Launch the Photos app, find the Live Photo you want to view, and then 3D Touch (a “Force Press”) and hold the image. Like all other photos and video shot on an iPhone, the Live Photos end up in the Photos app. It will turn white, then display a LIVE OFF label. You’re tapping the shutter button at the midpoint of the Live Photo, so that should help you time the best moment to take the image.Īs soon as you’ve taken your Live Photo, it’s a good idea to tap the Live Photo button pictured above to turn off the feature. This is especially true if you wish to use the Live Photo as wallpaper on your iPhone.When making the shot, don’t be fooled into believing that you’re shooting video - the Live Photo actually begins 1.5 seconds before you press the shutter button and ends 1.5 seconds after it is pressed. While most of the time professional photographers recommend taking photos in landscape (wide) mode, Live Photos are best captured in portrait (tall) mode. At this point, every photo you take with the Camera app becomes a Live Photo. Once that button has been tapped to activate Live Photos, it turns yellow, animates with a rippling effect, and displays the word LIVE below the button for a moment. The Live Photo button, highlighted in red, with a yellow tint showing that it is activated That button is highlighted in the screenshot below: That’s done by tapping on the “target” button that’s on the top of the Camera app in portrait mode and on the left side of the Camera app in landscape mode.

For those occasions where you see the potential for a really fun 3-second Live Photo, turn on the feature. I’d recommend shutting off Live Photos most of the time on the iPhone because they almost double the amount of storage required by a regular still photo. To begin, let’s review how to take Live Photos. In today’s Quick Tip, I’ll show you how to set a Live Photo or a GIF animation as live wallpaper for your iPhone…and give you some other Live Photo and GIF tips for good measure. Even better, Live Photos can be set as live wallpaper that animates when you tap and hold it. When a Live Photo is viewed in Photos, a tap or swipe of the image sets the photo in motion, complete with the sound recorded at the time.

When shooting a Live Photo, the iOS Camera app actually records data before and after the shutter button is pressed so that about 1.5 seconds of movement and sound is stored with each 12 MP still image. Since the arrival of the iPhone 6s a few years ago, iPhone users have had the ability to capture Live Photos.

Moving backgrounds for iphone