photos did not transfer to new phone

Hello theminnicks,

If you restored your new iPhone from an iCloud backup, you may need to wait for your photos to finish downloading:

If the photos and videos were included in the backup, they’ll download to your iOS device in the background when you restore. Stay connected to Wi-Fi until the process finishes. The time it takes to restore depends on the size of your backup and the speed of your Wi-Fi network.

You can also find those details in this resource: About missing information after you restore your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch with iCloud Backup - Apple Support

If your photos still aren't appearing, do they show up if you check the iCloud website using a computer? iCloud Photos

Additionally, do you still have access to your prior iPhone?

Let us know, and we'll keep moving forward based on those details.