How to Turn Off Live Photos on iPhone (and Keep It Off)

By CleanX TeamPublished October 27, 2026

Quick answer

In Camera, tap the Camera Controls button, then the Live Photo button. A slash through it means Live Photo is off.
Apple says Camera turns Live Photo on again automatically. To keep it off, go to Settings › Camera › Preserve Settings and make sure Live Photo is turned on.
For a photo you already took: open it, tap Edit, then tap LIVE at the top to turn the effect off.

What is a Live Photo?

Apple says that with Live Photos, your iPhone records what happens 1.5 seconds before and after you take a picture, and that Live Photo is on by default. You can turn it off for the next shot, keep it off, or turn the effect off on photos you’ve already taken.

Turn off Live Photos in the Camera

Step 1: Open Camera controls
In the Camera app, tap the Camera Controls button.
Step 2: Tap Live Photo
Tap the Live Photo button. A slash through it means Live Photo is off.

Keep Live Photos off

Apple says the Camera app turns Live Photo on again automatically. To keep it off, go to Settings › Camera › Preserve Settings and make sure the switch next to Live Photo is turned on. It sounds backwards, but this switch saves your last Live Photo setting, so it stays off the next time you open Camera. Apple says the switch is on by default; if Live keeps coming back, check that it hasn’t been turned off.

Turn a Live Photo into a still photo

Open the Live Photo, tap the Edit button, then tap LIVE at the top of the screen. Apple notes you can turn the effect off and back on. Because the effect can come back, the video stays with the photo, so this doesn’t free up space.

Turning off Live Photos: iPhone vs. CleanX
	iPhone	CleanX
New photos	Live Photo button in Camera; Preserve Settings keeps it off	Not covered
Photos you already took	Edit › LIVE turns the effect off, and you can turn it back on	Saves a still copy without the video, then deletes the original
Many at once	One photo at a time	Select several or all, sorted by how much video they hold
Cost	Free	Browsing free; converting needs CleanX Pro

CleanX

Convert Live Photos to stills in bulk with CleanX

CleanX lists your Live Photos with how much video each holds, largest first. Select the ones to convert; once you confirm the deletion in the iOS prompt, CleanX saves a still copy of each photo as you see it, keeping its date, location, favorite status and albums, and deletes the original in the same step. If you decline, nothing changes. iOS asks once per batch of up to 40 photos. The originals go to Recently Deleted for 30 days; empty it to get the space back.

Live Photos sorted by the size of their video
Still copy keeps date, location, favorite and albums
Browsing is free; converting needs CleanX Pro

Before you convert

The still copy has no motion. The original stays in Recently Deleted for 30 days; once it’s removed from there, the motion is gone for good.
Live Photo effects such as Loop and Bounce are for Live Photos, so a still copy can’t use them.
More ways to save space: see how to free up space on iPhone.

Frequently asked questions

How do I permanently turn off Live Photos?

Turn it off in Camera, then go to Settings › Camera › Preserve Settings and make sure Live Photo is turned on, so the Camera keeps your last setting.

Why does Live Photo keep turning back on?

Apple says the Camera app turns Live Photo on again automatically. If Settings › Camera › Preserve Settings › Live Photo is off, turn it on so the Camera keeps your last setting.

Can I turn a Live Photo into a normal photo?

In Photos, open it, tap Edit, then tap LIVE to turn the effect off; you can turn it back on later. CleanX can save a still copy without the video instead.

Do Live Photos take more space?

Yes. A Live Photo keeps a short video (the 1.5 seconds before and after the shot) alongside the photo, so it takes more space than the same photo as a still. How much varies; CleanX shows the video size of each Live Photo.