Snapchat is one of the most popular photo sharing apps around, but with frequent updates and hidden features, being a Snapchat pro is a skill that requires real creativity and the right intel.
If you’re itching to up your Snapchat skills, these tips and tricks will make sure your game is on fire, putting you way ahead of the guys who have just discovered the dog face filter.
Edit like a Pro
If stickers and emojis just don’t cut it, you can use Snapchat’s latest feature to edit your pictures, Photoshop-style. Just tap the scissors and the magic eraser and colouring changing tool will appear. You can also apply patterned backgrounds, and if you choose to edit a photo from your camera roll you can insert backdrops from famous paintings.
Geofilters are special filters that are available based on your location, and are an awesome way to brag about your travel plans while your followers are stuck at home.
However, if you want to pretend to be somewhere else through the magic of your snapchat geofilters and be in 10 countries in a week, there is a way for Android users to do it. All you need is a location-spoofing app. Apps like Fake Location Spoofer Free or Fake GPS location are free to download and use, and can trick your phone into taking on any location around the world. Once you’ve altered your location, you can then go to Snapchat and enjoy your new filters.
Or, you can be a real creative and actually contribute your own geofilters.
Get Stalky
You no longer have to stalk your mates’ stories to try and work out if they're hanging out without you. Snap Map tells you the location of all of your friends who have the app open, as well as Stories at landmarks around the world. Just open your camera, pinch as though you’re zooming in, and the ‘See The World’ feature will open. If you want to go incognito. just switch on ‘Ghost Mode’ and your location will be undetectable. Creepy? Yes. Will we use it? Absolutely.
If you’re bored of the usual filters, then this creative trick will be worth the effort. Once you’ve taken a photo, tap the little paper icon on the top-right corner of your screen, and place an emoji on your image. Then, enlarge the emoji until it becomes a translucent pixelated blur, and move it around your image to angle the colour gradient just right.
If you layer enough colours, you’ll get a trippy colour filter of your doing.
Shazam!
Ever been snapping your pals on the dancefloor when an absolute tune comes on, and you really want to know what it is? Snapchat has paired with music ID service Shazam to take away this stress. Just open the camera and press the screen for three seconds during the song. Not only will Shazam tell you what’s playing, Snapchat will then bring up the artist’s Snap code and give you the option of following them.
Maybe you’re just trolling your friends, or maybe you’re a complete creep. Either way, we don’t want to know what you’re going to do with this trick. To secretly save a video or image that your friends have sent, go straight to a screen recording option, either a mobile or PC app will do. Then begin recording before watching those snaps, and your friends will be none the wiser.
Meet your Bitmoji
Trust us, Bitmoji’s are the next best thing to putting actual people in your pictures. These personalised emoticons are cartoon mini-mes that you can design with the Bitmoji app. Once you’ve linked your account to Snapchat via the stickers page, you’ll have dozens of images of your avatar dressed as a sandwich, sitting in a teacup or driving a car. Or maybe that’s just us.
Everyone already knows about the secret colours on Snapchat (if not, it's time to go back to Snapschool), but not many know about Snapchat’s transparent colour option.
No, this is not an invisible ink trick. Android users get a special option to apply any colour in partial-opacity, making your doodles translucent. Just hold down on the colour bar, and drag it to the left slightly to reveal additional columns of colour. Tap the middle column to access all the colours in its translucent form.
Voice filters
Snapchat comes with a huge range of face filters which make you look #cute on the most hungover of days, but what if your voice needs some TLC? You can now apply alien, robot, bear and chipmunk voice distortions to any audio you record. Perfect for when you wake up with a husky voice, and hilarious when applied to songs. To get these, film your snap and tap the sound symbol in the bottom left corner of your screen.
If you want to add music to your videos, just play any music app on your phone while you use Snapchat. You will still get some background noise, but the music will be the predominant sound in your Snapchat video.