Instagram prioretises videos and Reels now: Reels gain 22% more engagement than regular videos and photo content, according to these stats. Besides, it’s the fastest growing feature on Instagram all over the world.

Instagram Reels aren’t just engaging and funny; they attract new audiences to your account and get views extremely fast. Now, you can even monetise your Reels.

So let’s reveal how to create Reels, look through their specs, see how to stuff your Reels with cool features, hack their algorithm, and analyse Reels’ performance.

Instagram Reels Features

Reels are short videos on Instagram that are very similar to TikTok clips. You can find Reels on the separate Reels tab on Instagram, the Explore page, and your main feed.

What you can do with Reels is the same as for other Instagram content formats: you can like, comment, share them in stories and DM, and create your own Reels right on Instagram or with the help of third-party video editors.

Instagram Reels Dimensions and Length

Reels can be up to 90 seconds long – this is the recent summer 2022 update. Before that, they used to be just a minute long.

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Here are the specifications you should know before creating your Reels:

Length: up to 90 seconds.
Aspect ratio: 9:16.
Size: 1080 x 1920 pixels.
Cover image size: 1080 x 1920 pixels.

Now let’s delve into the Reels creation process.

How to Create Instagram Reels

You can create Reels from the Instagram editor or upload a Reel you’ve already shot in a video editor of your choice.

Here’s how to create Reels with the Instagram editor:

To head over to Reels editor, either open your Instagram profile, click on the plus + icon and choose Reel.

Or open the Reels tab and click on the camera icon at the upper right.

Or open the story editor by swiping right the main feed, then find Reel at the bottom of the screen.

No matter which way you select, you will see the same editor, familiar to you from stories.

Here’s what you can do within the Reels editor:

Specify the length of the Reel.
Choose tracks from the Instagram music library.
Set up the speed of the Reel (you can slow it down or speed it up).
Choose a layout format.
Select lenses and filters (same as in stories).
Trim the Reel you’ve made in another editor.
Divide the Reel into fragments no longer than 30 seconds each (called Scenes).
Use various Reels features such as Remix and Align.

Tip: Just like in stories, you can see the filters others use in their Reels by clicking the + sign above the main menu. You will see a gallery of Reels with this particular filter where you can assess how popular the filter is and find the ideas of how you can use it in your Reel.

How to Download Instagram Reels

The 4K Stogram desktop solution is a perfect choice for that.

Note: The application only downloads publicly available Reels, with the Share to Feed option checked before they were uploaded. 4K Stogram can’t download Reels shared on the Reels tab only.

1. Launch 4K Stogram.

2. Log in to your account in-app.

3. Enter the name of the Instagram account you want to download Reels from.

4. Select a suitable option from the suggestions list.

5. Click the settings button located next to the Download button.

6. Uncheck all boxes except Download video posts.

Tip: In the settings, you can also set a specific time period you want to download Instagram Reels from. Click the date field and select the period on the in-app calendar.

7. Click the Download button.

That’s it! In a few seconds, Instagram Reels and other videos are going to be downloaded to your computer.

How to Add a Filter to Instagram Reels

Open the Reels editor.
Find the Effects icon above the record button. A pack of available filters will open.

To browse more effects, tap the sparkles icon.
To find the filters you’ve already saved, click the bookmark icon.
To discover more available filters, tap Trending, Reels, or Appearance.
To open the search field and find filters by keywords, tap a magnifying glass.

3. Hold the filter icon or use the timer feature to record a filtered Reel.

4. Press the Preview button if you like the Reel with the applied filter.

Then you’ll be directed to the editing screen to add captions, a soundtrack, stickers, or more filters.

5. Click Next if you want to share the Reel with your followers.

How to Add a Caption to Instagram Reels

Open the Reels editor.
Record a video, add a filter if you like, and proceed to the editing screen by pressing the Preview button.
Tap the Aa icon at the upper right to add a caption to your Reel.
Enter the text.
Use the style tools to customise the font, its colour, and alignment.
Tap Done.
When you’re ready to post, tap Next.

How to Add Music to Instagram Reels

Just like you’d add a music track in your stories, do the same for Reels. You can search for tracks in the Instagram music library and save the ones you like. In the For You section, you’ll find trending sounds that you’ve most likely heard in someone else’s Reels.

And again like in stories, you can select a track’s part and lyrics for your Reel, and add them to the video. Note that some tracks have automatically highlighted popular moments – trending excerpts used in Reels of other creators.

Here’s how you can add a song to your Reel:

Open the Reels editor to start recording.
Click on the notes icon on the left.

Choose a track from the Instagram music library.

You can also head over to the Saved or Import tabs to add your own track.

Once you choose a song, the recording screen will open.

If you want to select a particular fragment of the song, click on the album cover on the left and select the song fragment.

Hold the record button to start shooting the Reel, and the track fragment will start playing. Once you let go of the button, the recording will stop.
Share your Reel by pressing the Next button.
On the editing screen where you've just landed, you'll see the audio mix feature, the ability to add stickers, and captions.
Edit the clip as you like and press the Preview button to go on.

If you want to adjust the volume of your track, this feature will be only available when you finish editing.

Note that you can’t add tracks to the Instagram library through the editor. If you’re a musician and want to use your own track, you need to distribute your music first.

How to Add Voiceovers to Instagram Reels

You can add voiceovers through the Import tab in the Reels editor or through the voiceover tab. If you want to add the voiceover via the Import tab, you need to record the voice or extract it from a source and save it on your device first. Here’s how you can create your own music track for Reels, TikTok, or YouTube videos.

How to use the Align Tool in Instagram Reels

Align tool lets you add and remove an object between the Reel's scenes (remember we talked about scenes above?), thus creating an appearing or disappearing effect.

When you start a scene at the point the previous scene ends, it will look like an object or a person suddenly pops up in the scene.

Here’s how you can exploit the Align tool in the Reels editor:

Open the Reels editor.
Press the record button to start shooting the Reel, then stop holding it to finish the first scene.

When you finish recording the scene, you'll see a new icon on the left, which looks like two overlaid squares. This is the Align tool.

3. Tap the two square button, and you'll see a semi-transparent view of the last scene you've shot.

4. Add an object or a person to the scene by pressing the record button. Align your last frame with the one you just added and press the record button again.

5. Tap the Preview button to open the editing screen when you finish.

6. Tap Next when you want to share the Reel.

You can make several clips in one Reel by pressing and releasing the button with the Reels logo for shooting. To edit, view, or delete captured clips, you need to click on the back arrow icon.

How to Use the Remix Feature in Instagram Reels

Remix is a new feature released by Instagram and is similar to TikTok duets. Remix allows you to shoot a Reel as a reaction or response to another creator’s Reel. Starting from July 2022, you can also remix photos (not only other Reels), customise layouts, and add your own clips.

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Here’s how you can do that:

Open a Reel you want to remix and click on the three dots at the bottom right.
Tap Remix this Reel.

You now see the dual-screen that shows the Reel you’ve chosen on the right and your camera screen on the left.

Press the record button to start recording yourself.
Press the Preview button when you finish recording.

Edit the Reel as you like by adding captions, stickers, or adjusting its speed.

Note that you can disable the Remix feature, thus restricting others from making remixes to your videos. The feature is enabled by default. To disable it, open Settings > Privacy > Reels > Remix > toggle the required switchers off.

Alternatively, you can restrict remixing specific Reels by following this path:

Click on your Reel you want to restrict remixes with.
Tap on the three dots in the bottom right corner.
Choose Turn off remixing.

Easy!

Select a Cover and Publish Instagram Reels

When publishing Reels, you can select whether they should appear in your main profile grid or only in the Reels tab.

Click the Share in the feed button if you want the Reel to be published in your main profile content feed.

If you want to remove the Reel you’ve already published from your main feed, merely click on the Remove from the profile grid button.

No matter where – a Reels tab only or the main content feed – your Reel is published, visitors of your page will see the Reels covers first. If you don’t upload a cover, Instagram will choose it randomly, which rarely looks fine.

Besides, Reels’ covers are displayed on the Explore page, so it’s vital to choose a cover people would like to click on. Here’s what you can choose the cover from:

A scene from the Reel. Scroll the video in the layout, selecting the desired frame to choose one.
An image from your phone: tap on the Add from gallery tab and select an image.

How to Save Instagram Reel as a Draft

You can save your unfinished Reel as a draft to share it later: click on the Save as Draft button on the editing page.

You can then find your draft in the Drafts section in the gallery that appears when you open the editor by swiping your main feed right.

Analyse Your Instagram Reel's Stats

Reels insights are similar to the ones of Instagram posts – reach, views, saves, plays, shares, likes, and comments. You can’t know who exactly watched your reach. Instagram Reels insights are available only for Creator and Business Instagram accounts.

You can find the performance of a single Reel as well as the entire Reels section in the Reels Insights.