diff --git a/monai/transforms/__init__.py b/monai/transforms/__init__.py
index ebd21a1c45..4dc7744755 100644
--- a/monai/transforms/__init__.py
+++ b/monai/transforms/__init__.py
@@ -338,6 +338,7 @@
     in_bounds,
     is_empty,
     map_binary_to_indices,
+    map_spatial_axes,
     rand_choice,
     rescale_array,
     rescale_array_int_max,
diff --git a/monai/transforms/spatial/array.py b/monai/transforms/spatial/array.py
index f0cf047aa6..df10480188 100644
--- a/monai/transforms/spatial/array.py
+++ b/monai/transforms/spatial/array.py
@@ -31,6 +31,7 @@
     create_scale,
     create_shear,
     create_translate,
+    map_spatial_axes,
 )
 from monai.utils import (
     GridSampleMode,
@@ -297,7 +298,7 @@ class Flip(Transform):
 
     """
 
-    def __init__(self, spatial_axis: Optional[Union[Sequence[int], int]]) -> None:
+    def __init__(self, spatial_axis: Optional[Union[Sequence[int], int]] = None) -> None:
         self.spatial_axis = spatial_axis
 
     def __call__(self, img: np.ndarray) -> np.ndarray:
@@ -305,10 +306,9 @@ def __call__(self, img: np.ndarray) -> np.ndarray:
         Args:
             img: channel first array, must have shape: (num_channels, H[, W, ..., ]),
         """
-        flipped = []
-        for channel in img:
-            flipped.append(np.flip(channel, self.spatial_axis))
-        return np.stack(flipped).astype(img.dtype)
+
+        result: np.ndarray = np.flip(img, map_spatial_axes(img.ndim, self.spatial_axis))
+        return result.astype(img.dtype)
 
 
 class Resize(Transform):
@@ -596,10 +596,9 @@ def __call__(self, img: np.ndarray) -> np.ndarray:
         Args:
             img: channel first array, must have shape: (num_channels, H[, W, ..., ]),
         """
-        rotated = []
-        for channel in img:
-            rotated.append(np.rot90(channel, self.k, self.spatial_axes))
-        return np.stack(rotated).astype(img.dtype)
+
+        result: np.ndarray = np.rot90(img, self.k, map_spatial_axes(img.ndim, self.spatial_axes))
+        return result.astype(img.dtype)
 
 
 class RandRotate90(Randomizable, Transform):
diff --git a/monai/transforms/utils.py b/monai/transforms/utils.py
index e5e9f81cc6..9a84eb00d9 100644
--- a/monai/transforms/utils.py
+++ b/monai/transforms/utils.py
@@ -48,6 +48,7 @@
     "get_largest_connected_component_mask",
     "get_extreme_points",
     "extreme_points_to_image",
+    "map_spatial_axes",
 ]
 
 
@@ -690,3 +691,42 @@ def extreme_points_to_image(
     points_image = (points_image - min_intensity) / (max_intensity - min_intensity)
     points_image = points_image * (rescale_max - rescale_min) + rescale_min
     return points_image
+
+
+def map_spatial_axes(
+    img_ndim: int,
+    spatial_axes: Optional[Union[Sequence[int], int]] = None,
+    channel_first: bool = True,
+) -> List[int]:
+    """
+    Utility to map the spatial axes to real axes in channel first/last shape.
+    For example:
+    If `channel_first` is True, and `img` has 3 spatial dims, map spatial axes to real axes as below:
+    None -> [1, 2, 3]
+    [0, 1] -> [1, 2]
+    [0, -1] -> [1, -1]
+    If `channel_first` is False, and `img` has 3 spatial dims, map spatial axes to real axes as below:
+    None -> [0, 1, 2]
+    [0, 1] -> [0, 1]
+    [0, -1] -> [0, -2]
+
+    Args:
+        img_ndim: dimension number of the target image.
+        spatial_axes: spatial axes to be converted, default is None.
+            The default `None` will convert to all the spatial axes of the image.
+            If axis is negative it counts from the last to the first axis.
+            If axis is a tuple of ints.
+        channel_first: the image data is channel first or channel last, defaut to channel first.
+
+    """
+    if spatial_axes is None:
+        spatial_axes_ = list(range(1, img_ndim) if channel_first else range(0, img_ndim - 1))
+    else:
+        spatial_axes_ = []
+        for a in ensure_tuple(spatial_axes):
+            if channel_first:
+                spatial_axes_.append(a if a < 0 else a + 1)
+            else:
+                spatial_axes_.append(a - 1 if a < 0 else a)
+
+    return spatial_axes_
diff --git a/tests/test_flip.py b/tests/test_flip.py
index 7a2af02585..fe169c4da8 100644
--- a/tests/test_flip.py
+++ b/tests/test_flip.py
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@
 
 INVALID_CASES = [("wrong_axis", ["s", 1], TypeError), ("not_numbers", "s", TypeError)]
 
-VALID_CASES = [("no_axis", None), ("one_axis", 1), ("many_axis", [0, 1])]
+VALID_CASES = [("no_axis", None), ("one_axis", 1), ("many_axis", [0, 1]), ("negative_axis", [0, -1])]
 
 
 class TestFlip(NumpyImageTestCase2D):