Whether it’s a selfie or a group photo with friends, Instagram can be a fun way to showcase the best moments of your life. However, after posting a certain amount of photos, each one could start to look the same, making Instagram seem boring to you. Don’t worry, we’ve all been there! Luckily, these apps – all of which are free – are the best for creating fun edits and a chance to revamp your content!
1. Lightroom
I recently downloaded this app and it’s easily become my go-to when I take photos. My favorite thing about Lightroom is that you can create your own filters, and there’s an option of saving it as a preset. That way, you can use it instantly on other photos without having to do it all over again. Like the popular VSCO app, Lightroom also has a photo gallery where you can save every photo you’ve edited. Some people buy Lightroom presets, but as a broke college student, I’d recommend watching YouTube tutorials.
2. Prequel
If you’re looking for ways to make your photos different from your average Instagram post, I’d use Prequel. This app comes with themed filters such as “Fisheye” and “Bling”, which gained popularity on TikTok. I personally have only experimented with “Miami” and “Disco”, but there are tons of other filters to play around with your photos.
3. Dazz Cam
This is such an interesting app because it has different cameras that will alter your photos a certain way, depending on which one you choose. My favorite camera is the Polaroid, which puts the classic instant camera’s frame over your photo and gives it the effect as well. It’s super fun! It’s also useful considering the fact that there are many photos in my phone’s camera roll that I wish I had captured on my actual Polaroid instead. But alas, the digital version will do.
4. Camcorder
Have you ever watched old home videos of your parents or yourself? I’ve always loved photos or videos with time stamps on them because it gives me a glimpse of what that day consisted of and I’m more likely to remember the date. If you want to give your videos that same vibe, Camcorder keeps the date that the video was captured instead of the day you used the app for it. The videos from a camcorder just hit differently, you know?
5. Chromic
I’ve seen people post videos on their Instagram feed or IGTV for various occasions: Thanksgiving to celebrate their loved ones, the end of a school year, a montage for an anniversary, etc. Although they are really cute, I sometimes think “Hmm…it would be cuter if the clips matched each other.” If you feel the same way and refuse to use the filters that Instagram provides, Chromic has a variety of different filters. It also gives you the option to horizontal your videos (this comes in handy if some videos are from Snapchat) and can add fade, grain and vignette.
Try out any of these awesome tools to post on Instagram? Tag us @HerCampusSJSU! Happy Instagramming!