Need more editing choices for your video on Instagram Stories? Looking for innovative Instagram Stories video editing and production apps?

Today Ben Givon shares advice on how to add transitions between frames, apply effect filters, adjust the aspect ratio, and more. 

The first and most important step is to edit and improve the content of Instagram stories.

Instagram does not actually allow you to edit your video on Instagram Stories. You can’t cut, slice, break or incorporate music and transitions. This is where applications from third parties come in. You can make all these edits with a smartphone app called InShot, and more. It’s available in both free and paid plans for iOS and Android.

InShot also lets you create transitions between segments of your video that appear on-screen. Look for the icon that is a white circle between two images, with a black dash. If you tap the icon it will pull up your choices for transfer.

Remember that when you have a pro subscription you won’t have access to all of the various transitions. You can switch between the simple changes using the free program.

Connect some audio

Slide the timeline to push the cursor to where you want the music to start, to add music to your video. Then just tap Music.

That brings up a range of options for albums. Tap an album to open it, and check for an appropriate song. To import the song into the game, tap the pink button with the cloud on it, if you find anything you want. When you have completed the import process, tap Use to add the song to your file.

Looking at the timeline, you can see that InShot has taken the track straight into the editing program. Tap Volume to view various volume choices from here.

You can change the volume by percentage, and fade in and out the audio. Tap the checkmark when you’re done, and then tap the checkmark again to add your adjustments on the next page.

Using Effects and filters

The next feature that we would like to see is filters. Tap the Filter icon and you will see three options: Effect, Filter and Adjust. 

You can see a lot of different options if you tap on Effect, not all of which are open to free users. And it’s the Glitch filter. Tap on Glitch to see a preview of how your video would look when you submit it. Click the checkmark, if you are pleased with it.

You can now see the impact that you added above your timeline for the video. Drag the proper control all the way to the end of your video to extend the effect to your entire film. Click on the checkmark when you’re done.

Add a Sticker

Instagram allows you to add emoji and GIF stickers to your story but they will appear on the screen for the story as a whole. On the other hand, InShot lets you monitor when stickers appear in your video and disappear.

Start by tapping the icon on the Sticker. Then pick the sticker which you want to use.  After making your pick you can see the sticker on your video immediately.

Like Instagram, InShot won’t allow you to pinch and zoom in to adjust the sticker size. On the bottom-right corner of the sticker, instead, you use the double-arrow symbol. You can make or rotate the sticker bigger or smaller. Tap the sticker itself, and drag it, if you want to reposition it on the frame.Once you have the sticker in the right place, tap the checkmark.You can now see the sticker on your timeline for the video. Drag the controls to decide where your video will show up on screen.

Remove Clips

If you want part of your video to be deleted, slide the timeline to push the cursor to the exact point you want to cut, then tap Split.

Then push the cursor to the exact point where you want your video to start over again. To pick it, tap the video clip, and tap the Split button. A third video clip has now been made.The last step is to pick the middle section and then press Delete. So, here it is! You’ve got it out now.

Adjust Aspect Ratio of your video

Tap the Canvas icon on the toolbar if you wish to use InShot to adjust the aspect ratio of your video. You can see a variety of choices for the ratio including square (1:1) and 4:5. The one you would like to use for Instagram Stories is at 9:16.

You can pinch your fingers to zoom in and out to tweak the blurred background once you’ve made your pick.

Tap The Context tab below the video if you want to change the blurry background. Various choices, including colours, gradients and patterns, can be seen. 

When an aspect ratio and context has been picked, tap the checkmark icon and you are good to go.

There’s plenty of fun stuff you can do with the Instagram app itself, but there are still a few things third-party apps do better.