How to Make a Living Photo (WebAR) in 3 Clicks

What you need before you start

Two files. First, the photo you are going to print — a portrait, a wedding shot, a product picture, album art, anything. Second, a video. The magic works best when the first frame of the video matches the photo: the print appears to "wake up" and start moving.

If you shot a video first, you can grab the photo from it: export the first frame, or use the built-in editor in Stories AR to trim the video and pick the marker frame.

Step 1 — upload the pair

Sign in at pro.stories-ar.com, hit Create new and drop both files into the upload form. The dashboard shows the photo and the video side by side so you can check they match.

Need many photos at once — say, a whole wedding album or a merch drop? Use batch upload: drop all the pairs in one go and the platform pairs them up.

Step 2 — trim and fine-tune

The built-in editor lets you trim the video, choose the exact marker frame and add a call-to-action button on top of the living photo — one tap can send the viewer to your site, product page or socials.

You can also add a mask so the video plays only inside the photo's borders, which makes the effect look cleaner on textured prints.

Step 3 — get the QR code and share it

Click Create and the AR photo is live. You get a short link and a QR code — download it and put it on the print, the packaging or a business card.

When someone scans the code, the photo opens in their browser camera view and starts playing instantly. It works in Safari, Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Brave, DuckDuckGo — and there is a native Stories AR app for those who prefer it.

The best part: the QR code stays the same forever. Replace the video in the dashboard and every printed copy instantly plays the new one — no reprints, no new codes.

What it costs and how to try it

Stories AR has a free 14-day trial with no card required — enough to make your first living photos and show them around. Paid plans start when you need more photos and white-label features.

Photographers usually sell living photos as a premium add-on to a shoot; brands use them on packaging and event materials to move offline traffic online. Scan analytics in the dashboard shows exactly how many people scanned and watched each photo.