Instagram Launches New Video App, Boomerang
Have you ever wished that your Instagram pictures could move?
Thanks to a new app, now they can.
Instagram has launched a new standalone app called Boomerang that lets users create short looped videos.
The new videos can be posted right on Boomerang or also shared on Instagram.
Instagram has designed Boomerang to be simple and easy to use. You simply tap a button, and Boomerang will take a burst of photos.
It then puts these photos together into a one-second video. The video then plays repeatedly forward and backward, much like the app’s namesake. You can shoot videos in either portrait or landscape, and Boomerang will automatically save each video to a camera roll. You can use Boomerang without Instagram, although if you choose you can share your Boomerang videos on your Instagram account.
What sets Boomerang apart from other video apps like Vine is the length.
Because the videos are only one second long, they’re best for capturing a single moment or for adding some life to what would otherwise be a still shot.
Instagram encourages users to experiment with motion and action.
In a blog post, Instagram wrote,
“Capture a friend jumping off a diving board, defying physics as she flies back and forth through the air. Transform an ordinary selfie with your friends into a funny video. Get that exact moment your friend blows out his birthday candles, then watch them come back to life again and again.”
Boomerang joins a group of Instagram’s standalone apps.
Layout lets users create photo collages, and Hyperlapse enables them to make time lapse videos.
Instagram’s strategy seems to be to create standalone apps rather than incorporating new features into Instagram itself. This keeps the Instgram interface simple while enabling users to branch out with other forms of photos and videos. Boomerang should be a solid addition to this strategy.
Boomerang is available now for iOS and Andriod.
___
Written by content manager Meghan Woolley
Please subscribe to our newsletter about social media news and strategies for social media marketing in your inbox every week.
