Prisma — An App to Turn Your Photos into Art

The estimated reading time for this post is 5 minutes

Update: The Prisma app is now available both for iPhone/iPad and for Android. See the links below to get the free Prisma app.

While Pokémon GO is the most popular app in the world right now, another new app is also booming in popularity. With over 1 million daily users in its first month since launch, Prisma is an app that’s going viral this summer.

What Is Prisma

Prisma is a free app that adds filters to your photos to turn them into beautiful works of art. Like Waterlogue and Fotosketcher, Prisma works magic on your photos to make them look very different than the originals. See, Waterlogue Transforms Your Photos into Beautiful Watercolors! and FotoSketcher – For the Artist in You!

Choose from dozens of filters to see which one(s) look best with your photos. Save the ones you like and share them on social media. As of this writing, Prisma offers 35 filters, all included free with the app.

The filters are named after the style of the artists they are inspired by, the genre of artwork, or other quirky considerations. Some filters seem named to suit portraits while others are for scenery. Yet a portrait filter may be the perfect fit for your landscape photo.

The styles range from modern art to impressionism to pencil to many styles in between. Choose from filters such as:

• Coloured Sky
• Tokyo
• Papered Art
• Heisenberg
• Mosaic
• Illegal Beauty
• Dreams
• Running in the Rain

How Prisma Works

Using Prisma is about as easy as an app can get. Download the Prisma app in iTunes or the Prisma app in Google Play and grant it access to your photos and camera. You can use Prisma as a camera app to take pictures within the app, though it works best when you use photos from your camera roll.

No need to set up an account, you don’t have to log in or link your social media accounts to use the app.

You must be connected to the Internet to use Prisma. It works its magic in the Cloud, not on your phone. Make sure to mind your data if you’re using Prisma away from a Wi-Fi network.

Filter a Photo

Tap the small square in the lower right corner of the screen to see the photos on your phone.

Choose a photo, then tap Use in the upper right corner of the screen. On the next screen, you can rotate and and crop the photo. Prisma only works with square photos.

After the photo has been cropped, tap Next to add filters to the photo.

You will see the filters below the photo. Swipe through them to see them all. Tap a filter and a triangle will appear that becomes solid as Prisma works to create the art.

When Prisma has finished, you will see your photo transformed into art.

If you’re not satisfied with the photo, you can adjust the intensity of the filter. Slide your finger across the screen to increase or reduce the intensity.

Settings

Prisma automatically adds a watermark to the photos. You can get rid of the watermark, free, by tapping the gear icon to open Settings within the app. Slide the watermark off to get rid of the Prisma watermark (unless you really want it on your photos).

You only have to change the setting to remove the watermark once. The app will remove the watermark on all of your future photos.

Another Settings option is to save every photo automatically. This is a bad idea. You will probably be trying many filters and if you save every photo you create, you will be filling up your phone fast. Better to manually save the photos you like. If you forget, you can always recreate the artwork easily.

Saving and Sharing Your Prisma Photos

When you have created a piece of art you want to share, tap the sharing icon (the box with the upward arrow), then tap Save Image. Your Prisma art will be saved and can be found in your Photos app.

You can also share your Prisma art on social media from this screen. Tap the social media account you want to share with so others can revel in the beauty of your creation.

Examples of Prisma Art

This app quickly become fun, with so many filters to use. You’ll probably hone in on some favorite filters quickly, but do experiment as each filter can provide interesting artwork.

I’ve uploaded other Prisma photos, along with the original photos, into a Prisma album on Google Photos so you can see more ways Prisma works: Prisma Album in Google Photos.

Looking for more examples of Prisma? Check out Twitter:

#Prisma is such a beautiful photo-editing app! #GameOfThrones pic.twitter.com/fNZmyuR0Gd

— King Renly Baratheon (@TheKingRenly) July 14, 2016

#prisma rise and shine and be bright this weekend

Also did u check out my new… https://t.co/NTev7Ol80t pic.twitter.com/DtF5kakHt0

— Ridhi Dogra (@iRidhiDogra) July 15, 2016

This picture was just too #prisma worthy. “In Deep Thought” should be at the @mfaboston 😁 #ILA16 pic.twitter.com/BQ0Q9MowyH

— Dan Whalen (@whalen) July 9, 2016

It started with lunch at Henley Beach…and it turned into a work of art! #henleybeach #prisma (a new pic app) pic.twitter.com/TmHxoktkWy

— Alpha Odyssey (@alphaodyssey_) July 17, 2016

What Else You Need to Know about Prisma

Prisma doesn’t work every time. Because the app has become popular so quickly, sometimes Prisma gets too busy. Try again later.

As of this writing, Prisma is free and doesn’t have any advertising, unless you count Palmolive, an America soap company that seems to be sponsoring a filter by adding its name to the Impression filter (you don’t see the name on your photo). The privacy policy and terms of use for Prisma suggest that the app may add advertising in the future.

According to the terms of use, Prisma will not own the images you create using the app, but Prisma does get an unlimited license to use those images. Be sure to read the privacy policy and terms of services if these issues are a concern for you.

Your Thoughts

Have you used Prisma? Do you like apps that are fun, free, and easy to use? Are you hoping Prisma comes to Android soon?

Share your thoughts in the Comments section below! Please let me know in the comments if you have any Prisma art you would like to share with Wonder of Tech readers.