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Set Up and Use ICloud Photos - Apple Support

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Set up and use iCloud Photos

iCloud Photos works with the Photos app to


keep your photos and videos securely stored
in iCloud, and up to date on your iPhone, iPad,
iPod touch, Mac, Apple TV, and iCloud.com.

How iCloud Photos works 


Turn on iCloud Photos 
What happens when you edit or delete
photos 
Download copies of your photos and videos

Make sure that you have enough storage 

How iCloud Photos works

iCloud Photos automatically keeps every photo


and video you take in iCloud, so you can access
your library from any device, anytime you want.
Any changes you make to your collection on one
device change on your other devices too. Your
photos and videos are organized into Years,
Months, Days, and All Photos. And all of your
Memories and People are updated everywhere.
That way you can quickly find the moment,
family member, or friend you're looking for.

Your photos and videos are stored in iCloud in their


original formats at full resolution. This includes HEIF,
JPEG, RAW, PNG, GIF, TIFF, HEVC, and MP4 as well as
special formats you capture with your iPhone or iPad, like
slo-mo, time-lapse, 4K videos, and Live Photos. The
photos and videos you capture with these devices are
in HEIF and HEVC format. Depending on your internet
speed, the time it takes for you to see your photos and
videos on all of your devices and iCloud.com might vary.

Turn on iCloud Photos

Make sure that you set up iCloud and sign in to


iCloud with the same Apple ID on all of your
devices. If you have a PC, you need Windows 7
or later and iCloud for Windows.

On your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch

W. Go to Settings > [your name].


[. Tap iCloud.
\. Tap Photos, then turn on iCloud Photos.

On your Mac

W. Choose Apple menu  > System Settings or


choose Apple menu  > System Preferences.
[. Click Apple ID. 
\. Click iCloud in the sidebar, then select
Photos. 

On Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD

W. Go to Settings > Users and Accounts.


[. Select iCloud.
\. Turn on iCloud Photos.

On your Windows PC

Learn how to set up and use iCloud Photos on


your PC 

What happens when you edit or


delete photos

When you edit or delete photos or videos, the


changes are reflected across all of your devices.

Edits show up on all of your devices

When you make edits in the Photos app on your


iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch or on your Mac, the
photo automatically updates across all your
devices, including your Apple TV. So when you
crop or enhance a photo from your iPhone, you
see the changes when you access your library
from your Mac. Your original photos and videos
are stored in iCloud and you can go back to
them at any time, and revert any changes you
made.

Photos delete from all of your devices

When you delete photos and videos on one


device, they're deleted everywhere that you use
iCloud Photos. If you delete something
accidentally, you can recovery it in the Recently
Deleted folder for 30 days. After that, it's
deleted permanently. 

Download copies of your photos


and videos

When you turn on iCloud Photos, your photos


and videos automatically upload to iCloud.
They're not duplicated in your iCloud backup, so
you should keep backup copies of your library.
Use the steps below to download copies of your
photos and videos to your Mac or PC. Or you
can import your library to your Mac or PC. 

Download your photos and videos from


iCloud.com

W. On iCloud.com, click Photos.


[. Select the photos and videos that you want
to download. 

\. Click and hold the download button   in the


upper-right corner of the window. If you want
to download your content as it was originally
captured or imported, choose Unmodified
Original. For JPEG or H.264 format —
including edits, and even if it was orginally
in HEIF or HEVC format — choose Most
Compatible.
e. Click download.

Download photos and videos from your


iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch

W. Open the Photos app, then select one or


more photos or videos. 

[. Tap the share button  .


\. Tap AirDrop, then select the device that you
want to share with. Learn more about using
AirDrop.

For large numbers of photos, learn how to


import your photos instead. 

Download photos and videos from your Mac

W. On your Mac, open the Photos app.


[. Select one or more photos or videos. 
\. Drag the content to your desktop, or Control-
click and select Share > AirDrop.

Make sure that you have enough


storage

The photos and videos that you keep in iCloud


Photos use your iCloud storage and your device
storage. And as long as you have enough space
in iCloud and on your device, you can store as
many photos and videos as you like. Learn more
about iCloud storage and device storage.

If you need more iCloud storage

When you sign up for iCloud, you automatically


get 5GB of free storage. If you need more
space, and access to premium features, you can
upgrade to iCloud+.

Learn how to upgrade to iCloud+ 

If you need to save space on your device

iCloud Photos keeps all your photos and videos


in their original, high-resolution version. To save
storage space on your device, you can turn
on Optimize Storage.

If you turn on Optimize Storage, iCloud


Photos automatically manages the size of your
library on your device. Your original photos and
videos are stored in iCloud and space-saving
versions are kept on your device. Your library is
optimized only when you need space, starting
with the photos and videos you access least.
You can download the original photos and
videos over Wi-Fi or cellular when you need
them.

If you turn on Download Originals, iCloud Photos keeps


your original, full-resolution photos and videos in iCloud
and on your device.

On your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch

W. Go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud.


[. Tap Photos.
\. Choose Optimize [device] Storage.

On your Mac

W. Open the Photos app and click Photos in the


menu bar.
[. Click Settings or click Preferences.
\. Go to the iCloud tab and choose a storage
setting.

Pause library uploads to iCloud

When you turn on iCloud Photos, the time it


takes for your photos and videos to upload to
iCloud depends on the size of your collection
and your internet speed. If you have a large
collection of photos and videos, your upload
might take more time than usual. You can see
the status and pause the upload for one day.

On your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, open the


Photos app, go to the Library tab, and tap All
Photos. Then scroll to the bottom of your
screen.
On your Mac, open the Photos app. Select
Library in the sidebar, then click All Photos in
the list of tabs in the toolbar. Scroll to the
bottom of your photos and click Pause.

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independent websites not controlled or tested by Apple, is provided
without recommendation or endorsement. Apple assumes no
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third-party websites or products. Apple makes no representations
regarding third-party website accuracy or reliability. Contact the
vendor for additional information.

Published Date: October 26, 2022

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