Vignette effects in Photoshop Express for Android

The story

Ten years ago, Photoshop cost hundreds of pounds and was found only on high-end computers, typically belonging to design professionals. Now it’s available in the palm of your hand, for free, and with features that art directors would have given their black turtlenecks for back in the day.

The Experience

Getting Adobe Photoshop Express set up does take some effort, with so many settings to tweak and online accounts to register – but it’s well worth persevering.

Once up and running, you can browse photos and watch slideshows, then click Edit to unveil the real Photoshop magic. Onscreen icons provide dozens of editing options, that let you crop snaps, adjust their colours, exposure, and focus. You can then add some really impressive visual effects.

The menus are gorgeously simple – no design degree required here. Just swipe your finger to control each effect or twist an image to rotate it. When you’ve finished, you can easily upload your edited pictures to Facebook, Adobe.com or Twitter.

The online features are less comprehensive. You can flick through your images on a (free) Adobe.com gallery and then send these as emails, but not download them to the phone. A shame, but, hey, it’s free.

The Bottom Line

Fast and seriously effective package, despite a few set-up gremlins

Additional info

Version reviewed: 1.3.1
Requires Android 1.5+
mobile.photoshop.com/android/