Google's free Snapseed app just got pro-level blur and color grading tools

Snapseed, Google's excellent editing app, is rolling out a massive new update on Android and iOS.

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Snapseed 4.2 will introduce a number of new and powerful ways to interact with your photos, adding motion blur and depth-based lens blur, and even allowing users to import their LUTs color grading presets from Lightroom. If you're an editing whiz, then Snapseed just gave you even more reasons to dive in.

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Snapseed gets even more professional-level tools for creators

Editing app is one of Google's best-kept secrets

Snapseed is one of Google's best apps, but it's also one you may not have heard of.

Unlike most of Google's big apps, Snapseed doesn't come installed on any Android phones, and people are rarely pointed towards it. However, once you know it exists, it's hard to forget. Snapseed is one of the best and most useful editing apps available on Android and iOS — and it's completely free to boot.

Now, with Snapseed 4.2, you have even more reasons to download and use it.

Top of the list of additions are the two new blur modes. Motion Blur may be the bane of video game players, but it's a great effect to add to static images to create a sense of dynamic movement. Snapseed 4.2 lets you apply a motion blur to your images, either blurring the background behind a static subject in the foreground, or doing the opposite, blurring the subject and leaving the background sharp. It's a quick and easy way to make those fast sports shots or car images really pop.

The second blur effect is called depth-based lens blur, and it's a way to emulate those gorgeous professional shots taken on wide-aperture lenses. It'll separate your foreground from your background, and add a heavy bokeh blur to the background, instantly adding a professional feel to any shot.

Next is the addition of full color grading and LUTs preset imports. Full multi-wheel color grading allows you to give an image the perfect look, really fine-tuning it down to the last color. And if you're a professional or enthusiast with your own LUTs (look-up table) presets on apps and programs like Lightroom, then you can now import those into Snapseed and enjoy a unified experience across all your editing platforms.

Finally, Snapseed is also adding #SnapseedLook, a community-based way to show off your Looks within the app. Each Look you or anyone else shares has a complete recipe and breakdown of how it was made. So if you find a Look you love, you can instantly replicate it in your own shots. And if you don't want to share your secrets? Well, you can just avoid the feature altogether.

Snapseed 4.2 is rolling out now across Android and iOS. It's a gradual rollout though, so some users may have had these features for some time, while others may need to wait a little bit longer for theirs.