Live Photos take up a relatively large amount of space because they are essentially short videos. Sometimes the feature is accidentally turned on and you realize you’ve taken a bunch of Live Photos when you would have preferred to take a normal photo. No stress! You can convert the Live Photos to a normal photo. You can also turn off the animation, choose a different featured photo or convert the animation to a video. In this tip we explain how to convert a Live Photo into a normal photo, video or GIF.
- Convert to a normal photo
- Convert to a video
- Poison
Convert Live Photo to a normal photo
Have you accidentally taken a Live Photo and want to convert it to a normal photo? You do this as follows:
- Open the Live Photo in the Photos app.
- Tap the three dots at the top right and choose Duplicate.
- Choose Duplicate as Normal Photo.
- You now have two variations of the same photo. Delete the Live Photo.
In older iOS versions you will find the Duplicate function in the share menu.
If you accidentally took several photos as Live Photos, you can convert them in one go. Select the photos, tap the three dots and choose Duplicate > Duplicate as Normal Photos again. Then you can delete the animated photos.
Disable Live Photo effect
Don’t want to see the animations when opening the photo, but do you want it to still be a Live Photo? Then you can disable the Live Photo effect as follows:
- Open the Photos app.
- Choose the Live Photo you want to convert. A Live Photo can be recognized in your camera roll by the circle icon.
- Press Change.
- Tap the circle icon at the bottom left.
- You can now choose the best shot from the series of photos.
- Tap Live at the top of the screen. The button changes from yellow to black.
- Press Done.
Would you still like to see the animations later? Then you can follow exactly the same steps as described above. The field with Live will turn from black to yellow.
Convert Live Photo to a video
Since iOS 13, you can easily convert a Live Photo to a video from the Photos app. For example, you can share this video on social media, so that everyone can see the same thing as you on your iPhone or iPad. This is how to convert a Live Photo to a video:
- Open the Photos app.
- Choose the Live Photo you want to convert.
- Choose the effect if necessary (Bounce, Repeat, etc.)
- Tap the three dots.
- Choose Save as video.
Your video will be saved as a new video, so not next to the Live Photo variant. The video is therefore at the bottom of your photo library.
Did you know that you can also convert multiple Live Photos that you have taken in quick succession into one long video? To do this, follow these steps:
- Open the Photos app.
- In your photo library, scroll to the selection of Live Photos that you want to merge into one video.
- Tap Select at the top right.
- Select the photos.
- Tap the three dots.
- Choose Save as Video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3URFQoumvYw
Convert Live Photo to a GIF
Do you want to be able to easily share your Live Photo everywhere? Then it is best to convert this to a gif. This way you keep the animation, but you can easily share it via WhatsApp, for example. You do this as follows:
- Open the Live Photo on your iPhone or iPad.
- Swipe up the Live Photo. You will now see a number of other effects that you can choose.
- Choose the Repeat or Bounce option. Choose the one that fits best depending on the animation.
- If you now share it via WhatsApp, for example, it automatically becomes a gif.
Another way to convert the Live Photo into a GIF is through a third-party app. A good example is Lively, an app available for free in the App Store. You can adjust all kinds of settings, such as the duration or the type of animation. Also check out our list of the best Live Photo apps.
We hope this makes it even easier for you to share your experiences with the rest of the world! Sometimes a simple photo is the best way to convey an experience and in other cases a video is the way to share. Did you know you can do even more with Live Photos? Read here how to set a Live Photo as a watch face on the Apple Watch.
