By Nicki Fitz-Gerald

Prequel rather dryly calls itself an Aesthetic Pic Editor, which doesn’t really do the app justice. Prequel is an incredible app that uses A.I. technology to add impressive effects to photos and videos focusing on people, particularly the human face. The alterations to facial features are fascinating, and it’s great for creating avatars and cartoonish versions of yourself. There are hundreds of effects and filters, but the most popular seem to be the types that transform your photos into high-quality graphic novel artwork and cartoon styles.

I can’t remember exactly how I discovered the Prequel app, but most likely, it was while I was scrolling through Instagram when one of their adverts grabbed my attention showing Prequel Inc.’s slick before-andafter cartoonized photos, which blew my mind. I am not really a big fan of the style, but the attention to detail and the quality of the results are superior to any app trying to achieve a similar cartoon effect.

Initially, I played around with the free version, which gives you 10 free goes of applying different effects. These were so impressive that I quickly downloaded the three-day free trial version and canceled the subscription straight away to avoid charges. By canceling the subscription, you still get the free trial up to the allocated date expiry. Don’t be tempted to try the free trial a second time, as you’ll get charged the $4.99 fee.

What I like about Prequel is that you don’t get annoying adverts popping up all the time. The app doesn’t feel pushy in trying to get you to take out a full subscription.

I’m impressed with their image processing algorithms as well. The level of highly finished art that the app produces, especially from good-quality selfies, is particularly impressive. You can get some incredible results from professionally shot studio portraits. It does a fantastic job of turning photos into super-real, glassy-eyed portrait paintings — that’s not to everyone’s taste, but I was impressed with the quality and the shininess.