FREE 8 Best Tools to Make Animated Photo Easily

With the proliferation of social media, visual content reigns supreme. This increases the need for engaging and captivating content for every influencer. Amidst the demand, photo animation apps have emerged as powerful tools to transform boring images. They add a layer of dynamism to photos, helping to capture the viewer’s attention and convey stories.

Whether for professional or personal use, these apps empower dynamic visual content that fascinates viewers. Thanks to technological advancements, a massive variety of photo animation software exists. If you want to explore this modern digital landscape, read this article thoroughly. Here, you will learn about these apps and how to create animated images through any operating system.

1. Where To Use Animated Photos
2. Best Free Animated Photos Makers Apps
3. How To Create Animated Images
4. Best Animated Photo Maker to make GIF

01 Where To Use Animated Photos

Animations can convey emotions and stories effectively when compared with static images. Besides, the photo animation receives higher engagement on social media forums. Before discovering some apps to create such photos, expand your knowledge of their use cases. Thus, delve into this section to learn where animation maker software is used frequently:

1. Social Media: If you use social media, you have probably seen animated images in stories, posts, and ads. Notably, Instagram is a visual-centric platform ideal for posting dynamic content. Also, X’s fast-paced nature requires animated images to grab users' attention by scrolling through the feed.
2. Marketing and Advertising: Almost all marketers prefer animated images in banners and email marketing campaigns. They significantly increase the click-through rates and conversions. Moreover, they used to show the different angles of a product while highlighting its key features.
3. Presentations: Animations are equally important whether you make an educational or professional presentation. They enhance the appeal of PowerPoint and Keynote presentations to make the content memorable. These days, teachers are preparing educational materials with software to animate pictures to illustrate complex concepts.
4. Web Design: Developers use animated photos instead of static images to create landing pages. The reason is that it captures visitors' interests for longer. These images are also incorporated in the hero sections of websites for a strong impression.
5. Personal Use: To preserve and share special moments with loved ones, animated images are preferred. Now, people are designing animated greeting cards for birthdays and other celebrations. They send personalized and engaging messages through photo animations for good.

02 Best Free Animated Photos Makers Apps

Animated photos are also called cinematography, moving images, and GIFs. They offer a unique blend of animation and photography that uplifts visual communication. Let’s explore some of the best photo animation software that makes your content impactful and memorable:

Top Free Animated Photo Makers App: 1. Motionleap by Lightricks 2. Werble: Photo & Video Animator 3. Moviepic: 3D Photo Motion Maker

1.Motionleap by Lightricks

Motionleap picture animation software is a good name for creating moving pictures. It brings life to static images that make anyone wow. Using this software, you can place anchors to hold parts of images in place and add motion to them. Besides, it provides a freezer brush so you can freeze preferred sections of photos. With AI integration, it introduces a new water animation that works with automation.

Pros

• This animated photo maker lets users animate clouds in the sky and replace bland skies with colorful sunsets.
• It facilitates geometric photo animation that creates spinning umbrellas and towers.

Con

• Motionleap's advanced animation features may require a learning curve for newbies.

Operating System:Android & iOS

2.Werble: Photo & Video Animator

If you want to create a mesmerizing masterpiece that stands out, try this iOS app. It has animating art effects and moving effects to supercharge your socials. Besides, this free photo animation software can blend different animating layers together. Users can also adjust the added animation's positions, lighting, pulse, and time.

Pros

• You can feature your artwork on Werble and access other artists' creations from the feed.
• For perfection, it provides complete control over camera movements, filters, and colors.

Con

• The animated photo effects do not generate results for professional use.

Operating System:iOS

3.Movepic: 3D Photo Motion Maker

This photo animation software simplifies the animation process with templates and effects. It facilitates basic editing before users apply animations to photos. Using its animation effects, you can make live photos, wallpapers, and GIFs. Movepic also offers more than 170 sky-replace presets and 230 live 3D stickers. What's more, one can try its pop-dispersion effect and glitch art to make attractive content.

Pros

• This software provides over 140 3D filters and overlays that can transform your visuals.
• Users can animate faces in images with customization and craft funny social media content.

Con

• According to users, it imposes a watermark on images unless you pay for subscriptions.

Operating System: Android

05 How To Create Animated Images

Are you facing a learning curve while using any of the above photo animation apps? If so, you should try Wondershare Filmora, which helps you craft pro-level social media videos. It’s a video editor that has various AI features to polish your content in all aspects. Particularly, it offers various animation effects that you can apply to your image and later customize it to your desired extent.

In this regard, you even get a choice to browse preset animation or preset motions. Afterward, Filmora lets you scale, position, and rotate the image on the screen. Apart from adding animations, you can adjust the background, opacity, and blend mode in their respective sections.

1. How To Create Animated Images on Windows and Mac

Professionals in digital creation fields use Windows and Mac for advanced editing. Therefore, they need free photo animation software that works seamlessly on all operating systems. Remarkably, Filmora is the one they can rely on for all kinds of basic or advanced editing. So, review the given instructions and animate your image on your Mac or Windows PC:

Step 1 Import Your Media in the Timeline After Launching Filmora

Launch Filmora video editor on your computer and choose the “New Project” tab from its main interface. After choosing it, you will access its main editing window to tap the “Import” button. Using it, bring your media to the media panel and drag it to the timeline section.

Step 2 Add Animations in Your Picture Through Animation Presets

Click your image and navigate to the top toolbar on the right-side panel. There, use the forward icon and browse the "Animation" option to select and access presets. Next, pick one animation of your choice and double-click on it to apply it to the image. Optionally, you can drag and drop the effect to the image in the timeline panel.

Step 3 Adjust Animations and Export the Media to Your System

Switch back to the “Basic” section using the top bar on the right-side panel. Afterward, adjust the “Scale,” “Position,” and “Rotate” options using their respective section. Finally, head to the top-right corner and hit the “Export” button to get the video in your system after adjusting the parameters.

2. How To Create Animated Images on a Phone

If you need to instantly animate an image, you can try the mobile app of Wondershare Filmora. People mostly consider using mobile software to animate pictures for personal use. That's why a mobile app should offer easier operation, which Filmora does. Without further delay, learn how to animate a picture in Filmora using the steps below:

Step 1 Get Filmora on Your Phone and Import the Media

Download Filmora Mobile to your mobile phone and sign in using your credentials. Then, access its user-friendly interface and touch the “New Project” tab to select your image in the Photos App. Next, use the “Import” button to bring the photo to the Filmora App.

Step 2 Explore the Motion Effects To Animate the Image

Once the image is imported, tap on it and choose the “Motion” icon at the bottom toolbar. Using it, you will find various animation effects to apply to your image.

Step 3 Apply Animation Effects as Desired and Export the Media

From the motion effects, pick one that suits your image best and adjust its duration through the slider. You can browse the animations through the “In,” “Out,” and “Combo” sections. After setting an animation effect, hit the “Correct” symbol to apply the effect on the image. Later, press the “Export” button and continue to save the media on your phone.

04 Best Animated Photo Maker to Make GIF

This section will update you with the software or programs to know how to animate a picture on a computer. Here are those.

1. GIF Brewery

GIF Brewery is free software for Mac users that offers a simple, easy, and intuitive user interface. Anyone can use it to make creative and amazing GIFs from videos since there is no video-making expertise needed for using it.

You can resize and crop your video and even set the preferred frame rate.

Features of GIF Brewery

• You can apply many captions or overlay pictures with this picture animation maker.
• Easy saving options and the files can be easily shared with iMessage or mail.
• There are amazing filters that can be applied to photos such as color correction.

Cons

• You can not remove individual frames while making GIF
• Bugs happen sometimes

2. GIFMaker.me

GIFMaker.me is one tool that can help you do photo animation online. This online animated photo maker allows the users to create GIFs, slideshows, animated videos with music effortlessly.

GIFMaker.me supports Windows, Mac, and Linux operating systems. You just need a web browser and need to upload your image.

Features of GIFMaker.me

• This tool gives the options of reducing size, reversing or resizing a GIF, merging, or separating multiple GIFs.
• There are options to set animation speed or canvas size.
• There is no requirement to register yourself to use this.

Cons

• The interface is not easy to navigate
• The maximum number of images you can upload is 300

3. GIF Toaster

Another GIF maker app is GIF Toaster, which claims to be the best quality GIF maker app ever. You are just 4 steps away from creating your creative GIF when using this app. Choose the photo you want to convert into GIF and then set encoding options. Start encoding and then choose the 'GIF' tab to give your picture GIF effect.

Features of GIF Toaster

• The app can change any media format into GIF.
• It creates the GIF without compromising in quality.
• It's available in English, Korean, and Japanese languages.

Cons

• Start and stop arrows are not easy to tap
• Rarely it can't access Camera Roll Album

4. Animated GIF Maker

This picture animation maker or GIF maker is also an online tool. You can upload images up to 6MB. This means you can execute the photo animation online by just moving to your web browser.

Features of Animated GIF Maker

• This app allows you to upload multiple files at a time.
• It can convert even different formats and sizes into GIFs.
• After making GIF, you can customize it by resizing or cropping.

5. 3Dthis

The last, but certainly not the least, picture animation maker on today's list of best tools to make photo animation online is 3Dthis. With this online tool, you can easily create 3D models and morph animations quite quickly.

Features of 3Dthis

• With this web app, you can create print-ready 3D designs.
• It allows you to morph your images for 3D modeling effectively.

Wrapping Up

Photo animation is a trending concept in various fields. This article sheds light on the niches where it has been commonly used. Furthermore, we have shown some of the best photo animation software available on Android and iOS. If you need an all-rounder platform, consult Filmora, which is compatible with all operating systems.

FAQ

1. What is photo animation?

Photo animation is a process of bringing life to static images through various techniques. It introduces dynamism and movement to create an engaging visual experience. In this regard, you can apply complex animation involving multiple elements and use subtle motion effects.

2. Can Adobe Express animate a still photo?

Certainly, Adobe Express is capable of adding animation in still images. However, it has some limitations compared with advanced products. Although it’s an accessible option for gaining animated images, it’s not free to use and proves costly.

3. Can Photoshop animate images?

Yes, Adobe Photoshop can animate images, as it is known for powerful photo editing. It has robust tools for creating animations and GIFs frame by frame. Besides images, it can help you add animations in videos, but it proves challenging for newbies in video editing. Also, this software is an expensive option for making animated images as it is not a free tool.

4. Is there an online option that can animate photos?

If you don't want additional installation and complexities, consider an online option for animation images. For this purpose, you can try Canva's online photo editor, which can transform static images into vibrant visuals.

5. How to convert a photo to a cartoon?

As mentioned above, Filmora is an all-in-all video editor who can take your projects to the next level. It has an AI Image Stylizer that can convert your simple image into an animated portrait. In this context, it offers various templates that make your photo cartoonist with one tap. Among such templates are oil paintings, dolls, Picasso, fairy girls, and Van Gogh.