HT204570: Get help with your iCloud Photo Library

Learn about Get help with your iCloud Photo Library
DouginNC
Level 1 (0 points)

Q: Once a photo has been downloaded into the Photos program on my Mac, can I safely delete the photo from an IOS device in order to reduce iCloud Drive storage space.

I want to delete pictures on my iPhone in order to reduce the iCloud Drive storage utilization.  But I don't want to permanently delete the photo from the Photos program on my Mac.  My question is; once the photo has been loaded into Photos on the Mac, can I safely delete it from my IOS device without worrying about the photo being subsequently deleted from the Mac?  I do not have the Photos program setup to upload my library to iCloud Photo Library.

MacBook Pro, Mac OS X (10.6.8), 15inch

Posted on May 25, 2015 6:23 AM

Close
DouginNC

Q: Once a photo has been downloaded into the Photos program on my Mac, can I safely delete the photo from an IOS device in order to r ... more

  • All replies
  • Helpful answers

  • by LarryHN,

    LarryHN LarryHN May 25, 2015 7:06 AM in response to DouginNC
    Level 10 (85,552 points)
    Photos for Mac
    May 25, 2015 7:06 AM in response to DouginNC

    Depends on information you do not provide

     

    How did you "download" the photos to your Mac?

     

    Cable sync? then yes

     

    MyPhooStream? If automatic import of new photos is set then yes.. If auto import is not set and you have manually imported the photo then yes. If you have not imported it then no

     

    Shared Photos stream? If you have import eh photos then yew. If you have not imported it then no

     

    iCloud Photo Library? N.

     

    LN

  • by Texas_Man_Luvs_His_mac,

    Texas_Man_Luvs_His_mac Texas_Man_Luvs_His_mac May 25, 2015 8:27 AM in response to LarryHN
    Level 1 (34 points)
    iOS Apps
    May 25, 2015 8:27 AM in response to LarryHN

    I'm wondering the same thing. Seems to be multiple approaches/answers based on the previous answer. I'm a simple man, would like to have everything cross over from other devices via the auto sync through iCloud. Once it is on my mac in Photos, wouldn't it be considered safe? Or is there something more I need to do in order to ensure the photos won't be deleted?

     

    Honestly, photos on my iPhone aren't my biggest concern, although that does exist. It is the videos that I want to delete from my iPhone, but would like them to auto cross over (sync) via iCloud with the Photos app. After I can see they are in my mac, would be nice to have peace of mind knowing I can delete them from my iPhone without having to give a second thought to losing them on my mac.

     

    Currently, I manually upload all videos to FCP X for safety. But this uses mega tons of storage over time with rendering and all, and I honestly don't need that level of storage for the average video clip. I would like to have them cross over into Photos, then only upload to FCP X the exact clips I plan on doing something more with. Same basic idea between video/pics though I suppose, what gets deleted when I delete a photo/video from my iPhone and how can I know it won't be deleted from my mac?

  • by LarryHN,

    LarryHN LarryHN May 25, 2015 8:32 AM in response to Texas_Man_Luvs_His_mac
    Level 10 (85,552 points)
    Photos for Mac
    May 25, 2015 8:32 AM in response to Texas_Man_Luvs_His_mac

    Reread my post - it describes the various situations and what what and will not delete from you Mac

     

    You wrote a long post but included no information needed to answer (although the answer is in my post)

     

    LN