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Mac Photos - Hide from library but show in album

I want to hide a bunch of photos from my main photos library feed, but show those photos in an album. Specifically, I take a bunch of boring photos for work, and I want them to only show up in the "Work Photos" album, but not show up when scrolling the main library feed. (I do understand how to hide photos, and how to find the hidden photos folder.)


Is this possible? Or is it a feature request to submit?


Thanks!

MacBook Air (M2, 2023)

Posted on Jul 26, 2023 8:21 PM

Reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Jul 27, 2023 1:18 AM

It used to be possible in the earlier system versions, but many users wanted a "Hide" feature, that would keep the hidden photos secret, everywhere. So Apple changed the way the hiding has been working. In the earlier system versions it worked exactly as you want it to work - hiding just use to remove items from the library view without deleting them and kept them visible in the albums. It has been very useful to manage the Library view.


In Photos for Mac you can still make hidden photos visible, however. Just create a smart album with the rule "Photo is hidden".

For example:

  • I have an album "2023 Hafengeburtstag Auslaufparade", with some hidden photos.
  • Now I create a smart album with two rules:
    • Match all
    • Photo is hidden
    • Album is "2023 Hafengeburtstag Auslaufparade"
  • In this new smart album I can see the hidden photos from the album.


You will still need to enter the password to see the hidden photos in this smart album in the new system versions, where the hidden album can be locked with a password.


2 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Jul 27, 2023 1:18 AM in response to Jornywar in NJ

It used to be possible in the earlier system versions, but many users wanted a "Hide" feature, that would keep the hidden photos secret, everywhere. So Apple changed the way the hiding has been working. In the earlier system versions it worked exactly as you want it to work - hiding just use to remove items from the library view without deleting them and kept them visible in the albums. It has been very useful to manage the Library view.


In Photos for Mac you can still make hidden photos visible, however. Just create a smart album with the rule "Photo is hidden".

For example:

  • I have an album "2023 Hafengeburtstag Auslaufparade", with some hidden photos.
  • Now I create a smart album with two rules:
    • Match all
    • Photo is hidden
    • Album is "2023 Hafengeburtstag Auslaufparade"
  • In this new smart album I can see the hidden photos from the album.


You will still need to enter the password to see the hidden photos in this smart album in the new system versions, where the hidden album can be locked with a password.


Jul 27, 2023 8:08 PM in response to léonie

Smart solution! That's pretty good. Good enough.

My only complaint is I then need two albums: One standard album called "Work Photos", and then a smart album called "Work Photos (showing hidden)", and the handful of work photos that I don't want to hide in my main library are then separate from the smart album.


I hadn't worked with smart albums before, although I've created plenty of rather detailed smart playlists in iTunes/Music.


Thanks for the idea 😊

Mac Photos - Hide from library but show in album

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