Transfer my photos from my iCloud account into a separate (non-apple) photo app?

Hello YarnJunkie,

iCloud is fully explained here: What is iCloud? - Apple Support. It is intended to copy the content on your devices to be accessible on the others, not as a stand-alone storage space. As you correctly indicated in your posting, deleting from a device will also remove the content from iCloud.

If you wish to download all of your iCloud media for storage on a computer, external hard drive or other source, this article explains how: Download iCloud photos and videos - Apple Support.

We hope this helps. Let us know if we can assist with anything else at all. Take care.

Hi YarnJunkie,

Now that you have a good idea of how iCloud works for syncing, you can enable features to automatically save space instead.

You wouldn't manually delete your photos to save the space, instead the your iPhone can automatically manage the library when you need space on your iPhone:

Store your photos and videos in iCloud

By default, your photos and videos are stored on your device in their original, high-resolution version. This means that they use a lot of space on your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. With iCloud Photos, you can make more space available on your device and still have access to your entire full-resolution collection wherever you go.

Get started with iCloud Photos:

1. Tap Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Photos.

2. Tap Sync this iPhone. In iOS 15 or earlier, tap to turn on iCloud Photos.

3. Select Optimize iPhone Storage to save space on your device.

4.

When Optimize Storage is turned on, full-resolution photos and videos are stored in iCloud, and, when needed, space-saving copies are stored on your device. And as long as you have enough space in iCloud, you can store as many photos and videos as you want.

Manage your photo and video storage

There is no risk of losing them in this configuration.

Thanks for using the Apple Support Communities.