iCloud Photos and Backup

gnosislibrarian wrote:

I wish this article: Backup methods for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch - Apple Support•

was clearer.

iCloud backups include all the information and settings stored on your device that don't already sync to iCloud. iCloud backups don't include:

Photos, if you turned on iCloud Photos

Am I backing up my photos twice if I have iCloud Photos set to <On> and have Backup this Phone set to <On>?

No. As indicated backups don't include photos if you sync with iCloud. Your backup only contains data not otherwise synced using iCloud. iCloud stores your device backup.

Or is the only way to backup photos is by setting iCloud Photos set to <On> ?

No. iCloud is a synchronization service, not a true backup. You may wish to retain backed up copies of your photos on your computer or other storage, "just in case."

Also, where in settings can I see the list photos with sizes?

No listing exists.

No. As indicated. If you sync your photos to iCloud (photos toggled on), they will not be part of the backup of the device. The photos are already in iCloud. If you toggle it off, photos will be part of the backup but no longer sync to iCloud.

A little semantics. The "backup" in iCloud backs up your data, settings, and some other items. A backup to a computer makes pretty much a complete copy of the device. Backups allow anything in the backup to be restored. A "do over" so to speak.

iCloud is a synchronization service that allows your data to sync across your Apple devices (very convenient). It is not, however, a true backup. If you permanently delete a photo in iCloud there is nothing to restore as no backup has been kept. Of course, you may still have backups of your photos offline somewhere. Some users sync there data to their Mac or PC and back up the computer, which then captures all the data.

You can backup your device to your computer. Or, you'll need to upgrade your iCloud storage.