FocusTwist
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FocusTwist lets you focus photos after taking a picture
A new app called FocusTwist by Arqball lets your iPhone do what a US$400 Lytro light field camera is used for. Like the Lytro, the FocusTwist app lets you adjust the focus a picture after you have taken it. However, the method of after-focusing is completely different in FocusTwist than it is in the Lytro. The Lytro uses specialized hardware and software (you can read about it here). FocusTwist, on the other hand, has a bit of trickery up its sleeve. The app actually takes several photos at different focus points when you expose an image. Users can change the focus by tapping different parts of the image. Arqball's back-end servers handle the image processing, so the images can even be refocused by any friends you've shared a photo with. Because the FocusTwist app takes a succession of rapid images at different focal lengths, the after-focusing feature only works well if you manage to hold your iPhone very steady while taking a pic. For best results, a tripod is handy. FocusTwist is US$1.99 and available in the App Store now.
FocusTwist app for iOS gives you Lytro-esque refocusable images
Arqball has just released the FocusTwist app for iOS that lets you selectively focus after taking an image -- without investing $400 in a Lytro light field camera. It works by automatically taking several shots with different focus points from your iPhone's camera, delivering the best results if you hold very still and have subjects in the near foreground and far background. You can then change focus by clicking different parts of the resulting image, which is hosted on the company's server and can be shared via a link. After playing with the app ourselves for a bit (see the More Coverage link), we've got to admit we're stupidly hooked -- you can grab it at the source for $1.99.
