Learning how to use Live Photo on iPhone will transform the way you take pictures and allow you to capture shots you never thought possible.
Mastering the art of live photos opens up a world of creative possibilities, whether it’s capturing a cherished moment or adding an extra dimension to your photography.
In this guide, we’ll delve into the intricacies of Live Photo, revealing tips, tricks, and techniques to make the most of this innovative feature on your iPhone.
What is Live Photo?
A Live Photo on iPhone is a feature introduced by Apple in 2015 that combines a still photo with a short video clip.
When you take a photo with Live Photo enabled, your iPhone captures 1.5 seconds of video before and after you press the shutter button, resulting in a three-second Live Photo.
This adds a dynamic element to your photos, allowing you to capture a moment in motion along with the still image.
A Live Photo also records audio, so it’s a great way to bring that special moment alive and preserve it for the future.
Live Photo is available on iPhone 6S and all newer models of iPhone.
Turning Live Photo On and Off
Live Photo is turned on by default in your iPhone.
But you can turn it on or off by tapping the Live Photo icon in the top right corner of your camera screen:
However, this is only temporary: the next time you open your camera app, Live Photo will turn on again.
If you want to turn Live Photo off permanently, go to Settings > Camera > Preserve Settings, and toggle off the Live Photo button:
How To Take a Live Photo on iPhone
To take a Live Photo on iPhone, first make sure the Live Photo icon is on (when it is off, the icon has a line going through it):
Keep your iPhone as steady as possible, remembering that the camera is recording before you even press the Shutter button. And keep your hand as steady as possible after pressing the shutter button for the same reason.
How To Find Your Live Photos
When browsing through your photos in the Photos app, it’s impossible to tell which are Live Photos, as there is nothing in the thumbnail to indicate this.
But Apple has made it easy to find your Live Photos.
Open the Photos app, click on Albumns in the bottom menu, and then scroll down to the list of Media Types. You’ll see Live Photos listed there, next to Selfies and Portraits:
Live Photos Special Effects
Every Live Photo has three built-in special effects, which you can access from a button in the top left corner: Loop, Bounce, and Long Exposure.
Loop
When you take a Live Photo, it captures a series of frames starting a few seconds before and after you press the shutter button.
A Loop turns the frames of your Live Photo into a short video clip, which is then repeated in a loop. It’s a fun way to add motion to your photos and create engaging visual content.
Bounce
A Bounce is another effect available for Live Photos.
Similar to the Loop effect, Bounce adds motion to your Live Photos.
But instead of looping the action continuously, the Bounce effect plays the Live Photo forward and then in reverse, creating a “boomerang” effect. It’s called ‘Bounce’ because the motion appears to bounce back and forth.
Long Exposure
The third special effect in Live Photos is Long Exposure.
You would normally need a tripod to take a long-exposure photo, but with Live Photos, you can convert any hand-held photo into a long exposure.
Open a Live Photo and tap on the ‘Live Photo’ icon in the top left corner. Then select ‘Long Exposure.’
Anything moving in your Live Photo will now appear as a long exposure.
Here’s an example that I took a few days ago. This is the static photo, or the Key Photo, from the Live Photo:
I turned this same Live Photo into a Long Exposure:
(In case you are wondering, I also cropped and edited this long exposure photo)
One thing to note when using Long Exposure or Loop is that when you select either of these options, the software will crop the edge of your photos.
That’s because it needs to stabilize the objects in the background.
So, if you plan to use your Live Photo as Long Exposure or Loop, make sure to allow enough space around the edges of your subject, knowing that some of it will be lost when the Live Photo is converted to Long Exposure.
How To Share Live Photos
You can share Live Photos with anyone who has an iPhone running iOS 9 or later. Just tap on the Share button in the bottom left corner:
And then send it as a message to anyone in your contacts:
You can also share a Live Photo to Facebook, and it will appear on FB as a moving image. But there are a few steps involved.
Step 1
Choose the Loop option in your Live Photo, then save the Live Photo to your Files:
Step 2
Your Live Photo loop will now be saved in your iPhone Files as a GIF.
Step 3
Find that GIF in your iPhone Files, tap on the Share button, and then look for the Facebook icon. Tap on that, and your Live Photo will be shared on Facebook as a moving image that looks like a video.
Managing Live Photos
In this section, we’ll discuss how to view Live Photos, delete unwanted frames from Live Photos, and turn Live Photos into videos.
How to View Live Photos
As we discussed above, your Live Photos are in the Albums view under ‘Media Types.’
To view a Live Photo, open it and then long-press on the photo. The Live Photo will play as a video with background audio.
How to Change the Key Photo
A Key Photo in Live Photos is the still image representing the Live Photo. It’s the single frame chosen by the iPhone’s software to display as the static image in your camera roll.
If you prefer a different image to represent the Live Photo in your gallery, you can change it to any frame within the Live Photo.
To do this, open the Live Photo, tap ‘Edit’ in the top right corner, and then tap ‘Live in the bottom left corner. Place your finger on the white rectangle and drag through the frames until you find one you like.
Deleting Live Photos
Live Photos take up more space than static photos, so if you are taking a lot of Live Photos, it’s a good idea to delete the frames that you don’t want.
The easiest way to delete all the frames in a Live Photo except the one you want is to duplicate the Live Photo as a still image and then delete the original Live Photo.
In the original Live Photo, tap on the three dots in the top right corner, and then tap on ‘Duplicate’.
Next, choose ‘Duplicate as Still Photo.’
Then delete the original Live Photo.
Saving Live Photos as Videos
To save your Live Photo as a video, open it, tap the three dots at the top right corner, and then tap ‘Save as Video.’
Then go to Media Types in the Photos app and find your converted video under Videos.
Merge Several Live Photos Into One Video
You can also combine several Live Photos into one video.
To do this, open the Photos app, tap on Albums in the bottom menu, then scroll down to Media Types and tap on Live Photos.
On the next screen, tap ‘Select’ at the top, then tap on the Live Photos you want to include in the video.
Next, tap on the three dots in the bottom right corner and choose the option ‘Save as Video.’
The selected Live Photos will be saved as a single video.
Editing Live Photos
Editing Live Photos is similar to editing a static photo.
Exposure, Brilliance, Highlights etc
With a Live Photo, you have all the editing options of a still photo:
- Exposure
- Brilliance
- Highlights
- Shadows
- Contrast
- Brightness
- Black Point
- Saturation
- Vibrance
- Warmth
- Tint
- Sharpness
- Definition
- Noise Reduction
- Vignette
Please note that any change you make to these settings will affect all the frames in your Live Photo.
Trimming a Live Photo
You can also trim your Live Photo in editing mode.
To do this, open the Live Photo and tap on Edit at the top of the screen.
Next, tap on the Live icon at the bottom of the screen:
You will now see the frames that make up your Live Photo at the bottom of the screen.
To trim from the start of the Live Photo, press and hold on the left side of the frame strip, and then drag towards the right.
To trim from the end of the Live Photo, press and hold on the right of the frame strip and drag left.
Like the other editing functions in the iPhone Photos app, these edits are non-destructive: the trimmed frames are still there, and you can recover them by following the above steps in reverse.
Conclusion
As you’ve seen in this article, Live Photo on iPhone is more than just a feature—it’s a gateway to unlocking a new realm of creativity and storytelling with your iPhone camera.
Whether it’s long exposure on moving subjects, creating loops for sharing on social media, or simply finding that hidden frame that captures the expression you wanted, Live Photo adds a new dimension to your photography.
So go ahead, seize the moment, and let Live Photo breathe new life into your world, one frame at a time.
