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For instance, a photo taken of the gaping hole in my parents’ garage roof blew out all the highlights and turned everything a sickly yellow, while the default camera app looked approximately like what I saw onscreen when I hit the shutter. Daylight HDR photos usually look overprocessed and unnatural, but every now and again the shadows and highlights aren’t blown out and I get better results than with the iOS camera.
As far as actual editing goes, Lightroom is as good as it ever was, if not a little better, thanks to the device I’m using it on. Aside from the speed improvements I mentioned earlier, editing on the 8 Plus’ bigger screen is a lot more enjoyable than on my 6s. It’s also easier to see fine details and how different adjustments like sharpening or clarity affect them. Holding my phone in landscape makes editing an even more comfortable experience. Editing tools tuck into the right rail and expand when I tap on them, and disappear just as quickly.
I keep mobile photos and shots taken with my Nikon camera siloed off from one another and typically don’t edit iPhone shots anywhere but on my phone. And for that, Lightroom CC is great. It doesn’t quite allow for the more stylized edits I favor for my DSLR stuff, but for throwing a set of pictures to Instagram after an impromptu photo walk through my neighborhood, it does the trick. And if I want to get really crazy once I get back to my laptop, I can always use the Lightroom camera to grab some RAW files. Will the app’s shortcomings, like wonky HDR, stop me from using it? No, because for me it’s still better than Snapseed’s mostly gimmicky editing tools and iOS’ bare-bones options for tweaking.
Rob LeFebvre
Contributing Editor
There are plenty of reasons to use an external keyboard with an iPad, including better accuracy and comfort when typing for extended periods. I have my favorites, of course, like the Logitech K811, which can hold up to three different devices in its memory. However, being able to physically attach one onto an iPad is my own personal holy grail for iOS-capable input devices. The Brydge 10.5 iPad Pro keyboard is what I’ve been looking for — an input device that makes my iPad look like a laptop with a good-looking, protective form factor. It has backlit keys, doubles as a clamshell case for your 10.5-inch iPad Pro and comes in space gray, silver, gold or rose gold to match the finish on your precious iOS device, turning it into a MacBook mini of sorts. The keyboard has the same thickness and rounded design as the iPad Pro 10.5-inch, making it the perfect companion for my tablet of choice. It also works with any other device as a standard Bluetooth keyboard, of course.
The Brydge keyboard has nicely spaced keys, and, while they’re not full-size, they are easy to hit and use, even when touch typing. The keys are responsive, and the F and J keys both have a little raised bump on the lower half so you know where to place your fingers for touch typing — just like a MacBook.
At first, I had a little trouble hitting them with enough force to register a key press, but I was able to train my fingers to do so within just a few minutes. There are three brightness settings (low, medium and high) for the backlit keyboard so you can match the brightness of the keyboard to the ambient light from your iPad and the room. There’s even a small handrest below the keys themselves — not enough room to rest my admittedly large hands in their entirety, but roomy enough to rest part of them during long typing sessions.
Why not just get an Apple-made Smart Keyboard, though, which is thinner and adds less weight to your iPad? Well, aside from the extra $20 it costs and the lack of backlit keys, Apple’s own input device is pretty flimsy in comparison. Sure, it’s more spill-resistant than the Brydge, but the Smart Keyboard isn’t really my favorite way to type on an iPad when it’s in my lap; it feels flimsy. The Brydge, however, is made of the same metal construction as the iPad itself. The Brydge’s hinge keeps the iPad at the exact angle I want without flopping around at all. I’m able to use it on my lap when I sit with my legs extended to my coffee table in front of me (my usual posture), as well as in a cross-legged position while sitting on my bed or in a large chair. I can also see it being pretty fantastic for tiny lap trays in the coach section of an airliner, where a larger MacBook might have trouble fitting in (especially if you’re behind one of those travelers who insist on leaning their seat back during the flight).
The Brydge feels so much like typing on my MacBook Pro that I have to keep reminding myself to touch the screen and not search for a touchpad. It’s a solid, useful, stylish peripheral that has boosted my writing productivity on my iPad.
