Editing a wedding reel from your wedding film

A wedding reel has a smaller frame and a shorter story to tell. A look before the ceremony, the entrance to the reception or a few moments on the dance floor can each carry a film of their own. Start with the moment you want someone to remember, then choose the footage that supports it.

Wedit currently creates highlights and full wedding films. Its dedicated Reels workflow is coming soon. You can work with a Wedit timeline today and make the vertical version in your finishing editor using the process below.

Choose one small story

For a first-look reel, that could mean anticipation, the reveal and the reaction. For a party reel, it might be an entrance followed by the crowd joining in. Keep shots that make that particular sequence stronger; there is no need to represent every part of the wedding in each reel.

If you have already built a wedding highlight, return to its selected footage and editable timeline. You can reuse the moments while changing their order, duration and framing for the reel.

Make a separate vertical sequence

Keep the original wedding film and make a copy for the reel. A 9:16 sequence, such as 1080 × 1920, gives you a portrait canvas. Set the frame before judging the shots: a wide view of the couple may leave room for both people horizontally but lose one of them in a narrow crop.

Use the original media when reframing. A timeline export lets you adjust each shot separately instead of cropping a single flattened movie. See the Wedit export guide for the handoff to your editor.

Follow the subject through each shot

In Premiere, right-click the sequence in the Project panel and choose Auto Reframe Sequence. Choose a vertical target and review the generated framing. Adobe creates a separate sequence, so the horizontal version stays available. Follow Adobe’s Auto Reframe instructions for the settings in your version.

Final Cut Pro offers Smart Conform to adapt clips to a different frame shape. Apply it to the vertical project, then check the position of the subjects and adjust shots that need a different composition. Apple’s Smart Conform guide explains the controls.

In either editor, watch moving shots from beginning to end. A face that starts in the center may move out of the crop. Group shots may work better as a different angle than as an increasingly tight crop.

Give the reel its own sound and ending

Listen to the piece of music you are actually using in the reel. Trim the sequence so its opening and ending make sense with that passage. If a spoken line carries the moment, leave enough room to hear it clearly and adjust the music around it.

Check the exported version on a phone. Look at faces near the edges, captions covered by app controls and the last shot. Preview it in the destination app before posting, since the interface can cover part of the picture.

Where Wedit fits

Use Highlights to select and assemble a short wedding film, or Full movie to work with the longer chapters of the day. Export the timeline for further editing and a separate vertical version. Dedicated reel creation inside Wedit is still coming soon.

Download Wedit to work with your footage, or explore the editing guides.