Can not see photos in iMessage thread on iOS 14

After I updated to iOS 14 I can no longer see photo preview in one specific iMessage thread I’ve tried restarts snd updated to iOS 14.0.1 with the same issue persisting. Some picture do show links show previews and gif’s show previews. This happens in the message app and on the quick reply screen. Is there a fix for this?

iPhone XS Max

Posted on Oct 1, 2020 7:01 PM

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9 replies

Oct 9, 2020 10:32 AM in response to tashrocca

Hey tashrocca,


Thanks for the confirmation on what's happening.


When the issue appears on the group chat, are all photos and videos affected or just the ones from a specific member of that group? If it's a specific member, is it the same one in the individual message thread? Have you noticed if this happens if you're connected to a different network? Try another Wi-Fi or connect to Cellular. Does that help? In Settings > Messages, is MMS Messaging enabled? How about Group Messaging?


Finally, we'd like to check your iPhone's storage to rule that out as part of this issue. Head to Settings > General > iPhone Storage. What do you see for available storage on your device?


Keep us updated.



Oct 13, 2020 7:57 AM in response to tashrocca

Hi tashrocca,


Thank for keeping us updated.


Since you've already created a backup, the next step would be to connect to a computer and Restore your iPhone, iPad, or iPod to factory settings. Once done, setting up the iPhone as new will be a good way to test to make sure that things are now working as expected.


Then, if it is working, you can Restore your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch from a backup


Hope that helps!

Oct 7, 2020 2:21 PM in response to tashrocca

Hi tashrocca,


Welcome to Apple Support Communities. We understand that you're no longer able to view all photos shared between you and this contact. We'd like to help you be able to see photos in this thread again.


Does this happen with newly shared photos or just the ones that have been shared in the past? If you click on the photo, are you able to save it? This resource can help: Use Messages on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch


Do you Store messages in iCloud and view them on another device? If so, do the photos appear correctly there?


Let us know.

Oct 11, 2020 9:50 AM in response to tashrocca

Hi tashrocca,


Got it. Let's continue on with this.


Do you notice that this happens when connected to a specific network? If you're typically on Wi-Fi, can you switch to another Wi-Fi network or to your cellular connection to check if that helps?


Then, complete these steps since Messages isn't responding as expected: If an app unexpectedly quits, stops responding, or won’t open


Hope that helps.

Oct 7, 2020 5:25 PM in response to SnickZ.

Thanx for the reply.

It happens on newly received images and yes I can save the images and I can view the image if I click on it and expand it but the message thread view doesn’t allow me to see it. And I’m not sure if it backs up to iCloud but this iPhone is the only device I use iMessage on so I can’t tell if it would work on other devices. At first I only noticed this issue with this one contact but just today I had this same issue on a video received on an iMessage group chat but on this same chat I have never had this issue with any other videos or images and I receive several videos and images in this chat on a daily basis.

Oct 11, 2020 8:41 PM in response to Chris_D13

The issue happens in both cellular and Wi-Fi connections I’ve tried it with the Wi-Fi completely off and just on cellular but it still happens no matter what network I’m connected to so it seems it’s not a network dependent issue. I tried the aplicable steps in the link with no success. I’m not sure if many others are having this issue but I have a coworker that is experiencing the same issue after updating to iOS 14 on his iPhone 11 Pro.

Oct 12, 2020 9:37 AM in response to tashrocca

Hi tashrocca, 


Got it. 


This issue appears to be device specific so we want to see if the issue is with your account or the device itself. Do you currently back up your data to a computer or iCloud or are you using Messages in iCloud? We do recommend that you complete one of these steps to ensure that your data is safe. 


Back up iPhone

Keep all your messages in iCloud


Then, we'd like you to turn off iMessage and FaceTime on your iPhone, You can do that in Settings > Messages and Settings > FaceTime. Once off, please Restart your iPhone and then turn Messages and FaceTime back on. 


Are you able to see the photos now as they are delivered? 


Let us know. 

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Can not see photos in iMessage thread on iOS 14

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