The Camera app on iPhone 6 and newer models has a feature called Live Photo that can be turned on or off. When enabled, the camera automatically records 1.5 seconds of footage before and after you take a photo. Live Photos can be shared with fun effects in certain apps, such as Instagram Stories with a Boomerang effect, or modified in the iPhone’s Photos app to apply different Live Photos effects like Loop, Bounce, or Long Exposure. You can also choose a different photo from the Live Photo sequence as the main image for regular sharing.
To create your own animated Live Stickers for iPhone text messages, follow these steps:
- Launch the Camera app.
- Select the Photo option.
- Tap on the circle icon for Live Photo located in the top-right corner of the screen, ensuring that there is no slash over it.
When Live Photo is turned on, you will briefly see the word “Live” in yellow on top of the camera viewfinder. By default, Live Photo is already enabled, so if you haven’t changed it before, you can proceed to take the photo.
To confirm if the photo you just took is a Live Photo, open the Photos app and go to the Albums tab. Select Live Photos under Media Types, and you should find the photo you snapped. From there, you can convert it into a Live Sticker using various methods.