Turn iOS Live Photos Into GIF Videos

Who doesn’t love a good GIF? They are the moving meme, the punchlines of jokes, memories on repeat — and they can be easily created by you!

If you are an iOS device user, you can turn a live photo into a GIF using your Photos app. You only need to have an iPhone running iOS 11 or greater. You can also use a third-party app like Lively to turn those live photos into videos so you can share your GIFs with social media.

iOS Live Photo Conversion

If you use an iPhone 6S or higher, you’re already familiar with the Live Photos feature. Live photos capture 1.5 seconds of video before and after you tap the shutter button. The combo video/photo feature was not just meant to capture a photo, but rather a complete memory. Though it isn’t as big a hit as Apple wants it to be, the motion you capture before the snap can create some pretty GIF-worthy moments.

Make a GIF from a Live Photo

To convert your live photos into a GIF, you must have an iPhone running iOS 11 or higher.

1. Open the Photos app on your iPhone.
2. Then locate the live photo you want to turn into a GIF or video and tap on it.
3. Swipe upwards on the screen to reveal effects. You will see effects like loop, bounce, and long exposure.
   • Loop: This will repeat the clip.
   • Bounce: This will play the clip forwards and backward.
   • Long Exposure: More of an effect than a replay option.
4. Select either Loop or Bounce to create a GIF.

Just because you’ve turned your live photo into a GIF doesn’t mean it is saved as a video. Why does this matter? If you want to share the GIF to certain social media platforms like Instagram, you will only see a still image. To do this, you need to convert it to a video format.

You can find a website that will allow you to upload and convert your GIF, or you can go a more reliable and safe route by downloading a third-party app.

Make Video or GIF Using Lively

Lively turns your live photos into both GIFs or videos.

1. First, download and install the free Lively app.
2. After that, open the app and allow it to access your photos.
3. Then tap on the live photo you want to turn into a GIF or video.
4. At the top of the screen, you will see three options: GIF, Movie, or Frame.
5. Select either GIF or Movie and edit your content.
6. Once you’re happy with the product, go ahead and tap Export. Share to social media or save it to your iPhone.

Any GIF or video that you make using Lively will include a Lively watermark (the only downside of the free version). You can remove this watermark by paying a one-time fee of $2.99.

Customize Live Photo GIFs with GIPHY

Another popular option to turn live photos into GIFs is GIPHY. You will need a GIPHY account. Also, this app won’t turn your live photos into videos; it just gives you more creative freedom when creating your GIFs.

1. Download and install the GIPHY app on your phone.
2. Tap on Create in the right top corner and upload your live photo.
3. Once you’ve edited your new GIF, tap the purple arrow to save it to GIPHY.
4. You will now see your GIF appear on the GIPHY app. Tap the three dots below the GIF to open the menu.
5. Tap Save to Camera Roll.

How To Turn Your Live Photos To Still Images

Conversely, you can turn your live photo into a still photo. That means you just want to share a traditional, no-nonsense, no GIF photograph.

1. Open up your Photos on your iPhone.
2. Choose the live photo that you want to turn into a static photo.
3. Tap Edit at the top right corner of your display.
4. Select the live photos icon on the bottom toolbar.
5. Scroll on the scrubber to select the still frame that you want to use for your static photo.
6. After selecting the still frame, tap Make Key Photo.
7. Tap on the Live button on top of the screen.
8. After this, select Done, and your live photo will turn into a static one.

You can share your still photo to your Facebook, Twitter, and other social media accounts without any problem.

Wrapping Up

Sharing GIFs is sometimes a better way to get your feelings across than regular text. When we can see that emotion or awkward situation on replay over and over again, there’s just more empathy involved. So if you happen to have that potential saved on your iPhone hidden in a live photo, turn it into a GIF and share it with your friends.