Polaroid Photos Sans Camera…

I’m jumping on this bandwagon, before the bandwagon even gets built. My Twitter buddy, Yianni Garcia aka Mr. Social Media Guy, blogged about this new application, Poladroid (for macs only!), that will transform your personal pics into digital Polaroids. Seems like a simple enough process, you download the app then drag your image into the virtual Poladroid app on the desktop and let it do all the work. When the image is complete, you’ll be notified. You can also save the new pic as a full size version.

 

I haven’t tried it yet, my office laptop is windows-based (boo!!), but I plan on DLing Poladroid tonight. Wonder if Andre 3000 can come out with a new single… “drag it, d-d-rag for a Poladroid picture…”

Just kidding.

Check out some of samples of Yianni’s Poladroid Pics.

 

***update**** DLed Poladroid and I’m in love. Check the pics:

Flickr Connects People…

When I first signed up to use Flickr I didn’t have many expectations. I was already actively using Webshots to manage my photo library online so I didn’t see how Flickr would entice me enough to make a complete switch. But the more I played around with the site, the more I enjoyed it. It wasn’t long before I upgraded to a “pro” account to truly experience all the benefits the site has to offer. Some perks, unlimited uploads, detailed analysis of photos viewed, and so on.

Aside from the user-friendly interface, fast uploads, comprehensive search tools, and new applications, I realized being a part of Flickr is really a community experience. Making it a truly collaborative experience, friends and family can comment on pictures, tag them, and create notes as they like. You can add friends or “contacts” to receive updates on their uploads. There’s also a messaging feature so you can send emails (through Flickr, no personal email is given) to connect with other members. As you dig around the site you see user groups where members can share photos at will as well as find others with the same interests.

One day I was searching for concert photos of Fiona Apple. (Really, were you expecting anyone else?!) I did a simple search entering “Fiona Apple” in the nifty little search box at the top of the page and within seconds pages and pages of Fiona photos appeared. After viewing a few photos I came across an oil painting of the lovely Ms. Apple.

To say it caught my attention would be an understatement — it absolutely wowed me. Intrigued to learn more, I clicked the person’s profile, Farley Footbanger, who posted the Fiona portrait. At the time, there wasn’t much information posted about the painting so I used Flickr’s handy messaging option and sent off a quick note to Mr. Footbanger. Not long after, I received a response from Mr. Footbanger saying he had painted that specific Fiona portrait for his daughter who is a huge fan.

Hearing his daughter was a Fiona fan was a major plus in my book and so we began a dialogue. That simple dialogue turned into a friendship that eventually led me to commission a Fiona portrait for myself. Yes, I really did.

Today I received my Fiona painting and I couldn’t be happier. Kevin sent me photos of the painting a few weeks back when she was “90% complete” and I was thrilled. Having come home from work to the finished project was even better.

Flickr went from a simple site to organize my photos to a way to connect with new people and even a place where safe business transactions can take place (if done properly).

I’ve posted a shot of the painting below, but you can also see more at my Flickr. Please be sure to check out some of Kevin’s other work at his Flickr site. Obviously I’m a fan of his work and can vouch for his professionalism, but more importantly, he’s also an all-around nice guy.

So Fiona will join the other music memorabilia currently adorning my walls. Question is, would Fiona prefer being placed next to Janet, Kelly, or Justin? Tough decision, I know.

My Fiona: