in Instagram while The Bestie prefers more traditional sized photos. You can set up your photo size and layout before snapping a picture. In fact, if you choose say a series of 4 pictures it will take the picture in quick succession similar to a photo booth type setting and create a collage for you.

A screenshot of The Tween taking a picture of The Bestie using the sketch filter.
A screenshot of The Tween taking a picture of The Bestie using the sketch filter.

You can set up a timer to snap your picture, choosing between 3, 5, 10 and 15 seconds as a countdown option.

It does have some nice fitlers.

If you upload a picture it gives you an option to create this kind of layered effect, which I adore:

A button we made feature DUMPLIN' by Julie Murphy, an upcoming book that should be on everyone's best of 2015 list.
A button we made featuring DUMPLIN’ by Julie Murphy, an upcoming book that should be on everyone’s best of 2015 list.

I really like the way it fuzzed the outside edges. And it does allow you to kind of move the main picture from side to side and choose the positioning of the fuzzy edges.

It does have the options to adjust brightness, contrast, saturation, etc. It also allows you to whiten, rotate and crop.

What I Didn’t Like:

SCROLL TO KEEP READING THIS POST

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Candy Camera was not intuitive to me to begin using and it didn’t have the best instructions. Luckily I had the tweens to teach me how to use the app.

What Others are Saying:

“Candy Camera is one of the leading ah-mazing photo editing apps to master the art of selfie. Even coming as freeware and featuring a plain interface, the application packs a real punch. Alongside standard editing options like adjustable brightness, cropping, or rotating, you can apply dozens of great looking yet natural filters in real time, which means you get the results even before you take a picture. The popular Lomo and out focusing effects are also very convenient in the app, while (please, don’t go mad with the power) the slimming and make-up functions will make you look fabulous and your ex extremely jealous.” – Source: http://articles.informer.com/5-powerful-apps-for-selfie-addicts.html

“Candy Camera comes with more than 30 filters, which you can preview in real time as you’re getting ready to take the shot. It can remove blemishes, apply make-up, and enhance your images with variety of frames.” – Source: http://www.phonearena.com/news/10-camera-apps-for-taking-the-perfect-selfie_id52635#1u3pVIpGKqjeuAgT.97

Final Thoughts:

Although both Tweens swear by this app, BeFunky is still my current fave. You can read my review of it here. You can find all of our Tech Talk posts and App Reviews here.

Price: Basic app is free. The pro package is $7.99 which I did not purchase and can not review.

What you can do:

  • Edit your photo, including cut and paste and several beauty edits
  • Choose from around 30 filters (though the filter labels are hard to read)
  • Set a short timer
  • Choose your photo size, including choosing several multi-photo format options
  • Shoot a short video

My rating: 3*, mostly because I like the wide variety of filters you can choose from

My top 5 photo apps are:

  • BeFunky
  • ComicBook – makes great comic book pages
  • PhotoShake – I use it to make bookmarks and grid photos
  • Over – for adding text
  • Hipstamtic – for the various lens and film combinations

Filed under: Apps, Photography, Tech Talk, Technology

SHARE:

Read or Leave Comments

About Karen Jensen, MLS

Karen Jensen has been a Teen Services Librarian for almost 30 years. She created TLT in 2011 and is the co-editor of The Whole Library Handbook: Teen Services with Heather Booth (ALA Editions, 2014).

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

March 2022

App Review: Pxture - Creating text using photos

by Karen Jensen, MLS

December 2015

How Did You Do That? Photo Apps Version

by Karen Jensen, MLS

July 2015

App Review: A Beautiful Mess

by Karen Jensen, MLS

June 2021

Tech Tip: A Quick and Easy Way to Make 1.25 Buttons

by Karen Jensen, MLS

April 2017

App Review: Enlight

by Karen Jensen, MLS

ADVERTISEMENT

SLJ Blog Network

100 Scope Notes

Sydney Taylor Blog Tour: THE TOWER OF LIFE by Chana Stiefel and Susan Gal

by Travis Jonker

A Fuse #8 Production

Fuse 8 n’ Kate: Who’s In Rabbit’s House by Verna Aardema, ill. Leo and Diane Dillon

by Betsy Bird

Good Comics for Kids

Akim Aliu Dreamer | This Week’s Comics

by Lori Henderson

Heavy Medal

What’s Coming in 2023, A Feedback Poll, and Goodbye for Now…

by Steven Engelfried

Teen Librarian Toolbox

I Spy Something Awkward, a guest post by James Ponti

by Amanda MacGregor

The Classroom Bookshelf

The Classroom Bookshelf is Moving

by Erika Thulin Dawes

The Yarn

A Book 25 Years in the Making: Marla Frazee Visits The Yarn

by Travis Jonker

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Articles on SLJ

12 YA Novels with Latinx Protagonists Falling in Love, Having Adventures, and More

14 Thrilling Titles for Teens | Summer Reading 2021

18 Novels for Teens That Blow the Dust Off History | Summer Reading 2021

Fun and Games: Capitalize on Olympic Excitement with These Titles

16 YA Novels That Reenvision History | Summer Reading 2020

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Jennifer Bess says

    July 12, 2017 at 6:36 am

    Yes Candy Camera is a awesome app and it’s my all time favorite. I found it from https://www.candyselfie.net

    What i love most is it’s stunning filters.

ADVERTISEMENT

Archives

Follow This Blog

Enter your email address below to receive notifications of new blog posts by email.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

Primary Sidebar

  • News & Features
  • Reviews+
  • Technology
  • School Libraries
  • Public Libraries
  • Age Level
  • Ideas
  • Blogs
  • Classroom
  • Diversity
  • People
  • Job Zone

Reviews+

  • Book Lists
  • Best Books
  • Media
  • Reference
  • Series Made Simple
  • Tech
  • Review for SLJ
  • Review Submissions

SLJ Blog Network

  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal
  • Neverending Search
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn

Resources

  • 2022 Youth Media Awards
  • The Newbery at 100: SLJ Celebrates the 100th Anniversary of the Award
  • Special Report | School Libraries 2021
  • Summer Reading 2021
  • Series Made Simple Spring 2021
  • SLJ Diverse Books Survey
  • Summer Programming Survey
  • Research
  • White Papers / Case Studies
  • School Librarian of the Year
  • Mathical Book Prize Collection Development Awards
  • Librarian/Teacher Collaboration Award

Events & PD

  • In-Person Events
  • Online Courses
  • Virtual Events
  • Webcasts
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Media Inquiries
  • Newsletter Sign Up
  • Content Submissions
  • Data Privacy
  • Terms of Use
  • Terms of Sale
  • FAQs
  • Diversity Policy
  • Careers at MSI


COPYRIGHT © 2023


COPYRIGHT © 2023