How to create a custom camera filter on a Samsung Galaxy phone

While you can't immediately adjust settings like saturation and contrast, there is a way around this.
By  on 
A Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra smartphone.
Credit: Yuki Iawmura / Bloomberg via Getty Images

Samsung's phones are well-known for the excellent quality of their cameras. This includes a selection of filters in the Camera app, which allow users to jazz up their snaps by choosing preset adjustments to contrast, saturation, and other such settings.

However, if none of these filters are quite what you're after, Samsung also allows you to create your own custom camera filter based on an image in your camera roll. Simply choose a picture, and your phone will emulate its colour and style in a new camera filter.

Here's how to create and save a custom camera filter on your Samsung phone.

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Total Time
  • 1 min
What You Need
  • Samsung phone

Step 1: Open your Camera app.

A Samsung phone's home page, with a red arrow pointing to the Camera app icon.
Credit: Amanda Yeo / Mashable

Step 2: Swipe to Photo mode.

The Photo mode setting on a Samsung Galaxy phone camera.
Credit: Amanda Yeo / Mashable

Step 3: Tap the three overlapping circles in the top right corner to open the filter menu.

A red arrow pointing to the filter setting on a Samsung Galaxy phone camera.
Credit: Amanda Yeo / Mashable

Step 4: Tap the plus symbol (+) next to the filter options.

A red arrow pointing to the plus symbol for creating a new filter on a Samsung Galaxy phone.
Credit: Amanda Yeo / Mashable

Step 5: Choose an image from your camera roll to use as the basis for your custom filter.

The menu to select a photo to use as the basis of a Samsung Galaxy camera filter. There is just one image in the gallery, an illustration of an AI lawyer by J. Hazelwood / Mashable Composite; gorodenkoff, iStock / Getty
Credit: Amanda Yeo / Mashable

Step 6: A camera view demonstrating your filter will appear, with your chosen image below it.

Tap and press the camera view to see it without the filter, and release to turn the filter back on. You can tap your chosen image and then drag the corners to redefine the reference area if you would like the filter to only be based on a certain section. You can also tap the filter name to rename your new filter, then select "Rename" to confirm it.

Screenshots illustrating renaming a custom Samsung Galaxy camera filter, as well as adjusting the image reference.
Credit: Amanda Yeo / Mashable

Step 7: Tap "Done" to finalise and save your filter.

Samsung currently doesn't allow you to create a custom filter by manually adjusting settings such as the colour temperature, contrast, and saturation via a slider. There is a way around this though, as you can tweak these settings on a preexisting filter. Simply select the filter you want to edit, tap the value you'd like to change in the bar beneath the filter's name, and drag the arrow to alter it.

The Camera app will save these changes to your filter, so you don't have to readjust it whenever you want to take a new photo. You can also tap the reset button by the filter's name to undo them.

The settings for adjusting the saturation, colour temperature, and other such settings on custom filters on a Samsung Galaxy phone.
Credit: Amanda Yeo / Mashable

Samsung states that you can create up to 99 of your own filters, which seems like way more than you could ever need or realistically manage. The filter feature doesn't work on all resolution and aspect ratio settings, though. If your filter icon is greyed out, try lowering your camera resolution to fix it.

Amanda Yeo
Amanda Yeo
Assistant Editor

Amanda Yeo is an Assistant Editor at Mashable, covering entertainment, culture, tech, science, and social good. Based in Australia, she writes about everything from video games and K-pop to movies and gadgets.


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