tadaa and tadaa 3D - Revolutionary Masking Tool

tadaa is a photo app as well as a social network for photographers. Today tadaa boasts over 3.5 million users.  Even if you're happy with your current social sharing site, tadaa's amazing masking tool for selective editing makes this an app worth having in your "camera bag". You may want to take note that one of the features of tadaa, emphasized in the app description, "YOU KEEP THE COPYRIGHTS TO YOUR PHOTOS!"  



Here's how the developers describe tadda's Edge Detection feature:

Using tadaa’s new Edge Detection feature, users can create images with real depth of field. It turns a users iPhone into a professional SLR camera – photos will look as realistic and stunning as if they had used a real lens. Using their fingertips, users can roughly draw around an object in an image. The app’s technology automatically detects the image they want to focus on. This is highlighted and users can then make adjustments to elements such as brightness, contrast and saturation, as well as adding finishing touches by adding filter effects to the background. With this latest addition to its already impressive feature set, tadaa takes photo editing on mobile to new levels of creativity.

I gave the Edge Detection feature a try. Using both the Mask and Erase tools, I went back and forth between them until I had masked the llama precisely. Below you can see a video demo as well as Before and After photos. After masking, I blurred the background and applied one of the filters. It was done very quickly in spite of the complexity of the outline.


Tadaa Masking Demo from Geri Centonze on Vimeo.

But there's MORE!! There is also a new release -  tadaa 3D. Using the patent pending Object Detection Tool the user is able to mask an image and then apply a 3D effect that is visible when the device is moved. I've embedded an image created below in tadaa 3D. (Note:  If you're viewing this blog on a mobile device you may not be able to see the image below. Try viewing on your Mac or PC.)





Here's more information from the official press release.

Hamburg, Germany, 22nd August 2013 – Fed up of the same old photo editing tools? Looking to add a whole new dimension to your photos? 
Enter tadaa 3D, a new iOS app launching globally today that brings photos to life in 3D. Using the popular Object Detection tool (patent pending), users are able to select a subject in an image and create an incredible 3D effect that shows different dimensions of the photo as the screen is tilted. These images then animate automatically when shared across the web.  Available to download for iPhone, tadaa 3D is aimed at anyone seeking new ways to enhance their photos in a fun and creative way. 
“tadaa's filters and HD features are great and we know just how much our users love to be able to put their own stamp on their photos,” said Nikolas Schoppmeier, CEO & co-founder, tadaa 3D. “What tadaa 3D does is take this one step further and allow people to add a totally new dimension to their photos. When we saw the first results we were surprised at how well it worked – our beta testers and us have been playing around with it for a while now and we just wanted everyone to have fun with it. It’s really quite unique.”
After snapping an image or uploading from the camera roll, users can roughly draw around an object in an image with their fingertips. The app’s Object Detection then gets to work, automatically detecting the subject the user wants to focus on. Users can then make adjustments to elements such as brightness, contrast and saturation, as well as adding finishing touches by adding filter effects and add tadaa’s signature depth-of-field effect.
Creating an awesome 3D effect couldn’t be easier:

• Take a photo

• Paint roughly to define the subject

• Share or save to your tadaa profile

And tadaa 3D isn’t just an editing app; there’s a social community side wrapped around it also. Users are able to set up their own profile and share their images. They can like, comment and repost the images they like. Images can also be shared to Facebook, Twitter and more. 
The team behind tadaa 3D is just as impressive as the app. tadaa now has a community of over 3 million iPhoneographers with its users sharing millions of photos every day. The app is widely recognized as Instagram’s number one competitor.  

tadaa 3D is available to download for at the introductory price of $3.99 / € 3.59 / £2.49 from the App Store. For more information about tadaa 3D, please visit www.tadaa.net/3d .  

Summing it Up
tadaa and tadaa 3D have incredible masking tools which I hope the developer will use eventually as an extraction feature. If you could mask part of an image and then save it as a "stamp" to combine in composite images, tadaa would have an even wider appeal. Also on my wish list would be a feathering feature to soften the edge between the image that is masked and the background.

If you've had a chance to try these apps, I would love to hear your opinions.  Just leave a comment below.