Add Text to your Photos with these Apps
WORD SWAG
iOS only, 2.99$ from Oringe, Word Swag doesn’t simply let you write over images, it also gives you the chance to choose between a series of nice creative touches and special effects.
With a very easy-to-use interface, it lets you choose colors, transparency and background brightness while also offering standalone patterns to use as background other than your pictures.
The separate workplace in which you write your messages also lets you choose from a series of quotes.
PHONTO
Free and available on both Android and iOS, Phonto lets you choose from a variety of fonts and effects to make your message stand out, whether it’s in a though bubble or a badge. Stickers are also available, so just use your finger or the arrow keys to move them around or customize them.
In-app purchases are also available if the free version is not enough for you.
TYPIC
iOS only, Typic comes in three versions: Free, Plus and Kids. The free version is satisfying as it is: you’re given sample fonts with control on size, color, drop-shadow, etc. The choice is obviously limited in the free version, but it’s enough if you don’t need to do anything complicated. You’ll also have to put up with ads, which is to be expected in any free version of anything.
OVER
Very easy to use and goes for just 0.99$: take a picture, or choose one from the gallery, then tap the Add Text or Add Artwork options. Write, choose a color, then you’ll be presented with a variety of choice regarding alignment, size, opacity, etc. There are a lot of fonts available, and a limited number of free line art drawings to impose on your image.
Available for both Android and iOS.
FONT CANDY
This is the iOS app you need if you want to mask images into letterforms. Just choose a colorful picture and get the masked interface with a default font. You can adjust the effects on the photo and the font until you get what you like. It’s not such a versatile app, but it’s pretty neat you can achieve this sort of touch without having to open proper image editors.
BUBBLEFRAME
A pretty neat iOS app that allows you to create multiple layouts with text: it comes with several complex built-in bubble templates inside which you can place pictures and even videos. Adding text lets you choose from a variety of font you can then rotate, position, kern and modify in numerous ways. BubbleFrame really lets you play around, more than most apps will.
PICLAB
PicLab is available for iOS, Android and Windows Phone for free. It’s a photo editor, so you can do a lot more than simply adding text. The built-in font collection is satisfying and, as usual, you can modify color, size, etc. Multiple text layers are available, so as different effects to modify the image itself. You can even draw with a pencil if you wish to doodle on your creation. The free version will leave a watermark, so you have to pay 0.99$ if you want to get rid of that, or 1.99$ for the premium HD optimized iPad version.
WORDFOTO
WordFoto, by bitCycle for iOS, really lets you play with colorful and unique layers. You can use preset styles or make your own, mixing the text foreground and background color, blurring the image, regulating saturation, brightness and contrast. You can save your new presets so to use them again in the future, which makes it particularly good if you want to create memes and other funny and strange images.
STICKR
This is your best call if you don’t want to waste too much time worrying about aesthetics and just want to type on your image. You can choose between 300 designs and place them anywhere in your picture, kind of like a scrapbook. It will cost you 1,99$ and already features built-in stickers with basic designs, shapes, illustrations and variations, to which you can then modify color scheme or size. The app also feature in-app purchases if you want to add more stickers. iOS only.