How To Make A Slideshow On IPhone: 3 Methods - MakeUseOf

Whether if it’s on a vacation or simply in daily life, you have probably taken a lot of photos over the years, and now they’re all accumulated in your iPhone’s Photos app. Every one of them is too precious to delete. By making a slideshow, you can enjoy your pictures from a different perspective and share the joy of them with your family and friends.

Let’s look at three ways to make a slideshow on your iPhone using your device’s built-in methods. We’ll also introduce a top-rated app you can use if you want full control over your slideshow’s customization.

1. How to Make a Slideshow on Your iPhone Using the Photos App

Using the Photos App is the quickest way to create a slideshow on your iPhone. Here’s how:

1. Go to the Photos app.
2. Tap to Select to select the images and videos you want to use to make a slideshow.
3. Tap the Share icon.
4. Select Slideshow.

Close

If you have thousands of photos on your iPhone, scrolling up and down endlessly to find related pictures can be tedious. You can filter your photos by selecting the Library tab and choosing Years, Months, or Days for easier navigation.

Another method is to use the Search tab. Using AI technology, your iPhone already organizes some of your photos into albums based on the image subject—for example, cats. You can also type keywords into the search bar to obtain the relevant pictures.

As you select photos for your slideshow, it’s best to gradually add them to a new album for this specific purpose. You wouldn’t want to start selecting pictures all over again should you accidentally deselect pictures or. worse, involuntarily exit the Photos app.

How to Customize Your Slideshow in Your iPhone’s Photos App

By default, your iPhone chooses the Origami theme and soundtrack for your slideshow. Origami gives a jingling, relaxing vibe. The other theme options available are Dissolve, Magazine, Push, and Ken Burns.

To customize your slideshow, tap the playing slideshow to bring up the bottom menu. Next, select Options to view the theme and soundtrack choices. You can also change the speed of your slideshow using the turtle-rabbit speed slider.

Close

How to Save Your Slideshow in Your iPhone’s Photos App

So far, there’s no way to save a slideshow you created using this direct Photos app method. A workaround is to record your iPhone screen as the slideshow is playing. Then, trim off the imperfect start and end.

In the Photos app, you can only save a Memories slideshow. A Memories slideshow is a curated collection of photos your iPhone creates, such as “Year in Review.” Check out our complete guide on how to create a Memories slideshow on your iPhone.

2. How to Make a Slideshow on Your iPhone Using iMovie

iMovie is the default video editing software on Apple’s devices. You might already have iMovie preinstalled on your iPhone, but if not, you can download it for free from the App Store. Using iMovie allows greater customization for your slideshow.

Here’s how to create a slideshow in your iPhone’s iMovie app:

1. On iMovie’s main screen, select Create Project (+).
2. Choose Movie.
3. Select all the pictures you want to include in your slideshow.
4. Then, tap Create Movie.

Close

You can add more photos in-between the others by following these instructions:

1. Drag the playhead (the white line) to the position where you want to add a new photo or video.
2. Tap Add (+).
3. Select Photos, Albums, or Videos. This depends on where your content is located.
4. Tap Add (+).

Close

Next, let’s cover the basic customizations you can apply: photo display duration, theme, and transition effects.

How to Change the Photo Display Duration in iMovie

In iMovie, you can shorten or lengthen the time in which a photo is displayed on the screen. Here’s how:

1. Tap the photo to select it.
2. Drag the yellow handles to make the photo display duration shorter or longer.

Close

How to Customize the Slideshow Theme and Audio in iMovie

To customize how your slideshow appears:

1. Tap anywhere on the black background to deselect your photo.
2. Tap the Settings icon at the bottom right.
3. Choose from a variety of themes, such as Travel, Playful, and Bright.
4. To use the theme’s corresponding soundtrack, turn on Theme Soundtrack.

Close

How to Change Slideshow Transition Effect in iMovie

To choose different transitions to use between photos in your slideshow:

1. Tap to select the existing transition effect. This brings up a horizontal list of transition effects.
2. iMovie has common effects like Slide, Wipe, and Fade.
3. You can also change the transition duration from 0.5 to 2.0 seconds.

Close

How to Save a Slideshow in Your iPhone’s iMovie App

Once you’ve completed your slideshow, here’s how to save it:

1. In your project, tap Done in the top-left corner.
2. Tap the Share icon.
3. Select Save Video. iMovie will export and save your slideshow in the Photos app.

Close

3. How to Make a Slideshow on Your iPhone Using Splice

With more than 200,000 ratings, Splice is one of the most popular video-editing apps for iOS. You can download it for free from your iPhone’s App Store. Splice may suit you best if you already have some experience in video editing and prefer full control over your slideshow.

MUO Report

Stay updated with the latest tech trends, expert tips, and product reviews in the world of technology with MUO's Newsletters. Subscribe

MUO Report

Stay updated with the latest tech trends, expert tips, and product reviews in the world of technology with MUO's Newsletters. Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Tap New Project to start adding images and videos to your slideshow. Once all your media is loaded, there is a wide range of customization options you can apply. For example, in terms of transition effects, you can find twice the variety in Splice compared to iMovie.

Close

You can also adjust each individual image setting, add text and captions, or incorporate interesting sounds from Splice’s audio library.

Download: Splice (Free, in-app purchases available)

Create Beautiful Slideshows on Your iPhone

There are three main ways to make a slideshow on your iPhone. First, you can use the Photos app. Second, check out Apple’s built-in video editing app, iMovie. Third, explore the App Store and use third-party apps like Splice to create your slideshow.

Thanks to our love of telling stories and sharing moments in life, there are countless slideshow apps you can use to make a slideshow on your iPhone.