I paid to increase iCloud file size and my pictures are gone.

Hey Planet4321,

When using iCloud Photos, the optimize storage option stores full resolution photos in iCloud and keeps a smaller sized version of the photo on your device. iCloud Photo Library is primarily designed to sync photos across devices. When you delete a photo from a device that is stored in iCloud Photos, it will also delete the photo from iCloud as well. You can find more details about that here: Set up and use iCloud Photos - Apple Support

"How iCloud Photos works

iCloud Photos automatically keeps every photo and video you take in iCloud, so you can access your library from any device, anytime you want. Any changes you make to your collection on one device change on your other devices too. Your photos and videos are organized into Years, Months, Days, and All Photos.And all of your Memories and People are updated everywhere. That way you can quickly find the moment, family member, or friend you're looking for.

Your photos and videos are stored in iCloud in their original formats at full resolution. This includes HEIF, JPEG, RAW, PNG, GIF, TIFF, HEVC, and MP4 as well as special formats you capture with your iPhone or iPad, like slo-mo, time-lapse, 4K videos, and Live Photos. The photos and videos you capture with these devices are in HEIF and HEVC format. Depending on your internet speed, the time it takes for you to see your photos and videos on all of your devices and iCloud.com might vary."

"What happens when you edit or delete photos

When you edit or delete photos or videos, the changes are reflected across all of your devices.

Edits show up on all of your devices

When you make edits in the Photos app on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch or on your Mac, the photo automatically updates across all your devices, including your Apple TV. So when you crop or enhance a photo from your iPhone, you see the changes when you access your library from your Mac. Your original photos and videos are stored in iCloud and you can go back to them at any time, and revert any changes you made.

Photos delete from all of your devices

When you delete photos and videos on one device, they're deleted everywhere that you use iCloud Photos. If you delete something accidentally, you can recovery it in the Recently Deleted folder for 30 days. After that, it's deleted permanently. "

We'd suggest reviewing this article for options on recovering deleted photos: Delete and recover photos and videos on iCloud.com - Apple Support

If that doesn't help, we'd recommend contacting Apple Support for further assistance here: Get Support

Thanks!

Hello Planet4321,

Thank you for using Apple Support Communities. Sounds like your upgraded your iCloud storage plan and now you're missing some data. If so, we'd like to assist and recommend some steps to help out. Let's follow the steps below:

1.) Try refreshing things by restarting your iPhone: Restart your iPhone - Apple Support

2.) Review and follow the steps listed here: If you're missing photos or videos in the Photos app - Apple Support

This resource has steps and settings you can check to make sure everything is set up properly and also steps on how to locate missing photos.

3.) Locate missing files by following the steps listed here: Find files on your iPhone or iPad in the Files app - Apple Support

4.) If files were accidentally deleted, this resource can show you how to recover them: Delete files or recover deleted files in the Files app on your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support

Recover files that you deleted on your iPhone or iPad

On your iPhone

1. Open the Files app and tap the Browse tab.

2. Under Locations, tap Recently Deleted.

3. Tap the More button , then tap Select.

4. Select the files that you want to keep, then tap Recover. To recover a single file, you can also touch and hold the file, then tap Recover.

We hope these steps help you. Thank you for using Apple Support Communities.

Hi Planet4321,

Your physical storage can't be upgraded on iPhone, but you can back up your iPhone and remove any content you do not need to have accessible on the device. This will make more space available. iCloud is used to sync content amongst your devices. When you delete content from one device, it will be removed from iCloud and any other devices using iCloud with the feature enabled.

Check your settings for what's taking up so much space and see how to use recommendations in How to check the storage on your iPhone and iPad - Apple Support.

Regards.