How to edit video takes on an iPhone timeline

How the tool works

After recording, the video screen becomes an editing workspace with a preview, playback controls, and a timeline. Trim the beginning or end of a take, split it, duplicate it, remove it, or drag it into a different order. The main video track closes gaps as you cut.

Zoom in for a precise edit or use the whole-project slider to find a moment quickly. Manual edits save automatically and support undo and redo, with up to 100 history steps during a session. Cuts preserve the original recording; the project records which parts should play.

Build it step by step

Open a recording in the video editor and identify the passage you want to keep. Timeline editing requires Starter or above.

• Select the take and zoom in until its beginning and end are easy to distinguish.
• Trim unwanted material at either edge, or split at the cursor to isolate a middle passage.
• Delete the unwanted clip and listen to the join; the main video track closes the gap.
• Hold and drag a take to change its order, or use the earlier and later actions.
• Use undo if the rhythm suffers, then watch the entire sequence rather than only the edited point.

An example to adapt

Illustrative exercise: record an opening, a demonstration, and a closing, with a repeated opening in the same recording. Split around the repeated passage and remove only that duplicate. Keep the breath that makes the next sentence sound natural.

Move the demonstration between the opening and closing. Compare the new order with your script and check whether the viewer still has the context needed to understand the example.

Check before finishing

Video cuts do not automatically reposition added audio or the second video track. After removing a passage, review those tracks, captions, and text placement as well. An undo history belongs to the current session; it is not a permanent list of every past decision.