Instagram adds 5 new filters and slow-motion video uploads

Instagram just got a little bit richer, with the addition of five new filters, slow-motion video uploading, and real-time commenting.

In a blog post this morning, the popular photo-sharing app, which just hit 300 million accounts last week, said it is adding the five new filters, the first since “Mayfair and Willow [joined] the Instagram filter family” two years ago, in part because “photography trends have evolved, and the capabilities of the camera on your phone have vastly improved.”

Above: Instagram has added five new filters, as well as other tools like slow-motion video, and the ability to rearrange filters.

Image Credit: Instagram

Instagram said the new filters can be found at the front of users’ filter trays. They’re called Slumber, Crema, Ludwig, Aden, and Perpetua. “They soften and subtly shift colors to achieve the look and feel you want for each photo,” the blog post continued.

The new filters, as well as other new features, are part of Instagram for iOS version 6.4, and Android version 6.12, both available today.

For Instagram, adding new filters and other tools for shooting and uploading video is key as services like Twitter bolster their own photo-sharing and editing offerings. And although Instagram has yet to build out a fully-fleshed business model, it is expected to do so in 2015. Facebook, which purchased Instagram in 2012 for $715 million in cash and stock, is surely eager to begin getting a substantial financial return on its investment, even though it has already reaped plenty of benefits in terms of new users.

With the release, users will also see some changes to how photos are displayed. When applying a filter to photos, the filter icons at the bottom of the screen will show a blurred preview of the filtered picture. In addition, Instagram now lets users rearrange their filters in any order they want, including hiding ones they don’t like, all via a new “Manage” button.

Finally, users will also for the first time be able to upload slow-motion video, see — and leave — real-time comments, and adjust the perspective of a photo.