It truly has been a year of Instagram updates as the popular photo-sharing social platform continues to roll out changes both on the UI (user interface) front as well as on its backend.
From new filters to new editing tools, to tweaking hashtags and the way they work, and even bumping up the resolution/quality for pictures, it’s safe to say that Instagram has been on a roll.
It wasn’t too long ago that they introduced a new and cleaner look for their web design, but it looks like even its app has gotten quite an overhaul! Just today, Instagram announced that it is finally thinking out of the box or rather, out of the square, as it will now allow users to post in both landscape and portrait format.
Yes, you can now kiss the native square frame goodbye.
Instagram explained that after analysing data from its networks, they found that almost one in 5 photos/videos its users were posting weren’t natively square. Naturally, this leads to awkward and annoying cropping sessions, or having to use third-party apps to “Square It”, or really long framing sessions where users painstakingly try to fit everything into one Instagram post.
Android users, especially, would find it extremely troublesome to take Instagram-worthy pictures as their camera settings doesn’t come with a square shooting mode, unlike iPhones. So if you’ve always been especially OCD about keeping your feed clean, this “disability” may or may not have driven you up to wall several times.
But that’s okay! Now, you can share photos and videos in both portrait and landscape orientation on Instagram 🙂
In the announcement, they explained:
Today, we’re excited to announce that – in addition to square posts – you can now share photos and videos in both portrait and landscape orientation on Instagram. Square format has been and always will be part of who we are. That said, the visual story you’re trying to tell should always come first, and we want to make it simple and fun for you to share moments just the way you want to. It turns out that nearly one in five photos or videos people post aren’t in the square format, and we know that it hasn’t been easy to share this type of content on Instagram: friends get cut out of group shots, the subject of your video feels cramped and you can’t capture the Golden Gate Bridge from end to end. Now, when choosing a photo or video, you can tap the format icon to adjust the orientation to portrait or landscape instead of square. Once you share the photo, the full-sized version of it will appear to all of your followers in feed in a beautiful, natural way. To keep the clean feel of your profile grid, your post will appear there as a center-cropped square.
Oh sweet!
And that’s not all – Instagram also said that it will keep the current feel or your profile grid by displaying photos and videos there as “center-cropped squares”. Then when you click on the individual post, the true photo will show up.
This is particularly exciting news for videos on Instagram, which in widescreen can be more cinematic than ever. On top of that, Instagram has also standardised filters for photos and videos, which used to exist separately. All filters will now work on all types of moments and you can also adjust the intensity of filters on videos too!
Of course, Star Wars had to be the first one to give the new Instagram feature a go. Check out some exclusive footage from the upcoming “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” film on Instagram in landscape mode below:
Instagram for iOS version 7.5 is available today in Apple’s App Store, and Instagram for Android version 7.5 is available today on Google Play.
Time to update and “upgrade” your photos? We think so 🙂
And while you’re at it, don’t forget to follow us on Instagram too!
Source: The Verge.
