Field Guide № 1 · First Edition · iOS
The lost art of noticing things.
Unpic blocks your distracting apps when you've had enough — and unlocks them only when you photograph one small, real, ordinary thing. Your pic unlocks your phone.
In press now · we'll write once, when it ships.
Plate № 001
fig. 1 — the houseplant, rediscovered
Ch. 02 · Field Method
How the method works
Three movements, performed daily, in your own home. No equipment beyond the phone you were already holding.
-
Set your limits
Choose the apps that eat your evenings and decide how much is enough. You write the rules; Unpic just keeps the ledger. This is not parental control — you are the parent, the child, and the visiting naturalist.
you set the rules —
nobody else does -
Hit the limit, draw a quest
When time's up, there's no shame screen and no countdown to glare at. Instead, a small card: “Find a wooden spoon.” Somewhere in your house, an ordinary object is waiting to be noticed.
fig. 3 — the spoon,
rediscovered -
Snap the photo, apps unlock
Point your camera at the thing. Verified on the spot, apps unlocked. You stood up. You crossed a room. You looked at something that wasn't glowing.
side effects incl.
fresh air & joy
Plates II–IV · Engravings
Selected plates from the first edition
Plate № 047
fig. 2 — kept for stirring, famous for unlocking
Plate № 112
fig. 3 — observed leaving, rarely arriving
Plate № 008
fig. 4 — twice daily, now thrice useful
Phone time is the side quest.
— foreword, first edition
Real life is the main quest.
Ch. 03 · Appendix A
An index of specimens
548 ordinary objects catalogued to date, each one a possible quest. A selection follows; the rest you'll have to find yourself.
- Houseplant 001
- Toothbrush 008
-
Coffee 014 -
Book 019 -
Whisk 022 -
Egg 027 -
Candle 031 -
Pencil 036 - Wooden Spoon 047
-
Snail 052 rare -
Lemon 058 -
Matchbook 063 -
Glasses 066 -
Kettle 071 -
Lightbulb 075 -
Dandelion 079 rare -
Fork 083 -
Clothespin 088 -
Croissant 090 -
Alarm Clock 094 -
Piggy Bank 097 -
Hammer 101 -
Leaf 105 - House Keys 112
-
Teapot 118 -
Hourglass 121 rare -
Jar of Honey 126 -
Paper Clip 130 -
Vase 134 -
The Cat 139 -
Rolling Pin 143 -
Watering Can 148 -
Safety Pin 151 -
Toast 156 -
Umbrella 160 -
Jigsaw 165 -
Frying Pan 170 -
Fire Hydrant 174 rare -
Ruler 179 -
Teddy Bear 183 -
Avocado 188 -
Tape Measure 192 -
Light Switch 197 -
Bar of Soap 203 -
Bicycle 208 -
Hand Lens 214 -
A Good Rock 219 rare -
Colander 225 -
Wallet 230 -
Stapler 236 -
The Dog 241 -
Duct Tape 247 -
Razor 252 -
Flower 260
… index continues for 494 further entries · see app
Ch. 04 · Field Ethics
On the ethics of observation
- §1
The guide stays in your pocket.
Your screen-time data never leaves your device. Nothing is uploaded, aggregated, graphed in a boardroom, or whispered to an advertiser.
- §2
We can't see your apps. Truly.
Blocking happens inside Apple's own FamilyControls framework — Unpic never even learns which apps you use, let alone how long.1
- §3
No ads. No data selling. No feed.
The business model is older than the smartphone: you buy the guide, the guide serves you. That's the whole arrangement.
1 App names and usage live behind Apple's privacy boundary, readable by the system alone — not by Unpic, and certainly not by us.
Ch. 05 · Subscription Slip
Reserve your first edition
Unpic is in press for iOS. Leave your address below and we'll write — once — when it ships. No newsletters, no nudges, no nonsense.
collector's note · early reservations receive first-day access — rarity: uncommon