I hope everyone had a very merry Christmas and got to enjoy time with family & friends over the last few days! Some of you may have found a brand new iPad or iPhone under the tree (woohoo!). If you did (or even if you didn’t and already have one of these awesome pieces of magical hardware), you might be wondering what apps to download first. I’ve been asked about good iOS apps a few times recently, so I thought I’d share some of my favorites I use in my work, as well as a few for play. Also, I’m always looking for new apps and I’d love to hear what your favorites are! What are you using to make life easier and better? Leave a comment at the bottom with your favorite app & why, and there just might be a little belated Christmas gift from St. Arbucks in store for you if your app changes my world! Here we go…

iPad:

1 – Evernote. This is hands down the best app for jotting down new shoot ideas, workshop notes, client info, or just about anything else. Evernote is cloud-based so all your information is accessible from any internet-enabled device. As soon as you add/update a note from one device, the change is synced to your account and updated accordingly on all your devices. They have apps for iPad, iPhone, Android, Mac, PC, as well as Evernote.com. – Price: $FREE.

2 – Dropbox. Again, another cloud-based app. Dropbox is amazing for keeping files, documents, photos, or anything else stored and accessible from any device with Dropbox. Also, your account has a public folder that is awesome for sending files too big for email. Anything put in this folder gets assigned a download link that you just copy & paste in an email, iChat message, Facebook message, or anything other text-style message for your recipient to simply click on to download the file. You can also create shared folders with any other Dropbox user to share file access for super easy collaboration. Also available for iPhone. - Price: $FREE

3 – Easy Release. ER is a great app for iPad/iPhone that creates legal model releases for any shoot or project where a release is necessary. Just plug in your model/client’s info and all the legalese is added for you. Have your model sign right on the screen & it’s ready to email to you, them, or whoever! Also available for iPhone. - Price: $9.99

4 – Square. Square is a mobile payment app that I use for taking credit card payments right on my iPad or iPhone (also available for Android). Sign up for a free account on Square.com, and they send you a free card reader that plugs right into the 1/8″ headphone jack on your device! There is no monthly merchant fee & you don’t pay for a subscription of any kind. The only fees are a small percentage per transaction, which is great because you only pay a fee when a transaction is made. Also available for iPhone. - Price: $FREE

5 – PDF Expert. If you’re looking for a do-it-all PDF app, this is the one. There are several apps out there for reading/viewing PDF’s, but this one also allows for completing PDF forms. This app allows me to run an entire client meeting from my iPad, including completing the contracts. I can open any of my PDF contracts with Adobe Acrobat Pro on my computer, create the necessary form fields, and then open it in PDF Expert via Dropbox on my iPad – all ready to complete, sign, and email out! Also available for iPhone. - Price: $9.99

6 – Photos. Yes, I’m talking about the default photo viewing app, and yes, I know this one already comes on the iPad. However, I tried out a few photo portfolio apps at first to show images, and I just kept coming back to this one. The clean look, simplicity, and ability to zoom into an image quickly & easily just kept winning out over the others I tried. – Price: $FREE

7 – AppShopper. Sometimes there’s an awesome app out there that you’d love to have, but it’s a little more money than you’d like to shell out. This is where AppShopper comes in. This app allows you to create your own app wishlist and it will notify you when the price drops! Also available for iPhone. – Price: $FREE

8 – The Weather Channel. Pretty self explanatory. If you’re a photographer (or simply aren’t a hermit), knowing the weather is kinda important. Also available for iPhone. – Price: $FREE

9 – Wunderlist. If you like to make to-do lists and then check things off as you complete them, you’ve come to the right app! Wunderlist is a simple to-do list app that syncs to the cloud and has an app for all devices (iPad, iPhone, Mac, PC, Android) so that no matter where you are, your list is with you. Also available for iPhone. - Price: $FREE

10 – Printer Pro. If you have an AirPrint enabled printer, feel free to ignore this one. If not, then this is your gateway to print from your iPad to any wireless printer. Also available for iPhone. - Price: $6.99

11 – Reeder. Do you follow lots of blogs? Do you usually read them on your Google Reader account? If you answered yes to those questions, then you’ll probably love Reeder. Reeder connects directly to your Google Reader account and beautifully displays your blog content in a simple, easy-to-read format that makes combing through your daily blog feed a piece of cake. After I got this app, I found myself not visiting my Google Reader page as much and just reading everything through Reeder. Also available for iPhone. – Price: $4.99 – (iPad) $2.99 – (iPhone)

12 – Twitter. Last but not least on the iPad list, the Twitter app. If you’re hyped up on Twitter like me, and much of the rest of the world, then the Twitter app is the way to go. Also available for iPhone. – Price: $FREE

13 – NBA Jam. If you’re a child of the 90′s who was ever graced with the presence of a Super Nintendo at some point, you know what I’m talking about. Also available for iPhone. – Price: $4.99

14 – Zite. If you’re a fan of the Pandora music site and you also like to read internet content, you’ll love this. Zite builds a custom internet magazine based on your preferences and topics of choice, gives you the ability to “thumbs up/down” an article, and then learns your preferences over time – just like Pandora. Definitely one of my favorite apps! Also available for iPhone. – Price: $FREE

Honorable mentions (* denotes available for iPhone) – Analytics, YouVersion Bible*, Pandora*, TuneIn Radio*, USA Today*, CNN*, Pilot Winds*, Angry Birds*, Words With Friends*, Oregon Trail, Amazon*, eBay*, ESPN Scorecenter*, Facebook*, Flipboard*, Fandango*, Penultimate, Google Earth, WordPress*, Dictionary*, Wikipanion, Skype (iPad 2 only), CBS Sports*

iPhone:

I’m only listing a handful of iPhone apps since almost all of the iPad apps above are either universal or have an iPhone-specific version.

1 – Instagram. This one was named the App Store’s 2011 iPhone App of The Year. I love sharing iPhone photos here, and it’s a pretty cool social community too. Definitely a favorite! – Price: $FREE

2 – Snapseed. My favorite photo editing app for iPhone. A full range of editing parameters and well worth the price. – Price: $4.99

3 – Sun Seeker. If you’re a photographer or videographer that’s shooting outdoors on a regular basis, this one will rock your world! Scout your locations and know where the sun will be at the exact time you’ll be shooting instead of making guesses. You can also turn on the camera overlay view for the sun’s path and times to be put right on top of your surroundings. Seriously, this is worth every penny. – Price: $5.99

4 – Starbucks. Yes, I’m an addict, and I hear the first step is admitting you have a problem. I’m pretty minimalist when it comes to my wallet, so not having to carry my Starbucks card with me is a definite plus. The app links any of your registered cards and can be scanned to pay for that double venti latte with two extra espresso shots, as well as locate nearby stores and more. – Price: $FREE

5 – Soundhound. If you’ve heard of Shazaam, it’s pretty much the same idea. Use the app to listen to any song and find out the artist and track name, as well as lyrics. I like Soundhound a little better because it seems to find the songs a little quicker. – Price: $FREE

Alright – time for your favorites. Go! (Update: Only comments posted by midnight EST tonight, 12/28/11, will be eligible!)