Dec 03, 2013  You can't transfer an iPhoto Library to a Windows or Linux based machine. These Oses have no way to understand this library. What you can do is export from iPhoto to folders on the desktop and then copy those to the other machine. Photo transfer app for mac requirements Access to a Wi-Fi network is required for this application to work. Some corporate and public Wi-Fi networks may not allow connections to be established between devices.

If you want your Mac's photos to wirelessly sync to all your other iOS devices and computers, you want to set up iCloud Photo Library: Apple's photo sync service lets you back up your images on all your devices, as well as access them — online or offline — on said devices. If you're willing to pay for the extra iCloud storage space, you can store an incredible amount of photos and videos, all accessible at the touch of a button or multi-touch screen.

Here's how to set it up on your Mac and get everything configured to your liking!

How to set up iCloud Photo Library on your Mac

  1. Launch the Photos app on your Mac.
  2. Select the Photos menu in the upper left corner of your screen.
  3. Go to Preferences.

  4. Click on the iCloud tab.

    Source: iMore

  5. Check 'iCloud Photos.' This will begin uploading any and all images you have stored in the Photos app to iCloud.

    Source: iMore

How to optimize your photo and video storage

If you routinely shoot 4K video or high-quality images on your iPhone, iPad, or DSLR, you may run out of storage space fast. (I have a 1TB iMac, but also have almost a terabyte of 4K video stored in iCloud — it gets unwieldy, fast!) This is especially true if you have a Mac laptop with limited hard drive space: It's nice to look at your iPhone's gorgeous Portrait mode photos, but not necessarily always practical to store all of them locally.

Thankfully, Apple offers an Optimize Storage option, which lets you store full-resolution photos and videos of only your most recently shot and accessed imagery; all older photos and videos are available to download via iCloud and are stored as low-resolution previews on your device to save space. You can switch between optimizing your Mac's photos storage or storing your full library locally: Here's how!

Note: If you plan on using Optimize Storage, we suggest having at least one device that stores your entire library locally (usually a Mac with a large local or external hard drive), so you have multiple backups of your photographs and video.

  1. Launch the Photos app on your Mac.
  2. Click Photos in the App menu in the upper left corner of your screen.

  3. Select Preferences from the drop-down menu.

    Source: iMore

  4. Click the iCloud tab.

  5. Click Optimize Mac Storage.

    Source: iMore

Full-resolution versions of your photos and videos will be uploaded to iCloud.

How to share photos with iCloud Photo Library

Apple's photo service doesn't just provide online backups and sync for your images and video: The company also offers a free sharing service that allows you to send shared albums to friends and family (or create a publicly-shared website). Here's how to turn it on for your Mac.

Transfer Photos Mac To Pc

Questions?

Let us know in the comments below.

Updated January 2020: Updated for macOS Catalina. Serenity Caldwell worked on a previous version of this post

iCloud Photo Library: The Ultimate Guide

Main

More Apple TV+ content

Martin Scorsese's next movie might come to Apple TV+ after Paramount walked

Spiraling costs have put Paramount off Scorcese's next gig and Apple TV+ is one potential suitor. Netflix is said to be another potential avenue.

Want to transfer iCloud photos to PC but don’t know how? Here in this post, we summarized a few ways to help you transfer photos from iCloud to PC.

iCloud Transfer Tips

Transfer Data to iCloud
Export Data from iCloud
Sync iCloud with Other Sources

The most amazing thing about iCloud is its tight integration with all iOS devices and Mac computers. It could automatically upload content to the server and sync them to all iOS devices and Mac computers, but not to PC.

Recently, a lot of PC users emailed us, asking how to transfer iCloud photos to PC. Here in this post, we summarized a few ways that could help you transfer photos to PC both from My Photo Stream and iCloud Photo Library.

You may wonder: What are My Photo Stream and iCloud Photo Library and how do they relate to iCloud photos? Actually photos from My Photo Stream and iCloud photo Library are all can be called iCloud photos. My Photo Stream only syncs 1000 maximum photos of recent 30 days to all your iOS devices and Mac computers. iCloud Photo Library, however, uploads all photos to iCloud and keeps them up to date across devices. To decide which way to go, you can go to Settings on your iDevice, click on the iCloud, select Photos and scroll down to check if iCloud Photo Library or My Photo Stream is enabled. If iCloud Photo Library is enabled, then you can transfer photos from iCloud Photo Library to PC. If My Photo Stream is enabled, you can transfer photos from My Photo Stream to PC.

Since now you have known which kind of photo you can transfer to PC, please choose one way below to make it.

Part 1. Transfer Photos from iCloud Photo Library to PC

This part focuses on ways of transferring photos from iCloud Photo Library to PC. Please adopt one of the methods below to transfer photos from iCloud Photo Library to PC.

Method 1. Transfer Photos from iCloud Photo Library though AnyTrans

AnyTrans for iOS is specialized in managing iCloud content. It allows you to selectively transfer iCloud content to computer without data loss and it is easy to transfer iCloud photos to PC. Besides, AnyTrans could help you view, edit and delete iCloud content in an easy way. What’s more, it supports transferring iCloud content to another iCloud account directly.

Now, let’s see how AnyTrans helps you transfer photos from iCloud Photo Library to PC.

Step 1. Download AnyTrans for iOS and launch it on PC > Run AnyTrans on your PC/Mac > Click on iCloud Manager tab > Sign in with your iCloud account (Apple ID).

Transfer iCloud Photos to External Hard Drive with AnyTrans – Step 1

Step 2. Click on Photos on the managing content by category page.

Transfer iCloud Photos to External Hard Drive with AnyTrans – Step 2

Step 3. Select photos you want to transfer and then click the To PC tab.

Method 2. Transfer Photos from iCloud Photo Library to PC via iCloud Control Panel

Step 1. Download iCloud Control Panel to PC, log in your iCloud account and then click on Options next to Photos.

Transfer Photos from iCloud Photo Library to PC via iCloud Control Panel – Step 1

Step 2. Select iCloud Photo Library and click Done, then iCloud Photo Library is enabled on your PC.

Transfer Photos from iCloud Photo Library to PC via iCloud Control Panel – Step 2

Step 3. After iCloud Photo Library is enabled, a folder named iCloud Photos will be created. Click on Download, then you can select photos to download to your PC.

Transfer Photos from iCloud Photo Library to PC via iCloud Control Panel – Step 3

Method 3. Transfer Photos from iCloud Photo Library to PC via iCloud.com

Step 1. Go to iCloud.com, log in your iCloud account.

Step 2. Click on the Photos.

Transfer Photos from iCloud Photo Library to PC via iCloud.com – Step 2

Step 3. Select the photos you want to download, click the Download tab on the upper right.

Transfer Photos from iCloud Photo Library to PC via iCloud.com – Step 3

Also Read:
Differences between My Photo Stream and iCloud Photo Library >
How to Transfer Photos from iCloud to Mac >

Part 2. Transfer Photos from My Photo Stream to PC

Here are two methods of transferring photos from My Photo Stream to PC.

Method 1. Transfer Photos from My Photo Stream to PC via AnyTrans

Step 1. Download AnyTrans for iOS and start it on your computer > Connect your iDevice to computer with USB cable > Choose Device Manager mode > Click on Photos option as the screenshot shows.

Transfer Multiple or Selected Photos from iPhone to Computer – Step 2

Step 2. Click on Photos and then select “My Photo Stream” at the left panel

Transfer Multiple or Selected Photos from iPhone to Computer – Step 3

Transfer photo library from mac to pc software

Step 3. Select the photos you prefer > Click on the “To PC” button at the top-right corner to transfer the photos to your PC.

Transfer Multiple or Selected Photos from iPhone to Computer – Step 4

Method 2. Transfer Photos from My Photo Stream to PC though iCloud Control Panel

This method is actually quite similar to the method of transferring photos from iCloud Photo Library to PC. The main difference is, enabling My Photo Stream instead of iCloud Photo Library.

Step 1. Download iCloud Control Panel and log in your iCloud account.

Step 2. Click the Options next to Photos, then check the box of Upload to My Photo Stream.

Transfer Photo Library From Mac To Pc Software

Transfer Photos from My Photo Stream to PC via iCloud Control Panel – Step 2

Step 3. After My Photo Stream is enabled, a folder named iCloud Photos will be created. My Photo Stream will automatically download any new photos that you take on iOS devices to the Downloads folder just like method 2 in part 1.

The Bottom Line

Photos From Mac To Pc

Here are five ways of transferring iCloud photos to PC, hope these five ways could solve your problem. If you have any problems about this article, please don’t hesitate to let us know by email or leaving comments below. Last but not least, AnyTrans can also do well in managing data on your iDevices and iTunes.

Transfer Photo Library From Mac To Pc Games

Product-related questions? Contact Our Support Team to Get Quick Solution >

⇐ ⇐ How Navigate In Mac Users Gaspar Library
⇒ ⇒ Move Itunes Library To New Drive Mac