How to do it
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Open Live Photos in Photos
In the Photos app, swipe up to find Media Types, then tap Live Photos.
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Select the Live Photo
Tap the Live Photo you want to turn into a video.
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Tap More, then Save as Video
Tap the More button in the upper-right corner, then choose Save as Video.
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Find the new video
Open the Recently Saved album to find your new video. The Live Photo is still in the Live Photos album, so you can check both.
Save a Live Photo as video with the Photos app
Apple’s guide to turning a Live Photo into a video gives these steps: in the Photos app, swipe up to find Media Types, then tap Live Photos. Select a Live Photo, tap the More button in the upper-right corner, then choose Save as Video.
| What you do | What happens |
|---|---|
| Choose Save as Video | A new video is created |
| Look in Recently Saved | Apple says your new video is there |
| Look in Live Photos | The original Live Photo is still there |
Apple adds that you can use iMovie to combine multiple videos that were created from Live Photos.
How a Live Photo is built
Per Apple’s Live Photos guide, your iPhone records what happens 1.5 seconds before and after you take the picture. To see one move, open the Photos app, tap Collections, scroll to Media Types, tap Live Photos, open a photo, and press and hold the screen. That short stretch of motion is what Save as Video turns into a clip.
If you edit a Live Photo in a third-party app, Apple warns you might lose any Live Photo effects you applied, such as Loop, Bounce, or Long Exposure. So it is worth saving a video before you edit elsewhere.
What about sharing a Live Photo?
You don’t always need a video. Apple’s Live Photos guide says that if you share a Live Photo via Mail, it is sent as a still image, and adds that you can turn a Live Photo into a video on your iPhone. To share only the still photo, tap LIVE in the upper-left corner of the photo before you share.
The Share guide also says that on devices or services that don’t support Live Photos, a Live Photo is shared as a still photo.
PicWay works in the other direction
For saving a Live Photo as a video, use the Photos steps above. PicWay’s Live Photo tools go in the other direction:
- Video to Live Photo: pick a video and tap Export. The clip is up to 3.9 seconds by default, or tap No Time Limit to use the whole video. The new Live Photo goes to the PicWay Conversions album in Photos. See how to turn a video into a Live Photo.
- Live Photo to still photo: PicWay can remove the motion and keep only the still. Choose Convert to still photo or Keep one frame, as described in the photo compression guide.
Quick answers
Where is my new video after Save as Video?
Apple says to look in the Recently Saved album.
Does Save as Video delete the Live Photo?
No. Apple says the Live Photo remains accessible in the Live Photos album.
Can PicWay save a Live Photo as a video?
PicWay’s tools go the other way: it can turn a video into a Live Photo, and it can turn a Live Photo into a still. To get a video from a Live Photo, use Apple’s Save as Video in Photos.