Photo Tips and Tricks

Some filters come borderless (Amaro, Rise and Valencia), and the remaining filters all come with standard borders. Now you have the option to turn borders on and off to fit the mood and aesthetic of the scene.
  1. Take a photo (or choose one saved on your device).
  2. Select the filter you would like to apply to your photo.
  3. Then tap on the square above the filter tray toggle the border on and off.
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  1. Take a photo or choose a photo saved on your device.
  2. Select the drop icon from the menu bar.
  3. Choose linear ( – ) or radial ( o ) tilt shift.
  4. Drag or tap the double lines (linear) or circle (radial) to the desired section of the photo. Anything you see in the translucent white will then become blurred once you remove your finger from the screen.
  5. To remove the tilt shift effect simply navigate to the drop icon and select the X.
You can find tips for using tilt-shift in this article from maclife.com, as well our Photo Tips post at blog.instagram.com.

NOTE: On Apple iOS devices, tilt-shift was included as of V1.14 and works on devices running iOS 4.2.1 or later. On Android devices, tilt-shift was included as of V1.1.0 and works on selective supported devices.
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Lux works its magic by making your photos more vibrant and bringing out details you couldn't see before. Once you've taken a photo, or uploaded a photo saved on your device, just tap the sun symbol in the camera view to turn Lux on.

Note: The Lux feature is not available on all Android devices.
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  1. Take a photo holding your phone horizontally or navigate to a photo saved on your device and select the photo that needs rotation.
  2. Once your image is ready hit the rotate arrow that appears in the camera view to begin rotating your image.
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Here’s an easy way to save your own photo if you forgot to turn your “save photo” settings on:

Note: You cannot save other users' photos to your device at this time. Users own the rights to their images, so we are unable to allow you to save another users' photo without their permission. If you would like to share a link to a photo uploaded by another user via Twitter, please check out this article.
iOS
  1. From your profile, tap the “…” button below the photo you want to save
  2. Tap “Copy Share URL”
  3. Open Safari on your phone and paste the Share URL into your browser to open the photo’s webpage
  4. Tap and hold on the photo until the options bar pops up, then tap “Save image to library”
Android
  1. Find the photo you want to save from your Profile tab
  2. Tap the “…” button below the photo, then choose “Share”
  3. From the “Share” Menu navigate to either Message or Email
  4. Highlight the images' Share URL & copy the URL
  5. Navigate to a browser & paste the Share URL
  6. Tap and hold on the photo until the options menu appears, tap Save
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Instagram photos are now available on the web! Web profiles are available at: instagram.com/[username].

You can also view your photos on third-party sites that have been created using the official Instagram API. We've listed some of these sites and apps below.
Web view
Mac apps
iPad apps
Print your photos
Get your Instagram stats
"Follow us" badges
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How to participate
  • Go to meetup.com/instagram and find a meetup going on in your city, then click “Count me in.” If you don’t see an upcoming event in your hometown, start one!
  • Help spread the word on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and wherever else you can! (See below for more tips.)
  • Join up with other Instagrammers on your city’s meetup day, get inspired and make new friends!

Things to remember

  • Keep it simple: The goal is to get other Instagrammers together to meet one another, so meeting in a bar or park is a great option for your first meetup. There’s always time to organize more elaborate meetups!
  • Don’t be afraid to start small: Two or three people is still a meet-up!
  • Check out our blog to see photos from InstaMeets around the world.

Ideas for your meetup

  • Meet at a bar or park: Start casually and discuss your favorite filters and photo techniques with other Instagrammers.
  • Photowalk: Pick a route in your city and spend an hour or two snapping photos with other Instagrammers.
  • Scavenger Hunt: The NYC Instagram crew organized a photo scavenger hunt – over 50 people participated, snapping photos of everything from “someone eating a hot dog” to “5 or more strangers in a conga line.”

Spread the Word

  • #instameet: Use the #instameet tag on all photos/tweets you share related to your meetup.
  • #instameetyourcity: Also use a city-specific tag, such as #instameetlondon, so that you can keep track of all content related to your city’s meetup on Instagram.
  • Make an announcement: Post a note to Instagram/Twitter/Facebook that you want to have a meetup in your town and @ mention users you follow in your city. Phoster is a great app for creating notes to share to Instagram.
  • Ask others to share: After you post your announcement, encourage others to reshare the image with their followers (after you post the photo, tap the “…” button below the photo to copy the Share URL, then paste that URL in a comment on your photo).
  • Find Instagrammers in your city: When you add a location tag in Instagram to your pictures, you can click on that location to see other images posted there. You can also search hashtags to see if places near you are mentioned. Talk to the people who’ve posted at the same spots as you and direct them to your city’s meetup page.
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The Instagram blog is chock-full of helpful tips for taking, editing and sharing great photos. Below, we've compiled a helpful list of some of our more popular items.

Photo Taking Tips
Photo Editing Tips
Photo Sharing Tips
"How I Shoot" User Tutorials
InstaMeet Tips