How to edit videos on iPhone, from a trim to a joined movie

Cutting a section out of the middle

Photos trims the ends. The two Apple pages read here that describe the Photos trim, the User Guide and the article on editing videos, both describe it as setting where the video starts and stops; neither describes removing a part in between. That is our reading of the steps, not a sentence of Apple’s.

iMovie splits. Apple’s iMovie guide for iPhone gives splitting a clip as one way to remove unwanted sections: in a movie project, put the playhead where the cut goes (not at the very beginning of the clip), tap the clip, tap the Actions button, then Split. Tapping the clip and then swiping down over the playhead, as if slicing it with a finger, does the same. Then tap the unwanted piece and Delete, or touch and hold it until it pops off the timeline and drag it out.

Saving it back. Apple’s article on combining videos ends with the Share button, then Save Video, which puts the new video in the photo library; by our reading, the same step saves a split movie.

Speed and slow motion

Which videos. Apple’s article on editing videos, published 1 May 2026, says a video captured at more than 30 frames per second can be slowed down in iOS 18 and later. The iOS 27 User Guide adds that the options depend on the format: the larger the format captured, the more options appear.

Where. Apple’s article calls it the Speed control button; the User Guide gives Edit, then Video, then a button and a playback speed. Both end with choosing a playback speed.

Which part plays slowly. For a video recorded in Slo-mo mode, or one whose speed was changed, Edit shows vertical bars under the frame viewer, in the User Guide’s words, or white lines in the timeline, in the article’s: dragging them sets where slow motion begins and ends, so the rest plays at normal speed.

The sound: Audio Mix

Apple’s article on editing videos says Spatial Audio recording is supported on iPhone 16 models, iPhone 17 models and iPhone Air, and the User Guide that iPhone 16 or later offers three recording options: Spatial Audio, Studio and Mono. A video recorded with Spatial Audio gets Audio Mix in Photos, with four choices:

Standard plays the original audio; In-Frame reduces sounds and voices from sources not visible in the frame; Studio reduces background sound and reverb; Cinematic puts the voices on a front track and leaves the surroundings in surround. A slider sets how strong the effect is. On iPhone 18 Pro models, the User Guide adds, Audio Mix can also isolate music.

Light, colour, crop and rotation

Light and colour. The same Edit screen has Adjust: swipe across settings such as Exposure, Brilliance or Highlights and drag a slider; the User Guide gives these for photos and videos alike. Filters such as Vivid or Dramatic are there too; for photos on iPhone 16 and later, Apple points to Photographic Styles instead, and on those models filters are available if Styles are not turned on.

Crop and rotate. The crop tool works on videos as on photos: drag the corners, unlock the ratio or pick one such as Square or 9:16, rotate by 90 degrees, flip horizontally, or straighten and tilt with a slider.

Copy the look to other videos. Copy Edits and Paste Edits move adjustments from one photo or video to others; for photos, Apple says Photos then also adjusts white balance and exposure to create a better match.

Putting several videos together

Apple’s answer is iMovie, which its article on combining videos says is a free download from the App Store if it is not on the phone. Start New Project, then Movie; Media › Video › All; tap each video and the check mark, in the order wanted; then Create Movie.

In the timeline, touch and hold a clip to drag it elsewhere; tap a clip and drag the yellow handles to make it shorter; tap the icon between two clips to change the transition, which is Dissolve unless changed. Done, then Share › Save Video, puts the result in Photos.