Quick answer: iPhone has no built-in button that turns a video into a Live Photo. Use an app: open AliveShot, pick the video, trim it to 1–3 seconds, choose a cover frame and tap save. It shows up in Photos as a Live Photo you can set as your lock screen.
Method 1: With AliveShot (fastest)
- Open AliveShot. Open AliveShot on your iPhone and pick a video, GIF, TikTok or Instagram clip from your library.
- Trim the moment. Drag the handles to choose 1–3 seconds of the clip.
- Choose a cover frame. Pick the frame that shows when the Live Photo isn’t playing.
- Save as a Live Photo. Tap save. The Live Photo appears in the Photos app with the LIVE badge.
- Set it as wallpaper (optional). In Photos, tap Share, then Use as Wallpaper, and make sure the Live Photo button is on.
That’s the whole flow. The same steps work for screen recordings, GIFs and clips you’ve saved from social apps.
Method 2: Free online tool, then the app
If you want to try before installing anything, use our free video to Live Photo tool. It runs in your browser: you choose the clip, trim it, pick the cover frame and preview the result. Nothing is uploaded.
The catch is the last step. A Live Photo is a still image and a short video linked together, and iOS only lets apps save that pair into Photos. So the tool gives you a trimmed clip, and AliveShot turns it into the Live Photo. Sites that claim to save a Live Photo straight from Safari usually hand you a ZIP of files to sort out in the Files app, or a plain video.
Method 3: TikTok’s built-in Live Photo option
For TikTok videos specifically, TikTok’s Share menu on iPhone can include a Live Photo option that saves the video to Photos as a Live Photo. It’s handy, with limits: you don’t choose which seconds are used, the result has no sound, and the option isn’t shown for every video. If you want a specific moment, save the video and trim it instead. Full walk-through: TikTok to Live Photo.
What about the Shortcuts app?
You’ll see guides promising a “video to Live Photo” shortcut. Here’s the honest picture: Apple’s Shortcuts app has no built-in action that creates a Live Photo from a video. It can go the other way — saving a Live Photo as a video — but not this way.
Shared shortcuts that claim to make Live Photos generally fall into one of these groups:
- They call another app. The shortcut passes your video to a third-party app’s Shortcuts action, so you still need that app installed.
- They do the reverse. Many “Live Photo” shortcuts convert Live Photos to videos or GIFs.
- They don’t produce a real Live Photo. Some save a looping video or GIF, which won’t move as a Live Photo wallpaper.
If you try a shared shortcut, check what each action does before you run it, and only install shortcuts from sources you trust. For most people, an app is quicker and more reliable.
Common questions
How do you make a video a Live Photo on iPhone?
Open a video-to-Live-Photo app such as AliveShot, choose the video, trim it to 1–3 seconds, pick a cover frame and save. The Photos app can’t do this on its own: it can turn a Live Photo into a video, but not the other way around.
How can I convert a video to a Live Photo online?
An online tool can trim the clip and choose the cover frame, but the final save needs an app. iOS only lets apps add Live Photos to the Photos library, so any honest website ends with a hand-off. Our free converter works this way and never uploads your video.
Can you convert a GIF to a Live Photo?
Yes. A GIF is converted to a short video first, then saved as a Live Photo. GIFs have no sound, and many are small or loop quickly, so pick a GIF that’s at least about 1 second long and as high-resolution as possible. See GIF to Live Photo.
How long can a Live Photo be?
Live Photos taken with the iPhone camera are about 3 seconds long: roughly 1.5 seconds before and after you tap the shutter. For one you make from a video, 1–3 seconds is the sweet spot, especially for a lock screen wallpaper. Details in How long can a Live Photo be?
Do Live Photos take up more space?
Yes. A Live Photo stores a still photo plus a short video, so it typically takes about twice the space of a regular photo. A 1–3 second Live Photo is still small compared with keeping the full video.
Next: put it on your lock screen
Once you have a Live Photo, follow the Live Photo wallpaper guide to set it up and fix “Motion not available”.
Last updated October 31, 2026