How To Conbine Two Photo Library On Mac

07.04.2020
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  1. Switch Photo Library On Mac
  2. Update Photo Library On Mac
  3. Move Photo Library On Mac
  4. Merge Two Photos Library Mac

Jun 21, 2017  Multiple Libraries in Photos and iPhoto. Skip navigation Sign in. How to combine photos in Photoshop with Layer Masks. How To Move Mac Photos Library To An External HDD. Dec 28, 2018  Use iCloud Photo Library to ensure that everything you take on an iOS device is synced automatically with your Mac. Alternatively, AirDrop photos from your iPhone and/or iPad to your Mac. Import photos from external drives to the Photos app on your Mac; Import photos from your camera; If you have several libraries in the Photos app, merge them.

Photos makes it easy to create and switch between libraries. That’s good when photos need to be kept completely separate. For instance, a real estate agent might want to keep personal photos separate from house photos taken for work. But too much separation is annoying—you have to keep switching between libraries, and it’s easy to import new photos into the wrong one.

Switch Photo Library On Mac

If you struggle with multiple Photos libraries, never fear—you can merge them. Unfortunately, the process is slow, can require a lot of disk space, and may result in the loss of some metadata. You have three options: merging through iCloud Photos, using the PowerPhotos utility, and merging by exporting and importing. Each has pros and cons.

Merge through iCloud Photos

Apple’s iCloud Photos service offers the best solution for merging libraries. The trick is that whenever you designate a library as your System Photo Library, Photos automatically uploads all images that aren’t already present, adding them to the photos already in iCloud Photos. It also retains all the metadata surrounding your photos—titles, keywords, albums, facial recognition, projects, and more.

On the downside, using iCloud Photos almost certainly won’t be free unless you have so few photos that the combined library will fit within the free 5 GB of iCloud space Apple gives everyone. Almost everyone will have to pay for additional storage space ($0.99 per month for 50 GB, $2.99 for 200 GB, or $9.99 for 2 TB) for at least the month in which you’re doing the merge. iCloud Photos is a good service, so it’s likely worth paying for anyway.

More problematic is that the iCloud Photos way of merging will be very slow. If you haven’t already started using it, it could take a week or more to upload many thousands of photos. Plus, it will probably download the entire cloud-based collection of photos to each library whose photos you want to merge, so you may need a lot of local disk space too.

If you haven’t previously used iCloud Photos, go to System Preferences > iCloud and click the Options button next to Photo. In the dialog, select iCloud Photos.

Now, starting with the smallest Photos library and working up in size, follow these steps for each library you want to merge:

  1. Double-click the Photos library to open it.
  2. In Photos > Preferences > General, click Use as System Photo Library. (If it’s dimmed out, that library is already set as the System Photo Library.)
  3. Wait for photos to upload. Scroll to the bottom of the Photos view to see the progress. A Pause link will appear there during uploading—click it if you need to keep Photos from overwhelming your Internet connection. Once the photos have all uploaded, go back to Step 1 with your next Photos library.

When you’re done, the last Photos library becomes the one you’ll keep, and you can delete the others. Needless to say, make sure you have good backups first!

Merge with PowerPhotos

The $30 PowerPhotos from Fat Cat Software provides a variety of extra capabilities when working with Photos. It helps you to create and manage multiple libraries, copy photos between libraries, find duplicates, and—most important for this topic—merge libraries.

Because PowerPhotos is working entirely on your Mac’s drive, it’s fast and it doesn’t require huge amounts of extra disk space. Unfortunately, unlike the iCloud Photos approach, which brings in both originals and any edits to those photos, PowerPhotos can import only your original photos or the versions that you’ve edited, not both. Plus, it can’t merge facial recognition data, smart albums, or print projects.

PowerPhotos provides an actual interface for merging too—choose Library > Merge Libraries to start.

In the window that appears, you have four tasks:

Update Photo Library On Mac

  1. Choose source libraries. You aren’t limited to merging just two libraries; you can pick multiple sources.
  2. Choose the destination library. This is the library you want to receive all the photos. If you want, you can create a new one.
  3. Configure duplicate handling. PowerPhotos can import just one of several copies of duplicate photos, or you can bring in all the duplicates if that’s important.
  4. Choose options. PowerPhotos can merge album contents, create an album from each source library, and create a backup before merging. Most important, though, is the choice of whether to merge your original photos or the edited versions.

Move Photo Library On Mac

Merge by Exporting and Importing

This final option is conceptually simple. You export all the photos from one library and then import them into another. It’s even what Apple recommends. The main thing it has going for it is that it’s free, and it will be faster than the iCloud Photos approach. It could also be useful if you want to copy a subset of photos between libraries, rather than merging all photos.

However, as with PowerPhotos, you have to choose between original and edited photos, and you’ll need a lot of extra disk space. Even worse, you’ll lose even more metadata, including albums, faces, and print projects. And if you export as JPEG, your photos may also suffer a slight quality drop as they’re recompressed.

For those who want to use this approach, Apple provides detailed instructions. In essence, you’ll click Photos in the sidebar to see everything, and then choose Edit > Select All. Then you’ll choose File > Export and either Export X Photos (to get the edited versions of images) or Export Unmodified Original for X Photos (to get the original images). Once everything has exported, you’ll switch libraries in Photos and then drag the folder of exported images back into Photos to import it.

Our nod goes to the iCloud Photos technique, but PowerPhotos is a fine utility for those who aren’t perturbed by its limitations. Of course, don’t start any merging without making backups first, and if you need help, don’t hesitate to call or text us!

Remember, you can text us during normal business hours and we will get right back to you! Use the 'Chat Bubble' on the left side of any page on our website!

Apple's iCloud service offers a fantastic feature for family groups called Family Sharing: It lets you share storage space, purchase accounts, Apple Music subscriptions, and more between multiple iCloud users — including managed accounts for younger children.

Family Sharing also integrates with Apple's free iCloud Photo Sharing feature to provide your family with a secure shared album where you can share images and video. Each family member has their own separate iCloud Photo Library or Photo Stream library, but the Family album allows them a space to store communal photos, images, and video.

Here's how to use iCloud Photo Sharing in tandem with Family Sharing to access the Family album on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac.

Note: Before proceeding, make sure you've turned on iCloud Photo Sharing — you won't be able to use the Family album if it's not enabled. You don't have to use iCloud Photo Library to turn on sharing if you prefer another syncing alternative.

How to view the Family album on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac

Want to see what your family members have already added to this album? You'll want to open the Shared section of your Photos app.

On iPhone or iPad

How To Conbine Two Photo Library On Mac
  1. Launch the Photos app on your iPhone or iPad.
  2. Tap on the Shared tab.

  3. Select the Family album. (If you can't see it, you may be in the Activity view: Tap on the Shared arrow in the upper left corner to return to album view.)

On your Mac

  1. Launch Photos on your Mac.
  2. Under the Shared section of the Sidebar, click Shared Albums.

  3. How to install jw library on mac. Select the Family album.

How to add new photos or video to the Family album on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac

When you want to add images to your Family album, you'll do so like pretty much any other album addition.

On your iPhone or iPad

  1. Launch the Photos app on your iPhone or iPad.
  2. Tap on the Shared tab.

  3. Select the Family album. (If you can't see it, you may be in the Activity view: Tap on the Shared arrow in the upper left corner to return to album view.)

  4. Tap on the plus sign.
  5. Tap the photos you want to add and then tap Done in the upper right corner.

  6. Type a description if you'd like, and then tap Post in the pop-up window.

On your Mac

Merge Two Photos Library Mac

  1. Launch Photos on your Mac.
  2. Click the photos you want to share with family (shift-click or command-click to select multiple).
  3. Click the share button on the upper right of the window. It's a box with an upward arrow.
  4. Click iCloud Photo Sharing.

  5. Click Family. The images will then sync over to your family member's device.

How to remove photos or video from the Family album on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac

No longer want an image or video in your Family album? Any member of the family can delete content from the album at any time.

On your iPhone or iPad

  1. Launch the Photos app on your iPhone or iPad.
  2. Tap on the Shared tab.

  3. Select the Family album. (If you can't see it, you may be in the Activity view: Tap on the Shared arrow in the upper left corner to return to album view.)

  4. Tap Select in the upper right corner.

  5. Tap the photos or video you want to delete.

  6. Tap the Trash icon in the bottom right corner.

  7. Tap Delete [X] PhotosCoordinate lightroom libraries between mac and pc download. to confirm that you want to delete the selected photos.

On your Mac

  1. Launch the Photos app on your Mac.
  2. Click on Shared Albums in the sidebar.
  3. Select the Family album.
  4. Select the images you wish to delete.
  5. Press the Delete key on your keyboard.

  6. Click on Delete to confirm that you want to remove the photo from the shared album.

Questions?

Let us know in the comments below!

Updated May 2018: Updated for both Mac and iOS.

iCloud Photo Library: The Ultimate Guide

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