Guide
Animate a photo into a short clip
Give the model a photograph and a sentence about what should move. The first frame stays faithful to your image; the tier decides how convincingly the rest unfolds.
Sample renders
More examplesHow image-to-video works here
You upload a JPEG or PNG, the studio resizes it client-side so it uploads quickly, and the backend stores it, runs an image moderation check and passes it to the chosen model as the first frame. The aspect ratio of the clip follows the photo, so crop before uploading if you want a particular frame.
Your prompt then describes motion rather than content. The model already knows what is in the picture; what it needs from you is what changes over the next few seconds: the camera drifting in, a subject turning, water moving, light shifting.
Optional end frame
Standard and Cinematic accept a second image as the last frame. Give the model a start photo and an end photo and it will interpolate the motion between them. This is the most controllable way to get a specific transformation, such as a product in two positions or a landscape at two times of day, and it reduces the guesswork in the prompt to a description of the path between the two.
Keep the two frames close in composition. If the camera position changes drastically between them, the in-between frames will warp. Small moves, consistent lighting and the same subject scale give the smoothest results.
Which tier for which photo
Draft handles simple motion on graphic or low-detail images well and is the right place to test whether the model understands your motion description at all. Portraits, fabric, water and foliage benefit from Standard, where the model keeps texture coherent across frames. Cinematic is worth it when the clip will be shown large or when the photo contains fine detail you need preserved, such as lettering or jewellery.
Because the source image is identical on every tier, photo animation is where compare mode is most revealing: queue Draft against Cinematic on the same upload and the difference in temporal stability is obvious within the first second.
Privacy rules for uploaded photos
Any clip made from an uploaded photo is private and stays private. It never enters the public examples feed, cannot be switched to public later, and its share page only works for you. The poster image on your library card is taken from your original photo rather than from the render.
Photos go through the same automated moderation as prompts. If a photo is refused, nothing is rendered and the credits for the attempt are returned.
Tier specifications
| Tier | DraftFast previews | StandardEveryday quality | CinematicTop fidelity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Model class | Lightweight diffusion video model | Compact audio-video model | Full-size audio-video model |
| Resolutions | 720p / 1080p | 480p / 720p | 480p / 720p / 1080p |
| Clip length | 1–20 s | 4–15 s | 4–15 s |
| Frame rate | 24 fps or 48 fps | 24 fps | 24 fps |
| Sound | Optional track | Generated with the picture | Generated with the picture |
| Credits per second at 480p | — | 3 | 6 |
| Credits per second at 720p | 1 | 6 | 12 |
| Credits per second at 1080p | 3 | — | 30 |
Questions
- What image formats and sizes work?
- JPEG, PNG and WebP. The studio downsizes large images to around 1600 pixels on the long edge before upload, which is more than the models need.
- Can I make a photo clip public?
- No. Clips made from uploaded photos are always private so that nobody else's photos can end up in the examples feed. You can still download and share the file yourself.
- Does the output match the photo exactly?
- The first frame is very close to your photo. Over the clip the model invents motion, so details can drift, especially on Draft. Standard and Cinematic hold detail longer.
- Can I animate a photo of a person?
- Yes, subject to the moderation check. Keep prompts to ordinary motion such as turning, walking or smiling. The models decline some requests involving real faces, in which case credits on Standard and Cinematic are refunded.
- Who owns the animated clip?
- You do, as the person who supplied the photo and directed the render; see /terms-of-service. Rules on generated media differ by country, so check with a lawyer where it matters.
Bring a photo to life
Upload a picture, describe the motion, and run it on Draft first. Photo clips stay private to you.