On September 15, Snapchat released a new update that sent users into a frenzy. The new update allows the use of “lenses” so you can now choose to have a filter that changes with the way your face is positioned, among a few other changes and additions.
As of now there are seven animated filters you can use, which appear at the bottom of the screen. You can scroll through all your options to find your favorite one. Unfortunately, this new update only works on the updated iPhones and newer Android devices, so some of the older phones don’t have access to these fun filters.
Here are two of the filters you can use:
To use the lenses, you have to go to the camera screen as if you are taking a selfie, then press and hold your face. Follow the actions that appear on the screen and the animated filters are displayed over your face. From there, you can either take a photo or press and hold the photo button to take a video!
Here are some tips and ideas to make the most out of your Snapchat fun:
-
When writing text on Snapchat, it cuts you off after 31 characters. Believe me, I know that converting, “Do you want to hang out and go to the movies tonight,” to “Movies 2nite? *Kissy emoji,*” is so annoying. So if you want to get more space for typing without having to use the drawing tool (sigh), open your notepad on your phone and press enter a few times. Select the blank lines and copy them. Open your Snapchat app and paste the blank lines in the text space. This is kind of tedious, but you have to select each line when you want to type a new sentence. But, it is worth it when you need it!
-
You can now make your own geofilters! You know what those are, the cool stickers that you can use to tell everywhere you are. I personally like the “Downtown Pittsburgh” one, myself. But, if you so artistically talented and want to create your own, you can submit your original artwork here: https://www.snapchat.com/geofilters. It just has to be approved by the Snapchat employees.
-
There is a way to combine filters. You can use a colored filter while displaying the temperature, time or speed as well. Just select the colored filter you want and then keep your finger on the screen and continue to swipe to the other overlay you want to use. So easy!
Besides the awesome (and sometimes scary) new lenses, Snapchat has given us the option to buy extra replays. Replays are when you can see a snap that was sent to you one more time. You still get one free replay per 24 hours, but you can now pay .99 cents for three extra replays, $2.99 for 10, and 4.99 for a whopping 20 replays!
So, update your phones and check this out, and be sure to send your friends some creepy photos that they can use against you one day.