How To Do The Boomerang On Instagram - A Simple Guide

Do you ever feel like your Instagram posts could use a little extra spark? Maybe you're looking for a simple way to make your stories or regular feed posts stand out from the crowd. Sometimes, it is almost like you want to add a special touch that grabs people's attention, making them stop scrolling for just a moment.

Many people find that plain photos or even regular videos can sometimes feel a bit, you know, just like everything else out there. So, if you're hoping to give your social media presence a fresh, lively feel, there is a fun trick that many folks really enjoy. It involves making short, looping video clips that play forward and then backward, kind of like a tiny, moving picture.

This playful video style is called a Boomerang, and it has been a favorite for quite a while now. We are going to walk you through exactly how you do the boomerang on Instagram, showing you how to put these lively clips into your stories and your main posts. It is actually quite easy to pick up, and you might find it adds just the right amount of fun to what you share.

Table of Contents

What Exactly Is an Instagram Boomerang?

A Boomerang is a special kind of short video that plays forward and then instantly reverses, creating a fun, repeating action. It is like a very quick, moving picture that keeps going back and forth, which can be pretty amusing to watch. So, it is not a regular video clip, nor is it a still picture; it is something in between, giving your content a little bounce.

These little clips are really good for showing off quick, funny moments or actions that repeat. You know, like a quick wink, a little wave, or something that happens very fast. The way it loops can make even simple things look quite entertaining, and it tends to catch people's eye as they scroll through their feeds. It is, in a way, a simple way to add some movement without needing to film a long video, which is nice.

Think of it as a playful way to tell a tiny visual story that has no real end, just a continuous cycle. It is, basically, a feature that Instagram offers to help people make their posts a little more lively and expressive. This makes it a popular choice for folks who want to add some extra cheer to their online presence, as a matter of fact.

How Do You Do the Boomerang on Instagram - The Basics

Making a Boomerang on Instagram is quite simple, and you can usually get the hang of it very quickly. The first step, naturally, is to open up your Instagram app on your phone. Once you are in the app, you will want to get to the camera screen, which is where all the fun starts. There are a couple of ways to do this, but they are both pretty straightforward.

One common way to get to the camera is to simply swipe your finger to the right from your main Instagram feed. This action will usually open up the camera right away, ready for you to take pictures or videos. Alternatively, you can tap the little plus sign icon, which is often found at the bottom center of your screen, and then choose the "Story" option. This also brings you to the camera, which is quite handy.

Once you are on the camera screen, you will see different options at the bottom, like "Post," "Reel," or "Story." You need to look for the "Boomerang" mode. This is usually shown as an infinity symbol or a small icon that looks like a sideways figure eight. Tap on that symbol, and your camera will switch into Boomerang mode, ready for you to film your short, looping clip. Then, you just press the shutter button, and it records a short burst of images that Instagram turns into your Boomerang, so it is really that simple.

How Do You Do the Boomerang on Instagram Stories?

Using a Boomerang in your Instagram Stories is probably the most common way people share these fun clips. It fits perfectly with the quick, casual nature of stories. To start, you will open your Instagram app and get to the camera screen, just like we talked about earlier. You know, either by swiping right or by tapping the plus sign and picking "Story."

Once you are on the story camera, you will see a bunch of different camera modes, often lined up at the bottom or sometimes on the side. You need to find and pick the "Boomerang" option, which is often represented by that infinity loop symbol. When you tap it, the camera is then set up to record a Boomerang, which is pretty cool.

Now, with the Boomerang mode active, you just press and hold the record button for a second or two. The app will capture a very short burst of action. When you let go, Instagram automatically stitches those frames together, playing them forward and backward repeatedly to create your looping video. It is a quick process, and you get to see your creation right away, which is very satisfying, you know.

Making your boomerang on instagram story pop

After you have made your Boomerang clip, the fun does not have to stop there. Instagram gives you plenty of ways to make it even more interesting before you share it. Once your Boomerang is ready on the screen, you will usually see a "Next" button or a similar option. Tapping this will take you to the editing screen, where you can really make your clip shine.

On this editing screen, you will find options to add things like text, stickers, and even drawings to your Boomerang. You can pick different fonts and colors for your words, and there are tons of stickers to choose from to add some extra personality. This is where you can, you know, put a funny caption or a relevant little picture to go with your looping video.

One really popular thing to add is music. To do this, you will usually find a music sticker option on the editing screen. When you tap it, you can search for a song, pick a part of it, and then add it to your Boomerang. The music will play along with your looping video, making it even more engaging. Instagram has also added some special effects just for Boomerangs, like "Slowmo," "Echo," and "Duo," which you can usually find by tapping a little infinity symbol at the top of the editing screen. These can change the feel of your Boomerang quite a bit, so it is worth playing around with them, actually.

Can You Use an Existing Video for Your Instagram Boomerang?

This is a question many people have, and it is a good one. When it comes to making a Boomerang, the original idea was to capture something new right then and there. So, you cannot, as a matter of fact, just pick a video you already have saved on your phone and directly turn it into a Boomerang within the main Boomerang feature. That specific tool is designed for real-time capture, you know.

However, there is a way to get a similar effect or to use existing media to create something Boomerang-like for your Instagram Story. While you cannot simply upload an old video and press a "Boomerang-ify" button, you can use a photo or video from your camera roll as the background or starting point for a new story, and then apply effects or make it loop in other ways. It is a subtle difference, but an important one for how you approach it, basically.

So, if you have a photo or a very short video clip that you think would look cool with a looping effect, you would typically start by adding that existing media to your Instagram Story. From there, you might be able to use other tools or creative approaches to give it that back-and-forth feel, even if it is not the classic "Boomerang" button at work. It is a bit of a workaround, but it gets the job done for some purposes, in a way.

How Do You Do the Boomerang on Instagram - With Old Footage

If you are looking to use something from your phone's photo or video collection to make a looping clip on Instagram, here is how you might approach it, since you cannot just turn an old video into a standard Boomerang. You would start by opening your Instagram app and heading to the Story creation screen, as usual. This is where you can pick things from your phone's gallery, you see.

On the Story screen, instead of tapping the Boomerang icon right away, you will want to look for the small icon in the bottom left corner that usually shows a preview of your most recent photo or video from your camera roll. Tap on that, and it will let you browse through all the pictures and videos you have saved on your device. Pick the photo or very short video clip you want to use as your starting point, which is pretty neat.

Once your chosen photo or video is on the Story screen, you can then add stickers, text, or even some of the newer looping effects that Instagram offers for stories. While it might not be the exact "Boomerang" feature applied to an old video, you can often achieve a similar playful, repeating look by using Instagram's other creative tools available in the Story editor. This lets you give old content a fresh, lively feel, which is quite useful, you know.

What Happened to the Boomerang App?

Some people might remember that there used to be a separate app just for making Boomerangs. It was called "Boomerang from Instagram," and it was pretty popular for a while. You would open that app, make your looping video there, and then you could share it to Instagram or save it to your phone. However, that standalone app is not around anymore, which is something many folks wonder about.

The company behind Instagram decided to stop offering that separate Boomerang app in 2022. This means you cannot download it from app stores anymore, and if you had it on your phone, it might not work as it used to. The good news is that the ability to make Boomerangs did not go away with the app. Instead, Instagram just brought the feature directly into the main Instagram app itself.

So, even though the separate app is gone, you can still create those fun, looping videos directly within Instagram's camera. This makes things a bit simpler, as you do not need to switch between different apps to get the effect you want. It is all right there, built into the app you already use for sharing pictures and videos, which is very convenient, actually.

How Do You Do the Boomerang on Instagram - Other Ways to Play

Beyond just creating and sharing Boomerangs to your stories or feed, there are a few other things you can do with them to make them even more useful or just to keep them. For one thing, when you make a Boomerang, Instagram automatically saves a copy of it to your phone's camera roll. This is pretty handy because it means you have a backup, and you can use it outside of Instagram if you ever want to, which is nice.

If you really like a Boomerang you made and shared to your story, you can actually make it a permanent part of your profile. This is done by adding it to your "Highlights." Highlights are those little circles you see at the top of people's profiles, below their bio. To do this, after your Boomerang story is live, you can tap the "Highlight" button at the bottom of the story. This lets you save it to a new or existing highlight, and it will stay there until you decide to remove it, which is a cool way to keep your favorite moments visible.

Also, while Instagram's built-in Boomerang is fantastic, if you are looking for even more creative control or different looping effects, you could explore other video editing apps. Some apps let you create similar looping videos with more advanced tools or unique filters. Then, you can save those creations and upload them to Instagram as regular videos. This gives you a lot of flexibility, especially if you are feeling a bit artistic, you know.

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