Turning Your Images into 5-Second Videos with Midjourney

June 19, 2025Provided by Xinyi Zhu

Midjourney’s latest feature lets you transform any still image into a dynamic 5-second video—all from your browser. Whether you’re a digital artist, content creator, or simply curious about generative AI, this tutorial will guide you through every step of creating, customizing, and extending short videos using Midjourney’s intuitive web interface.

Why Create Videos with Midjourney?

Add motion to your art: Bring landscapes, characters, or abstract designs to life with subtle camera moves or character animations.
Easy web-based workflow: No Discord bot commands—everything happens on midjourney.com.
Flexible pricing: Available on all subscription tiers, with Pro and Mega plans even allowing Relax Mode video generation.

Prerequisites & Pricing

Access: Video generation is only supported via the Midjourney web app.
Cost: Videos consume 8× the GPU time of a standard image generation.
Modes:
- Fast Mode: Available on all plans.
- Relax Mode: Exclusive to Pro and Mega subscribers, ideal for longer, more experimental workflows.

1. Generating a Video

Go to midjourney.com and log in (select “Continue with Discord” if prompted).
Open any existing image in your gallery and click Animate Image under the Creation Actions.
Choose Auto for a one-click video, or Manual to tweak the prompt in the Imagine bar before starting.

2. Using Your Own Images

In the Imagine bar, click the image icon to open your uploads panel.
Select or upload an image to serve as your Starting Frame.
(Optional) Click the lock icon to pin the image if you plan multiple video variants.

Note: Any original image parameters (e.g., aspect ratio, version tags) are stripped out when generating video.

3. Motion Settings

Low Motion (--motion low): Default. Produces subtle movement—slow pans or character shifts.
High Motion (--motion high): More dramatic camera moves and larger actions, but may introduce glitches.
Raw Mode (--raw): Reduces Midjourney’s creative flair, giving you tighter control via your prompt text.

4. Video Output & Quality

Resolution: All videos are rendered at 480p (SD), with dimensions determined by your starting image’s aspect ratio: Starting Aspect Ratio Video Dimensions 1:1 624 × 624 px 4:3 720 × 544 px 2:3 512 × 768 px 16:9 832 × 464 px 1:2 448 × 880 px

5. Extending Your Video

After the initial 5 seconds, hover over your video to reveal:

Extend Auto: Append 4 more seconds using the original prompt.
Extend Manual: Add another 4 seconds with a revised prompt.
Repeat up to four times for a maximum length of 21 seconds.

6. Best Practices & Guidelines

Ensure you own the rights to any external images and comply with Midjourney’s Terms of Service.
Avoid creating deepfakes or manipulations that could harm or defame individuals.
Experiment with different --motion settings and prompt tweaks to find your signature style.