How to trim a video on iPhone

Shooting videos on iPhone has never been easier or more fun. Whether you took a video of the stupid thing you thought was really funny when you were bored at home or captured the moment Dad got crazy on the dancefloor at your cousin’s wedding, you might be wishing you could trim the video a little bit. And that’s where the Photos app comes in.

While iOS Photos has way fewer editing features for videos than it does for photos, Apple has put in the single most important video editing tool. You can cut videos on your iPhone without any other specialized software.

How to trim a video on iPhone using Photos  

After re-watching the video you just shot, you might be wishing you could cut 5 seconds off the end. Or maybe drop the boring stuff at the beginning. Here’s how to trim a video on your iPhone:

  1. In the Photos app, select the video you want to trim.
  2. Tap Edit.
  3. Drag the sliders on either side to select the start and end time of your video. If you hold on either arrow, the timeline will expand, allowing you a more precise edit.
  4. Tap Done in the bottom right corner of the screen.
  5. Choose “Save Video as New Clip” or “Save Video” to replace the original clip.

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How to cut a video on iPhone?

Now, maybe you watched the video, and you don’t exactly want to trim it but rather cut it down into two clips. That’s equally easy to do.

  1. Open your Photos app and select the video.
  2. Tap Edit.
  3. Tap and hold the right side of the slider on the timeline.
  4. Drag the slider to the point in the video where you want the first part to end.
  5. Tap Done.
  6. Select “Save as New Clip.”
  7. Repeat Steps 1-6, except select the other part of the video

Once you’ve done that, you should then have 3 videos, one for each half and the original if all are put together.

How to trim a video for Instagram

If you’re shooting a video to post on Instagram, there are a couple of time limitations to keep in mind. If you want to post to your feed, your video can only be 60 seconds. If you’re going to post to your Stories, your video will be broken up into 15-second clips.

Instagram doesn’t have any time editing tools for videos, meaning that the first 15 seconds or the first 60 seconds of your video is all it will upload. So before you post anything, you’ll probably want to trim your video for Instagram and post the most interesting part of it. Just follow the steps we outlined above, but keep the timing in mind.

Unfortunately, when you trim a video in Photos, you don’t see how long the end result will be. So what you can do is check the original length of the video and note down which frame the 60-second or 15-second clip would end with.

Now that you know how to shorten a video on your iPhone, you’ll only be keeping the good stuff. Sharing and re-watching your videos is so much better when you’re jumping right into the action of your home videos.

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