Mac Photos Move Photos Between Libraries

11.04.2020
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  1. Mac Photos Move Photos Between Libraries And Software
  2. Mac Photos Move Photos Between Libraries And Events
  3. Mac Photos Move Photos Between Libraries And Books
  4. Mac Photos Move Photos Between Libraries 2017
  5. Mac Photos Move Photos Between Libraries Near Me
  6. Move Iphoto Library To Photos

You can have multiple photo libraries in Photos app for Mac OS X. You can switch between libraries with simple steps. If you want to select a different library, then hold down the 'Option' key when you launch 'Photos' app ans select the photo library which you want to open. If your library is stored on an external drive, then you need to connect that drive to be able to select and switch to that photo library in Photos app on Mac.

IPhoto Library Manager also lets you move photos between Libraries. For example, if you want to move an album or a folder of albums from one Library to another, choose the source album on the left. First, follow the instructions in Accessing an iPhoto library on another Mac so that one of your Macs has access to both libraries. Then, you can perform any copying between those libraries just like any other libraries on your Mac, including copying albums, events, or photos, or merging libraries.

Following are the steps to Switch Between Libraries in Photos App for OS X:

  1. Launch 'Photos' app on Mac OS X.
  2. Hold down 'Option' key on your keyboard.
  3. Double-click on 'Photos'.
  4. Choose the name of photo library that you want to open.

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I've had a multi-Mac household pretty much since college, rocking a laptop and desktop in addition to miscellaneous iOS devices throughout the years. Dropbox and iCloud sync made most of the pains of using several Macs disappear, but iPhoto was always a problem. My laptop is tiny! My iPhoto library, not so much.

Thankfully, Photos for Mac — paired with iCloud Photo Library's Optimize Storage feature — makes working with and syncing multiple Macs a breeze. Here's how you can do it.

How to use Photos and iCloud Photo Library with multiple Macs

Here's a quick, simple breakdown on setting up your Macs to support Photos and iCloud Photo Library.

I recommend starting with your biggest iPhoto library; it'll usually be on your desktop Mac. When you open Photos for the first time, your library should import automatically; if it prompts you to create a new library, your Photos library may be stored in another location on your Mac, and you may need to manually open it.

Mac Photos Move Photos Between Libraries And Software

Once you've imported your biggest library on your Mac, make sure iCloud Photo Library is turned on and syncing. You can do this by following these steps:

  1. Launch Photos on your Mac.
  2. Click Photos in the menu bar.

  3. Select Preferences (or do this quicker by pressing ⌘,). Merge 2 photos libraries mac os.

    Source: iMore

  4. Click on the iCloud tab.

    Source: iMore

  5. Check off the box for iCloud Photos.

    • You can also check off the box for Download Originals to this Mac if you have the space.
    • You can check off Optimize Mac Storage to save space on your Mac by only saving a percentage of images and video locally — the rest will be thumbnails that you can click on to download when you want to.

    Source: iMore

Now, open your other Mac, and launch Photos. If you have an iPhoto library on that secondary Mac, follow the same steps as above — import your library, then turn on iCloud Photo Library. If you have duplicates of the same photo on each computer, iCloud should automatically resolve those conflicts when it syncs, providing you with just one version of your photos when the sync process finishes.

If you don't have an iPhoto library on your secondary Mac, create a new library in Photos and turn on iCloud Photo Library. If you want to save storage space on this secondary Mac, make sure Optimize Mac Storage is selected: This will save a certain percentage of images and video locally to your device, while providing thumbnails of all the others for you to download at your leisure.

After you've set up all your Macs with Photos and the sync process has finished, you're now good to go. From here on out, any time you add photos, they'll sync to every computer you've set up with Photos.

What syncs, what doesn't sync

Mac Photos Move Photos Between Libraries And Events

Photos for Mac syncs a lot more than just your original photos and videos. According to a support document on Apple.com, here's what else you should expect to see sync:

Mac Photos Move Photos Between Libraries And Books

  • All folders and albums
  • Smart Albums
  • Keywords
  • Memories
  • Searchable keywords
  • Key photo selections

There are a few things iCloud Photo Library won't sync, however. Here's Apple's list:

  • Books, cards, calendars, and slideshows
  • Keyword shortcuts
  • Unused keywords
  • Last imported album on the Mac in question
  • Names and faces in the People album

For those not using iCloud Photo Library

If you've chosen not to enable iCloud Photo Library, Apple still offers you free syncing of your last 1000 photos via My Photo Stream, which doesn't count toward your iCloud disk space.

This will sync and download images you've imported or taken on other devices, but you won't have the option to optimize your storage or sync your albums.

Octoober 2019: Updated for macOS Catalina.

Serenity Caldwell contributed to an earlier version of this guide.

Mac Photos Move Photos Between Libraries 2017

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Mac Photos Move Photos Between Libraries Near Me

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Oct 12, 2016  Once you have your iTunes library on an external hard drive, you can relocate it to a new Mac. Quit iTunes on your new Mac. Connect your external hard drive to your new Mac using a USB cable. Open the external hard drive once it appears on your new Mac's screen. Mar 16, 2020  On your new Mac, connect your external drive to Mac Click Finder on your new Mac Choose the Music folder Then drag the iTunes library folder in the external drive to the music folder in new Mac. Move itunes library from mac to external hard drive.