We asked Tristan, the creator behind @filt.ar & head of Augmented Reality at MITP, to take time out of his busy day to tell us his 10 favourite AR creators on Instagram right now.

From groundbreaking effects that push the technology to its limits, to silly filters that become our guilty pleasures, here are 10 AR creators you need to keep your eye on (in no particular order, of course!)

Creators

Ines Alpha (@ines.alpha)

Ines Alpha has such a unique style and I have been hooked ever since I spotted her effects, both on insta and on snapchat.  Undeniable talent.

Favourite Filter - H20 Strobing

The colours, the style. Just great.

Marc Wakefield (@marcwakefieldards)

Marc Wakefield is a stalwart of the Spark AR community; brilliant, gracious and friendly.

Favourite filter - Hole in the Head

Marc really pushed the boundaries of AR with this one, creating one of the more aesthetically pleasing filters from the early days - and it holds up as well now as it did then.

Mitsuko Ono (@mitsukokubota)

Mitsuko Ono is certainly one of the more playful creators going.  I love the absurdity and creativeness.

Favourite filter - Chimpanswing

Really tough to pick from so many weird and wonderful filters but this is my personal favourite.

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David O’Reilly (@davidoreilly)

David O’Reilly blew everyone away with his complete flip of traditional filters that take you on a journey.  The visual programming for these effects is insane.

Favourite Filter - Ahhh

Just a crazy filter. You need to see it for yourself.

Eugene Soh (@dude.sg)

Eugene Soh has always been a standout creator but Face Invaders just took gaming on IG to the next level.  Fun, crazy and well crafted.

Favourite filter - Face Invaders

Madness! I’m a big Star Wars fan too, so big appeal here.

Mike Manh (@mikemanhworks)

Mike Manh is a super talented artist that blew me away, as well as the rest of the community, with his optical camo entry in one of Instagram’s first filter competitions.

Favourite filter - Optical Camo

Inspired by predator films but with it’s own style.

Johanna Jaskowska (@johwska)

Johanna Jaskowska firmly lifted filters beyond the puppy dog ears into a fun new era.

Favourite filter - Beauty3000

Johanna is the OG of aesthetic filters.  There are lots of super cool ones to choose from but this is the one that game changed for me.  Simple yet stunning.

Ommy Akhe (@autonommy)

Ommy Akhe is a constant source of inspiration and style.  So many experiments!

Favourite filter - Supercede

There have been many copies since, but none as good.

Eddy Adams (@eddyin3d)

Eddy Adams has quickly become one of my favourites for his super polished and engaging filters. Looking forward to what he creates next.

Favourite filter - Space Warp

Looks better than a lot of sci-fi films and is super fun.  Aaaaah!

Omega Centauri (@omega.c) and Kuno Hayato (@kuno.fell.asleep)

For my final one I’ve cheated and have a two for one with Japanese based creators, Omega Centauri and Kuno Hayato.  I’ve been a huge fan of both of their work and great to see them joining forces for Hackathons to produce some amazing effects.  Kuno being a master coder with the coolest effects and Omega always bringing style and beautiful movement.

Favourite filter - Motion effect kit

After standing out at a previous Hackathon with their Singularity filter, they managed to win in 2020 with their latest effort - and it’s just amazing. I love the inspiration, as they always seem to be pushing as hard technically as they are aesthetically.