How to capture, edit, and publish videos on the go
6m
Beginner
Learn how to capture, edit, and publish short-form videos in Canva. Turn clips into structured, share-ready content using mobile tools and Magic Video.
How to capture, edit, and publish videos on the go
6m
Beginner
Learn how to capture, edit, and publish short-form videos in Canva. Turn clips into structured, share-ready content using mobile tools and Magic Video.
What you’ll learn
- What makes short-form video engaging
- What makes people keep watching (and when they scroll)
- How to capture and organise clips on your phone
- How to generate a video using Magic Video
- How to refine clips, text, and audio in the editor
- How to publish your video directly to your social platforms
What makes a good short-form video?
Short-form video is where most attention is happening. Around 66% of people say short videos are the most engaging content format , and they have an average watch rate of over 81%. But that attention is fragile. People decide whether to keep watching in the first three seconds. If nothing catches their interest, they scroll. If something does, they stay. That first moment matters — but it’s not the whole story. What keeps people watching is how the video holds together after that. Short-form content works best when it moves quickly and stays easy to follow. Instead of one long clip, you’re working with a sequence of shorter moments that build on each other.
You don’t need hours in the edit to achieve that. You need a strong starting point and a sequence that keeps the viewer moving.
Capturing your content
Start by gathering the clips you want to use. Think in terms of moments rather than full scenes. Short clips — around 5 to 10 seconds — are enough to build a sequence. In the Canva app: If your files are larger or higher quality, they may take a moment to upload.
Short-form video doesn’t rely on full scenes. It works best when you capture moments — small details, quick reactions, or highlights — that can be combined into something bigger.
Generating a video with Magic Video
Magic Video takes the clips and photos you provide and automatically trims, styles, and sequences them into a 60-second multi-scene vertical video using trending templates for social media. Once your clips or photos are ready, you can turn them into a first draft with Magic Video like this: You’ll get a polished video in seconds! At this point, you already have something you could publish.
If you want a different look, scroll through Try a different vibe to preview and regenerate variations.
Editing your video
From there, you can make small edits to shape the final result. Magic Video gives you a strong starting point, but a few quick adjustments can make the video feel more like your own:
If a clip feels out of place, you can swap it without rebuilding the rest of the video. Select a clip and tap Replace in the bottom toolbar to swap it out.Replace clips
Timing affects how quickly your video moves. Pinch the timeline to zoom in and trim clips precisely by dragging their edges .Adjust timing
Shorter clips often keep the pace tighter and make the video easier to watch all the way through.
Tap any text layer and update it. Keep it concise so it’s easy to read quickly.Edit text
Select the audio track, tap Replace, and explore the Audio tab to choose a different track.Change audio
The heavy lifting is already done. These edits are about refining clarity, pacing, and tone.
Publishing your video
Once you're happy with the result, you can publish directly from Canva. You can go from recording to publishing without leaving Canva. That’s it. Your video’s ready to share.
One last thing
After a few videos like this, the process should start to feel straightforward. You’ll stop thinking about editing as a separate task, and start thinking in terms of moments — what to capture, what to include, and what to leave out. That’s when creating content becomes easier to repeat.
To dive deeper, explore the Create scroll-stopping content course on Canva Design School.
