How To Edit A Vertical Video For IGTV & Instagram Stories

In this video, I show you how to edit a vertical video for IGTV using Final Cut Pro X. Whether you're converting a horizontal video to vertical OR just making a video from scratch for IGTV, I cover what settings you need so you can start uploading to IGTV! 

TIP: You can upload to IGTV from your desktop!!! You don't need to airdrop the large video file to yourself, then drain you batter as it uploads on your phone. I LOVE THIS CAPABILITY!!! 

Editing Vertical Videos for IGTV/ Instagram Stories

1. In Final Cut Pro, go to File > New > Project 
2. In the settings section where it says "Video", select the format Dropdown (1080p HD should be populated here), then go to the very bottom and click "custom". 
3. Switch the numbers, so instead of the width being 1920 and the height being 1080, make the width 1080 and the height 1920
4. Start editing your videos! 
5. If you want the videos to fill the entire screen, select all (Command + A) the clips on and on the right-hand side where the video inspector is, scroll to the bottom where it says "Special Conform", open the dropdown menu and click "Fill". From here you can move your clips around be selecting the box the transform tool (located below the player on the left-hand side). When this is selected, you can move the clips around. 
6. If you don't want to crop your horizontal video you have two options. Rotate it so that people watch it with their phone turned or have the horizontal video floating in the center with blank space above, below. 
7. If you choose to rotate the video, select all the clips and in the video inspector under "Transform" enter 90 Degrees in the rotation.
8. If you want to keep the video centered in the screen with white, black or colored bars above and below it, don't do step 5. Go to the Titles and Generators side-bar located on the left-hand side of the screen.  Under generators select the color you want. Drag the color you want UNDER all of your clips. There is a custom option too (it's black but labeled "custom") if you don't see the color you want there. 
9. Once the video is edited, go to File>Share>Apple Devices 1080p
10. The file is going to pretty large I assume if you're uploading it to IGTV. To save some battery life on your phone, go to Instagram.com and go to your profile page. Click on the IGTV tab below your highlights. You can upload IGTV directly from your desktop. 
11. Also, did you know that you can swipe up from stories to directly link to your IGTV video even if you don't have the link feature (given to people with 10K+ followers which clearly I don't have, lol.) All you do is upload any photo/video, then click on the link icon on the top of the page. From here it will take you to your IGTV videos and you select which one you want to be linked.  I'd also recommend adding "swipe-up" text/gif so people know it's there. Keep in mind you won't be able to see the swipe up feature from your own page, so if you want to test it, get a friend to or login into another account if you have it. 

Questions? Comment below, I'd be happy to answer them :) 

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