syncing photos on Mac with iCloud

Since July 2023 photos on my iMac has stopped syncing with my iCloud. I've unchecked iCloud, closed/opened photos, restarted computer, nothing is helping. I upgraded to Ventura which upgraded photos to 8.0.


(I really only need the iCloud pictures to sync to iMac which is what it use to do. I don't need all the pictures I have on iMac to go into cloud. Not sure if that makes a difference. At the bottom of the All Photos Library it says "syncing 17,000 items to iCloud". I want items FROM iCloud to sync to my iMac. - pics taken from my phone that are now in iCloud.)


Appreciate any advice. Thank you!

iMac 21.5″ 4K, macOS 13.6

Posted on Oct 1, 2023 10:54 AM

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Posted on Dec 19, 2023 9:19 AM

Check, if there are items in your Photos Library that are unable to upload to iCloud as described here:

Check the status of your library in Photos for macOS - Apple Support


Are any items shown as "Unable to upload" or "on this Mac only"? Such items have to be removed from your library and converted to a more compatible format. Also check all videos in your library, if they still can be edited on your current system version.


Photos will only download items, once it managed to upload all items from your Photos Library into iCloud and merge them into the existing library. A single problematic item that cannot be synced with iCloud can hold up the syncing.



6 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Dec 19, 2023 9:19 AM in response to Deb1101

Check, if there are items in your Photos Library that are unable to upload to iCloud as described here:

Check the status of your library in Photos for macOS - Apple Support


Are any items shown as "Unable to upload" or "on this Mac only"? Such items have to be removed from your library and converted to a more compatible format. Also check all videos in your library, if they still can be edited on your current system version.


Photos will only download items, once it managed to upload all items from your Photos Library into iCloud and merge them into the existing library. A single problematic item that cannot be synced with iCloud can hold up the syncing.



Oct 1, 2023 8:52 PM in response to aparade

Since the discontinuation of My Photo Stream on July 20, the only cloud photo synchronization tool that Apple offers is iCloud Photos, which is fully bidirectional (omnidirectional if you include an iPad and/or other device(s)).


The iMac will need to complete its initial upload phase before it starts downloading. Is the number to be uploaded changing? Do you have enough free storage in iCloud to handle the iMac's photos?

Oct 2, 2023 9:55 AM in response to aparade

There is one draw-back when using Shared Albums. They are cannot transfer your photos in the full resolution and with all metadata.

Photos you add to a shared album will be downsized to 2048 pixel at the longest edge and some metadata will be removed. They are into show your photos to others, but not for transferring photos to archive them on a Mac.

See the paragraph "Supported file types for Shared Albums" in Shared Album limits - Apple Support

"Shared Albums upload a copy of your data. Downloaded content may not contain the same information as the original.

    • Image formats: HEIF, JPEG, RAW*, PNG, GIF, TIFF
    • Video file types and formats: HEVC, MP4, QuickTime, H.264, MPEG-4 

Shared Albums also support special formats that you capture with your iPhone, like slo-mo, time-lapse, Live Photos, and Memory videos. When shared, photos are reduced to 2048 pixels on the long edge, except panoramic photos, which can be up to 5400 pixels wide. "

Oct 2, 2023 9:51 AM in response to markwmsn

That makes sense, thank you. For some reason my iMac is just stuck on "syncing". I'm gong to "uncheck" the iCloud Photos button and only leave the Shared Albums since those seem to be syncing. I don't need ALL my iMac photos in the cloud. I'll create a shared album on my phone and add new pictures and then download to my iMac.


Appreciate your reply.


UPDATE: too late it's already synced to cloud most of my pics & taken high res off my Mac! Hoping since I just checked the button that says download originals to this Mac will fix this. I want originals on my Mac.

Oct 3, 2023 3:29 PM in response to léonie

Thanks for letting me know that. So what is the best way to transfer photos from my iPhone to my Mac and maintain full resolution?


Also, any thoughts as to why my photos isn't downloading to my Mac from cloud? It looks like ALL my photos from Mac have been uploaded to cloud. Photos is stuck on "syncing with iCloud".


Thanks!

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syncing photos on Mac with iCloud

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