duplicate photos from Photostream and import

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Level 1

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duplicate photos from Photostream and import

Hi there,

In the past the iPhotos app seemed to recognise photos that had been downloaded via Photostream and then not import them when the iPhone was connected via a cable to the mac. These days, with Photos and the latest Mac OSes, this doesn't seem to happen. Some photos seem to be recognised but most seem not to be, so if I want to do an import to my mac, I end with many duplicated photos that have come via Photostream. Is there a way that I can fix this annoying problem?

Thanks

Mac mini, macOS 10.14

Posted on Jul 9, 2019 2:17 AM

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Answer 1

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léonie

Level 10

195,031 points

Jul 9, 2019 2:41 AM in response to Dr Egg

There are two common reasons for duplicates on import:

"Optimize Storage" and iCloud Photos on the iPhone
The new HEIF format for for photos and videos.

You may want to check, if iCloud Photos has become enabled on your iPhone. If the iPhone is syncing with iCloud Photos, and optimize Storage is enabled, you will be getting random results on import, because the iPhone will download the same photos over and over again from iCloud and you may be seeing them as new files when importing.

As to the HEIF format: If you have set the iPhone to use the new, space saving HEIF format, but ar downloading the photos from the iPhone as JPEGs and not HEIC images, you will be seeing the original HEIC mages always as new, because you imported converted versions. Check the settings for the Camera and import on your iPhone as described here: Using HEIF or HEVC media on Apple devices - Apple Support

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duplicate photos from Photostream and import

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