(*Updated* – This review has been upgraded to a giveaway, too!!! One lucky winner will receive a licensing key to permanently active your Play with Pictures software beyond the 15-day free trial. This is a $39.95 value! See the bottom of this post for details on how to win.)
I take photography seriously. I even held a Twitter survey today to determine the best crop for my iHeartFaces post this week. When I open Vertus’s new Play with Pictures program, however, it brings out my inner child.
An inner child who’s operating a pretty slick piece of software.
To kick off the release of Play with Pictures, there are four weeks worth of gadget giveaways through their blog. Still up for grabs are a Wacom Bamboo Tablet (this is a major wish-list item for me) and two iPod Nanos, one for the person who wins the fourth task and one for the person who referred them (don’t forget me if you win)!
Look at my compositions and then I’ll show you how it’s done:
Begin by selecting a background image. Next, select other pictures with elements that you would like to add to the original. Combining images is easy with Play with Pictures!
How It’s Done
Let’s try a new project. Here is the photo I’ve selected for the background:
I want to add a butterfly from a picture I took last summer. When I open additional pictures (not the background layer) in Play with Pictures, the photo is divided into smaller sections based on color, like this:
Next I will click and drag the mouse using the “flood erase” tool. It will erase all of any section it touches – you do not have to touch every bit of the image you want removed, just drag somewhere within the section. Don’t worry if you make a mistake; there are undo and restore features.
Here’s how it looks after I release the mouse:
It was a breeze to isolate the butterfly. Next I took a photo of my daughter swinging, erased the background, and added it to my composite image. Here’s the end result:
As you can see from the pictures on top, it’s easy to add text boxes and change the font and transparency, too.
Would this be a handy and fun program for a blogger? Heck, yeah. It has Alli Worthington (a.k.a. Mrs. Fussypants) written all over it.
And kids? Mine love it. Here is one from my twelve-year-old daughter:
Features:
- Amazingly simple and intuitive interface – pick it up in minutes!
- Drag pictures from anywhere onto Play With Pictures™
- Instantly cut out people and other objects from different pictures and add them to your composition
- No photo editing skills required, Play With Pictures™ does all the hard work for you
- No limits to the number of pictures you can use
- Add effects, speech bubbles and text
- Share via email, Facebook, MySpace, Photobucket and Flickr or print
Links:
- Download link
- Tutorials (be sure to watch this brief video before you begin)
- Play With Pictures Blog
- Facebook Page with fan pictures
Play with Pictures retails for $39.95 and can be purchased here. Try it free for 15 days, and I’m sure you’ll be hooked!
Win a copy right here! Here’s how:
- Leave a comment on this post.
- Post about this giveaway on your own blog and link back to this post to be eligible for a second chance (please leave a separate comment with the link to your post).
- Tweet about it for a third chance (leave another comment).
Contest ends midnight Saturday night and winner will be announced on Sunday. Non-bloggers are eligible, too, with valid email address.
Wow! Such a great review of Play With Pictures! I couldn’t have put it any better myself. If you haven’t already bought the full version of the software, let me know and I’ll send you a full license key from us to say thanks! (jon@vertustech.com)
Jon Bishop
Community Manager for Play With Pictures
Oh That is awesome! I would love to win this. 🙂
Karens last blog post..LOVE DARE ~ DAY 6
I tweeted the Giveaway! 🙂
Karens last blog post..LOVE DARE ~ DAY 6
Wow looks like a fun and EASY program to use
I could so use this. I need all the help I can get with editing photos. I love products that make life easier! The price is right too!
Wow, Dawn! You make this look so fun and interesting! Daisy would love this. You pictures are always so colorful and creative! You have quit an eye for photography. I really enjoy your posts.
Take Care,
Katey
This looks really cool. I’d love to have something like this to go along with my scrapbooking and scrapvideos…
Looks like loads of fun! Something I’m sure the kids would totally enjoy, too! 😀
Diannes last blog post..Monday Miscellany
This looks like a lot of fun! Thanks for the review, and thanks for the giveaway!
Amy @ Cheeky Cocoa Beanss last blog post..Overheard: The Grace Edition
Oh man, what a great giveaway!!! It does all the things I wish I could do with Photoshop. 🙂 Please count me in!
I twittered it. 🙂
Marshas last blog post..Drawing the line at cow tongue
Pick me! Pick me!
Lynns last blog post..spud shares a poem
After seeing what you did to your photos, I needed to enter. 😉 Thanks for the opportunity to win.
Renaes last blog post..Wordless Wednesday- Real Life Homeschool
Actually, I’m entering so that my friend can have a copy. I was lucky enough to get a free license a while back when they had a promotion going. It’s a very easy program to learn and use. Fun too!
Vickie Bartletts last blog post..Play With Pictures
Dawn, Cool giveaway! I would love to use this for scrapbooking. Diane
This software looks great! I really enjoy your photography. You have a great eye! This looks so fun & creative….would love to try it
Made a video of Play with Pictures, going to submit it to the Facebook group.
A.J. Woods last blog post..Fun Fun Friday