Groopic: New iPhone App Puts The Photographer Back in the Picture
Hello, Ali Rehan! Please tells us about Groopic and why it’s different than other photo apps.
We have invented a cool photography app [for Android and iOS] that lets you take a group picture that includes the photographer. Have you ever noticed your group photos are always missing the photographer? Groopic solves this impossible problem by seamlessly including your photographer friend in every group photo, without asking for help from a stranger or setting up a tripod. With Groopic, your pictures have every friend, every time!
Samsung’s new phones claim to solve this problem using Dual Cameras, but that’s like pasting a sticker on a photo — a bit goofy. Instead, Groopic gives you a perfect group photo in just three simple steps. Simply take two pictures, mark the photographers and let Groopic do the magic. It automatically combines these incomplete pictures into one complete group picture.
Could you discuss designing the user interface and user experience?
We completely designed the user interface and experience in-house. When we started, we did not have this expertise within our team. We had to work hard to overcome this shortcoming. So, the strategy we took was going to the users as soon as we had a basic version of the app ready. We launched the beta version of the app in smaller App Stores to get user feedback. We were keen on how people used the app and incorporated the feedback in quick releases. Over the period of 6 months, we released 5 versions and tested the app on about 7000 unique users.
Could you describe how you designed your app icon?
We started with different ideas, but in the end, we wanted to convey the feeling of merging the pictures with people. To come up with the final version, we iterated at least 4 times, with almost 30-40 test icons per attempt. I have added a few unused icons for reference:
What software development tools, people, or communities particularly helped you in creating the App? What lessons did you learn in using these resources?
The best resource: StackOverflow. It helped solve all the minor issues and errors that got us stuck. It’s the developer’s best friend, we would say!
What went right and wrong with development and release?
The three things that went well:
- Hot area with great interest by OEMs as well as users
- An effective launch strategy
- A good product video
The three things that went wrong:
- We couldn’t capture the users (Ap pStore) to the extent that we wanted to
- We iterated a bit too much on the interface
- Our interactive tutorial in the app was too long
What were you doing in life and work before you started building this app?
We are a bunch of researchers turned into entrepreneurs. Prior to starting up, we worked at a computer vision lab where we published at top journals and conferences in the world. We have worked on interesting problems like reconstructing structures from single images, and tracking and reconstructing moving bodies in 3D with a single camera!
What apps have caught your eye?
Glasses.com [free, iPad] – It’s a virtual try-on for glasses. A lot of people are working in the space, but their approach is the most innovative with really cool results.
GroupShot [iOS] – It’s a really simple app, but solves a really interesting problem, and helps me take pictures with babies.
PhotoSynth [free, Windows Phone, iOS, Android] – Really nice camera app by Microsoft, it lets you record the environment around you in a much more natural way than panoramas. People really undervalue this app, I believe.
Hello, Ali Rehan! Please tells us about Groopic and why it’s different than other photo apps.
We have invented a cool photography app [for Android and iOS] that lets you take a group picture that includes the photographer. Have you ever noticed your group photos are always missing the photographer? Groopic solves this impossible problem by seamlessly including your photographer friend in every group photo, without asking for help from a stranger or setting up a tripod. With Groopic, your pictures have every friend, every time!
Samsung’s new phones claim to solve this problem using Dual Cameras, but that’s like pasting a sticker on a photo — a bit goofy. Instead, Groopic gives you a perfect group photo in just three simple steps. Simply take two pictures, mark the photographers and let Groopic do the magic. It automatically combines these incomplete pictures into one complete group picture.
Could you discuss designing the user interface and user experience?
We completely designed the user interface and experience in-house. When we started, we did not have this expertise within our team. We had to work hard to overcome this shortcoming. So, the strategy we took was going to the users as soon as we had a basic version of the app ready. We launched the beta version of the app in smaller App Stores to get user feedback. We were keen on how people used the app and incorporated the feedback in quick releases. Over the period of 6 months, we released 5 versions and tested the app on about 7000 unique users.
Could you describe how you designed your app icon?
We started with different ideas, but in the end, we wanted to convey the feeling of merging the pictures with people. To come up with the final version, we iterated at least 4 times, with almost 30-40 test icons per attempt. I have added a few unused icons for reference:
What software development tools, people, or communities particularly helped you in creating the App? What lessons did you learn in using these resources?
The best resource: StackOverflow. It helped solve all the minor issues and errors that got us stuck. It’s the developer’s best friend, we would say!
What went right and wrong with development and release?
The three things that went well:
- Hot area with great interest by OEMs as well as users
- An effective launch strategy
- A good product video
The three things that went wrong:
- We couldn’t capture the users (Ap pStore) to the extent that we wanted to
- We iterated a bit too much on the interface
- Our interactive tutorial in the app was too long
What were you doing in life and work before you started building this app?
We are a bunch of researchers turned into entrepreneurs. Prior to starting up, we worked at a computer vision lab where we published at top journals and conferences in the world. We have worked on interesting problems like reconstructing structures from single images, and tracking and reconstructing moving bodies in 3D with a single camera!
What apps have caught your eye?
Glasses.com [free, iPad] – It’s a virtual try-on for glasses. A lot of people are working in the space, but their approach is the most innovative with really cool results.
GroupShot [iOS] – It’s a really simple app, but solves a really interesting problem, and helps me take pictures with babies.
PhotoSynth [free, Windows Phone, iOS, Android] – Really nice camera app by Microsoft, it lets you record the environment around you in a much more natural way than panoramas. People really undervalue this app, I believe.
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