Snap Inc. has announced today Lens 2.1, a new update to Lens Studio, Snap’s free desktop app that makes it possible for anyone to build AR for Snapchat.
New features include six new templates, fourteen new Landmarker locations and additional tools that support an even wider range of creators – from new 2D illustrators to sophisticated developers. It has never been easier to create your own AR and share it with the world.
The social media platform has launched six new templates, adding to the existing library of nearly 40 Lens Templates:
- Face In Video: Track your face onto a video.
- Portrait Particles: Jazz things up with customised particles that segment behind the user’s head – decorate with headers, footers and post-effects. Perfect for your next party!
- Countdown: Ready, set, customise! Create Lenses that count down to specific dates and add celebratory 3D hats and glasses.
- Skeletal: Track 2D images to heads, necks, shoulders, elbows, and hands to create sweet joint collaborations.
- Hair colour: Modify your hair colour with fresh styles and tones from root to tip.
- Make-up: Put your face on the easy way with AR lip gloss, blush, eyeshadow and more.
Introduced earlier this year, Landmarkers are Lenses that enable augmented reality experiences that transform the world’s most iconic landmarks in real-time.
The company has also released 14 new Landmarkers enabling Snapchatters visiting these physical locations to experience them. These include Arc de Triomphe – Paris, France; Astronomical Clock – Prague, Czech Republic; Brandenburg Gate – Berlin, Germany; El Castillo – Chichen Itza, Mexico; Galata Tower – Istanbul, Turkey; Gateway of India – Mumbai, India; Leaning Tower of Pisa – Pisa, Italy; Natural History Museum – London, UK; Neues Rathaus – Munich, Germany; Qasr Al-Farid – Mada’in Saleh, Saudi Arabia; Great Sphinx of Giza – Giza, Egypt; Statue of Liberty – United States; Taj Mahal – Agra, India; and Tower Bridge – London, UK.
Lens Studio – Snap’s Camera Platform – was built to make the development of Snap Lenses for 2D, 3D and even the most advanced experiences, accessible.
To date, over 500,000 Lenses have been created through Lens Studio, and have been played with over 15 billion times. The number of Snapchatters submitting new Lenses through Lens Studio every month grew by more than 20 percent from the prior quarter.
For Lens creators who download Lens Studio for the first time, a new interactive tour breaks down Lens creation step-by-step so even first-time users can jump right in. And for creators already familiar with Lens Studio, we’ve added helpful start screen content that highlights new templates and features, and showcases our favourite Lenses from the community.
Lens Studio Templates are now on GitHub, a leading development platform, and creators can add their own, too. Search for and use the “lens-studio” tag so others can discover your work and get inspired.
