Chapter 5
Take, Sync, and Share Photos
Photography, AirPlay, and iCloud go hand in hand if you’re using an iOS device.
At its most basic level, Photo Stream allows you to take a photo on one device, (let’s say your iPhone) and, assuming all is set up correctly, access that same photo a few seconds later on your computer, your iPad, iPod Touch, or Apple TV. Once you get used to Photo Stream, it’s likely you’ll wonder how you were able to live without it.
As a tech journalist, I use Photo Stream on a daily basis for adding screenshots of iOS devices to articles I write. No need for iOS simulators on the desktop, connecting my device to my computer to sync the screens, or sending screenshots by e-mail anymore. Once the shot is taken, it appears on my computer a few seconds later.
That’s just one very niche use of the technology. For the everyday consumer, there are huge benefits. Photos of a day out snapped on your iPhone are ready and waiting to be gathered in an iPhoto gallery on your iPad or computer when you get home. Creatives sharing inspiration with others can quickly snap a photo or grab an image on their iPad’s screen and send it to a shared Photo Stream for others to see. Business users can send images from their iOS device or laptop to an Apple TV as part of a presentation. The list goes on and on.
Beyond Photo Stream, there are many ways to share photos taken on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch using built-in iOS features. Whether you want to fire photos to your friends ...
