Choose a video and Photopip pulls up to 120 frames into layers with a frame animation. Trim the clip and thin the frames in the Import Video to Layers dialog; the GIF card above the canvas then shows the frame count and file size, and Download GIF saves it.

1. Click Choose a video and pick an MP4, MOV or WEBM file. The Import Video to Layers dialog opens with a preview.
2. Choose Selected Range Only and drag the two trim handles to the seconds you want. Check Limit To Every and enter 3 frames: that gives 10 frames per second, which matches the default GIF timing. The dialog shows about how many layers you'll get (120 at most). Leave Make Frame Animation checked and click OK.
3. Check the GIF card above the canvas: it shows the frame count, the pixel size and the file size. Click Download GIF.
4. For fewer colors, a smaller width or a different loop setting, click More options… in the card: Save for Web (Legacy) opens with GIF selected and keeps the animation. Each frame is a layer in Window > Timeline, so you can delete frames first; the card re-encodes after every change.

How do I turn a video into a GIF without uploading it?

Open it here. Your browser decodes the video itself, Photopip draws the frames onto canvases and encodes the GIF in the tab. Anything the browser can play works: MP4 (H.264) and WEBM everywhere; HEVC clips from an iPhone play in Safari and only on some Chrome setups. If the dialog says the browser can't decode the video, export the clip as H.264 MP4 first.

Why is my GIF so large?

Photopip writes each frame in full, with up to 256 colors, rather than only the parts that changed. Trim to 2–4 seconds and keep every 2nd or 3rd frame; a narrower GIF is smaller too.

Why does the GIF play slower or faster than the video?

Each imported frame gets a 0.1 second delay (10 frames per second). A 30 fps clip imported with Limit To Every 3 frames plays at real speed; imported with every frame it plays three times slower. Clips longer than 120 frames are sampled evenly and motion looks jumpy, so trim first; on a phone, also take fewer frames, because every frame is kept at the video's full size. Change individual delays in the Timeline.

Why do the colors look grainy or banded?

A GIF frame has at most 256 colors, so skies and gradients either band or get dithered into grain. Diffuse dither suits footage; No Dither suits screen recordings with flat colors. Where the destination accepts video, keep the MP4: Photopip exports GIF, not video files.

Can I open the GIF again later to edit it?

In Chrome and Edge each frame comes back as a layer. In Safari and on iPhone or iPad the browser can't split a GIF into frames, so it opens as a still picture of the first frame; make your frame edits before you download.

Updated 2026-10-21

More toolsAVIF to JPGSVG to PNGImage to textPDF to JPGPDF to PNGProduct photo on whiteRemove backgroundTransparent background

Choose a video and Photopip pulls up to 120 frames into layers with a frame animation. Trim the clip and thin the frames in the Import Video to Layers dialog; the GIF card above the canvas then shows the frame count and file size, and Download GIF saves it.

1. Click Choose a video and pick an MP4, MOV or WEBM file. The Import Video to Layers dialog opens with a preview.
2. Choose Selected Range Only and drag the two trim handles to the seconds you want. Check Limit To Every and enter 3 frames: that gives 10 frames per second, which matches the default GIF timing. The dialog shows about how many layers you'll get (120 at most). Leave Make Frame Animation checked and click OK.
3. Check the GIF card above the canvas: it shows the frame count, the pixel size and the file size. Click Download GIF.
4. For fewer colors, a smaller width or a different loop setting, click More options… in the card: Save for Web (Legacy) opens with GIF selected and keeps the animation. Each frame is a layer in Window > Timeline, so you can delete frames first; the card re-encodes after every change.

How do I turn a video into a GIF without uploading it?

Open it here. Your browser decodes the video itself, Photopip draws the frames onto canvases and encodes the GIF in the tab. Anything the browser can play works: MP4 (H.264) and WEBM everywhere; HEVC clips from an iPhone play in Safari and only on some Chrome setups. If the dialog says the browser can't decode the video, export the clip as H.264 MP4 first.

Why is my GIF so large?

Photopip writes each frame in full, with up to 256 colors, rather than only the parts that changed. Trim to 2–4 seconds and keep every 2nd or 3rd frame; a narrower GIF is smaller too.

Why does the GIF play slower or faster than the video?

Each imported frame gets a 0.1 second delay (10 frames per second). A 30 fps clip imported with Limit To Every 3 frames plays at real speed; imported with every frame it plays three times slower. Clips longer than 120 frames are sampled evenly and motion looks jumpy, so trim first; on a phone, also take fewer frames, because every frame is kept at the video's full size. Change individual delays in the Timeline.

Why do the colors look grainy or banded?

A GIF frame has at most 256 colors, so skies and gradients either band or get dithered into grain. Diffuse dither suits footage; No Dither suits screen recordings with flat colors. Where the destination accepts video, keep the MP4: Photopip exports GIF, not video files.

Can I open the GIF again later to edit it?

In Chrome and Edge each frame comes back as a layer. In Safari and on iPhone or iPad the browser can't split a GIF into frames, so it opens as a still picture of the first frame; make your frame edits before you download.

Updated 2026-10-21

More toolsAVIF to JPGSVG to PNGImage to textPDF to JPGPDF to PNGProduct photo on whiteRemove backgroundTransparent background