Instagram is best known for its array of filters you can use to beautify your photos and videos. But there are also a ton of customization options nestled in Instagram's stories feature.

Whether you want to change the background color on your Instagram story, or add music to your Instagram story, we have all of the the tips and tricks you need to stand out from the crowd.

1. Access the Full Range of Colors

By default, Instagram presents you with pretty limited color options. The color slider is accessible from the bottom of the screen, and you can select from a total of 27 preset colors. But what if you want the full-color spectrum, so you can choose the exact color variant?

Luckily, there's a hidden trick that lets you access the full range of colors. To change the color of text, tap Aa, and then hit the color palette icon at the top of the screen. Here, long-tap on any color in the existing color slider, and pick the custom color of your choice.

You can do the same to change your pen color as well. Simply hit the draw icon (the one that looks like a scribble mark) on the top menu. From here, you can long-tap on any of the colors at the bottom of the screen.

Either way, you'll be presented with a full range of colors. Just drag your finger across the spectrum to select a custom color of your choice.

2. Change the Background Color

Sometimes, you might just want to share text and drawings instead of a photo or a video. If you're wondering how to change the background color on your Instagram story, you're in luck. The good folks at Instagram included a super-handy feature to create solid backgrounds instantly.

To do so, capture a picture as you usually would, and then tap the draw icon at the top of the screen. Here, select the color that you want to use as a solid background.

Next, long-tap on the screen for about three seconds. The screen should now be filled with a solid background. You can also select the chisel-tip pen icon, and repeat the process to create a semi-transparent Instagram Stories background.

3. Share a Post to Your Story

What if you want to bring attention to a new post? Instagram lets you place a post into your story, making it easy to promote or draw attention to a recent post.

First, navigate to the post you want to include in your story. Hit the paper airplane icon under the photo, and select Add post to your story.

Instagram will automatically generate a background color based on the colors in the post. But if you want to change that, simply follow the directions outlined in the previous step.

Not only can you drag and resize the post on your screen, but Instagram also gives you the option of including the caption of the post. If you want to display the caption, simply tap the post.

4. Customize Your Font

You're not limited to just customizing the color of your text; you can change the font as well. Just tap the Aa icon, and you can scroll through Instagram's carousel of different fonts. Instagram's selection has everything from dainty script fonts, to brilliant bold text.

To make your text stand out more, consider adding a frame or special effect. Tap the sparkly A icon at the top of the font editing screen, and Instagram will add an effect or frame to your font (depending on which font you choose). Keep tapping the icon to see other variations.

5. Add Background Music to Your Videos

Instagram comes preloaded with a library of songs that you can easily add to your story. To start searching for a song, tap the sticker icon in the top menu bar, and then select the sticker labeled Music.

This will bring you to a music selection screen. You can choose from the latest hits and featured songs that Instagram provides, or you can search for a specific tune. Once you decide on a song, you can see how the song sticker appears on your story.

At the bottom of the screen, you can edit which part of the song you want to play. By default, Instagram will play the clip for 15 seconds, but you can adjust that by tapping the number in the bottom left corner of the screen.

Instagram also allows you to change the style of the music sticker. Tap the music sticker to display the full album artwork, and then tap it again to show a more condensed look. You can also opt to change the color of the sticker by pressing the color palette icon at the top of the screen.

When you're happy with the look and sound of your song, hit Done in the top right corner of the screen. You can now drag the music sticker across the screen, as well as resize it to your liking.

6. Post Photos From Your Gallery/Camera Roll

In case you don't want to add a video or picture that happens in the present moment, you can always upload older pictures to your story. To do this, hit the Your Story button like you normally would.

Once you see the camera page, tap the gallery icon in the bottom-left corner of the screen. You can now browse through all of the albums on your phone, and choose which photos you want to include in your story.

7. One-Finger Zoom While Recording Video

If you'd like to zoom in on a particular area while capturing a story video, there's an easy (albeit not very obvious) way of doing so.

While recording an Instagram story video, simply hold the record button and slowly slide your finger up or down to zoom in or out. It also works with the "Hands-free" video mode.

8. Add Fun Stickers to Your Story

Stickers are key to helping you make cute Instagram Stories. Not only can they provide the time, location, and temperature of your photo/video, but they also add style. You can add stickers relevant to your photo, insert emojis, add GIFs, or even create a sticker out of a selfie.

Tap the sticker icon at the top of the screen to start playing around with different decorations. You can scroll through Instagram's entire sticker collection, or you can find a specific one using the search bar at the top of the menu.

If you want to use your own selfie as a sticker, tap the sticker icon, and then select the camera sticker. You should now be able to insert your face as a sticker, as well as tap your face to switch between frames. Selfie stickers can definitely come in handy when you need to add a reaction to your story.

9. Make Your Story Interactive

A great way to get followers involved in your story is to add interactive stickers. You can find interactive stickers by selecting the sticker icon, just like you would when finding a decorative sticker.

Instagram's sticker collection contains several different types of interactive stickers. Whether you opt to include a poll, ask a question, or quiz your followers, adding one of these prompts can make your story much more entertaining.

Keep in mind that you'll have to enter additional information when including these stickers (such as typing in a question). But other than that, they behave just like normal stickers.

10. Download Your Instagram Story

Instagram makes it really easy to download your stories. If you've taken a photo or video for your story, but haven't posted it yet, you can tap the arrow button at the top of the screen. This will immediately save your photo or video.

But if you already posted the story, open your story, tap the three dots in the bottom right corner of the story, and hit Save Photo. Your story should now be saved in your gallery/camera roll.

Unfortunately, you can't download someone else's story using this trick. An obvious workaround is to take a screenshot of their story. Alternatively, there are a few third-party Instagram reposting apps to save the stories of others. You can give them a shot, but remember that they are riddled with ads.

Related: How to Repost an Instagram Story

11. Use an Adobe Spark Post Template

Adobe Spark Post Instagram Story Templates

Want to make crafting an Instagram story even easier? Luckily, you can use Adobe Spark Post to create custom social media graphics for your story.

While Adobe Spark Post is available from your desktop, you can also download it on your smartphone. By navigating to the Adobe Spark Post website, or opening the app, you can quickly start creating your story by choosing from Adobe Spark's premade templates.

Once you choose a template, you can customize it to your liking, and then upload it to your Instagram story. And while most templates are free, some of them require a subscription to Adobe Spark.

Download: Adobe Spark Post for Android | iOS (Free, premium version available)

Perfecting Your Instagram Story

Learning how to make the perfect Instagram story isn't always easy. You'll have to keep tweaking your fonts, colors, and stickers to get it just right.

In the end, putting in the time to improve your Instagram stories is worth it. All that extra work can help your Instagram account stand out even more.