How to Apply Filters to the Pictures in Google Slides

• Open your Google Slides presentation.
• Select the picture you want to modify.
• Go to the toolbar and click Format options → Recolor.

You’ll see a list containing different presets to change the color of the picture:

Once the filter is chosen, you can modify its parameters:

• Format options → Adjustments → Transparency. Drag the slider to make the image either more or less visible.

• Format options → Adjustments → Brightness. Drag the slider to change the luminosity of the picture.

• Format options → Adjustments → Contrast. Drag the slider to modify the intensity of the picture.

• To reset the picture, just click the Reset button. The parameters will revert to their original state (but you’ll keep the recolor).

Here’s a little trick to get even a better result:

• Create a duplicate of the picture and place it next to the original.
• Apply the desired filter to the duplicate.

• Now place the duplicate exactly on top of the original. If you need more information about how to align pictures, please refer to the “How to Arrange and Align Objects in Google Slides” tutorial.

• Adjust the transparency of the duplicate (which is on top). To do so, go to Format options → Adjustments → Transparency.

This trick will allow you to fine-tune the effect and make it more subtle without losing too much depth or volume, so you’ll be able to keep all the tones.

• Open your Google Slides presentation.
• Create a new shape. To do so, click Insert → Shape → Shapes. Then choose the desired shape from the list.

As an example, let’s use a circle. Don’t forget to hold the Shift key to keep the proportions.

• Align this shape with the picture. To do so, select both elements and click Arrange → Align → Center. If you need more information, please refer to the “How to Arrange and Align Objects in Google Slides” tutorial.

• Now choose the color for this shape by clicking Fill color (the icon looks like a paint bucket).

• Adjust the transparency of the color to achieve a nice effect by clicking Fill color → Custom → Transparency.

• Here's a comparison between the effect achieved with the mask and the original picture.