Some common effects, some unique effects. Many free & easy for newbies.

Autodesk is an organization that has been around for as long or longer than Adobe. They arent some fly by night developer. I say this because a number of reviews (and I read them all) made reference to the app trying to bill for features. That said when you download the product none of the functionality you see in the free version is paid. There are some features called "Essentials" that you have to sign up for a account (also free) with email address to unlock the essentials features. The paid features arent shown unless you purchase them. If you visit the autodesk website for the app it explains the features that are part of the paid app in the user guide. There are 2 icon badges that you will see on some of the effects. The first is a download symbol, this doesnt mean you pay for it, its just a feature (sticker, style, overlay, etc) that isnt part of the app download and is updated independent of the app download. The 2nd is a PINK Ribbon (I think it looks sort of like a bio-hazard symbol) note that if you signed up for the paid membership the Ribbons will be BLUE. But in either case it indicates a newer feature. (after a few uses the ribbon will disappear)

Now to the features. Like I said there are a number that are common to picture apps. Then there are a few that suprised me in how they functioned. The fast features are a number of common elements that you see. But one that I havent seen done this well is "heal" It fixes imperfections on a picture and one part in particular "shade" lightens a dark area of a photo to bring it up to a more common level. All the features have adjustments so you can put stickers in of cupcakes, etc. Make them almost seethru and put them above someones head with words like, "but I didnt want spinach." The biggest differrence is these sliders compared with other free apps which have a more take it or leave it approach to editing or filters. Or the Adobeesque approach where the interface is so unaccommodating that a novice simply will move on. This interface has hover info as wel as when you try an effect it is easy to cancel before keeping it or to undo if you decide a few clicks later that it wasnt what you wanted afterall. It also is non destructive. When you open a picture to edit it doesnt change that picture, you are asked to create a new file name so unless you click on the original picture file during the save as process your original is protected. Other apps arent so forgiving. (I have learned the hard way)

Overall its a good app for a novice who wants their pictures to look better with minimal time investment to learn.

Wizbang Trainer about Autodesk Pixlr