Photos Won T Download From Iphone To Mac

Get 7 ways to transfer photos and videos from your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch to your Mac computer in this article!

Photos Will Not Download From Iphone To Mac
Photos Won't Import From Iphone To Mac
Iphone Won't Download Pictures To Computer
Why Won't My Pictures Download From Iphone
My Iphone Won't Download Pictures
Photos Won't Download From Iphone To Macbook
Photos Won't Import From Iphone To Macbook

Connect your iPhone to your Mac. Plug one end of the iPhone's charging cable into the iPhone's charging port, then plug the USB end into one of your computer's USB ports. If your phone isn’t connecting to your Mac, it might be the cable you’re using. Try using a new one to see if it fixes the issue. My wife's iPhone 5S had 'optimize iPhone storage' on in iCloud prefs. An increasing number of photo's started to appear in low resolution, and when tapped all seemed to freeze halfway through the download, getting stuck round 50%, even though there was still well over 2 GB of free space.

iPhone Data to Computer

AnyTrans – Full-way iPhone Photos Transfer Tool

AnyTrans is a good choice for transferring pictures and videos from iPhone to computer (Mac &PC). Transfer photos with your free trial now!

As photo collections grow, you may find Photos & Camera takes up the most of your iPhone storage. For me, in iPhone storage, it shows that photos occupy 48 GB of my 128GB iPhone XR. At this moment, moving all pictures and videos to computer for backup and then delete them is a good option to free up the iPhone storage space. How can I transfer photos from iPhone to MacBook pro? Here in the following guide, we will focus on how to transfer photos and videos from iPhone to Mac computer, like iMac, MacBook Pro/Air, Mac Mini, Mac Pro in some simple ways. Just keep reading!

How to Transfer Photos from iPhone to Mac with AnyTrans

How do I import photos from iPhone to Mac without iPhoto? You can have a try on the professional iPhone photos transfer tool – iMobie AnyTrans. And below are its outstanding features on uploading iPhone photos:

AnyTrans– iPhone Photo Transfer

1-click to transfer photos & videos iPhone to computer (Mac & PC).
Keep photos in original quality and well-organized in albums.
Fast transferring speed quite saves your time.
Get photos from PC/Mac to your iPhone without erasing.

Free Download100% Clean & Safe

If you prefer this way, just Free Download AnyTrans on your computer firstly, and then follow the steps below to import iPhone photos to your Mac quickly.

Option 1: How to Import All Photos from iPhone to Mac at Once

If you want to copy all the photos on your iPhone, like Camera Roll photos, Photo Stream photos, iTunes synced photos, iCloud sharing photos, and album photos, or some other specific albums to Mac, here’s how to do it.

Step 1: Download AnyTrans on your Mac > Run it > Connect your iPhone to Mac via USB cable > Click on Device Manager mode, and then choose the Content to PC option.

Go to Device Manager and Click Content to PC Button

Step 2: Uncheck the Select All box > Click the photos you need to transfer > Click on the Next button to start transferring the selected photos to your Mac.

Step 3: After the process completes, you can click the View Files button to check the transferred photos on your Mac.

Photos Transfer Completed

Option 2: How to Upload Multiple or Selected Photos from iPhone to Mac

If you just want to transfer some specific photos of some album to Mac instead of all the iPhone photos or the whole album, you can follow us to transfer multiple or selected photos from iPhone to Mac.

Step 1: Download AnyTrans on your Mac > Connect your iPhone to the computer via USB cable > Click on Device Manager mode, and then choose the Photos option.

Step 2: Choose the album that contains the photos you need > Select photos you want to transfer > Click on the To PC button at the top-right corner to transfer the selected photos to your Mac.

Select Photos and Send to PC

Bonus Part. How to Transfer Photos from iPhone to Mac Wirelessly

If there is no USB cable available or your iPhone cannot be recognized by your computer, then you can try the AnyTrans app to transfer photos from iPhone to Mac wirelessly.

Now connect your iPhone with Wi-Fi and do as the following steps:

Step 1. Install AnyTrans app on your iPhone. You can download it by clicking the below button or directly search AnyTrans on App Store.

Step 2. On your computer, enter anytrans.io in your browser, and you’ll see a QR code.

How to Transfer Photos from iPhone to Mac Wirelessly – Step 2

Step 3. On your iPhone, open the AnyTrans app you just installed and tap on the Scan button to scan the QR code on your computer.

Step 4. Then all your iPhone photos will show up on the computer. Select the photos you want to transfer and click the “Download” button to start transferring photos from iPhone to Mac. After the process completes, you can check them by going to Finder on your Mac > Downloads.

How to Transfer Photos from iPhone to Mac Wirelessly – Step 4

For iPhone 7 or later users who want to convert HEIC to JPG, please click the settings button to set it or using hassle-free HEIC to JPG converter to change these photos to JPG format on your computer.
When syncing photos from iPhone to Mac with AnyTrans, you won’t lose any previous photo on your iPhone.

Import Photos from iPhone to Mac with Photos/iPhoto

On Mac OS X Yosemite or later, you can use the Photos app to import iPhone photos, which replaces the old iPhoto and Aperture with a simpler photo editor and library manager. It also can be used to transfer photos from iPhone to Mac, and here we’ll show you how to make it:

Connect your iPhone to your computer with the USB cable.
The Photos app on your Mac will automatically launch. If not, go to the launchpad and select the Photos app.
Click the Import tab and select the photos you want to transfer to Mac.
You can click Import XX Selected or Import All New Items to transfer photos to Mac.

For Mac OS X Yosemite earlier, you can use the iPhoto feature on Mac to move Camera Roll photos from iPhone to Mac.

Connect your iPhone to Mac with a USB cable and then launch iPhoto on your Mac if it doesn’t open automatically.
Select your iPhone photos and click Import to import photos.
You can import all the iPhone photos or import some of them by picking up some photos and clicking Import Selected. You can add an Event Name for the imported photos before or after importing.

How to Import Photos from iPhone to Mac with iPhoto

Note: If you want to delete iPhone photos after import to your Mac, you can check the “Delete items after import”, which will automatically remove your iPhone photos after importing to your Mac.

Bonus Tip: Move Photos from Mac to an External Hard Drive

After import iPhone photos, you can also move your photos from your Mac to an external hard drive to make a copy, or free up Mac’s space. Here is how:

Connect your external hard drive to your Mac.
In the Finder, find your external drive.
Open another Finder window, find and open Pictures.
Drag your library to the external drive.

To get more info please read on How to Transfer iPhone Photos to Flash Drive with or without Computer >

How to AirDrop Photos from iPhone to Mac

How do I AirDrop from iPhone to Mac? On your iPhone, swipe up from the bottom of the screen to bring up the Control Center, and then tap the “AirDrop” button. You can also turn on AirDrop from the Settings app > General > AirDrop. Select either “Contacts Only” or “Everyone,” depending on who you want to be able to send the photos to.

Here is how to transfer iPhone photos to Mac with AirDrop:

On your iPhone, open the Photos app and find the photos you want to transfer to your Mac.
Ensure you’re viewing the photos in thumbnail view and tap Select in the top right corner.
Choose the photos you want to send to your Mac (selected photos appear with a blue checkmark).
Then tap the Share icon (a square with an up arrow).
In the AirDrop section, tap the name of your Mac.
Accept the photos on your Mac and they will be saved into the Downloads folder on your Mac.

Transfer Photos from iPhone to Mac via AirDrop

How to Sync Photos from iPhone to Mac with iCloud

iCloud Photos is Apple’s online photo storage service. When you activate iCloud Photos, all your iPhone photos get stored in iCloud so you can view and download them from your Mac. Note that you must be signed in with the same Apple ID on your iPhone and Mac. Here is how to sync iPhone photos to Mac with iCloud:

On your Mac, click the Apple icon at the top left of the screen, then go to System Preferences > Choose iCloud.
Check the box next to the iCloud Photo Library (iCloud Photos in macOS Mojave).
On your iPhone, go to Settings > Photos > Ensure iCloud Photos is on.

How to Import Photos from iPhone to Mac with Image Capture

Follow the steps on how to using Image Capture on Mac to import photos from iPhone:

Connect your iPhone to Mac with USB cable > Run Image Capture on your Mac.
Select your iPhone from the device list if it is not selected > Set the output folder for your iPhone photos.
Click Import or Import all to transfer photos from iPhone to Mac.

Sync Photos from iPhone to Mac with Image Capture

How to Send Photos from iPhone to Mac with Email

If you just want to transfer several photos from iPhone to Mac and your Mac is not at your hand, Email becomes a wonderful choice. Here is how to transfer photos from iPhone to Mac with Email:

Run Photos App on your iPhone > Tap on Albums to open Albums Page > Choose the target album.
Tap on Edit button > Pick up the photos you want to transfer > Tap on Share button and choose Email.
Type your Email address and complete the Email > Tap on Send > Sign in your Email on Mac and download those pictures and store them on Mac.

Transfer Photos from iPhone to Windows PC

There are also many ways to transfer iPhone photos to PC, and using the Windows default Photos app is one of the good ways. Here are steps on how to transfer iPhone photos to computer via Photos (windows 10/8):

Connect your iPhone with your computer with the USB cable.
The Photos app should automatically launch. If it doesn’t, launch it from the Windows Start menu.
Click the Import icon in the upper right corner of the Photos app.
Click on From a USB device and it will start searching for photos on your iPhone.
After that, choose photos to import to your computer.

Transfer iPhone Photos with Windows Photos

To get more ways and details on how to transfer iPhone photos to Windows PC, you can move to this guide: How to Transfer Photos from iPhone to Computer (Windows).

In addition, if you want to transfer photos from Mac back to your iPhone, just refer to How to Transfer Photo from Mac to iPhone >

Since iOS 11, iPhone has taken HEIC as the default format of its photos, as this new format is more efficient in terms of storage space. However, HEIC is not widely compatible, especially on Windows PC. If you have trouble opening HEIC photos on your computer and want to convert HEIC photos into other formats such as JPG, PNG, JPEG, etc, you can try a free tool – iMobie HEIC Converter.

Why Won’t My Photos Import from iPhone to Mac? FAQs

Where are photos stored on my Mac?

When you copy photos to your Mac with the Photos app, they are stored in the Photos library folder. Also, you can change the location to somewhere else like in a folder on your Mac or on an external drive, and still view them in Photos.

Here is where to find photos stored in the Photos app: On your Mac, Go to Finder > Choose Pictures > Right Click Photo Library > Choose Show Package Contents > In a folder named Masters, you will find photos in different folders.

What if my computer doesn’t recognize the iPhone?

Some of our users report that the iPhone cannot connect to the computer, here are some fixes for How to Fix Computer Not Recognizing iPhone Issues >

What to do if photos not showing up on Mac?

Any pictures in iCloud will not show when you import photos with Photos or Image Capture. You can download all from iCloud then try again.

Camera Roll only has the photos you took with the cameras on that iPhone or images captured from the screen.

If your images still don’t show on the Photos/Image Capture app on your Mac, you can try tips in this article: How to Fix Photos Not Showing up on Computer Issue >

iPhone keeps connecting and disconnecting from Mac

Check USB cable > Try using a different cable > Try unplugging and then replugging.
Check the charging port on the bottom of your iPhone and remove any debris.
Avoid a defective, damaged, or non-Apple-certified cable, you may see the “Accessory Not Supported” error.
Restart your iPhone and restart your Mac.
Ensure that you have the latest version of iOS 14.
Disconnect your iPhone from your Mac and on your iPhone tap: Settings > General > Reset and tap Reset Location & Privacy.

The MacBook Air/Pro doesn’t have USB-A ports?

Some MacBook Air/Pro doesn’t have USB-A Ports. As Apple said: “You can connect a USB-C power adapter and cable to charge your notebook computer. If you have a device that doesn’t connect to this port, you might be able to use an adapter to connect it.”

MacBook with USB-C Ports

These Mac models don’t have USB-A ports and have USB-C (Thunderbolt 3) ports:

Photos Will Not Download From Iphone To Mac

MacBook Pro introduced in 2016 or later
MacBook Air introduced in 2018 or later
iMac introduced in 2017 or later
iMac Pro (all models)
Mac mini introduced in 2018
Mac Pro introduced in 2019

The Bottom Line

Although you can get 7 or even more ways to transfer photos from iPhone to your iMac, MacBook Pro/Air, Mac Mini or Mac Pro, most of them only support exporting Camera Roll photos. If you want to transfer photos stored in other albums, you have to search for other solutions. Just like the table above shows, when it comes to transferring and managing iPhone photos, AnyTrans can be the best choice.

Except for transferring photos, it also can transfer other iOS contents, like Messages, Contacts, Videos, Movies, Notes, ect., and also supports transfer data from one iPhone to another Apple device directly. Why not download AnyTransand try now?

Free Download * 100% Clean & Safe

Part 1: Quick Fixes on Photos Won't Import from iPhone to Mac

Here are some quick fixes that you can try on both your iPhone and your Mac for you to be able to import your photos from your iPhone device to your Mac.

Solution #1: See Your iPhone Status

Now, for you to be able to transfer your photos over from your iPhone to your Mac, make sure that you have unlocked your iPhone device once that you have connected it your Mac. Then go ahead and click on Trust once that you see a trust message on your iPhone screen.

Solution #2: See If There Are Any Updates on Your Mac and Your iPhone Device

There is actually a possibility that the software on your Mac or the operating of your iPhone device is a way to old to perform the transfer process. So if there are available updates on your Mac or on your iPhone device, then go ahead and have them updated. And here is the software that you have to make sure that it is updated.

Update the Photo-Management app to the latest version such as your iPhoto, Photos, and Image Capture.
Go ahead and update your iPhone’s operating system. Just go to the Settings of your iPhone and then choose General. And after that, go ahead and tap on Software Update.
Go ahead and have your iTunes updated to the latest version.

Solution #3: Reconnect iPhone Device and Reset Your Program

If your iPhone device is connected to your Mac and you were not able to import your photos, then go ahead and have it disconnected. Then go ahead and turn off your iPhone device for you to close all running program.

Try also to reboot your Mac device. And once that both devices are back up, then go ahead and reconnect your iPhone to your Mac and try to import your photos from your iPhone to your Mac.

Solution #4: Try to Reset Your Location and Privacy

Now, we know that this means to sound a little weird but resetting your location and privacy actually work when your photos won’t import from iPhone to Mac. And for you to be able to do this, here is what you need to do.

Step 1: Go ahead and launch the Settings app on your iPhone device.

Step 2: And then, goa head and tap on General, then choose Reset, and then Reset Location & Privacy.

Step 3: After that, go ahead and tap on Reset Settings for you to be able to confirm the action.

Step 4: Once done, go ahead and connect your iPhone device to your Mac.

Step 5: Then if you see a trust message on your iPhone device, just go ahead and hit on Trust to continue.

Step 6: Once done, go ahead and import photos from your iPhone device to your Mac.

Solution #5: Check on Your Disk Manager

Here, all you need to do is to launch the Disk Manager on your Mac and then click on the Check Disk function. This way, you will be able to see if your Mac’s Disk Manager is actually working properly.

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Part 2: Some Alternative Ways to Import Photos from iPhone to Your Mac

Now, here are some alternative ways on how you can import your photos from your iPhone device to your Mac.

Option #1: Import Photos from iPhone to Mac Using Preview

The Preview application that you have on your Mac actually has the ability for you to be able to see anything on your Mac which includes your photos. Because of that, it is also considered to be the easiest way for you to be able to import your photos from your iPhone device to your Mac. And for you to do this, here are the steps that you can follow.

Step 1: Go ahead and have your iPhone device connected to your Mac using your USB cable.

Step 2: Once that your iPhone device is connected to your Mac, go ahead and launch Preview application.

Step 3: Then, go ahead and click on the File option from the menu bar of the app. This is located at the upper-left corner of the application window.

Step 4: Then, you will be able to see a drop-down menu. So from there, all you have to do is to choose on Import from iPhone.

Step 5: After that, go ahead and choose all the photos that you would want to import from your iPhone device to your Mac.

Step 6: And once that you are done choosing all the photos, go ahead and simply click on the Import or Import All button located the bottom-right corner of your window screen.

Photos Won't Import From Iphone To Mac

Option #2: Have Your Photos from iPhone Import to Mac Wirelessly

In case you are planning to import multiple photos from your iPhone device to your Mac, then the method that we suggest is by Email. It is because this is the easiest way for you to do it. For you to know how you can do this, here is a simple step by step method that you can follow..

Step 1: Go ahead and launch the Photos application on your iPhone device and then go to your album.

Step 2: From your album, go ahead and choose the photos that you would want to import to your Mac.

Step 3: Once that you are done choosing all of the photos that you want, then go ahead and simply tap on the Share button and choose Email.

Step 4: Then go ahead and enter your Email address and then tap on Send.

Step 5: Once that you are done, then you will be able to download the photos from your Email using your Mac device.

Option #3: Import Photos from iPhone to Mac Using iCloud

Another method that you can actually use for you to import your photos from your iPhone device to your Mac is by using your iCloud account. But, for you to be able to use this, all the photos that you have on your iPhone device should be backed up on your iCloud account. And for you to be able to import your photos from your iPhone device to your Mac, here are the steps that you will be needing to follow.

Step 1: Go ahead and launch Photos and then go ahead and click on Photos.

Step 2: Then go ahead and choose Preferences and choose iCloud.

Step 3: From there, all you need to do is to sign in using your Apple ID and password.

Step 4: Make sure that this is the same as the one that you have on your iPhone device.

Step 5: Then once that the photos on your iCloud have been updated, just go ahead and simply drag them to your desired folder on your Mac.

REMINDER: In order for you to be able to sync your photos from your iPhone device to your Mac using your iCloud, then you have to make sure that you are connected to the internet. Another thing is that, if you will be needing to have more storage on your iCloud, then you have to pay for it.

Part 3: Free Up Your Mac from Unwanted Photos to Free Up More Space

Now, since that you are now able to import photos from your iPhone device to your Mac, then it is time to make sure that you do not have any other photos that you no longer need. One example is the similar photos that you have on your Mac.

These photos are one of the reasons as to why you might run out of storage space because photos are actually big in size. So for you to remove those duplicate or similar photos that you have on your Mac, the best tool that you can use will be the iMyMac PowerMyMac.

The iMyMac PowerMyMac Cleaner has the ability to find all of the similar photos on your Mac. And with that, you will be able to free up space. And at the same time, you will be able to get your Mac into a better shape.

For you to find your similar photos on your Mac, just go ahead and download the iMyMac PowerMyMac Cleaner from our website and then have it installed on your Mac. Once that you have installed the program, go ahead and follow the steps that we are going to show you below.

Step 1: Launch the iMyMac PowerMyMac

Once that you have successfully installed the iMyMac PowerMyMac on your Mac, go ahead and launch it. On the main interface of the program, you will be able to see the system status of your Mac.

Step 2: Choose A Module

Then, at the top of your screen, you will also be able to see three modules. The Status, Cleaner, and Toolkit. From those three, go ahead and choose the Cleaner.

Step 3: Select Similar Photo

Now, under the Cleaner module, you will be able to see different options. From those options, go ahead and choose Similar Photo.

Step 4: Scan Your Photos on Your Mac

After that, the program will then ask you to scan the photos of your Mac. From here, all you need to do is to click on the Scan button on your screen. The scanning process will then start so all you need to do is to wait for it to complete.

Step 5: View The Scanned Photos

Once that the scanning process is done, go ahead and click on the View button for you to see all the scanned photos. On the left side of your screen, you will be able to see all of your photos. And once that you click on them, you will be able to preview them on the right side of your screen.

Iphone Won't Download Pictures To Computer

Step 6: Choose All Similar Photos

After that, go ahead and tick on the similar photos that you want to clean up. You can also have the option to reserve which of those photos to remain on your Mac after you have prereview them.

Step 7: Clean Up All Similar Photos

Once that you have chosen all of the similar photos on your Mac, go ahead and click on the Clean button located at the bottom-right corner of your screen. Then, go ahead and click on the Confirm button from the pop-up box that will appear. Then the cleaning process will now start so just go ahead and wait for it to finish.

Part 4: Conclusion

As you can see, fixing your photos won’t import from iPhone to Mac is very easy. Just make sure that you do the solutions that we have given you above. Also, you can try out to use other methods on how you can import your photos from your iPhone device to your Mac. After all, it is never bad to do something new.