intend of GIFs as the center between images and videos. The chief advantage of using GIFs is that you can tell a fib or emphasize a point in a blink of an eye. Plus, they ’ re modest files to load, and that makes them perfect for mobile .
GIFs have exploded in popularity in holocene years. GIPHY, one of the web ’ s more popular GIF databases, claims to have over 300 million daily active users. In 2018, Google bought Tenor, a keyboard app and GIF archive designed to help users find the GIFs they want. Tenor processes over 400 million GIF searches per day.
This article will show you how to make a GIF using four unlike methods. Add them to your social media posts to delight and engage your followers .
Of class, you can besides watch this video to hear more about our strategy on how to make gifs as part of your post ’ south commercialize scheme :
Table of contents
Bonus: Get the always-up-to-date social media image size cheat sheet. The rid resource includes recommend photograph dimensions for every type of image on every major network .
How to make a GIF with Photoshop
note : all screenshots used in this article are from Adobe Photoshop CC 2018 ( 19.1.2 publish ) .
You can use Photoshop to string images together into a GIF. To make the follow GIF, Fergus Baird used 20 photos taken in Photo Booth .
You can besides use a short video recording file to make GIFs in Photoshop. The process is about the same ; lone the foremost step will change .
Choose your own adventure:
If you ’ re starting with a photograph series, begin at Step 1A.
If you ’ re converting a video recording into a GIF using Photoshop, originate at Step 1B .
1A. Starting with photos: Load your deck of photos into Photoshop
In Photoshop, go to File > Stack > Load Files into Stack. Click Browse, then choose the photograph ( “ layers ” ) you want to use by Shift-clicking on the full list. Each of these photos will be one ensnare in your GIF .
Tip: If you want to save yourself some time later, number your files ( i, 001, 002, 003 ) to make certain they appear in club .
The “ Load Layers ” screen should look like this one downstairs. Click OK and head to step 2 !
1B. Starting with video: Load your video file into Photoshop
To turn a curtly video recording into a GIF using Photoshop, you ’ ll need to make layers out of the existing video recording frames. First, chatter File > Import > Video Frames to Layers…
A newly window will pop up asking which assign of the television you ’ d like to import. You can select the range using the slider below the video .
next, tell Photoshop how many frames it should import. It international relations and security network ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate necessary to import every individual skeleton to make a GIF. In this encase, we imported one forbidden of every three frames, and only half of the television footage. When you ’ re satisfied, click OK .
once you ’ ve imported your video recording file into layers, skip to Step 4 .
2. Create a Timeline for your GIF
Under the “ Window ” menu, scroll depressed and snap Timeline .
A humble box will appear under the beginning image in your tilt : Create Video Timeline. Click this and change it to Create Frame Animation .
3. Convert your photo layers into a set of looping animation frames
In the top right of the “ Timeline ” panel you ’ ll see a little hamburger menu ( outlined in yellow ) .
Click on the hamburger menu, scroll down, and chink on Make Frames From Layers .
The “ Timeline ” dialog box will immediately show your animation frames in sequence. You can drag these around to reorder them .
Press the trilateral Play icon ( outlined in red below ) to get an idea of how your GIF will look. besides, make certain Forever is selected in the dismiss down menu to the leave ( outlined in yellow ), otherwise your GIF will alone loop a set number of times .
4. Export your GIF
Click File > Export > Save for Web (Legacy)…
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You ’ ll come to this menu below. It looks a little submerge, but don ’ thyroxine worry. Under the “ Preset ” menu, choose GIF 128 Dithered .
adjacent, change your Colors setting to 256 ( the soap numeral for a GIF ) .
immediately you ’ re ready to export your GIF .
To see how it turned out, click Preview… in the penetrate left corner. It ’ ll open your default option web browser and play a loop preview of your GIF .
Next, snap Save… to name your GIF file, and download the GIF to your computer .
And that ’ s it ! Congratulations ! You know how to make a GIF in Photoshop .
How to make a GIF from a YouTube video
If you don ’ t have access to an Adobe Creative Suite subscription, don ’ thyroxine despair : there ’ s more than one way to GIF a guy .
1. Go to GIPHY.com and click Create
2. Add the web address of the video you’d like to make into a GIF
3. Find the part of the video you’d like to capture, and choose the length
Choosing a longer duration in the exceed luger will add more time after the “ originate clock time ” you select in the bottom slider .
4. Optional step: decorate your GIF
There are a diverseness of options in here. You can add textbook, or jazz up the GIF with stickers, filters, or even hand-drawn annotations. I didn ’ thyroxine add anything because the baby getting body-slammed by a cat actually speaks for itself .
5. Optional step: add hashtags to your GIF
Add hashtags if you want people to find your GIF and share it widely. Include your brand diagnose and some coarse relate terms in your list so it ’ sulfur well searchable. Think of what you would search for if you were trying to find this GIF in a haste .
6. Upload your GIF to GIPHY
And with that, you ’ re done ! To include the GIF in your social media posts, just insert the Giphy associate or download the Giphy file and attach it.
You can follow these same steps to upload a GIF you ’ ve made yourself. Just add a link to the GIF URL in place of the YouTube video recording link at the get down. You can besides use these steps to create a GIF from your own television — precisely start by uploading it to YouTube .
How to make a GIF on mobile
Mobile apps like GIPHY Cam allow you to make GIFs on your telephone. These are highly easily to use : if you ’ ve ever used Snapchat, you can handle GIPHY Cam. If you have not used Snapchat… you can placid handle GIPHY Cam .
1. Launch the app and record your GIF
Tap the photograph button to take a short fusillade of photos, or hold it for a longer GIF .
2. Optional step: choose a filter, or add stickers/text
3. Save your GIF and share it with the world
How to make a screen-recording GIF
Apps like GIPHY Capture, ScreenToGif, LICECap and GifCam allow you to make GIFs of your on-screen bodily process. This is a bang-up option if you ’ re writing a short circuit instructional article ( like something for an on-line help kernel ) and want to show steps visually .
1. Launch the screen-recording GIF software
When you launch the software, you ’ ll see a recording overlay like the red-outlined department in the screenshot below .
2. Pull the mask over the area you want to record
With GIPHY Capture, you can record anything within the record overlie ( again, outlined in loss ). To enlarge this area, snap and drag the bottom-right corner ( outlined in yellow ) .
3. Record your on-screen activity
Press the round loss button in the center to record, then wardrobe it again to stop recording. You should see a thumbnail preview of your GIF dad up in the legal profession below the recording sheathing .
4. Customize your GIF settings
Minimize the recording area and take a search at the GIF options menu. here, you can customize your GIF, including the loop type ( normal, reversion, or table tennis ) pixel size, and frame pace. Drag the tab key in from the leave or right to trim your GIF. You can besides add captions from this menu. Just click captions following to options .
When you ’ ra ready, you can click the blue Calculate size textbook to get an idea of how big your GIF file will be. Under 3 MB is ideal for firm load .
5. Save your GIF
You can choose to save your GIF to your calculator, or, in the case of GIPHY Capture, upload it straight to GIPHY ’ s on-line archive.
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however you choose to use GIFs in your marketing strategy—social or otherwise—make certain your overture is cautiously considered and stays true to your stigmatize values. And don ’ thyroxine forget to have playfulness with it !
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