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When I want to duplicate an image in Photos (version 8.0 on Ventura), I follow the normal procedure: double-click on the thumbnail to bring up the photo, right-click on it, and select "Duplicate 1 Photo" from the drop-down menu. However, when I then return to the thumbnails, I just see the original image; I can't find the duplicate anywhere. What gives?
iMac 21.5″, macOS 10.14
Look in the "Library > All Photos" view. There the duplicates should appear side-by-side, as they will have the same date. Or search for the filename in the search field.
You may not have been able to create a duplicate at all, while in "Imports". When I try to duplicate a photo there, the "Duplicate" command is dimmed and cannot be used in my current system version macOS 13 Ventura.
Look in the "Library > All Photos" view. There the duplicates should appear side-by-side, as they will have the same date. Or search for the filename in the search field.
You may not have been able to create a duplicate at all, while in "Imports". When I try to duplicate a photo there, the "Duplicate" command is dimmed and cannot be used in my current system version macOS 13 Ventura.
I was in Imports view. Following your suggestion, I switched to Recents. There I did manage to make a duplicate and find it at the bottom, where you said it would be. But I still can't find the duplicates I made while in the Imports view.
Thanks, Léonie. That’s very helpful. I’m also using the latest version of Ventura. As it turns out, it is possible to duplicate a photo in the Imports view. To do that, you have to first double-click on the thumbnail to bring up the actual photo file, then right-click on that and select “Duplicate 1 Photo.” What had me stumped was that the duplicate doesn’t show up in the Imports view (although it did in the previous version of Photos I had been using); however, I can now find it by switching to the Library > All Photos view as you suggested.
A very useful method to see both copies is to, as léonie suggested, copy the file name from the info window and paste that into the search field. You'll get both pictures showing together. I immediately type "duplicate" into the caption or title of the new one. Keep in mind that the new one will not be in the same albums as the origiinal, so that's why it get's lost so easily.
WHY is this SO HARD???????
When I click on Duplicate 1 Photo why does it not duplicate the photo????
Why do I have to be in a special view?
How do I get into this special view?
Again WHY IS THIS SO HARD ????
SO much for Apple software being user friendly !!!! :-(
WHY is this SO HARD???????
When I click on Duplicate 1 Photo why does it not duplicate the photo????
Why do I have to be in a special view?
Each of the predefined views is showing only a subset of your photos, specific for this view. This is what the different views have been designed for. For example, the "Imports" view is showing only photos that have been imported to Photos, not photos saved to Photos in other ways, for example by duplication. You cannot duplicate photos in "Imports" because the duplicated photo could not be added to "Imports" as it will be not be an imported photo; the same reason why we cannot import photos directly into "Recently Deleted" or duplicate photos in "Recently Deleted".
We can duplicate photos in any predefined album where the duplicate will fit into the predefined album according to the rules for the album - All Photos, Recents, all media type albums, because duplication does not change the type of the media. But duplication will change the "date added", so you may not find the duplicate easily in the view you are currently in, if the view is sorted by the "Date added" and not the date the photo has been taken.
What view were you in when you used the Duplicate command? How was it sorted?
If you were in the Recents view, the newly created copy would appear at the bottom rather than alongside the original.
Thanks, Richard. Those are both good suggestions.
You may have found a bug. You should report it to actual Apple Support staff. (We are just other Apple users trying to help each other find ways to use Apple software.)
To add to what Leonie said, think of the pre-defined views as smart albums. If a duplicate does not meet the criteria, it is not shown. Since a duplicate has not been imported, it won't show.
How to duplicate an image in Apple Photos
