Snapchat filters: an outdated trend?
The Snapchat application (also called Snap) was born in September 2011. To entertain its users, it allows them to engage in a dialogue with photos (often selfies) and videos that have been modified – via filters or stickers – and are ephemeral. It quickly became a trend thanks to the simple and intuitive use of the Snapchat filters, but it is however increasingly neglected, in particular due to its main competitor Instagram. Is the social network Snapchat and its legendary filters in danger of becoming obsolete?
What are Snapchat filters?
Early versions of Snapchat did not offer the possibility to use filters. Filters appeared much later, in October 2016. Success was immediate. This innovation encourages users to reawaken their creativity, to make humorous animations such as turning faces into animals, swapping two faces and other operations. The use of Snapchat filters is therefore spreading very quickly, becoming a real fashion phenomenon, especially among young people.
Technically, the application uses a real-time face detection system to produce the best possible images. The filters exploit the user’s gestures in real time to produce various anatomical effects. For example, the filter makes one image appear when the mouth is closed and another when it is open, for example by giving the user the features of a pet. Some filters play on chin and nose dysmorphia and others almost have a cosmetic surgery role by “beautifying” faces and correcting imperfections.
The steps for using a Snapchat filter are simple.
- Download the application and launch it to activate the front camera.
- Press and hold the framed face for a few seconds until the filters appear. This step uses the application’s face recognition function.
- Choose the filter to be used from all the filters and then follow the tips shown on the screen.
- Finally, click on the shutter-release button to take the selfie and send it so that the image is visible in the story.
A positive overall result since the creation of Snapchat
Snapchat used to be the only application to give full satisfaction to users in terms of photo and video sharing, notably thanks to new regular features. However, things have changed. The arrival of Instagram, an application similar to Snapchat, has created an adversity between the two platforms. Since the creation of Instagram, the number of Snapchat users is no longer the record to be beaten. Indeed, Instagram has 200 million users, compared to 158 million for Snapchat. In addition, Snapchat is constantly losing fans: more than 3 million users were totally inactive in the first half of 2018.
Instagram and Snapchat share the same goal: the systematic sharing of images and videos aimed at an audience. Instagram nevertheless takes advantage of its momentum to provide innovative ideas that meet user demands, distinguishing itself in particular by its appetite for e-commerce.
The Snapchat filters, on the other hand, have seen little change since its introduction. The Snapchat filters, however, have changed little since its introduction and do not have the business aspect that attracts so many brands and influencers to Instagram. In addition, the fun side of Snapchat has backfired. The filters are sometimes ridiculed as a reflection of a certain immaturity. The “no Snapchat on CV” syndrome seems to override the artistic creativity behind the project.
Since its creation, Snapchat has been able to seduce young people thanks to its novelties and the interactions generated. However, this success story is getting darker and darker: in parallel to a ruthless war with Instagram, the application is experiencing serious difficulties to renew itself. Faced with increasingly demanding and sought-after audiences, Snapchat sees its future threatened today.