Did Apple change the directory structure for their photos?

Yep, it sure did. Reverted back to the previous incarnation without a trace.

I agree with everyone else, this was a complete surprise and a bit of a nuisance. I have various backups on various PCs, they will all be out of date. Now, there's certainly some benefit if you're looking for a particular month; but if you're just searching for a random photo, I now have to hunt through 78 different folders instead of about 27.

If it had been this way from the start, it would have probably made my life a heckuva lot easier.

Since iOS 14.6 update the DCIM folder subdirectories are now YYYY_M (Year_Month)!!! (and not 101, 102, ...)

Thank you Apple for this change! I absolutely love it!

It is by far the best change (for me) in the iOS in the last 10 years!

Usually Apple makes changes like these in preparation for later updates, changes and features. I understand that it’s a little „in your face“, but now we’ll probably have another 10 years of peace until they change it again.

I have 91 folders in my DCIM going back to 2019.

My problem is - when I open it in Windows Explorer it presents oldest to newest so I have to scroll down every time to get to the last folder to see the most recent snap.

I want it to be displayed newest to oldest and to stay like that everytime I access it from Windows.

Any one have any clues on this?

The View (tab)> Options > Change folder and search options > View (tab) > Rest Folders doesnt seem to work.

Not that I mind, since I dont want my Explorer view settings changed just to accommodate the DCIM folder.

I'm not sure how to make it sort that way permanently, if it is even possible; especially since this is an external device whose settings seem to get lost after it is disconnected. If anyone else can find a way, I'd be interested to know how they did it.

However, another simple option is to first select the Details view at the top (instead of List), and then click on the Name column to sort ascending or descending, as you desire. You can then switch back to List view if that is what you desire, and it will retain the sort, at least for now. Not automatic, but you can get what you want in under a second with a couple clicks.

You can also do the same within a picture folder to see the latest pics listed first; sort them under Details view, then switch back to Large icons, Extra Large, etc.

I tested this on my local C:\DCIM folder, which I have as a backup copy of my phone's DCIM folder. I closed Windows Explorer completely, reopened it and went back to the C:\DCIM folder; it retained the "newest to oldest" sort. So, it will remember for some time, but I can't guarantee that it's permanent. For the phone DCIM folder, however, the sort was lost when I disconnected.

This has nothing at all to do with Apple's folder structure (other than that the recent upgrade created substantially more folders, at least for most people who take less than 10,000 pictures per month.) It's entirely about how Windows sorts the folders (and subsequently remembers those settings, if you changed them). As I have already mentioned, I think this may be nearly impossible, especially since this is an external device.

As for "several easy ways to transfer photos from the phone to a computer", I find myself laughing hysterically. In all my years of trying to use iTunes to manage photos (or music or anything else) on any of the devices I have ever owned, I have found it to be a complete pain in the rear every darn time. Oh, but sure, I can automatically upload the first 2% of my photos to iCloud, but why on earth would I want to pay to store the next 250GB??

Far and away the best and easiest way for me to handle my photos is simply to connect to them directly, as above, and then copy them to a local backup directory.

I entirely agree that copying the files directly is the simplest, most dependable method; even if, according to Mr. Finch, you "should never have done that". Recommending iTunes can only be done by someone who has never actually used iTunes; it is positively worthless in any application I have tried. Even if iTunes worked smoothly, it would still not be any easier, because it would not put my files where I want them; it would still take just as much effort on my part (and substantially more time since iTunes is so darn slow.)

Copying the DCIM folders locally is exactly the same process I do with any other camera's pictures; this is really no different. Apple's folder structure, until recently, was essentially the same as any other camera; they didn't invent anything new.

How do you expect to copy 29,000+ photos to PC? Drag & Drop will be the easiest. All these 118APPLE, 119APPLE, folders are not even arranged chronologically. Each folder contains photos from 2016, 2019, and etc.

Same case, I was so happy with the new way to organize that I started to back them up immediately and get rid-off the previous ones, I even stayed until early in the morning…the very next day I updated de IOS version, and found the previous folders 101APPLE again. I’m so so frustrated

If Apple didn’t want you to access photo folders they could block access, just as the have to other content in iOS. But it is an undocumented use, and they have no obligation to organize it for your convenience rather than their need to optimize access to the photo database.

JoJo_Kwok wrote:

Honestly, the so call “official ways” suggested by Apple are all user unfriendly and need relatively additional steps to do the same thing as copy and paste.

What is unfriendly about turning on iCloud Photos and having the photos appear magically and almost instantaneously in iCloud on the web and on your computer?

Absolute bummer! Apple - please can you revert it back to the dates (which makes sense and helps people easily locate the photo they are looking for) OR at least give us an option to select which we prefer? As somebody who takes A LOT of photos, this would really make my back up life easier

I totally agree. I was so excited and happy to see that update (subdirectories are of form 2021_8). But it reverted to the previous format again. I was so disappointed. >_< iTune never works for me for my computer. I was not even able to download in my computer so I have had to transfer my photos manually to my computers. With the format of dates. It is so much easier to view and find my photos. Wonder if it's even possible to have options for users to choose whatever format they want in the setting?