Whenever I try to add a Keyword or Caption in Photos, the "cursor" seems to jump as soon as one or two characters are typed. As a result, I cannot type more than one or two characters at a time, and when I move back to either the Keynote or Caption section, the few characters I had typed are erased. I cannot figure out how to get out of this loop. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
MacBook Air with Apple Silicon
Big Sur
MacBook Air
Hello Art Vandelay100,
It sounds like the Photos app is not allowing you to properly add a Caption or Keyword to photos. Being able to add this information can be crucial in how your organize your photos so we want to help get this sorted.
To start, we want to confirm that outdated software isn’t causing this. Make sure that you’re backed up and running the latest version of Big Sur.
For a full breakdown on using Time Machine to back up your machine, visit: Back up your Mac with Time Machine
For a full breakdown on updating to the latest version of macOS Big Sur, visit: How to update the software on your Mac
If you’re already updated, or the behavior continues after updating, we next recommend trying to add a Caption or Keyboard while the computer is in safe mode to see if the same thing occurs. To launch into safe mode, please follow the steps here: Start up your Mac in safe mode
If the behavior doesn’t occur in safe mode but returns under a normal launch, make sure you have no automatic items that could be causing the behavior you’re experiencing in Photos. For a breakdown on checking your automatic items, visit: Open items automatically when you log in on Mac
We hope that helps. Take care.
Hello Art Vandelay100,
It sounds like the Photos app is not allowing you to properly add a Caption or Keyword to photos. Being able to add this information can be crucial in how your organize your photos so we want to help get this sorted.
To start, we want to confirm that outdated software isn’t causing this. Make sure that you’re backed up and running the latest version of Big Sur.
For a full breakdown on using Time Machine to back up your machine, visit: Back up your Mac with Time Machine
For a full breakdown on updating to the latest version of macOS Big Sur, visit: How to update the software on your Mac
If you’re already updated, or the behavior continues after updating, we next recommend trying to add a Caption or Keyboard while the computer is in safe mode to see if the same thing occurs. To launch into safe mode, please follow the steps here: Start up your Mac in safe mode
If the behavior doesn’t occur in safe mode but returns under a normal launch, make sure you have no automatic items that could be causing the behavior you’re experiencing in Photos. For a breakdown on checking your automatic items, visit: Open items automatically when you log in on Mac
We hope that helps. Take care.
I am still having the same problem on both Macs with macOS 11 Big Sur. The cursor is frequently losing the focus. As soon as the cursor has left the Info, any further letter I type is interpreted as a keyboard shortcut and opens the editor or similar. The worst is, when I try to correct a spelling mistake and use the backspace ⌫ , it will try to delete the photo instead of the letter I am trying to erase.
It seems to help to keep the trackpad very clean and to avoid the sleeve touching the trackpad when writing. And it is also slightly better, when my MacBook Pro is sitting on a desk and balancing on my knees, but what is the use of a portable Mac, if we have to sit at a desk when working with it?
I can confirm your observation, that it helps to wait, until Photos has updated the library. It is easier to tag photos, after editing them to an album, and not directly in "Recents". Tagging new photos is worse than changing the metadata of photos that have been imported for a long time. Both my Big Sur Macs are syncing with iCloud Photos. Waiting for "update just Now" to show in the status bar helps.
I haven't found a "solution" per se, but I have found a way to lessen the problem to a point where I can add captions with little hassle.
My "primary" copy of my photos is on a MacBook HD -- with copies kept on iCloud. When I'm using the MacBook, I load Photos and let it do whatever it does for 30 mins. to an hour. I can then add Captions & Keywords without any real problem -- although even then there are moments when the "cursor" jumps to a different point, so I have to check to make sure that I'm typing in the correct spot. But letting Photos "sit" for a bit has helped a lot.
(I haven't had a chance to try booting into Safe Mode, but perhaps that will lead to a better solution.)
Did you ever find a fix for this problem? I am having the exactly same problem
Can't Add Caption or Keyword in Photos
