App review by Leslie Crenna, Common Sense Education | Updated May 2013
Photo Editor By Aviary

Photo Editor by Aviary

Cool creative tools for shutterbug teens

Learning rating
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Community rating
Based on 5 reviews
Privacy rating
Not yet rated Expert evaluation by Common Sense
Grades
6–10
Subjects & Skills
Arts, Communication & Collaboration, Creativity
Great for
Creating Media, Social Media
Price:  Free
Platforms:  iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch
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2 images

Pros: Teens will love menu customization options, plus legit knowledge base and API tools are icing on top of basic functionality.

Cons: Lack of undo or revert function and too many reasons to leave the app may frustrate kids using the Android version.

Bottom Line: It's a good tool for teens interested in creating digital images and developing apps.

How Can I Teach with This Tool?

The quality of filters and tools here is pretty great, so art or photography teachers shouldn't hesitate to use this app as a place for young shutterbugs to begin experimenting. Note: Photo Editor by Aviary might be best used by students on devices (with in-app purchasing disabled). If you have some budding programmers in your classes, the API tools on the developer's website are a great resource. They're accessible via the Aviary website with email-based account and login.

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Standards:

Photo Editor by Aviary is a photo editing app that includes all the standard tools plus fun stickers and filters. From the main menu, select the camera button, then use the built-in (or any other app-based) camera to take photos. Swipe to browse through the photo gallery, tap the chosen photo to edit, then select from around 20 editing tools. Changes appear directly on the screen; select Apply to save and Done to return to the main menu.

Tools include text, orientation, contrast, crop, frames, saturation, red-eye, and draw (six round brushes with erase). The Memes tool adds poster-style captions to the top and/or bottom of images, and Splash changes the image mode to black-and-white then allows the user to draw the color back in selectively. Posting to Facebook, email, and other share sites is optional.

It may not be the most exciting or powerful app available, but it has just the right amount of functionality for kids who aren't quite ready for the full professional editing apps. While the interface is a bit on the plain side, kids will be drawn in by tools like Splash and Meme, though the built-in effects pack is not that spectacular (paid add-ons are reasonably priced). Middle schoolers can learn digital photography and graphic arts skills here, and they'll have fun experimenting with all the tools. Customizing menus may not seem like a huge deal, but it helps kids feel more in control of the experience. Though tutorials and reference material are absent, the API tools on the developer website could serve as an entrance point for aspiring developers who wouldn't know where to start otherwise.

On the downside, the camera, pack purchases, and developer website take the user out of the app a bit too much on the Android version. It relies heavily on the device-level back button for navigation, and it has no undo or revert buttons (except for the back button before Apply is selected). The text tool is kind of frustrating; the only way to delete text boxes is to drag them off the workspace, though stickers are more flexible with a delete icon.

Overall Rating
Engagement

Interface is a bit on the plain side and effects are not jaw-dropping, but it's generally well-designed and easy to use.

Pedagogy

Kids will feel empowered by the little things, like the ability to customize interface and storage options as well as embed in other applications. 

Support

Access to Web-based developer knowledge base and API information empowers kids to develop their own apps.

Common Sense reviewer
Leslie Crenna
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Key Standards Supported

Language

  • L.5.3

    Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.

  • L.5.3a

    Expand, combine, and reduce sentences for meaning, reader/listener interest, and style.

  • L.6.3

    Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.

  • L.7.3

    Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.

  • L.7.3a

    Choose language that expresses ideas precisely and concisely, recognizing and eliminating wordiness and redundancy.*

  • L.8.3

    Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.

Writing

  • W.5.8

    Recall relevant information from experiences or gather relevant information from print and digital sources; summarize or paraphrase information in notes and finished work, and provide a list of sources.

  • W.6.6

    Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing as well as to interact and collaborate with others; demonstrate sufficient command of keyboarding skills to type a minimum of three pages in a single sitting.

  • W.7.6

    Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and link to and cite sources as well as to interact and collaborate with others, including linking to and citing sources.

  • W.8.6

    Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and present the relationships between information and ideas efficiently as well as to interact and collaborate with others.

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Community Rating

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Featured review by
Heather P. , Classroom teacher
Classroom teacher
Loyalsock Township School District
Williamsport, United States
Good app, easy to use, student friendly and great results.
I am a computer and technology teacher and I like this app to introduce basic photo editing skills to young students. I think it is simple, easy to use and allows students to grasp and practice basic photo editing concepts. I wish there was a more direct way to save photos as students are working on it and an undo feature after effects have been applied. I do like that there is an upload feature to various apps, including Google Drive, so that students can save their images in cloud storage and not on ...
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