TikTok is a popular social media app that allows users to create and share short videos. It currently has over 1 billion monthly active users worldwide (source). One of the key features of TikTok is the ability to create short video slideshows using multiple photos. These photo slideshows often use creative transitions and effects to tell quick visual stories.
TikTok’s photo slideshow feature allows users to select multiple photos, edit them, add text, sounds, and special effects, and determine the order and timing of each slide. The end result is a stylized and engaging bite-sized photo story that can be shared with followers. TikTok’s tools make it simple for anyone to create this popular video format that showcases photos in a dynamic way.
Sign up for a TikTok account
The first step is to download the TikTok mobile app. You can find the app in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store. It’s free to download.
Once you’ve downloaded TikTok, you can create an account with either your email address or phone number. Tap the profile icon in the bottom right and select “Log in/Sign up”.
To sign up with your email, enter your email address and create a password. You’ll get a verification code sent to your email that you’ll need to enter in the app. To sign up with your phone number, enter your phone number and you’ll receive a text with a verification code.
Once you enter the verification code, your account will be created! You can customize your profile by adding a profile photo, bio, and more. See this guide for more details on setting up your new TikTok account.
Navigate to the Post Screen
To create a new TikTok post with a photo slideshow, you first need to navigate to the Post screen in the app. This is very easy to do.
Simply open the TikTok app on your mobile device and tap on the “+” button in the bottom center of the screen. This “+” button allows you to create a new TikTok post.
Tapping this button will take you directly into the Post screen where you can select photos/videos, add effects, text, sounds, and edit your slideshow before posting.
Select a photo or video
Once you are in the Post screen where you make a new TikTok video, tap the image icon in the bottom left corner. This allows you to add a photo or video from your camera roll to your TikTok slideshow.
You will then have the option to choose an existing photo or video from your camera roll by tapping on it, or take a new photo or video by tapping the camera icon. You can select multiple photos/videos which will become slides in your slideshow video.
For example, as demonstrated in this video guide, you would tap the image icon, select your desired photos from the camera roll, and then tap “Next” once you’ve chosen all the slides you want: How To Add Photo To TikTok Video! (2023) – YouTube
This will insert the selected photos into your TikTok slideshow video.
Edit the photo/video
Once you’ve selected the photos or videos for your slideshow, you can edit them within the TikTok app. TikTok’s built-in editing tools allow you to crop, trim, rearrange, and enhance your media.
To crop your clips and photos, tap on the crop icon in the bottom left corner. You can adjust the crop area by pinching and dragging. This allows you to hone in on the most important part of the image.
If you want to trim your video clips, tap on the scissor icon next to the crop button. Drag the ends of the clip timescale inward to shorten the clip. Trimming can help you isolate the most engaging moments.
TikTok also offers a variety of effects and filters to stylize your media. Tap on the “Effects” button to browse options like black and white, retro, vibrance, and more. You can also adjust settings like contrast, saturation, warmth, highlights, and shadows.
Additionally, TikTok has an “Edit Cover” feature that lets you select a compelling frame from your video to use as its cover image. This can help catch viewers’ attention as they scroll through their feed.
Spending some time customizing your visuals through TikTok’s editing tools can really help your content stand out and engage your audience.
Add Text to Your Slideshow
Adding text is an easy way to customize your TikTok slideshow. Here’s how to add text overlays to your photos or videos:
Tap the T icon at the top of the screen. This will open up the text tool.
Simply type out the text you want to display. You can tap anywhere on the screen to position where you want the text to appear. Drag the corners of the text box to resize it.
The text will display overtop of your photos or videos. You can continue adding text captions to multiple slides in your slideshow this way. Feel free to get creative with text colors, fonts, sizes, and positions!
According to Business Insider, you can customize the text using the options at the top once you’ve typed it out. This lets you change the font, color and more to match the vibe of your TikTok slide.
Add sounds/music
Adding music or other sounds to your TikTok slideshow can help make it more engaging. Here are the steps to add audio:
Tap the music note icon at the bottom of the editing screen. This will open the sounds menu.
You can choose from TikTok’s library of songs and sounds by tapping the “Sounds” tab. Browse or search to find one you like.
Or, you can record your own audio by tapping the “Record” tab. Press and hold the record button to capture any original sounds up to 1 minute long.
Once you’ve selected or recorded a sound, it will be added to your slideshow. You can tap the sound icon again to adjust audio settings like trimming the length or adjusting volume.
Finalize Slide Order and Timing
Once you have added all your photos and videos to your TikTok slideshow, you can rearrange them into your preferred order. Simply tap and hold on a slide, then drag it to the position you want. You can also delete any slides you don’t want by tapping the X icon.
You can adjust the duration of each slide by tapping on it. This will open an editing menu where you can set the exact number of seconds you want that slide to appear for before automatically transitioning to the next. TikTok allows slides to be between 3-60 seconds long.
Get creative with the slide durations – you may want some slides to display quickly as a “blink and you’ll miss it” moment, while others can stay on screen longer. Just make sure the overall slideshow duration stays within TikTok’s limits.
Once you’re happy with the slide order and durations, you’re ready to add any finishing touches like text, sounds or effects before posting your TikTok slideshow.
Add any other effects/features
TikTok has a variety of creative effects and features you can add to your photo slideshow to make it more engaging and fun. Some popular options include:
Stickers – TikTok has an ever-growing library of animated stickers and emojis you can overlay on your photos and videos. Stickers are a fun way to liven up your slideshow. You’ll find the stickers option beside the text tool when creating your TikTok slideshow.
Transitions – You can choose from a variety of transitions to use between each photo in your slideshow. This helps smooth the changes between images. Tap on “Transitions” beside the stickers icon to browse TikTok’s transition options.
Voiceovers – You can record a voiceover narration for your photo slideshow to make it more personal. Tap the mic icon at the bottom to record up to 60 seconds of audio for each slide.
Filters – TikTok has colorful filters that can change the look and feel of your photos. Tap “Effects” and browse the “Filters” section.
Special effects – TikTok effects like Green Screen can transport you to a different scene. You’ll find these under the “Effects” tab when creating your slideshow.https://www.humanz.com/tiktok-algorithm/
Post the slideshow
Once you have finished creating and editing your photo slideshow on TikTok, it’s time to post it for your followers to see. Here are the key steps to posting your TikTok slideshow:
When you are ready to post, simply tap the “Post” button at the bottom right of the screen. This will bring up options to add any final captions, hashtags, or other information before posting.
You can add a caption to your slideshow video by typing into the caption field. Captions allow you to provide more context or details about the video. Try to make your caption engaging and relevant.
You can also add hashtag keywords related to your video topic. This helps make your video discoverable by others interested in those topics. Choose 3-5 popular hashtags that fit your content.
Once you’ve added any desired captions or hashtags, tap the “Post” button again to officially publish your TikTok photo slideshow. It will now be live and viewable by your followers and other TikTok users!