Subtitles for family videos

Why the captions belong in the picture

A subtitle file only works in players that look for it. Family videos travel through WhatsApp, Messenger, iMessage, email and the TV, and none of those show a separate file. Burned-in captions need no setting to turn on, which matters most for a grandparent who shouldn't have to find one.

Make them easy to read

• Use Boxed or Clean: plain letters on a solid box or with a soft shadow, readable on any background.
• Make the text bigger than you would for TikTok, and keep it at the bottom of the frame.
• Show four to six words at a time on one line, so whole phrases stay on screen long enough to read.
• Fix names, places and family words: click a word to correct it, or use Find and replace for a name that comes up often.

Steps

1. Open the studio on your computer or phone and add the video.
2. Click Find words, then read the transcript and fix any word.
3. Pick Boxed, raise the size and set four to six words per caption.
4. Export the MP4 and send it as you normally would.

For live conversations and calls

Android's Live Caption and the iPhone's Live Captions, where available, caption speech as it plays on the phone, including many video calls. They help with videos you didn't caption, and they stay on the viewer's own phone.

Questions