MacOS Sequoia 15.1.1 Photos app shared album error with specific file types

Question

crapilicious Author

Level 1

4 points

MacOS Sequoia 15.1.1 Photos app shared album error with specific file types

Longstanding issue with shared albums in the MacOS Photos app. Am currently on MacOS Sequoia 15.1.1.

1) Create new shared album (only my seventh shared album)

2) Try to drag a photo(s) to the new shared album - FAIL with one of the following error messages:

There was an error downloading items for shared album

'Landscapes shared'

The operation couldn't be completed.

(PHPhotosErrorDomain error 3302.)

Cannot Add Items

There was an error adding the selected items to 'landscape 001'

I find that I can drag .dng images from my iPhone and .NEF images from my Nikon DSLR into the shared folder but not .HEIC from iPhone, .tif files exported from ON1 Photo Raw, nor .jpeg or .png exported from .HEIC in MacOS Photos and subsequently imported to Photos in those formats. Nor can I add a .jpeg image exported via the Photos app from a .dng (that was successfully added to the shared album).

So this is not about limits on albums or images nor does it comport with the file types supposedly supported by shared albums.

The functionality is "broken" and Apple's error messages are not useful. <Insert standard gripe about how Apple's software quality continues to decline since I started using it in 1987.>

[Re-Titled by Moderator]

Mac mini

Posted on Jan 4, 2025 9:41 AM

Reply

Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

léonie

Level 10

200,759 points

Jan 4, 2025 10:48 AM in response to crapilicious

Have you tried to add the photos to the Shared album by selecting the items, then clicking the Share button in the toolbar and using the command "Add to Shared album ..."? when I am using the Share button I am usually getting a better error message, when the operation fails.

For example, when I am trying to share a certain HEIC image, and the image bounces back, when I try to drag it to a shared album, I will get a warning, when I use the Share command. This particular HEIC image has been taken as a 3D image on my iPhone, and 3D images or videos need coverting to 2D, when they are shared. The supported file types for shared albums are described here: Shared Album limits - Apple Support (the paragraph "Supported file types for Shared albums".

The error message "PHPhotosErrorDomain error 3302" means
 "invalidResource = 3302 // Asset resource validation failed"

Either the image file or video file is damaged, has an illegal filename containing control characters or similar, or the file has been imported with an XMP sidecar file with invalid data. Sidecar files could explain, why even files in a supported format cannot be read.

Reply

Answer 2

crapilicious Author

Level 1

4 points

Jan 4, 2025 11:10 AM in response to léonie

My image files are stored on one external drive and my Photos app's library is stored on another external drive.

I Exported 904 images from the Photos app (happened faster than I expected) and dragged them all from Finder into a new shared album. As I was typing the line above they suddenly appeared in the shared album after 15 minutes or longer.

So that appears to be a valid workaround.

Reply

Answer 3

crapilicious Author

Level 1

4 points

Jan 4, 2025 10:57 AM in response to crapilicious

Thanks for your response. I just spent half an hour on the phone with an Apple support tech. We tried a bunch of things, the only one of which seemed to work was to export an image from Photos to the Finder and drag from Finder into the shared album.

How feasible that will be for a large number of images remains to be seen. I just tried dragging a bunch of files from Finder and am waiting to see what, if anything, happens... Activity Monitor suggests something might be cooking but what that might be?

Will update this thread when I see the result.

Reply

Answer 4

léonie

Level 10

200,759 points

Jan 4, 2025 11:02 AM in response to crapilicious

Are your photos stored locally on your Mac or is your Photos Library syncing with iCloud iCloud Photos?

is your Photos Library on the internal drive of your Mac or on an external drive?

Reply

MacOS Sequoia 15.1.1 Photos app shared album error with specific file types

Similar questions