imac M1 will not import photos from iPhone 13 pro max
I have an imac M1 and an iPhone 13 pro max. Both are running the newest current ios.
Photos app WILL NOT import photos from the phone.
I attach the iPhone to the mac directly using a USB port.
I open the photos app on the mac - the iphone does show up in the photos app window.
It then says "Preparing to import from "iPhone"" and hangs there FOREVER!
No pictures imported, nothing shows up, NADA.
Any thought or ideas are appreciated.
Mac mini, macOS 12.4