How to recover recently deleted videos after emptying the Recently Deleted folder on iPhone?

What if i empty my recently deleted photos and now i want backup of today?


[Re-Titled by Moderator]

Original Title: Recover my deleted videos


iPhone 17 Pro, iOS 26

Posted on Aug 26, 2026 8:21 AM

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3 replies

Aug 26, 2026 8:59 AM in response to NiravThakkar2216

NiravThakkar2216 wrote: …What if i empty my recently deleted photos and now i want backup of today?

A great safety feature on the iPhone is that deleted pictures remain in the "Recently Deleted," the trash view, for 30 days before they are removed permanently. This safety feature can be defeated, though, by choosing to prematurely delete pictures from the "Recently Deleted" view. There is no extra safety on the phone.


If you don't use iCloud Photos, but you have Settings>Apple ID>iCloud Backup turned on, then you may be able to recover data. You should look here:

Restore your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch from a backup - Apple Support 

“Restore” is what you do when you buy a new phone, so this safety, if you have it set, requires you to erase everything on your phone and replace it with the backup. You would have to get to the backup quickly, usually within a day, before the backup is replaced by a newer one. However, if you did have iCloud Photos enabled, then the iCloud Backup wouldn't make an extra copy.


If you do use iCloud Photos, then that "synchronizes" its Photos Library with the phone, so what you see on the phone is what is at iCloud. iCloud Photos doesn't keep pictures in "Recently Deleted" any longer than the phone does.


Unfortunately, if you don't keep your own backups to an external drive, then there really isn't any place else to look. To back up your pictures you can just plug in an external drive, select the pictures, and use Share>Save to Files. Alternatively, you can backup to a computer:

Transfer photos and videos from your iPhone or iPad to your Mac or PC

If you haven't done one of those backups, then your remaining pictures continue to be in peril. 

Aug 26, 2026 10:17 PM in response to NiravThakkar2216

NiravThakkar2216 wrote:
What if i empty my recently deleted photos


Then you have permanently deleted those photos.


Deleting a photo the first time – moving it to the Recently Deleted album – is like tossing a photo into a trash can. Deleting it from the Recently Deleted album is like letting a city garbage truck take the contents of that trash can away to be incinerated. When the photo is incinerated, you don't get it back.


and now i want backup of today?


That's not how backups work. Backups must be made before something bad happens. Afterwards is too late.

How to recover recently deleted videos after emptying the Recently Deleted folder on iPhone?

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