Filming and Editing Video with Your iPhone and iPad | Editing with iMove on iPad
Looking to start a YouTube channel without spending much? Here’s how to create and edit videos with just your iPhone and iPad. I’m 11 months into the YouTube thing, and one of the most important things is to just get started: getting your feet wet and comfortable with the process matters more than the content initially. You don’t need a fancy camera or a high-end computer. You do need a tripod and a phone mount (I use an Amazon Basics stand and a cheap mount, linked in the description), and for lighting, a bright window in front of you.
Shooting on your phone
- Do I need 4K? No, but you can. Think how many of your screens are 4K capable (maybe your TV?): most people aren’t watching YouTube on 4K, so there’s little benefit, and 4K may require higher-end hardware for editing.
- I used an iPhone 11 Pro with the front-facing camera so I can see myself (any old iPhone works). In the Camera app, slide to Video; adjust resolution or frame rate at the top or in settings.
- Lock auto focus and auto exposure so the levels stay the same if the lighting changes or you move.
- Hit record and film your A-roll (the talking-head footage). Then shoot B-roll: for this video (about an Anker charger), I put it in different positions and shot short videos from different angles, and videos of myself using it.
- Later, you can upgrade to FiLMiC Pro for custom white balance, color profiles, shutter, ISO and more.
Moving files to the iPad
Use AirDrop: select the photos and videos in the Photos app and share to your iPad. I’m using the base 7th-generation iPad ($250 on Amazon at the time, with an A10 chip) and iMovie, which is free and comes with the iPad. If you want to upgrade later, I highly recommend LumaFusion.
Editing in iMovie
- Create a new project: tap Movie, choose your A-roll and tap Create Movie. You can pinch to zoom the timeline.
- Trim the start: zoom in to just before you start talking, tap the clip, choose Actions > Split, tap the first clip and Delete. Add a Fade in from black at the beginning.
- Trim the end the same way (split where you stop talking, delete the rest) and use a Fade out to black.
- Add B-roll: find a place that makes sense (where I’m talking about the charger). Go to Moments, choose a clip, tap the three-dot button and choose Cutaway, which keeps the original audio playing and cuts to the B-roll. Split off and delete what you don’t need, and tap and hold to drag it into place. Repeat for the second B-roll clip.
- Add a title: make a cut at about four seconds so the title doesn’t play over the whole A-roll, tap the title option and choose a style (I chose Gravity, lower side) and add text (my Twitter handle). You can turn off the title’s sound effect.
- Add background music: go to Audio > Soundtracks and pick a song from iMovie’s built-in library. It will probably be too loud and drown out your voice, so tap the audio track, go to Volume and lower it with the slider so it’s subtle and doesn’t make the A-roll hard to hear.
I’m not covering every iMovie feature (transitions, speed ramping, filters), just the basics: an A-roll, B-roll, music and a title.
Exporting
Tap Done, then the Share button, and choose Save Video (to your Photos library) or save to Files at a location you choose. Pick the resolution you shot, and wait a couple of minutes. You’ll see it in the Photos app, ready to upload through the YouTube app or send to a computer.
That’s how to make your first YouTube video with just your iPhone and iPad. I’ve learned a lot in 11 months and will have more to say in a few weeks, so subscribe, and let me know if you’d like more about my process and the apps I use. Getting started is hard, but you can start with the iPhone and iPad you already have. See my video on other ways to move files between iOS devices.
Links
Some links in this post are affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, I may receive a small commission. See my ethics statement.
