How to change background color of instagram story with picture

One of Instagram's most requested features is the ability to change the background color for your Story posts.

While there is no official method for doing this in the app (via either a dedicated button or tool) Newsweek has found a workaround that should get you the desired results.

With the current Instagram functionality, you are unable to adjust the background of your Stories unless you are willing to jump through a few hoops. If you take a photo in the app and then shrink it down, you will notice that a color swatch is automatically generated for you, using the dominant hue from your image.

For instance, if you take a picture of the sky using Instagram and then tried to minimize it in the disappearing Stories section, you will get a blue background by default. There's no real way of changing this, as it's a fixed setting.

Social media experts have resorted to an inelegant solution in the past, whereby they would use the marker tool to create a solid block of color and then paste that over the Story photo. They would then get out the eraser to manually reveal the original image that is hidden beneath this additional layer.

In that sense, it wasn't really a background and had more in common with a mask that you would use in Photoshop. Plus, it often looked messy given that it's very difficult to get straight lines using the eraser tool in Instagram.

An example of a botched attempt at this can be seen below.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

Image shows an Instagram Story, with a solid color having been erased to reveal part of a photo. As you can see, the results look untidy and awkward. Instagram

How to Change the Background Color in Instagram Stories

There is a better method that will get you a much nicer looking Story, while still granting you control over the color of your background.

The steps for doing this on a smartphone are as follows:

  1. Take your desired photo outside of the Instagram app and then save it to your phone's album
  2. Head into Instagram and create a new story, by taking a separate photo (this time inside the app). This one is just a placeholder, so it doesn't matter what it looks like
  3. Tap on the three dots in the top right-hand corner of the screen and choose "Draw"
  4. Select the marker icon from the bar on the top of the screen and then pick your background color from the row at the bottom
  5. Press and hold your finger down anywhere on the Story. This will change the whole screen to the color you picked in step # 4
  6. Then click on the sticker icon at the top of the screen and scroll through this list until you find the option for adding photos directly from your phone album
  7. You can then add the original photo you took outside of the Instagram app (back in step 1) and lay it over the color swatch
  8. Resize this photo to your liking.

For a more visual guide, Newsweek has depicted each of the steps in the below slideshow. Meanwhile, we have also prepared guides on how to do Joint Posts in the app and what happens if you screenshot somebody else's Story.

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How to change background color of instagram story with picture
Image shows where to find the draw button in Instagram. Tap on the three red dots and then choose the first option from the drop down menu. Instagram

The traditional method of changing the background color on an Instagram story covers the photo as well. That is, the shared photo or video disappears when you add a background color. But how do others use a custom background in the Instagram story without hiding the photo? For starters, Instagram doesn’t offer a native way to use custom story backgrounds. However, certain workarounds exist that help you in achieving the same. Let’s check how to change the background picture and color on the Instagram story behind a photo on Android and iPhone.

How to Change Background on Instagram Story Without Covering Photo

There are 8 methods to put a background image or color in the Instagram story without covering the picture. Let’s check them out.

1. Swipe to Change Background Color

When you are sharing a post to your story, simply swipe right or left on the background to change the background color variations. The drawback of this method is that you will not be able to select a custom color. You can only choose from the available list.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

2. Using Traditional Method

This method covers the photo if you are adding a photo from your gallery. However, for shared posts, it works well. Follow these steps:

1. Tap on the Send button under a post and select Add post to your story to get it to the story screen.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

2. Tap on the Doodle icon and choose a background color for the post from the list below.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

3. Touch and hold the screen to add the background color to the Instagram story. You will notice that the color doesn’t cover the shared post. Similarly, you can try different background colors. Tap on the checkmark icon to confirm the color.

In case this method covers the shared post with a background color, use the eraser method mentioned below.

3. Using Eraser

Technically, this method doesn’t change the background color of the story but adds a foreground color. You need to erase the foreground color to reveal your shared post.

1. Start by adding a photo or the shared post to the story so that you can edit it. Decrease the size of the post using the pinch-in gesture with your finger.

2. Tap on the Doodle icon and select a color. Touch and hold the screen to fill up the screen with the same color.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

3. Tap on the Eraser pen under the Doodle option. Use the slider on the side to change the eraser size. Then drag your finger on the screen to erase the foreground color and to reveal the photo underneath.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

This is a tiresome method as you will have to carefully remove the color on the edges and borders. However, this method can be used for creating revealing effects.

Tip: Find out what do various symbols and icons mean on Instagram.

If the above methods don’t get the desired results, you should use the Gallery sticker. Both Android and iPhone offer a gallery sticker for Instagram stories that lets you add multiple photos on top of the existing photo or video. Basically, you can layer pictures on Instagram stories.

Here’s how to go about it:

1. Launch the Instagram app and go to the screen where you can add a new story.

2. Tap on the Gallery option at the bottom and select the picture that you want to use as a background. Yes. You need to select the background image first.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

Alternatively, if you want to use a solid color without covering the photo, capture a random photo or upload any picture in the Instagram story. Tap on the Doodle icon at the top and choose a background color of your choice from the list below. Touch and hold the screen until the selected color fills up the screen. Tap on the checkmark icon to go back.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

3. Once you have added the background photo or color, tap on the Sticker icon and choose the Gallery sticker. On iPhone, you might see the recent photo in the stickers. That is the sticker that you need to choose. Then select the photo that you want to put on the background picture.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

Tap on the photo if you want to change its style. You can choose between the regular style, star, heart, or circle. Use the gestures with your fingers to adjust the size and position of the foreground image. That’s how you can put a background image in an Instagram story.

Interestingly, if you have added a solid color using this method, you can change the background color even after adding the image. For that, tap on the Doodle icon after adding the foreground image and select a new color. Touch and hold the screen as you would do normally for adding the background color.

5. Change Background Photo for Shared Post Using Sticker

You have to use the same Gallery sticker that you used above in this method as well. Here’s how to change the background on the Instagram story for shared posts.

1. Add the post to your story screen.

2. Tap on the Sticker icon on the story screen and select the Gallery sticker.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

3. Select the background photo for your story.

4. Now you will have two items on the screen – the post and the background image. Drag the post outside of the screen to the extreme left edge in a way that you can still see it slightly.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

5. Use the pinch-out gesture to increase the size of the background photo such that it fits the screen. However, keep a small gap so that you can touch the shared post. Tap the shared post so that it comes over the background photo. Move it to your desired location. Your final image will have a shared post over a background picture.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

6. Add Background Photo From Screenshot

In this method, you need to take a screenshot of the shared post, crop it, and use Gallery sticker to add both background and foreground pictures.

1. Bring the shared post to your story screen.

2. Take a screenshot of the screen where you see the shared post.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

3. Open the screenshot using a gallery app or any photo editor app. Crop it in a way that only the shared post is visible. Save the cropped photo on your phone.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

4. Go back to the Instagram story screen where you have added a shared post. Using the pinch-out gesture, increase the size of the shared post so that it fills almost the entire screen. Then tap on the Sticker icon and select the Gallery sticker.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

5. Add the image that you want to use as your background. Increase its size so that it fills the screen hiding the shared post underneath. Now add the screenshot that you saved in step 3 using the Gallery sticker (follow step 5) on your background.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

That’s it. If you tap the shared post now, it will change the style. However, when you make the story live, tapping on the background or the shared post will take you to the actual shared post. That’s because the actual shared post is still active even though you have covered it with background and screenshot.

7. Add Background Photo From Clipboard (iPhone)

On iPhone, you can take the help of the clipboard as well to add a background on Instagram stories.

1. Add the shared post to the story preview screen. Minimize the Instagram app.

2. Launch the Apple Photos app and open the photo that you want to set as a background picture. Tap on the Share icon and select Copy photo from the menu.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

3. Open the Instagram app again. You will get a message saying photo pasted. Tap on the Add sticker option. The copied image will appear on your screen along with the shared post.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

4. Increase the size of the background to fill the screen. Tap on the area where your shared post is to bring it forward.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

8. Add Background Photo From Clipboard (Android)

On Android, you cannot directly add a background image to the Instagram story from the clipboard. However, you can take the help of SwiftKey for the same.

1. Install SwiftKey keyboard on your Android phone and make it your default keyboard.

2. Get the shared post to the Instagram story preview screen.

3. Tap on the Aa icon to show the keyboard. On the SwiftKey keyboard, tap on the Sticker icon.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

4. Tap on the star or pin icon followed by the Camera icon to add image from Gallery. Choose the background image for your story. Tap on the Send button on the keyboard to insert the image in the story.

How to change background color of instagram story with picture

5. Now you need to follow steps 4 and 5 of method 5. That is, hide the shared post and increase the size of the background. Then drag the shared post to the center. 

Wrap Up: Change Background on Instagram Story

Changing the background on an Instagram story is one of the ways to make your stories look better. You can download interesting backgrounds from Pinterest or from wallpaper websites. To further enhance your stories, you can use stickers to create eye-catching stories.

Mehvish

Mehvish is a technology enthusiast from Kashmir. A computer engineer by degree, she's always been keen to help when someone finds technology challenging. She has been writing about technology for 6+ years and her favorite verticals include how-to guides, explainers, tips and tricks for Android, iOS/iPadOS, Windows, social media, and web apps. You’ll also find her work on Make Tech Easier, Guiding Tech, and Nerds Chalk

Can I change the background of a photo on Instagram story?

If you're posting a photo or video to your Instagram Story, you can change the background color with the Draw tool. If you're just using the Create feature, there's a selection of preset background colors to choose from.

How do you change the color of your picture on an Instagram story?

How to Change the Background Color on IG Story?.
Click on the Instagram Stories Icon. ... .
Choose the Photo or Video. ... .
Click on the Brush (Android) or the Squiggle (iOS) ... .
Hold down on the Screen. ... .
Editing your Story. ... .
Encourage Clicks. ... .
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Show Your Creativity..

How do you fill the background of an Instagram story with color?

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