Getting to know Instagram’s new Fade and Color tools

Instagram’s editing tools now stand at an even dozen, with the addition of the the Color tool and Fade tool to both its Android app and iPhone app. You’ll find both nestled between the Saturation and Highlights tools.

The Color tool lets you tint the highlights or shadows in one of eight different colors. The color options are yellow, orange, red, pink, purple, blue, cyan or green. Tap Shadows or Highlights, below the image you’re editing, then tap to choose a color. You can select one color for shadows and a different color for highlights. You can also tap again on the color picker after selecting a color to call up a slider to adjust the intensity of the tint.

As with Instagram’s filters and other editing tools, you can tap on the image to see the original to compare it against your edits.

The Fade tool lets you “bring a quiet tone to your photos by softening colors,” according to Instagram. The tool features a simple slider to control the amount of fade. I found it added a retro, washed-out look to images, recalling Polaroids from the ’70s.

(Via Instagram Blog)