The short answer
Yes. A Live Photo saves about three seconds of video with the still, which often makes it around twice the size of a plain photo. Tap the Live button in Camera to turn it off, and set Settings › Camera › Preserve Settings › Live Photo so it stays off. For existing ones, Duplicate as Still Photo makes a plain copy, then you can delete the original.
Live Photos are on by default. Each time you take a photo, the iPhone also saves the moments just before and after it as a short video. It's what makes the photo move when you press and hold it.
That video is stored with every Live Photo, whether you ever watch it or not.
How much space do they take?
A Live Photo is a still plus about three seconds of video, and it often takes around twice the space of the same photo without the motion. On a library of tens of thousands of photos, that adds up to many gigabytes.
The motion is lovely on some photos, like a child laughing or a wave breaking. On a photo of a parking sign, it's just weight.
Turn Live Photos off
- Open Camera.
- Tap the Live button (concentric circles) at the top of the screen, so it's crossed out.
Camera turns Live Photos back on the next time you open it, unless you tell it not to:
- Open Settings › Camera › Preserve Settings.
- Turn on Live Photo.
Now Camera remembers your choice. You can still turn Live on for a single shot when the moment calls for it.
The Live Photos you already have
In Photos › Media Types › Live Photos you'll see all of them.
Turning Live off in Edit doesn't save space. Photos edits are reversible, so the video stays stored underneath in case you change your mind.
To actually drop the video:
- Open the Live Photo.
- Tap the ⋯ button, then Duplicate, and choose Duplicate as Still Photo.
- Delete the original Live Photo.
The still copy is a new photo, so check it sits where you expect in your library and has the details you want before deleting the original.
High-resolution photos
On iPhones with a 48 MP camera, you can choose how big photos are saved in Settings › Camera › Formats. The highest setting gives the most detail, and much bigger files. For everyday shots the default is plenty. Save the top setting for landscapes and the photos you'll print.