Transfer just some albums from Photos library on Macbook to iMac

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Level 1

14 points

Transfer just some albums from Photos library on Macbook to iMac

I have an iMac and a Macbook, both recent and running High Sierre and Mojave, respectively. I did not sync the iPhoto library from my iMac to the Macbook, so the libraries are different. While on travel this month, I downloaded photos from the camera's SD card to the Macbook and organised them into albums in Photos library.

Can I import just those photos, in their albums, into the Photos library on my iMac? I don't want to have to organise them all over again if I don't have to.

Thanks for advice !

MacBook, macOS 10.13

Posted on Jul 22, 2019 7:09 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

léonie

Level 10

195,141 points

Jul 22, 2019 8:05 AM in response to annfromfra

You could simply export the photos from each album to a separate folder on your Mac. Name the folder like the album.

If you drag the folder into the sidebar of your Photos Library, directly onto the title "My Albums", the photos will be imported as a folder with an album with the name of the folder. You will just have to move the albums out of the enclosing folders. The additional folders are a nuisance, but that is how Photos is currently importing folders. Delete the additional folders, one you have moved the albums out of them.

For example: Dragging a folder onto "My Albums". Release the folder, when the cursor has turned int a green +.

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Answer 2

annfromfra Author

Level 1

14 points

Jul 23, 2019 9:16 AM in response to léonie

Thanks, Léonie. In the end (before I saw your reply), I sent the photos in batches (by date) with AirDrop and then imported them in batches into Photos. After each batch, I saved them to a fresh album with the title of the trip and the date. I then created an enclosing folder for all those albums.

Probably more cumbersome than your method! In truth, I have never taken the time to figure out what folders are for as opposed to what albums are for. That's how elementary I am in Photos.

I still have a lot of photos on the Macbook that I don't know what to do with, since I imported only the Favorites (that's the organisation part I did not want to lose). I may import them into Pictures and leave them there, in no particular order, waiting to be deleted (which is probably never...).

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Transfer just some albums from Photos library on Macbook to iMac

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