Image Tricks is a fun and easy to use free image editor for Mac OS X. It is an application that encourages experimentation and offers the ability for a wide range of effects to be combined and applied to pictures. It is an ideal application for less experienced users to achieve creative results, thanks to the range of filters and masks that are available. There is also a paid Pro version that offers more filters, though you can see the effects that they produce in the free version, without saving them.
Highlights of Image Tricks
Some of the main features of Image Tricks include:
Very intuitive interface that encourages experimentation
See how effects will affect an image before choosing to apply them
Large number of effects and filters available in the free version
Wide range of masks to add frames and textures to images
Generators to produce a variety of random patterns
Why Use Image Tricks?
The name Image Tricks is quite descriptive of the application. It isn't really a tool for you to make general enhancements and adjustments to an image, though it does have the capacity for such edits if you only have minor adjustments to make to a single image.
The real strength of Image Tricks is to take your digital photos and apply and combine the different effects on offer to produce creative and artistic images that you might not be able to produce otherwise. It does offer less experienced users the power to produce some very exciting results with a few clicks and tweaks of sliders to vary the strength of some effects.
The wide range of preset masks also make it very easy to apply textures and unusual framing options to your digital photos.
The Limitations of Image Tricks
As said, it isn't very well suited for run of the mill image enhancements, but then that isn't really what it's designed to do.
Perhaps the biggest complaint that I could level at Image Tricks is that the ease with with which users can apply effects may lead to overkill as users get caught up in the excitement of applying effects and lose touch with what they are actually trying to achieve. This may lead to some wonderfully creative results, but it will almost certainly lead to some heavily stylized and over the top creations also. However it is unfair to criticize Image Tricks for giving users the ability to get carried away. In the right hands, Image Tricks will give users the tools to produce consistently impressive and creative results.
System Requirements
Image Tricks requires OS X 10.5.8 (Leopard) to operate. No other requirements are listed on the Image Tricks website.
Support and Training
Image Tricks comes with an built-in help file, accessed from the Help menu, which should give new users all of the information they need to familiarize themselves with the application and start to produce their creative images. There is also a link to online resources that include more information about the application and how to produce effects, such as torn paper. The developers' forums also include a section dedicated to Image Tricks which may be a useful place to seek help should you encounter any difficulties.
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