There are a lot of video call apps you can use straight from your browser these days. But when you are hosting video meetings, things can get a little stale and boring. The Snap Camera can help you mix things up a little. Using the Snap Camera, you can use filters in your video call even if the app that you’re using does not offer it.

How, you ask? Snap Camera is an app that creates a virtual camera that you can use in place of your computer’s webcam. Then the feed from this virtual camera can replace the video feed of your camera in any app you want. All you need is to download and install the app on your computer and you can use filters in any video meeting, even if you’re using the web app from your browser.

Download the Snap Camera app

To download the app for your Windows PC, go to snapcamera.snapchat.com/download. Then, to download the installer on your computer, you need to accept Snap Camera’s license of agreement. Click on the checkbox next to the “I have read the Privacy Policy…” after making sure you’ve read the agreement.

After you click the checkbox, the Download button will become active. Click on it.

The installer file (“.exe” file) will be available in your downloads folder. Run it and then follow the instructions on your screen to install the app.

Using Snap Camera Filters

Using Snap Camera filters in any app is a two-part process; first, you need to configure the settings in the Snap Camera app and select the filter you want to use, then, you need to select the virtual Snap Camera as your preferred camera in the video meeting app.

Setting Up the Snap Camera App

Using the Snap Camera app is incredibly easy. Launch the app on your computer; you should be able to see your video right away in the preview window. If you can, everything’s peachy, and you can go on to the next step. But if your video is not visible, the app might not have access to your camera, and you’ll need to change that. This is most likely to happen when you have more than one camera installed on your system.

Click on the ‘Settings’ (gear) icon on the top right corner of the screen.

Then, click on the drop-down menu under the ‘Choose your camera’ option and select the webcam you want to use. Go back from the settings and your video should be displayed in the preview window.

The filters are available under the preview window. Select the filter you want to use in your video meeting from the Snap camera app. As it’s basically Snapchat for your PC, you have all the filters you love to use on your phone available at your disposal.

Once you’ve chosen the filter, you can minimize/ close the app if you want. But don’t quit the app completely as it needs to stay open in the system tray to work its magic.

Using the Snap Camera in Chrome

Once you’ve tweaked all the settings in the Snap Camera app, the next step is to select the virtual camera in the video meeting app you’re going to use in Chrome. As the app creates a virtual camera that acts as a physical camera, what you need to do is switch from your webcam to the Snap Camera from the settings of the video conference app you’re using.

Let’s see how you can use it in Chrome with the example of Google Meet. Google Meet is the video conferencing app from Google that has no desktop app and works only as a web app. Go to meet.google.com on your Chrome browser to open the app.

Now click on the ‘Settings’ (gear) icon on the top right corner of the screen.

The settings window will open. Go to ‘Video’ settings. Then click on the drop-down menu under the ‘Camera’ option and select ‘Snap Camera’ from the list.

Now when you join the meeting on Google Meet, your selected camera would be Snap Camera, and your video will have the filter you selected in the app. You can also change the camera while you’re in the video call.

Although every app will have different steps to change the camera settings, the basic premise remains the same. No matter which platform you’re using in Chrome to host/ attend video meetings, you need to change your camera from the physical webcam to the “Snap Camera” virtual camera from the video settings to use the filters.

Snap Camera is an efficient way to use video filters in any app, regardless of whether or not the app supports them. Using the Snap Camera filters, you can bring back the fun that was missing from the video calls on any app, even in your browser.