How to use Live Photos: 5 Steps to get you started!

By Ankit

| Updated: Friday, April 15, 2016, 15:43 [IST]

Live Photos is Apple's latest imaging technology that is available on the iPhone 6s, 6s Plus and the latest - iPhone SE. Live Photos allows you to convert your still images to videos by automatically recording 3 seconds of footage before and after the image is taken.

It adds motion both before and after you take a picture and packs it together in one GIF-like short video. For example, you make take a photo of your child smiling, but would later want to experience the moment just before he took out that grin. You can long force press on the photo to do so.

Here's a quick guide on how to capture, view and edit the perfect Live Photos on your latest iPhone.

#1

Firstly, to activate the Live Photos feature, jump into the default Camera app and just tap on the circular yellow sign on top. Once it is lit up, all your photos taken will be ‘Live' by default.

#2

Press the shutter button whenever you are ready. Remember that the phone will capture footage just before and after the shot so just stay careful and keep the phone steady a few seconds before taking the photo.

Focus on what the still image looks like because that is what people will be viewing anyway. The Live Photo should just be a by-product of it. Also, in iOS 9.1, the phone can automatically sense and omit any shakes.

Live Photos also incorporates audio so keep in mind the surroundings you are in. For example: If you are giving a countdown for someone to stay still, just use hand symbols and not shout it out loud.

#3

When someone is smiling, laughing, dancing or jumping. Helps capture the moment much more vividly.
If someone photobombs your photo, you can easily tell who the culprit is.
Fireworks, crackers and fountains. Still photos never do justice to these kinds of scenes and a Live Photo is best to capture the exact moment.

#4

Photos of food for your Instagram. Live Photos are not generally of much help in such situations; it just gets messy.
Group or solo selfies. Selfie shots are meant to be still and taking a Live Photo just exposes your silly posing techniques before clicking a photo of your face.

#5

The Facebook for iOS app now supports Live Photos for uploading on your timeline.
The storage space taken up by a Live Photo is twice the size of a normal image. Keep that in mind and try to toggle the Live Photo option when not needed.
If you have a Mac computer, running OS X El Capitan and above, you can directly import Live Photos via the default Photos app. It will automatically play once clicked on.