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3 Ways to Add a Fisheye Effect to Videos and Photos

Sumia Rafique
Sumia Rafique Originally published Feb 14, 25, updated Feb 17, 25

The fisheye lens has been around for more than two centuries. It was invented back in 1906, but it took a while for it to gain popularity. This happened mostly in the late 90s and early 2000s when popular rave bands like Prodigy started to excessively use the fisheye lens in their videos.

Now, the fisheye lens is a synonym for something cool and hip. For instance, skaters, rappers, punk and metal bands, pop artists, and many others use it very often. Why is that so, and what makes the fisheye effect so popular?

Let's find out!

In this article
    1. Add a Unique Distortion Effect to Your Photo or Video
    2. Get a Wider Viewing Angle and a Better Perspective
    3. Get More Light into the Camera Lens
    1. Showing that a Character in a Movie isn't Feeling Well
    2. Creating a Cool Vinyl Cover for a Music Album
    3. Create Cool Memes to Have Fun on Social Media

The Benefits of Adding a Fisheye Filter

fisheye photo

The fisheye lens, or adding a fisheye effect to an already captured photo, brings a lot of unique advantages to your digital art. The sheer number of benefits is long, but in this text, we will focus on the top three benefits of adding a fisheye effect.

Add a Unique Distortion Effect to Your Photo or Video

The fisheye effect has a key directive, which is to add focus to the central element of the photo or video. However, it also distorts the surrounding areas, making the entire image unique. It helps creators lead viewers to look at the center of the screen while all the surrounding distortion adds a dose of excitement.

Get a Wider Viewing Angle and a Better Perspective

This effect distorts the surroundings by making everything look like it is being viewed through a drop of water. That sentence alone sounds magical, right? By doing so, it allows the camera to capture a wider viewing angle. If you are using a fisheye lens on a camera, you can use this trick to capture wider areas from tight spots.

Get More Light into the Camera Lens

When you attach a fisheye lens to a camera, it is curved in a particular way and simply has a larger surface area than a regular lens. This allows more light to pass through the camera, making photography easier in poorly lit areas.

After learning the benefits of the fisheye effect, you may want to learn how to add it to your videos and photos. Strap in, as we have tips that will help you do this on desktops, mobile devices, and online.

Adding the Fisheye Effect to Videos and Photos on a PC

At this point in the text, we will introduce you to Filmora. This is an excellent video editing tool where adding a fisheye effect to videos and images is a breeze. Apart from an extensive portfolio of video, image, and audio editing features, both basic and advanced, Filmora boasts many AI features that streamline the process and plenty of video effects that enhance the visual quality of the videos.

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Here are the steps to add a fisheye effect to videos with Filmora.

  1. Download and install Filmora on your computer.
  2. Start a new project by clicking on New Project.
    new project filmora pc
  3. Now, you can click on the Import button. This will open a new window where you can select the photo or video file where you want to add the fisheye effect. We will import a video file for this tutorial.
    import media to filmora pc
  4. Drag the imported media to the timeline.
    drag media to timeline filmora pc
  5. Find Effects and search for "fisheye." The effect will appear, and you just need to drag it to the timeline above the video.
    find and use fisheye filmora pc
  6. Adjust the sliders to your liking. If you want to revert back to how it was, click Reset.
    adjust fisheye sliders filmora pc

You are done. If that wasn't simple, what is? If you carefully look at the screenshots above, you will see that Filmora offers different types of fisheye lens effects, so you can experiment and explore at your leisure.

But what about mobile devices?

Add a Fisheye Effect to Photos and Videos on Mobile

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Adding the fisheye lens effect in Filmora on mobile devices is similar to adding it on PCs and laptops. However, the interface is different, so we will give you a step-by-step tutorial.

You can download Filmora on your mobile first. It is available for both Android and iOS devices.

  1. Once you install and open Filmora, just like in the PC version, tap on New Project.
    start new project on filmora mobile
  2. Then, select a video or photo you want to import and click the Import button. Again, for this tutorial, we will use a video file, but the process is the same for images.
  3. Find the Effect section at the bottom of the screen and tap there.
    find effects in filmora mobile
  4. Type "fisheye" in the search bar, and then select the effect you like and Thick if you want to accept the effect.
    find and use fisheye filmora mobile

Applying Fisheye Lens Effect Online Free

add fisheye with fotor

Fotor is a cool online tool that lets you easily add a fisheye effect to a photo. Please note that it is not possible to add the fisheye effect to a video. The process of doing this on the Fotor website is easy. Let's dive in.

  1. Visit Fotor's fisheye page and click on Try Fisheye Filter.
    try fisheye filter on fotor
  2. Now, click on Open Image and select the image file where you want to add the fisheye effect.
    open image fisheye effect fotor
  3. Adjust Fotor's fisheye effect to your liking.
    adjust fisheye effect fotor

In Fotor, manual edits are required for blur and vignette, and it hardly produces the fisheye effect. It mostly blurs the other parts of the image.

If you are looking for a more straightforward way to add a fisheye effect, we suggest you try Filmora.

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Creative Uses for the Fisheye Filter

creative uses for fisheye effect

Here are a few creative ways to use this filter.

Showing that a Character in a Movie isn't Feeling Well

In a video, if you have a character who is intoxicated or has suffered a disorienting attack of some sort, then the fisheye lens is perfect for presenting the world from that character's point of view. You can use Filmoras Distorting Fisheye effect to achieve this.

Creating a Cool Vinyl Cover for a Music Album

If you are a designer working on an album cover for a band, you can try adding the fisheye lens effect to a captured photo. Then, add the band name, album name, and everything else that is needed, and present your idea to the band. They will love it.

Create Cool Memes to Have Fun on Social Media

If you are not a professional photo or video editor and you just want to have fun, the fisheye effect is perfect for making memes and posting them online. You can make all sorts of memes with this effect, so we will leave it up to you. Get your creative juices flowing and make cool memes with the fisheye lens effect.

Conclusion

If you are looking to get into adding fisheye effects to videos and photos, this article has shown you that Filmora is an excellent choice for both desktop and mobile devices. Just download Filmora and apply a fisheye effect to your photos and videos with one click.

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Sumia Rafique
Sumia Rafique Feb 17, 25
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