Making GIFs from the video timeline that are over 500 frames

[Ashfro]

Hi everyone,

I have been doing a lot of animated GIFs for a client and they are often over 500 frames.  I used to use the last method shown here: Photoshop - Alternate image sequence import methods / Over 500 frames - YouTube

That works fine, but when I have 20 plus GIFs to create in an evening, that method becomes extremely tedious and time-consuming.

So I found out that I can simply drag my video files into Photoshop and it creates the timeline automatically.  It also allocates the same file name at export, which is big time-saver.  Everything plays well and as expected, but when I want to save the GIF, it limits the export to 500 frames.

It doesn't do this when using the methods described in the video above. Is this a bug?

Kind regards,
Ed

[JJMack]

if you drag in a video the timeline is most likely a video timeline not a frame animation timeline.  It sounds like export save for web an Animated Gif from a Vide Timeline may be limited to to 500 Frames.

If you have a Video timeliest you may be able to create layers for your video layers using a Video Timeline fly out menu item.. Then you can convert you Video timeline to a Frame Animation Timeline.  Delete all the farmes in the frame animation timeline and create frame from all the layers you  now have.  Or create the 500+ frame you want using  the layer you now have in your document.  The save out the gif animation you now have in your frame animation timeline

[Ashfro]

Thanks for the response JJMack. It's quite a workaround, but it's better than nothing.  It's odd that the limitation exists in different areas and that you still have to use workarounds.  I wonder if it were possible to just have the files automatically split into 500 frame parts and then stitched back together, all in the background and then open your file.

[JJMack · Accepted solution]

Photoshop is not  a file editor.  Photoshop edits Photoshop Documents and you can save out various file types from Photoshop documents you edit.   You can also open the files you save in Photoshop with Photoshop and the will open in Photoshop as a Photoshop document.  The Photoshop Document that open may not be like the Photoshop document the file was saved from.  If you are working on a layered 16bit RGB  document and save out a jpeg image file.  If you open the jpeg image file the Photoshop will be a single 8bit Background layer with no transparency. Because the jpeg image file format does not support layers and does not support transparency.  If you working on a layered document and create a frame animation in the timeline and render the animation out as an MP4 video. If you open the MP4 in Photoshop the Photoshop document the open will have a single Video Group that has a single video layer ant the will be a Video timeline not a frame animation timeline like the video was rendered from.  I know of no Open option the will split the file being opened.   If you open a PDF you may be thrown into Import PDF dialog.  In that dialog you can have Photoshop open one or more pages as Photoshop documents. Each document will one page of the PDF tile.

You may be able to write a Photoshop Script or Record an Action that can convert an opened video's video timeline into a Frame animation timeline and save out one or more animated gifs.  

Sections of a video can be imported as frame layers and have a frame animation created during the import process.

[Ashfro]

I'll try out a script to convert video timeline to a frame animation

I'm aware of import sections of a video to create a consolidated frame animation, but it is just too time consuming when working with large volumes of GIFs.

Thanks for your time JJMack