Why do only edited iPhone photos keep captions when AirDropped to Mac?

It seems that unlike in earlier versions (IMG_3313.HEIC in the example below), iOS/iPadOS 18 (IMG_0848.HEIC and IMG_0848_edited.heic) no longer adds any XMP to .heic, and for some reason Photos.app then fails to import the Caption in the legacy IFD0:ImageDescription tag (tested in Sequoia and Monterey). On the other hand, editing .heic in the mobile device adds some XMP tags:

exiftool -a -G1 -s -Software -ImageDescription -Description -XMP:All .
======== ./IMG_3313.HEIC
[IFD0]          Software                        : 16.7.11
[IFD0]          ImageDescription                : qwerty
[XMP-dc]        Description                     : qwerty
[XMP-x]         XMPToolkit                      : XMP Core 6.0.0
[XMP-xmp]       CreateDate                      : 2025:05:29 16:19:11
[XMP-xmp]       CreatorTool                     : 16.7.11
[XMP-xmp]       ModifyDate                      : 2025:05:29 16:19:11
[XMP-photoshop] DateCreated                     : 2025:05:29 16:19:11
[XMP-dc]        Description                     : qwerty
======== ./IMG_0848_edited.heic
[IFD0]          Software                        : 18.5
[IFD0]          ImageDescription                : qwerty
[XMP-x]         XMPToolkit                      : XMP Core 6.0.0
[XMP-xmp]       CreateDate                      : 2025:05:29 07:17:44
[XMP-xmp]       CreatorTool                     : 18.5
[XMP-xmp]       ModifyDate                      : 2025:05:29 07:17:44
[XMP-photoshop] DateCreated                     : 2025:05:29 07:17:44
======== ./IMG_0848.HEIC
[IFD0]          Software                        : 18.5
[IFD0]          ImageDescription                : qwerty

If I add any XMP to the iOS/iPadOS 18 .heic, then Photos.app manages to import Caption from the IFD0:ImageDescription tag:

exiftool -P -overwrite_original -XMP-xmp:CreateDate='2025:05:29 07:17:44' IMG_0848.HEIC

exiftool -a -G1 -s -Software -ImageDescription -Description -XMP:All IMG_0848.HEIC     
[IFD0]          Software                        : 18.5
[IFD0]          ImageDescription                : qwerty
[XMP-x]         XMPToolkit                      : Image::ExifTool 13.29
[XMP-xmp]       CreateDate                      : 2025:05:29 07:17:44

So for some strange reason Photos.app needs some XMP tag so it can import IFD0:ImageDescription.

...an easier workaround would be to use GraphicConverter to re-apply the existing Caption -- by default GC reads IFD0:ImageDescription and copies it to XMP-dc:Description which Photos.app can import:

[XMP-dc]        Description                     : qwerty

mgwil wrote: Why do only edited iPhone photos keep captions when AirDropped to Mac?

I don't that anyone here can know why.

don't know if you want verification, but I just tried this and I got similar results-- the caption doesn't transfer into Photos when I use File>Import for a picture airdropped to Finder, but it does appear if I drag the file to the Photos icon. Weird. It might be interesting to narrow down just what happens.

This is certainly unexpected behavior. If you want to let Apple know, go here:

Feedback - Photos - Apple

You could do that copy as a very fast batch in exiftool but that would require some basic Terminal skills.

Oh, I just remembered that also GC Browser has that fast batch option via IPTC/XMP Metadata > Caption/Description Field > Copy Exif Image Description (legacy) -- that copies IFD0:ImageDescription to XMP-dc:Description (as well as many other EXIF tags to XMP which I would not mind doing), and deletes IFD0:ImageDescription. IFD0:ImageDescription is legacy and should no longer be used so it is a weird decision to still use it.

But make a backup before testing, just in case.

Matti Haveri wrote:

It seems that unlike in earlier versions, iOS/iPadOS 18 no longer adds any XMP to .heic, and for some reason Photos.app then fails to import the Caption in the legacy IFD0:ImageDescription tag (tested in Sequoia and Monterey).

While testing a related issue in another app, I lost some hair wondering why iPad OS 18.5 sometimes DOES add XMP to .heic.

I then noticed that if I take .heic from a painting, THEN there is XMP and THEN Photos can import the XMP-dc:Description that I had edited in iPad before AirDropping the .heic to the Mac.

...that particular painting had a face so iPad Camera added some XMP like XMP-mwg-rs:RegionType=Face to its metadata.

But if I take .heic from some other target, THEN there is no XMP and Photos fails to import the Caption in IFD0:ImageDescription.

Actually, this morning I can't not get get the caption. I am airdropping to the Mac, which goes to Downloads. If I drag to Photos or if I use File>Import, I get the caption that I put on in my iPhone. I did this with both a Library that's connected to iCloud and a Library that is not my System Library.

I don't remember if I've re-booted since I did this yesterday. You should certainly try re-starting the Mac, and also try restarting in Safe Mode:

           Start up your Mac in safe mode - Apple Support 

There could be an interaction with other apps.

How much free storage do you have?

I have an M3 MacBook Pro running 15.5 with about 1 TB free, and iPhone 16 with 18.5. I use iCloud, Optimized on the iPhone, but Download Originals on the Mac.

mgwil wrote:

if I buy GC is it simple enough for a novice user to configure? I have about 3000 photos to import.

To fix this in GC before importing images to Photos library: open the Finder folder in GC Browser and IPTC/XMP Metadata > Edit File Info (IPTC/XMP) > One selected image at a time. Then one-by-one click "OK & Next [cmd-N]" so GC copies your existing Caption to XMP-dc:Description where Photos.app can find it when importing to its library.

You could do that copy as a very fast batch in exiftool but that would require some basic Terminal skills.