Instagram Filter Update: No More Exclusive Video Filters, Support For Portrait, Landscape Photos

Instagram will no longer be such a square about the photo shapes it allows on its service, announcing Thursday an official tool to let users upload pictures and videos in both portrait and landscape modes.

The new tool lets users easily upload photos as squares, as wide shots or tall vertical pictures by tapping on the new Instagram format icon. Once users finish uploading their content, it'll appear to their followers "in a beautiful, natural way" in their feed, the Facebook-owned service said in a blog post Thursday.

"Square format has been and always will be part of who we are," Instagram said. "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."

For many, this update will simply make it easier to upload photos the way they want. For years, numerous apps have existed that allow Instagram users to crop pictures into non-square shapes. Already, one in five photos and videos uploaded to the service are in non-square format, according to Instagram. This update will simply make things easier for users that aren't into squares.

Additionally, the update will not users shoot wide or tall photos within the app. It only allows users to upload that type of content. There is also a limit to just how wide a photo can be, meaning that if users try to upload a panorama picture that is too long, the service will not allow them to use it at that size.

Besides the format update, Instagram also announced that it will no longer have separate filters for its photos and its video. Now, users will be able to use previously video-exclusive filters on their pictures and vice versa. These new features will roll out as updates for Apple iOS and Google Android users on Thursday.