FYI: How to rebuild a Live Photo after it gets separated into two files, one photo and one video.

This is not really a question but I wanted to share what I discovered with the community so it can help others as I have not been able to find any online resources so far.


After transferring photos from iPhone to Mac using Image Capture or using file transfer in a Windows PC, the Live Photos break into two file types, .MOV and .JPG and can not be viewed as a single Live Photo anymore.


BUT there is a solution that stitches/merges them back together.


Open Photos on your Mac. In Preferences make sure Copy Items to the Photo Library is selected. Close Preferences window.


Go to File>Import, select both the .JPG and the .MOV with the same name and click Review For Import.


From there you will see the preview of the newly rebuilt version of the Live Photo and you can then continue importing it into your library. Now the Live Photo is in your library and you can delete the .JPG and .MOV files you just imported. This method also works in a batch if you have several files to merge back together. Im pretty sure this also works with the .AAE file which contains metadata about the photo. However I have not confirmed this yet. If you read this please let me know if it works for you too.

Posted on Nov 21, 2022 1:39 PM

Reply

Similar questions

There are no replies.

This thread has been closed by the system or the community team. You may vote for any posts you find helpful, or search the Community for additional answers.

FYI: How to rebuild a Live Photo after it gets separated into two files, one photo and one video.

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple Account.