What is the Day of the Dead filter?

It is an AI photo filter, also searched as a Catrina filter, sugar skull filter, or día de los muertos filter, that turns your photo into a Día de Muertos portrait: La Catrina sugar skull makeup, marigolds, candles, and festive clothing, or an ofrenda frame around a loved one’s picture. Instead of laying a flat mask on top, it repaints the makeup, outfit, and scene around your own features.

Is the Catrina filter free?

It is free to try: new accounts get free credits when you sign up, and each generation shows its credit cost before you start. If you were looking for a Day of the Dead photo filter online free to try, you can use it right in your browser.

Do I need a Day of the Dead filter app?

No. There is no Day of the Dead filter app to install; it works online in your browser on phone or desktop. It is not a live camera effect: you upload a photo and get a finished Catrina photo you can download and post anywhere.

La Catrina is the elegant skeleton lady of Día de Muertos. José Guadalupe Posada etched her in the early 1900s as satire of people who copied European high society, and Diego Rivera gave her a full body and a long gown in his 1946–47 mural. Catrina makeup, also called sugar skull makeup or calavera makeup, paints her skull face over yours.

Is Day of the Dead the same as Halloween?

No. Halloween is October 31; Día de Muertos is November 1 and 2 and is a celebration of remembrance, when families honor loved ones who have died with ofrendas, marigolds, candles, food, and music. The dates sit side by side, but La Catrina is a figure of celebration and memory, not a scary costume, so these looks stay elegant and never gory. For spooky looks, use the Halloween filter instead.

Will the makeup keep my face recognizable?

Yes, that is the goal. The face paint follows your real face shape, eyes, brows, smile, beard, and glasses, so friends still recognize you. Full sugar skull paint covers a lot of the face, so a sharp, front-facing photo gives the most recognizable AI Catrina result. Minimal Catrina and Half-Face keep more of your natural skin.

Can men use the Catrina filter?

Yes. Pick Catrín, La Catrina’s dapper gentleman: calavera makeup with gold-edged eye sockets and a black heart-shaped nose, a top hat banded with marigolds, a black suit, and a red bow tie. Beards and mustaches are kept, and anyone can choose any look.

What is an ofrenda portrait and how do I make one?

An ofrenda portrait is a loved one’s photo framed for a Día de Muertos altar. Upload the photo, open Ofrenda Portrait, and pick Ofrenda Frame, Marigold Frame, Papel Picado Frame, or Candle Altar; add a name or dates in the note if you want a caption. The photo itself stays exactly as it is, with nothing added to the person, and nobody is placed in a new scene. Only use photos you have the right to use.

Can I turn my Catrina photo into a video?

Yes. Press Animate on your result to open Animate Photo with the portrait loaded, for a blink, a smile, flickering candles, and drifting petals. You can also download the photo and use Image to Video for more camera motion. Each video is a separate generation.

Which photos work best?

A clear, front-facing selfie or head-and-shoulders portrait in even light, with no sunglasses or hands over the face and hair away from the forehead. Couple and family photos work too: everyone gets a matching look. For an ofrenda frame, any clear photo of your loved one works, even an old print.

Day of the Dead Filter Catrina Makeup and Día de Muertos Portraits From Your Photo

Upload a selfie and see yourself with La Catrina makeup, a marigold crown, and a candlelit Día de Muertos scene, or turn a photo into an ofrenda portrait to honor someone you love. Your face stays yours.

Your own idea (optional)

Example

Drag to compare the original selfie and the Catrina makeup version (after)

Drag to compare the original selfie and the Catrina makeup version (before)

Reference example. It is not a result generated from your upload.

What Is a Day of the Dead Filter?

A Day of the Dead filter turns an ordinary selfie into a Día de Muertos photo: La Catrina sugar skull makeup painted over your own face, a crown of marigolds, festive clothing, and a candlelit altar or marigold field behind you. This Day of the Dead AI filter works like a Catrina filter and a Day of the Dead photo generator in one. It repaints the makeup, outfit, light, and scene, so the result looks like a real Day of the Dead portrait, while your eyes, smile, glasses, and beard stay yours. It also frames a loved one’s picture as an ofrenda photo without changing it.

Día de Muertos, on November 1 and 2, is a Mexican celebration of remembering family and friends who have died, with joy rather than fear. Families build an ofrenda, a home altar with photos, candles, pan de muerto, sugar skulls, and orange cempasúchil marigolds, whose color and scent are said to guide the spirits home. La Catrina, the elegant skeleton lady in a plumed hat, began as a satirical etching by José Guadalupe Posada in the early 1900s, and Diego Rivera made her famous in his 1946–47 mural Dream of a Sunday Afternoon in the Alameda Park. Catrina makeup and calavera makeup honor her, so every look here stays elegant, colorful, and respectful.

Day of the Dead Photo Filter Ideas

Four Catrina makeup looks and four Día de Muertos portrait scenes. Pick a card to load it in the workspace.

Catrina makeup: a woman with a white sugar skull face, red roses in her hair, and a black lace dress by candlelight

Classic Catrina

White sugar skull base, red roses, black lace, and candlelight.

Catrina photo of a woman with a marigold and rose crown, sugar skull makeup, and an embroidered black dress at a candlelit altar

Floral Crown

A big crown of marigolds and roses with petal-painted cheeks.

Catrín

Dapper calavera makeup with a marigold top hat and bow tie.

Glam Catrina

A lace veil, gold jewels, red lips, and warm evening light.

Marigold Field

A marigold portrait among golden cempasúchil at sunset.

Candlelit Ofrenda

Standing beside an altar of candles, marigolds, and papel picado.

A woman with Catrina face paint on a candlelit town street under colorful papel picado banners

Papel Picado Street

Colorful banners, string lights, and candles on the cobblestones.

A woman in an embroidered black gown and Catrina makeup on a candle-lined path of marigold petals at night

Night Catrina

A dark, elegant gown on a candle-lined path of marigold petals.

How to Use the Catrina Filter

No face paint, no brushes, no prompt writing. One clear photo is enough.

Upload Your Photo

Choose a clear, front-facing selfie or portrait. For an ofrenda frame, any photo of your loved one works. JPG, PNG, and WebP files up to 10 MB are supported.

Pick a Catrina Makeup, Portrait, or Ofrenda Frame

Choose a Catrina Makeup look, a Día de Muertos Portrait scene, or an Ofrenda Portrait frame. Add colors, flowers, or a caption in the optional note.

Generate and Download

Preview your Catrina photo, download it for your profile or your altar, or press Animate to turn it into a short video.

Why Use This Day of the Dead AI Filter

Before and after: an older woman with glasses and the same woman with Catrina makeup and a marigold crown, glasses kept

Catrina Makeup Without the Face Paint

This Day of the Dead makeup filter paints sugar skull makeup the way an artist would: a white base, petal-ringed eye sockets, a small nose tip, fine lines over the lips, and flowers on the forehead and cheeks, all shaped to your own face. Glasses, beards, smile lines, and eye color carry over. Pick classic, floral crown, gold calavera makeup, pastel, half-face, glam, minimal, or the Catrín look for men, and get a Catrina AI portrait without hours at the mirror.

Two Día de Muertos portraits: a woman with a rose crown and embroidered shawl on a colonial street, and a woman with sugar skull makeup in a marigold field

Día de Muertos Portraits With Marigolds and Candles

Want the whole scene? Restage your picture as a Day of the Dead portrait in a marigold field, beside a candlelit ofrenda, on a papel picado street, at a peaceful candlelight vigil, in traditional dress, or next to an alebrije spirit animal painted in bright Oaxacan colors. Night Catrina adds an elegant gown and moonlight, and Painted Portrait turns you into folk-art painting.

An unchanged portrait photo of an older man and the same photo in a wooden frame on a Day of the Dead altar with marigolds and candles

An Ofrenda Portrait to Honor Someone You Love

Ofrenda Portrait does not change the person at all. It keeps the photo exactly as it is and sets it in a carved wood, marigold, papel picado, or gold frame on an altar with candles and flowers, ready to print for your ofrenda or share in remembrance. Add a name or dates in the note for a caption. Only use photos you have the right to use, such as your own family photos.

Video frame with a play button: a woman with Catrina makeup and a marigold crown at a candlelit altar

Bring Your Catrina Portrait to Life

Press Animate on your result to open Animate Photo with the portrait already loaded: a slow smile, a blink, flickering candles, and drifting marigold petals. For more camera motion, take the downloaded photo to Image to Video. It is an easy way to share your Catrina photo as a short clip for your story.

What People Make With the Catrina Filter

A family in embroidered clothes at a candlelit ofrenda and a couple dressed as La Catrina and El Catrín among marigolds

Profile Pictures

A Catrina photo for your avatar from late October through November 2 that still looks like you.

Family Día de Muertos Photos

Upload one family or couple photo and everyone gets a matching look, with only a small painted flower for kids.

Ofrenda and Memorial Frames

Frame a loved one’s photo with marigolds and candles to print for your altar or share with family.

Makeup Inspiration Before You Paint

Preview a sugar skull makeup design on your own face, then copy the shapes and colors or show it to a makeup artist.

Party Invitations and Posts

Portraits for a Día de Muertos gathering invite, a community event poster, or a before-and-after carousel.

School and Cultural Projects

Illustrate a class presentation about La Catrina, the ofrenda, and marigolds with a portrait of yourself.

Tips for a Beautiful Catrina Photo

Face paint covers a lot of the face, so a clear photo matters.

Front-Facing Selfie, Even Light

A sharp, front-facing photo in daylight or soft indoor light keeps your features clear under the paint.

Keep Hair Away From Your Face

Hair off the forehead and cheeks leaves room for the full makeup design, from brow swirls to chin details.

Try Half-Face for a One-Shot Reveal

Half-Face Catrina shows the painted side and your natural side together, a before and after in one picture.

Use Your Clearest Photo for Ofrendas

For an ofrenda frame, upload the sharpest copy you have; restore or colorize a faded print first if needed.

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Day of the Dead Filter FAQ

Catrina makeup, ofrenda portraits, and the tradition behind them.

Celebrate Día de Muertos With Your Photo

One photo, a Catrina makeup look, a marigold portrait, or an ofrenda frame, with your face still yours.