Snapchat from 0 to 100

Most of us who have a smartphone usually have it full of applications, which in most cases we do not use. And we are not fooled, we love to install dozens of free applications, just because we have them, but then we rarely use them. If you stop to think, with total security, of all the applications that you have installed on your mobile device, with some frequency you only use a dozen of them at most.

However One of those applications that we do use daily, from the first day we install it, is Snapchat, for the different and varied options that it offers us and because it can be the perfect application for certain things. If you want to know more about this application and also learn to use it, you should continue reading this article.

What is Snapchat?

As we have already told you, it is a mobile application, available for the main market platforms (Android, iOS) and what allows us to send photos to other users. However, it does not work as for example an instant messaging application and it is that whoever sends the image or video will be able to decide for how long we can see that sent material, before it is destroyed.

Once this time has elapsed, the material sent will disappear from the screen without the possibility of seeing it, recovering it or saving it, unless the user has decided to save it in their profile so that anyone can see it for a maximum time of 24 hours.

Its great success lies precisely in that no user can save the images or videoYes, unless you are very fast when making a capture. Today it is believed that more than 400 million images and videos are sent daily, and such is the success that Facebook tried to acquire the application without success for a dizzying figure that was never confirmed.

Let's download the application and learn basic things

First of all we must download the application, well from Google Play if we have a smartphone with Android o from the App Store if a new mobile device has iOS as an operating system. Once installed We must register to start using Snapchat. This registration will not take us more than a few seconds. Unlike other applications, it will be necessary to register by email, since it is not linked to Google or other applications to facilitate registration.

Once we have accessed the application, this will be the first screen we see, and that is at the same time the Snapchat main screen.

From it we will have access to all the things we need in this application, which although it may not seem like it at first is a fairly simple application to use and manage. So that no one gets lost in the use of the main screen, we are going to review each and every one of the icons that appears, starting from the upper left corner.

First of all we find the flash icon that will allow us to activate or deactivate it when taking pictures. In the middle we can see a small ghost that will take us to the screen of our profile, which is shown as we see below;

The third icon that closes the top row allows us to change the front camera for the rear one, and it is not only selfies that human beings live. At the bottom we can sometimes see a square with a number, and that indicates the messages that we have pending to see that it has received from any of our contacts. In the middle is the shutter button to take pictures, and closing this bottom row we find all the stories that we can enjoy that can be live from some prominent contacts or from our friends added by ourselves.

How to send my first photo

Once we know how to navigate through the main screen of the application, the time has come to really start making use of Snapchat by sending our photo to a contact.

First of all, we must take the photograph, from the screen that we have explained before. This is my photograph, for which I only had to stick my head out of my office window;

As you can see in the image above, after taking the picture, We can edit it by adding, for example, a text that can be put in the place that we want. We can also select the time we want to show the image to the contact or contacts who send it, and also save it in our gallery or in our application profile, where any contact can see it for 24 hours.

Once we have edited the photograph, for example such that;

We can now choose which contact to send it to, so that you can see it. To do this you just have to press the arrow that will appear on the image editing screen in the lower right corner.

Some tricks you are interested in knowing about Snapchat

Snapchat, despite being a simple application, allows us users many interesting options, some of which are somewhat hidden, but which we are going to teach you through these little tricks.

Activate additional services

In case everything you could do with this application and that we have already told you seemed little, Snapchat has some extra services hidden among which are filters for images, front flash or image repetition. To activate them you just have to go to the settings located in your profile and look for the option "Additional services" where you should click on "Manage". In most cases these services are deactivated by default, so unless you activate them you will not be able to use them. There you will see a screen like this;

Text messages with a different style

If you would like to give a different style to the texts you place on the images, write your message and then press the «T» that you will find in the upper right corner of the image editing screen. If you give it several times you can put the text in several positions. Right next to this "T" you can change the color of your message. You can choose from hundreds of different colors just by clicking on those shown.

Add filters to your images

As we can do in other applications, we can apply filters to our images that will give a different touch to our photography. With just sliding your finger on the screen to the left we can see the different filters. In addition you can also add accessories such as the time. Here you have an example of my dog ​​to which I have added a filter, a text message and a few red strokes with the pencil. I hope you make edits and compositions of images a little better, because mine has been really bad.

Add data based on your location

If we allow Snapchat to access our location, we can add interesting data to our images such as where we are, what time it is or the temperature of the place. To do this, we must activate the location on our mobile device and also allow Snapchat to access it when the application asks us. Then, in the image editing screen, it will be enough to move our finger to the left to see these parameters in our images.

Change cameras quickly

As we have already explained before, to change the camera with which to take a photograph, it is as simple as clicking the icon located in the upper right corner. However, if for whatever reason you cannot press the button or prefer to do it by another method, you can always double-tap the screen in a row and the camera will change automatically.

Is it safe to send images or videos through Snapchat?

Finally, we did not want to end this article without considering whether or not it is safe to send images through the application that we have discovered today and we have also learned to handle. The first thing is to define very well what we consider safe and above all take into account which photograph we are going to send.

Snapchat allows the sending of images that can be viewed by another user for up to 10 seconds before they are destroyed. This does not mean that the user cannot take a screenshot, for which he must be extremely skilled, so you should be very careful with the type of images you send, because we are facing a secure application, but not to send anything.

Ready to start using and enjoying Snapchat?.