Even though #nofilter might be a hashtag of choice on Instagram, more people than ever are adding effects to the photos they post on social media. And now there’s a scientifically proven reason why. A collaborative study from Yahoo Labs and Georgia Tech found that adding a filter makes more people engage with your photo, and that certain filters are more effective at getting those coveted Likes. The paper is set to be published in the proceedings of the 9th International Conference on Weblogs and Social Media. The study focused on Flickr, which Yahoo owns. Researchers analysed 7.6 million public photos uploaded through Flickr’s smartphone app, more than half of which were also posted on Instagram. They found that shots with filters are 21 percent more likely to be viewed, and 45 percent more likely to be commented on. And they found that different types of filters were the best at increasing those views and comments. If you’re looking to get the most out of that smartphone photo, add a filter that increases contrast, corrects exposure problems, and creates a ‘warmer’ colour temperature. They also spilled a few secrets to filtering your shots like a pro. The researchers interviewed 15 users of their mobile app and asked them why they use filters, and the answers differed depending on their photo skills. People who just took photos for fun added filters to make shots look vintage and playful. But people who were more serious used the filters to correct errors in the photos, expose different elements, or change colours. So if you want people to notice the time you Instagram your brunch, take notes: Your filter could mean the difference between a few ‘likes’ and a photo going viral.