Vertical is the default now

For years, horizontal (16:9) was the standard. Phones were held sideways for "proper" video. Vertical video was considered amateur.

That changed completely. TikTok normalized vertical video. Instagram followed with Reels. YouTube launched Shorts. LinkedIn added vertical video support. Even Twitter supports it now.

In 2026, if you create content for social media, vertical video is not optional. It is the primary format. And editing vertical video well requires understanding its unique constraints and opportunities.

The vertical frame: constraints and advantages

The constraint: Less horizontal space. Wide shots lose impact. Multiple subjects side-by-side get cramped. Landscapes look thin.

The advantage: More vertical space. Full-body shots work naturally. Text has room to breathe above and below subjects. Faces fill the screen, creating intimacy. The viewer's phone screen is completely utilized, with no black bars.

Understanding this trade-off shapes every editing decision.

Filming for vertical

If you know your content will be vertical, film for it:

Hold your phone vertically. This sounds obvious, but many creators still film horizontally and crop later. Filming vertical gives you the full sensor resolution and natural framing.

Frame subjects vertically. Center your subject and give more headroom and footroom than you would in horizontal.

Avoid wide compositions. Close-ups and medium shots work better in vertical. Wide establishing shots lose detail.

Keep important elements center-frame. Platform UI elements (buttons, usernames, descriptions) overlap the top and bottom edges. Keep critical content in the center 70% of the frame.

Converting horizontal to vertical

Already have horizontal footage? Two approaches:

AI-powered reframing

The canvas editor lets you place your video on a 9:16 canvas with full control over position, scale, and background. Options include:

Fill (crop to fit): The video scales to fill the vertical frame. Sides get cropped. Best when the subject is centered.
Fit (letterbox): The full video appears at smaller size with background above and below. Use a blurred version of the video, a gradient, or solid color for the background.
Custom position: Scale and position the video wherever you want on the canvas.

Manual cropping

For more control, use the canvas tool to manually set exactly which portion of the horizontal frame appears in your vertical output. Crop differently for different shots within the same video.

Caption placement for vertical

Captions on vertical video need different treatment than horizontal:

Size matters more. Phone screens are small. Captions need to be at least 48px to be readable at arm's length. 56 to 64px is better for Reels and TikTok.

Center or lower-center positioning. Captions at the very bottom get hidden by platform UI. Place them in the lower-center area, above the description and comment sections.

Background boxes help. Vertical video often has busy backgrounds. A semi-transparent box behind your caption text ensures readability against any footage.

Two lines maximum. On a narrow vertical frame, three or more lines of caption text takes up too much screen space. Keep captions to one or two lines.

Use the caption tool with styling optimized for vertical viewing. The 8 animation styles include options specifically designed for the tall, narrow frame.

Color grading for vertical platforms

Social platforms apply their own compression and processing. Your color grading needs to account for this:

Slightly increase saturation. Platform compression tends to reduce saturation slightly. Starting a bit more saturated compensates for this.

Maintain contrast. Compressed video loses shadow detail. Ensure your grade has enough contrast that it survives platform re-encoding.

Test on mobile. View your graded video on a phone screen before publishing. Colors look different on phone displays compared to computer monitors.

Apply grades using the film filters tool. Start at 60 to 75% intensity. Social platforms already add some processing, so heavy grades can look overdone after platform re-encoding.

Text and graphics in vertical

Large, bold text. Small text that works on desktop monitors is unreadable on phone screens. Use bold fonts at generous sizes.

Top or center placement. The bottom of vertical video is prime real estate for platform UI. Use the top portion for graphics and text overlays.

Minimal information per screen. The narrow frame limits how much text can appear simultaneously. Show less, change it more frequently.

Depth text for intros. Use the depth text tool to place your title or topic behind you. The effect is even more impactful in vertical because your subject fills more of the frame.

Safe zones by platform

Every platform overlays UI elements on your video. These areas should not contain critical content:

TikTok: Avoid top 150px (username) and bottom 250px (caption, music, buttons on the right side).

Instagram Reels: Similar to TikTok. Bottom 200px and top 100px have UI overlays.

YouTube Shorts: Bottom 100px for title and subscribe button. Less cluttered than TikTok and Reels overall.

General rule: Keep all important content (faces, text, key action) in the center 70% of the frame vertically.

The vertical editing workflow

For efficient vertical video production:

1Film in vertical (or identify horizontal footage to convert)
2Edit and trim in your preferred editor
3Convert to 9:16 if starting from horizontal
4Color grade with social platform compression in mind
5Add captions sized for mobile viewing
6Preview on your phone before publishing
7Export at 1080x1920, H.264 codec

Try it

Take any horizontal video and open the canvas editor. Set the canvas to 9:16 and experiment with positioning, background options, and rounded corners. The process takes a few minutes and the result looks native to vertical platforms.

The Complete Guide to Editing Vertical Video (9:16) in 2026