If you have recently been out purchasing a new smartphone or even a photography drone, you may have come across terms such as Image Stabilization. This is the process by which modern camera sensors compensate for camera shake, so that picture taken by the camera is smooth and clear.
Image stabilization is important because even small movements like the shaking of your hand when holding a smartphone can result in a blurry picture. Image stabilization remedies this by using a complicated suite of sensors and processors.
We have already talked about Optical Image stabilization in a previous blog post, which you can read here. In today’s blog post, we will be looking at Electronic Image Stabilization. We look at how it works and whether it is better than OIS.

How EIS works?
EIS takes help from complicated sensors to ‘sense’ the movement of the camera. These sensors send information to the camera’s processor about the camera speed, angular velocity, and position. The processor then adjusts the position of the image to compensate for the motion. 

​Typically, EIS uses sensors such as accelerators and a gyroscope to detect the movement of the camera. Think of these sensors as the eyes and ears of the processor, telling the processor in real-time how the camera is being moved. Once the processor has received information about the movement of the camera, it adjusts the image to counter the movement.

How EIS is different from OIS?
While both EIS and OIS are types of image stabilization. EIS works on the image after its captured, altering it digitally afterward. OIS on the other hand uses electromechanical means to move the camera sensors before and during image capture.
In essence that makes OIS better because it has more data to work. But that comes at the cost of OIS-enabled sensors being more expensive to implement. 

​This is why OIS is commonly found in high-end cameras, drones, and smartphones. While EIS is usually found in the budget to low-end smartphones and cameras. Some devices use both OIS and EIS to get the best of both worlds and provide the best possible stabilization.  

​Use the Urban Jungle Photo Editor to unleash your creativity. Download it now for free on the Apple app store.
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date on upcoming exciting new features. You can also get your pictures featured on our page if you use the #UrbanJungleApp.

​Billions of stars decorate the sky during the night. Astrophotography is the art of photographing the beauty of the night sky. This includes photographing all kinds of astronomical objects and events like stars, planets, and even comets.

Getting that perfect Astro photograph can be tricky. In today’s blog post, we will be looking at some tips you can use to get the best photographs of the night sky. Also, as the majority of astrophotography is done during the night, our tips for shooting in low-light conditions also apply here.

1.Get away from light pollution.

The first thing you need to do is to get as far away from the city as possible. This is because light pollution from the city will make it virtually impossible for you to take a good shot of the night sky. 

​Head out to the countryside or the mountains, basically anyplace remote. Your goal should be a location with a minimal amount of light pollution, so your camera can get the best view of the night sky.

2.Try out different exposure times.

Different exposure times determine how your photographs turn out. Longer exposure times result in star trails. This is because of the rotation of the earth about its axis. So in the pictures, it looks as if the stars are moving and leaving behind trails. 

​Shorter exposure on the other hand reduces star trails. But the downside is you don’t capture enough light for a detailed photograph. So you have to balance both things put for the perfect picture.

3.Focus Focus Focus!
 
A simple tip when photographing the night sky in low light conditions is to use manual focus instead of autofocusing. 

​Manually focusing on brighter stars or even very distant sources of light. Autofocus has a hard time in low light conditions and the result is blurry pictures.

Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to learn more about the Urban Jungle App. Download it now on the App Store. You can also get your pictures featured on our page if you use the hashtag #UrbanJungleApp.

Sweden, one of the jewels of the Scandinavian belt is known for its scenic northern beauty, stunning inland lakes, thousands of small and beautiful islands, and medieval architecture.

To the north of Sweden, you will find open wilderness of Sweden, while the south is the most populated. The buildings in most major cities are a mix of modern, Romanesque, and Viking architecture.  
Let’s look at the must-go places in Sweden.

1.Malmo
Sweden’s third largest city, Malmo is full of both modern and contemporary buildings linked with cobblestone roads. A must-see attraction in Malmo is the castle, Malmohus Slott. The beautiful castle surrounded by a protective moat is almost 600 years old.

​The Turning Torso, a masterpiece of modern architecture, is also located in Malmo. Other than that, the city is full of museums and cultural hotspots like galleries.

2.Uppsala
Uppsala is the religious center of Sweden for almost 800 years. Located 44 miles north of the capital Stockholm, Uppsala has always been a holy place. Before Christianity, Uppsala was full of idols of Norse gods.
The Uppsala cathedral is the center of Uppsala and has been the seat of the archbishop of Sweden for centuries. River Fyris runs throughout the city, making it a serene view for anyone walking along it. 

​Uppsala is also home to the oldest university in Scandinavia, Uppsala Universitet. The largest attraction of Uppsala is botanical gardens, old churches, and dozens upon dozens of walking and hiking paths that allow you experience unfiltered raw Swedish beauty.
 
3.Stockholm
A visit to Sweden without exploring Stockholm is cruel, to say the least. Stockholm is a proper international metropolitan city as it is host to a lot of very important international organizations like various headquarters for UN programs like the United Nations Development Program and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. This also attracts a lot of NGOs and research institutes to set up offices in the Swedish capital as well. 

​Stockholm is also sometimes called the Venice of the north because the city has a lot of waterways cutting through the city with a lot of different islands and peninsulas forming the city. Due to the international nature of the city, you will get to go to world-class museums, theaters, galleries, and other cultural attractions.
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date on upcoming exciting new features. You can also get your pictures featured on our page if you use the #UrbanJungleApp.

Christmas and the holiday season are upon us! That means lots of presents, sweets, and festivities. But festivities are incomplete photography. Taking good pictures in festive seasons especially when there are outdoor gatherings and lots of people involved can be tricky. A lot of things are happening simultaneously, you need to be quick with your clicks to capture key moments to forever memorialize special events.
Let’s go through some tips and tricks you need to keep in mind to make your festive photography shine. 

​1.    Lights Lights Lights, Watch for Lighting Effects

You can’t have festivities without lighting effects. From small fairy lights to large strobe lights, lighting conditions can vary greatly from venue to venue. Especially during Christmas when there are lots of decorated trees just begging to be photographed. 

​Just make sure that you keep the strongest lights towards your back, this way you won’t wash your images. Also, tinker with ISO settings and shutter speed times to get the perfect-looking picture. Remember, you can’t fix everything post-production, so making sure you get a good raw picture is also important.
​
2.    Getting your kit ready

The most common mistake people make when going out to photograph festivities is to pack extensive equipment. Equipment that they may not even use all night. So make sure you only carry things you will definitely use. No use in carrying extra weight, you are supposed to be taking good pictures not weight training! 

​Substitute bigger equipment for more compact equipment. For example instead of taking a huge tripod, just pack a small monopod. Also, make sure you are wearing comfortable clothing and shoes.
​
3.    Include People

Festivities are all about people and the things that bring them together. Just taking photographs of decorations and the overall scene without focusing on people will make sure pictures look shallow. 

Include crowds, include children, and include couples in your shots. These are the things that are actually the soul of holidays; people coming together. If can include these scenes in your shots, you will have captured the perfect festival photographs.
​
Edit your festive shots in the Urban Jungle Photo Editor.  Available on the Apple App Store.

​Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to be the first ones to hear about exciting new features coming to the Urban Jungle Photo Editor. 

Colors are the soul of any picture. In fact, sometimes even the lack of certain colors in a picture can add a new depth to the picture and enhance its beauty. So, an understanding of how colors work in a picture is important if you want to produce beautiful pictures.

One of the most powerful tools for taking control of the colors in your pictures is by using color saturation settings. Color saturation is the intensity of the color in an image. The higher the color saturation, the more colors will pop in your image.

So, let’s take a look at how color saturation works and how you can tweak these to make your pictures look amazing.

Saturation Sliders
Saturation sliders exist in almost all types of photo editing software. The Urban Jungle Photo editor also has saturation control. If you slide the slider towards the left, you will reduce saturation and the image will look washed out. Moving the slider towards the right will increase the saturation.

​You can also change the saturation of each color separately. This way you can make one color bright and vibrant, and some other colors completely washed out.

What is Color Space and why it is important?
Color space is the range of colors a photo can show. Think of it like a color index of the picture. The most commonly used color spaces are sRGB and Adobe RGB. RGB simply stands for Red Green and Blue. These are the primary colors that we use to make all the other colors. 

​Most screens use RGB. sRGB only has the capability to produce 75% of the colors in adobe RGB space. Understanding and selecting the correct color space can make the difference between a good-looking image and miscolored image.  
Selective Coloring
This is the technique of desaturating the entire image except for one or two areas of bright color. This results in one or two objects being shown brightly with a faded background. This method is popular as you can subtly highlight an object. 

You can use this technique to draw your viewer's attention toward a particular object. 

Use the Urban Jungle Photo Editor to unleash your creativity. Download it now for free on the Apple app store.

​Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date on upcoming exciting new features. You can also get your pictures featured on our page if you use the #UrbanJungleApp.

​Low-light photography is as rewarding as it is challenging. Taking pictures in low light isn’t as simple as taking your phone out and snapping a picture as we do during the daytime. You need to adjust both camera settings as well as set your positioning to account for light sources to get decent results.
But well-executed low-light pictures outshine their daylight counterparts. So, the extra effort is always worth it. So, let’s take a look at some tips on how to make your shots shine in low-light conditions.

1.Increase your ISO

​The ISO setting on your smartphone camera app or your DSLR determines how sensitive your camera lens is to light. Increasing this setting will mean more light will be captured by the sensors instead your lens. 

​The higher the ISO number, the more sensitive to light the sensor becomes. The downside of increasing the ISO number is that the captured picture will become grainier. So, you have to balance between capturing more light and image sharpness.

2.Reduce Shutter speed

​The shutter speed of the camera determines how long the sensor is exposed to light. The longer a sensor is open to let light in, the more light it has to create a detailed image. This can be done by using reduced shutter speeds. 

​The thing to keep in mind while using slower shutter speeds is to reduce any sort of movement of the camera. This is because any movement will cause blurry images.

3.Use sources of light to your advantage
 
When taking pictures in low light conditions, first identify the sources of light around you. You can take advantage of these to frame the perfect shot.

Always make sure you don’t take pictures directly toward sources of light. Always keep light sources towards your back, so they properly illuminate the object you are photographing.
​
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to learn more about the Urban Jungle App. Download it now on the App Store. You can also get your pictures featured on our page if you use the hashtag #UrbanJungleApp.

Qatar is in the limelight these days because it is currently holding the FIFA World Cup. Located on the Arabian Peninsula, this little country has a lot of beauty to offer for those looking to explore the deserts of Arabia.
From high-rise downtowns to sandy deserts pouring directly into the Sea, Qatar has some amazing sights to offer; both man-made and natural. So, let’s take a quick tour of the places to see when you are in Qatar.

1.Qanat Quartier

This Venice-inspired neighborhood is a sight to see. This scenic neighborhood is filled with small shops and fancy café all along the canal with brightly colored buildings flanking it. 

​The Instagram story potential of this neighborhood is off the charts and is a must-visit sight for anyone that comes to Qatar. The beautiful golden sand-filled beach is right next to it. The Qanat Quartier is a combination of the canal streets of Venice with the sandy beaches of the Caribbean.  

2.Katara Cultural Village

If admiring art and culture is your thing, then look no further than the Katara Cultural Village. It has everything from art galleries to performance venues and theatres. 

​It is a place to visit if you want to see the wonders of modern architecture combined with traditional Arabian-style architecture. With cobbled streets, excellent restaurants, and a glistening beach with water sports facilities, what is not to like about Katara?
 
3.Msheireb Downtown Doha

A recreation of the old commercial district of Doha, msheireb downtown is new sustainable downtown development with a new architectural style. The buildings and the open spaces are inspired by the traditional style of Qatar but with a modern aesthetic twist. 

​Try the Urban Jungle Photo Editor to work on the next batch of photos. Now available on the App Store.
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date on upcoming exciting new features. You can also get your pictures featured on our page if you use the #UrbanJungleApp.

Architectural Photography is a very specialized niche of photography that tries to capture the essence of a building or structure. Every architectural object tells its own unique story and photographers try to capture that. Historically, taking photos of buildings was first done from a purely technical and documentation perspective, but over the years it has blossomed into a distinctive art form.

​While it may not seem like it at first, there is a lot of depth to architectural photography.

1. Look for unique angles and perspective

Every building, and every structure is designed with a specific vision. You as a photographer need to figure that out and capture it. You can do that by spending some time around the building and exploring it from different angles and perspectives. 

​After spending some time with the building, you are photographing you will unlock layers within layers of beauty, symmetry, and abstractions that weren’t previously visible.

2. Revisit the site in different weather conditions and times
​
It is really hard to capture a huge 3-dimensional object and then project it in a 2-dimensional photograph. You can lose a lot of information like the feeling you get when standing next to an object. 

​
Some buildings shine in rain, while others look good when captured during nighttime. Capturing the atmosphere is just as important as capturing the building itself.

So, visit the site a few times during different times and weather conditions to choose the perfect atmosphere for your shot.

3. Include People

One of the most common mistakes people make in architectural photography is not including people in their captures. This is because there is a misconception that architectural photography should not include people.

​
​When in fact adding people into the mix can add soul to a bland picture. So be sure to adjust people in your next architectural shot to add a contrasting object.

Create your next story using the Urban Jungle Photo Editor. Available on the Apple App Store.
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to be the first ones to hear about exciting new features coming to the Urban Jungle Photo Editor. 

How we see things in real life or in pictures is greatly dependent on the light we have available. We only see things that are illuminated by light. During the day it’s the Sun that is doing the illumination and during the night we use various devices like bulbs and lamps to allow us to see.

Lighting temperature is an important property of light that determines how cool or warm a light appears and illuminates objects. Color temperature is the reason why things appear different during dusk as compared to midday.

Why is Color Temperature Important?
Color temperature plays an important role in setting the mood and the general vibe of the picture. In fact, a very common use of color temperature in videography is using it to depict geographical locations.
​
A warmer country is depicted by using a warm color temperature, while a colder country is depicted by using cooler color temperatures. This is the reason countries like Mexico are shown with a yellowish hue color and cooler countries like Germany with more of a bluish tint. 

​Filmmakers and professional photographers use a combination of using physical light and post-processing to get the perfect color tint for the mood they are going for. The color temperature of light conveys a lot about.

How is color temperature measured?

​Color temperature is measured using degree Kelvin (K). Kelvin is the unit of measurement for thermodynamic temperature, but it is also used to measure the temperature of light. The scale is used to tell varying degrees of warmness or coldness of the light. 

The smaller the number, the warmer the light. The larger the number the colder the light. For example, the light during sunset and sunrise is 1850 K, while light during normal daylight or in overcast conditions has a color temperature of 6500 K.

What color temperature works for what scenario?

​Photographers and Cinematographers take the aid of various light temperatures to tell their stories. They draw inspiration from Color Theory. According to the color theory, every color has psychological meaning attached to it. 

For example, the color Red has the meaning of Rage, violence, and evil attached to it while colors like Blue send a subtle message of depression or sadness. This way photographers can use light to subtly give layers to their scenes.

Use the Urban Jungle Photo Editor to unleash your creativity. Download it now for free on the Apple app store.

​Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date on upcoming exciting new features. You can also get your pictures featured on our page if you use the #UrbanJungleApp.

​Egypt is home to thousands of years of rich culture and history. That land has been home to many great civilizations over their history from ancient Egyptians to Romans and later Islamic conquerors. Making Egypt a multicultural center of preserving various cultures and architecture.

Egypt is home to a wide range of buildings spanning different eras and civilizations. The famous ones are the pyramid of Giza and the immortal city of Luxor in Thebes. A photography visit to Egypt is both an enriching cultural as well once in a lifetime learning experience. Let’s take a look at all the cities you should visit in your search for the Urban Jungle in Egypt.

1. Sharm El Sheikh
Located on the coast of the Red Sea, Sharm El Sheikh is a beautiful beach resort town. Go snorkeling or deep-sea diving in the beautiful coral reef surrounding the city. While it is not your typical Egyptian city filled with historic pyramids and structures, there is a lot of other beauty to be captured in Sharam El Sheikh. 

​Bur Sharam El Sheikh is home to a few important other historic sites such as House Horeb, this is where according to legend Moses received his Ten Commandments.

2. Thebes

​Thebes, the city of Kings is one of the most popular places to visit in Egypt. It is home to places like the immortal city of Luxor. Luxor has preserved ancient Egyptian history and culture for more than 4000 years. 

​You can experience things like the famous El Karnak Temple or the temple of Queen Hatshepsut. Thebes is also home to the infamous valley of kings which houses 63 tombs of famous personalities of ancient Egyptian civilizations like Ramses and Tutankhamun.
 
3. Aswan
 
Located on the eastern bank of the Nile, the Nubian city of Aswan is a land filled with legend and mythology. Aswan houses breathtaking temples and great structures like the Temple of the goddess Isis. These structures vary in style from ancient Egypt to Egypt under roman rule.
 

​While in Aswan you can also experience the unique Nubian architecture as infamous Nubian houses are plentiful in Aswan. Other things to look out for in Aswan are the Nubian handicrafts and porcelain industry.

4. Alexandria

Located on the shores of the Mediterranean, Alexandria was Europe's gateway into Egypt for hundreds of years. Alexandria is one of the many cities named after the famous Macedonian conqueror, but few reach the glory as Alexandria has throughout the years. 

​Other than famous historical and archaeological sites, Alexandria is also home to modern museums and other cultural attractions that offer a fusion of ancient Egyptian and roman cultures.

5. Cairo

The capital of Egypt and the crown jewel of the ancient Egyptian civilization, Cairo is a city of wonders and dreams. It has housed great civilizations over the years and has a history that goes as far back as 5000 years. The great pyramid of Khufu in Giza is just a drive away.

​​Cairo offers a little bit of everything Egypt is known for like history, culture, architecture, and tradition. From citadels to pyramids and statutes, Cairo has everything you would expect to see in Egypt.

Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to learn more about the Urban Jungle App. Download it now on the App Store. You can also get your pictures featured on our page if you use the hashtag #UrbanJungleApp.