Water 'lenses' offer great effect opportunities for abstract photography

    If you find yourself either stuck at home, or stuck in a creative rut, get out your glassware and make some interesting art.

    Gavin Hoey, an OM Systems ambassador in England who is one of the regular hosts on Adorama's Youtube channel (Disclaimer: Adorama is not a sponsor of this blog. They just have great video tutorials.) did a video showing how to make abstract photos using water-filled glasses.

    Hoey demonstrates with graphic backgrounds how the water in the glass acts as a lens and refracts the image behind it, which leads to interesting effects depending on the background.

    If you don't have a background, Hoey graciously provides the ones he's using as downloads on his website, gavtrain.com.

    A fun thing in the video is we realize that, when talking about having a towel, Hoey's also a Hitchhiker's Guide to The Galaxy fan, and a man to be reckoned with.

Focus Chart app helps get photos, video tack sharp

    You've probably had that time when you were trying to get of the focus, either in a studio setting, or for a video standup.

    There's an app for that.

    Focus Chart, an Android app, gives you a couple high-contrast focus patterns that will be easy to lock on, either manually or with auto focus. If you're trying to do a self-portrait or a video, put the phone with the chart on a stand where you're going to stand, set focus and then move it away and step in.

    The best part is, it's free, and there's also a version for the iPhone as well.