Software companies from Adobe to startups are researching ways to use artificial intelligence to auto clip photos and separate the subject from the background, but a new app has already launched with a simpler idea — auto masking for a classic paper-and-scissors collage look. Pasted, an iOS photo collage app, is designed to mimic the look of a traditional cut-and-paste collage using facial recognition.
To be fair, Pasted isn’t attempting to auto mask out every single hair — it’s an app designed to mimic the look of a physical cut. That means that sections of the background are left intact and the clip is more or less a rough geometrical one, with facial recognition tech simply telling the system where to make the cut. Users can then go back in and edit the crop using the touchsreen and tracing with a finger.
Designed for crafting anything from a mood board to a fun social media collage, the app uses a mix of automated and custom edits. Along with clipping from existing photos (or photos you snap while in the app), the app also includes a number of clip art shapes and cutouts to add to the collage, though some are paid upgrades. Photo filters are also included.
The app comes from James Mercer, the lead singer of The Shins, along with Zeke Howard and Ben Fogarty of The Brigade, a digital agency that has worked with companies like Spotify, Nike, and Bose.
“We love the look of handmade collages; the style is both artistic and the type of thing you might see in an old yearbook,” Mercer said. “Pasted was designed to bring that open-ended, playful approach to your phone or tablet.”
The three developers formed Spruced last year; Pasted is their first app launch. The new company is focused on buildings tools for creators.
“Music initially brought us together,” said Howard, co-founder of Pasted and partner at The Brigade. “Our passion for art has led the three of us to create Pasted together, and we can’t wait to see how creators embrace the app and express themselves through collages.”
The free app is now available from the App Store.
Full-frame cameras tend to be chunky beasts, but Sigma wants to prove that big imaging doesn't need a big body. Enter the Sigma FP2, the successor to its tiny, boxy fp mirrorless camera. It keeps the same modular design but packs in some serious upgrades, including a 24.5-megapixel partially stacked full-frame sensor, improved autofocus, 6K video recording, and 70GB of built-in storage. Sigma calls it the world's smallest full-frame camera, and while it might be tiny, the same cannot be said for its price tag.
Sigma FP2 brings faster shooting and 6K video
A phone thermal camera is one of those tools you don’t think you need until the first time it saves you from an expensive problem, and the Thermal Master P3 just got easier to try. For Halloween, it’s discounted with the code THERMCAM10, a 10% cut that works out to $107 off the total. It’s also fresh off a win at the 2026 Tom’s Guide AI Awards for best phone thermal camera, which is the kind of third-party nod that separates a serious tool from the cheap clip-on sensors that flood this category.
We are nearing Amazon's Prime Big Deal Days, which officially run October 6 and 7. But there is no need to wait until the sale begins to start looking. Early offers are already live, and camera gear is one category where I found enough worthwhile discounts to put together a proper creator-focused list.
I’ve deliberately gone wider than interchangeable-lens cameras here. There are pocket and action cameras, a 360 camera, an instant camera, two wireless microphone systems, and a pair of webcams covering very different budgets. Prices were checked on October 2, and as always with Amazon, they can move quickly.