How to Post Long Pictures on Instagram

Got an amazing tall photo - a killer outfit shot, a beautiful skyscraper, or a long infographic - but hate how Instagram forces you into a boxy crop? You’re not alone. Posting vertical images is one of the most frustrating parts of the platform, but there are powerful ways around it to make your content stand out. This guide will show you exactly how to post scroll-stopping long pictures in your feed using seamless carousels and no-crop methods that grab attention and tell a bigger story.

So, Why Post a Long Picture Anyway?

In a feed crowded with standard posts, going vertical on Instagram is a simple way to break the pattern and make people pause. It’s more than just a novelty, it offers real benefits for engagement and storytelling.

• It Stops the Scroll. A tall, multi-frame image demands more attention. The very act of swiping to see the rest of the picture is a form of engagement that holds a user's attention longer than a static photo.
• It Gives You Space for Creative Storytelling. Use the vertical space to reveal something piece by piece. Show a full outfit top to bottom, walk through a step-by-step recipe, display a complete infographic without squishing the text, or do a dramatic "before and after" reveal.
• It Creates an Immersive Feeling. For content like architecture, powerful landscapes, or travel photography, a vertical format can better capture the sense of scale and grandeur, making your audience feel like they are right there with you.

Method 1: The Seamless Vertical Carousel (The 'Swipe-Down' Effect)

This is the most popular and effective way to share a long vertical image. You’ve probably seen it before: a post that looks normal at first, but as you swipe left, it reveals the next part of a single, continuous image. It's a fantastic storytelling tool, and once you know the steps, it’s remarkably simple to pull off.

Step 1: Choose and Prepare Your Image

To start, pick a high-resolution photo that is significantly taller than it is wide. The best images for this technique are ones with a clear top-to-bottom flow. Think about things like:

• A full-length photo showing an entire outfit (#OOTD).
• A tall infographic that's meant to be read from top to bottom.
• An architectural shot of a tall building.
• A multi-step process or recipe visual.

The goal is to slice the image into two or more sections that will reconnect perfectly as a user swipes through the carousel.

Step 2: Get Your Dimensions Right

This is where a little bit of math saves you a major headache later. To create a seamless carousel, you need to work backward from Instagram’s ideal post size.

The maximum vertical aspect ratio Instagram allows for a single post is 4:5. The best dimensions for this are 1080 pixels wide by 1350 pixels tall. Each slice of your long photo will need to be this exact size.

Decide how many slides you need. Let’s say you want to split your photo into three parts.

• Height of each slide: 1350 pixels
• Width of each slide: 1080 pixels
• Total height of your canvas: 1350 pixels * 3 slides = 4050 pixels

Your original image needs to fit perfectly onto a canvas that is 1080px wide by 4050px tall. For two slides, it would be 1080px by 2700px. Always keep the width at 1080px and multiply the height (1350px) by the number of slides you want.

Step 3: Slice Your Image with the Right Tools

You can't eyeball this! Trying to manually crop an image into precise sections is a recipe for mismatched edges. Instead, use a tool designed for the job. You have great options on both mobile and desktop.

Using Mobile Apps

Plenty of apps can do the slicing for you. Most work the same way: you upload your long image, tell the app how many slices you want, and it exports them to your photo library as separate, numbered images.

• For iOS: Search for apps like "Panorama Crop" or "Swipeable."
• For Android: Apps like "Panorama for Instagram" or "InstaGrids" work great.
• General All-rounders: Creative apps like Canva or Picsart often have grid or slicing features baked into their photo editors if you already use them for other things.

Using a Desktop Tool Like Photoshop or Photopea

For the most precise control, a desktop editor is your best bet. Photopea is a popular, full-featured photo editor that works right in your web browser. The steps are pretty much the same in both.

1. Create a new document with your full calculated dimensions (e.g., 1080px wide by 4050px tall).

2. Paste your long image onto the canvas and resize it to fit.

3. Go to View >, New Guide Layout.

4. In the pop-up menu, untick "Columns" and tick "Rows."

5. Set the number of rows to match the number of slices you want (e.g., 3). Make sure the "Gutter" is set to 0. Click OK. Your image now has perfect horizontal guides.

6. Select the Slice Tool (press 'C' to bring up the crop tools, then click and hold to find the Slice Tool).

7. In the options bar at the top of the screen, click the button that says "Slices From Guides.” This will automatically create perfect slices based on the guides you just made.

8. Go to File >, Export >, Save for Web (Legacy).

9. Choose "JPEG High" quality, make sure all your slices are selected, and click Save.

10. The exporter will save each slice as a separate, sequentially numbered image file into a folder on your computer.

Step 4: Upload to Instagram Correctly

Now just send the sliced images to your phone. Open Instagram, tap the plus (+) icon, and tap the "Select Multiple" icon (it looks like two overlapping squares). Now, here's the most important part: you must select the images in the correct order, from top to bottom (e.g., slice_01, slice_02, slice_03). Pay close attention as you tap, because some phone galleries display photos in different orders. Once selected, you can swipe through the preview to make sure everything lines up perfectly. Add a caption like "Swipe to see the full view!" and you’re ready to post.

Method 2: Resizing with Borders for a Single No-Crop Post

What if a carousel feels too complicated or doesn’t fit your aesthetic? This second method lets you post an entire tall image in a single frame. The trade-off is that it will appear smaller because you have to add side borders to make it fit Instagram’s 4:5 aspect ratio.

When to Use This Method

This is the perfect solution for visuals where the whole picture truly needs to be seen at once. It works especially well for:

• Infographics with a lot of text that would be awkward to cut in half.
• Posters or event flyers.
• Artistic shots where the composition would be ruined by slicing.

Step 1: Choose Your Border (Canvas) Color

You’re essentially placing your tall photo onto a correctly-sized canvas. The empty space on the sides becomes a border. White is the most common and clean choice because it blends in with Instagram’s user interface, but a black or color-branded border can create a great frame effect and make your post stand out.

Step 2: Add Your Borders Easily with an App

Any basic photo editing app can do this. The goal is to start with a blank 1080x1350px canvas and place your image on top of it.

• Canva: This is a super quick way to get it done. Start a new design and choose the "Instagram Post (Portrait)" template, which is already set to 1080x1350px. Set the background color you want, then upload your tall photo and center it on the canvas.
• Instasize / InShot: These mobile apps are literally built for this. They have "Fit" or "Canvas" tools that automatically add borders (usually white or blurred) to any photo to make it fit without being cropped.

Step 3: Post the Finished Image

Simply save the new image with the borders and upload it to Instagram. Because it's already a perfect 4:5 ratio, Instagram won’t try to crop anything. Your full vertical image will appear exactly as you designed it, perfectly centered in the post frame.

Final Thoughts

Posting long pictures on Instagram is an excellent strategy for breaking up the visual monotony of the feed and making your content more interactive and memorable. Whether you use the seamless carousel to guide your followers through a story or the no-crop resize method to preserve your image's integrity, both are simple ways to beat the dreaded Instagram crop.

After you've perfected your long image carousel, the last thing you want is a clunky scheduling process getting in your way. At Postbase, we designed our visual content planner to be as creative as you are. You can drag and drop every slide of your carousel right into the calendar, preview the entire sequence instantly, and schedule it knowing it will publish reliably. We built it to be a clean, modern partner for social managers who believe the details matter, giving you a publishing experience that's finally as seamless as your posts.