Exporting old photos from Photos

I can't export old photos (for ex. from 2006) from Photos, even if use "Export the unmodified original".

I get the message : the operation couldn't be completed (cocoa error-1)

Thanks for your answer




MacBook Pro 13″, macOS 12.6

Posted on Aug 15, 2023 2:59 AM

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Posted on Aug 15, 2023 4:38 AM

What is the format of the old photos? Are they JPEGs, or in another format?


Cocoa Error -1 is a very unspecific error message, if something goes wrong. With Photos for Mac it is typically caused by lack of storage (no space left to save the exported images), or if Photos is not able to access the files to be exported or to create a file with this filename. This could be a problem of filenames with unsupported characters in the filename, or by keeping the Photos Library on an unsupported volume. You could try to specify a different filename when exporting the original.


Where is your Photos Library stored? if it is on external volume, make sure the volume is prepared as described here: Move your Photos library to save space on your Mac - Apple Support The Photos Library must not be on a volume that has been used for Time Machine backups, also not on a NAS.



2 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Aug 15, 2023 4:38 AM in response to Hurlubert

What is the format of the old photos? Are they JPEGs, or in another format?


Cocoa Error -1 is a very unspecific error message, if something goes wrong. With Photos for Mac it is typically caused by lack of storage (no space left to save the exported images), or if Photos is not able to access the files to be exported or to create a file with this filename. This could be a problem of filenames with unsupported characters in the filename, or by keeping the Photos Library on an unsupported volume. You could try to specify a different filename when exporting the original.


Where is your Photos Library stored? if it is on external volume, make sure the volume is prepared as described here: Move your Photos library to save space on your Mac - Apple Support The Photos Library must not be on a volume that has been used for Time Machine backups, also not on a NAS.



Aug 16, 2023 4:53 AM in response to léonie

Hi Léonie,

Thanks for your answer.


I tried to export all my 1337 photos this morning: I had 518 cocoa error-1.

For the videos, only 2 cocoas for 6 videos.

It seems problems arise for files which are from 2016 or older.


Many of my pictures are JPEGs, but there are also PNGs.

I have enough free space on my Mac, about 32 Go. I don't think I have unsupported characters in the filenames.

My Photos Library is stored on my Mac.


Thanks,

Jean


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Exporting old photos from Photos

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