Apple originally debuted Live Photos in 2015, alongside the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, marking it as a feature that enhances the smartphone's photography with pictures that move when a user performs a 3D Touch on them. With the launch of iOS 11, Live Photos can now be edited in a few useful ways, and this guide will help you make a new key photo (which shows up first in your Photo Album), as well as explain how to add new animation effects to a Live Photo.

To begin, taking a Live Photo hasn't changed with the new iPhone software: simply open your Camera app, tap the circular Live Photos icon at the top center of the screen, and take a picture.

Making a New Key Photo

how to edit live photo 1

  1. Open Photos.
  2. Tap the "Albums" tab, then navigate to the Live Photos album to find your image.
  3. Tap "Edit" in the top right corner of the image you select.
  4. At the bottom of the screen, scrub through your Live Photo and find the exact spot you want for a new Key Photo.
  5. Tap "Make Key Photo."
  6. Tap "Done."

Changing a Live Photo Effect

how to edit live photo 2

  1. Find the Live Photo you want to edit and select it.
  2. From the center of the screen, swipe up.
  3. Here you'll find three new Live Photo effects.
  4. Choose Loop, Bounce, or Long Exposure.
  5. Swipe down to see the effect in full screen.

Live Photos now have the full suite of editing options previously available to traditional still photos only, including: rotating, cropping, filters, and light and color balancing. You can also choose to mute the Live Photo (volume icon at the top left in edit mode), and automatically enhance it (wand icon at the top right in edit mode). Markup is one editing feature that does not support Live Photos, however.

After you choose a new Key Photo and find a new effect, you can replay your Live Photo like before by performing a 3D Touch action anywhere on the screen of an iPhone 6s device or later.

Related Forum: iOS 11

Top Rated Comments

zorinlynx Avatar
97 months ago
I've discovered that if you pick a new "Key photo" in a live photo, the quality is quite a bit lower than the original "actual photo".

It seems the live photo video is taken in 4K on the iPhone 7, but 4K video is still less quality than a full resolution still photo. So be careful, and only pick a different "key photo" if the actual photo you took is useless.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
zorinlynx Avatar
97 months ago
Isn’t only the picture itself taken as the photo while the rest is just video?
This would mean that choosing a new key photo would decrease the quality, wouldn’t it??
This is a good assumption to make, but I did wonder if Apple found a way to make the entire live photo full resolution, so I wanted to check for myself.

I confirmed that it's indeed not full resolution, like I expected. But Apple doesn't make this obvious so it's to everyone's benefit to be aware of the reduced quality when you change the key photo.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
unobtainium Avatar
97 months ago
None of the new effects are particularly useful. One of them should have been “export gif” since that’s what non-iOS 11 users can actually see. If you send a photo with the new effects to a non-iOS 11 user they get a short video clip. Lame.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Ldubrov Avatar
97 months ago
When you export a Live Photo to, say, an email, it will export the JPEG of your selected Key Frame. Be advised that if you select any other frame except the original, you’ll get a 10 megapixel still of a video, which will be not as sharp as the original Key Frame. AirDrop and iMessage will send the full Live Image.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Ldubrov Avatar
97 months ago
That’s unfortunate. The 10 MP resolution indicates that the iPhone 8 still uses the pic + video for live images. Ah well.

Also, you can mute a live image: edit, and click the audio button in top left corner.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

Apple iPhone 16e Feature

Apple Announces iPhone 16e With A18 Chip and Apple Intelligence, Pricing Starts at $599

Wednesday February 19, 2025 8:02 am PST by
Apple today introduced the iPhone 16e, its newest entry-level smartphone. The device succeeds the third-generation iPhone SE, which has now been discontinued. The iPhone 16e features a larger 6.1-inch OLED display, up from a 4.7-inch LCD on the iPhone SE. The display has a notch for Face ID, and this means that Apple no longer sells any iPhones with a Touch ID fingerprint button, marking the ...
iphone 17 pro asherdipps

iPhone 17 Pro Models Rumored to Feature Aluminum Frame Instead of Titanium Frame

Tuesday February 18, 2025 12:02 pm PST by
Over the years, Apple has switched from an aluminum frame to a stainless steel frame to a titanium frame for its highest-end iPhones. And now, it has been rumored that Apple will go back to using aluminum for three out of four iPhone 17 models. In an investor note with research firm GF Securities, obtained by MacRumors this week, Apple supply chain analyst Jeff Pu said the iPhone 17, iPhone...
apple launch feb 2025 alt

Here Are the New Apple Products We're Still Expecting This Spring

Thursday February 20, 2025 5:06 am PST by
Now that Apple has announced its new more affordable iPhone 16e, our thoughts turn to what else we are expecting from the company this spring. There are three product categories that we are definitely expecting to get upgraded before spring has ended. Keep reading to learn what they are. If we're lucky, Apple might make a surprise announcement about a completely new product category. M4...
Generic iOS 18

Here's When Apple Will Release iOS 18.4

Wednesday February 19, 2025 11:38 am PST by
Following the launch of the iPhone 16e, Apple updated its iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia pages to give a narrower timeline on when the next updates are set to launch. All three pages now state that new Apple Intelligence features and languages will launch in early April, an update from the more broader April timeframe that Apple provided before. The next major point updates will be iOS ...
apple launch feb 2025

Tim Cook Teases an 'Apple Launch' Next Wednesday

Thursday February 13, 2025 8:07 am PST by
In a social media post today, Apple CEO Tim Cook teased an upcoming "launch" of some kind scheduled for Wednesday, February 19. "Get ready to meet the newest member of the family," he said, with an #AppleLaunch hashtag. The post includes a short video with an animated Apple logo inside a circle. Cook did not provide an exact time for the launch, or share any other specific details, so...
apple c1

Apple Unveils 'C1' as First Custom Cellular Modem

Wednesday February 19, 2025 8:08 am PST by
Apple today announced its first custom cellular modem with the name "C1," debuting in the all-new iPhone 16e. The new modem contributes to the iPhone 16e's power efficiency, giving it the longest battery life of any iPhone with a 6.1-inch display, such as the iPhone 15 and iPhone 16. Expanding the benefits of Apple silicon, C1 is the first modem designed by Apple and the most...
Apple Northbrook

Apple Store Permanently Closing at Struggling Mall in Chicago Area

Tuesday February 18, 2025 8:46 pm PST by
Apple is permanently closing its retail store at the Northbrook Court shopping mall in the Chicago area. The company confirmed the upcoming closure today in a statement, but it has yet to provide a closing date for the location. Apple Northbrook opened in 2005, and the store moved to a larger space in the mall in 2017. Apple confirmed that affected employees will continue to work for the...