lwebb1508

Q: How to bulk delete duplicate photos in iphoto?

My Iphoto on my mac contains multiple duplicates of my photos.  I assume this is because of automatic syncing with my iphone,

so I have turned of the sharing until I figure it out. 

But is there a way to get rid of all the duplicates quickly without going through them all??

Thanks!

MacBook Pro (15-inch Late 2011), OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.5)

Posted on Oct 2, 2013 9:46 AM

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Q: How to bulk delete duplicate photos in iphoto?

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  • by Terence Devlin,

    Terence Devlin Terence Devlin Sep 3, 2014 7:58 AM in response to Talking Finger
    Level 10 (139,475 points)
    iLife
    Sep 3, 2014 7:58 AM in response to Talking Finger

    That is not an Apple App, it's made by a 3rd party, Systweak Software. If you have a connection with that company you should declare it.

  • by Talking Finger,

    Talking Finger Talking Finger Sep 3, 2014 12:31 PM in response to Terence Devlin
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 3, 2014 12:31 PM in response to Terence Devlin

    Dood chill. I just joined here after Googling how to find duplicates to delete. I saw it in the Apple Apps store and downloaded and used it. I don't work for that software company, nor did I dig into even seeing/caring who developed it since I found it on Apple's site.

     

    IN any event, the app worked awesome and freed up almost 7gb of space from searching through 14k photos.

  • by Terence Devlin,

    Terence Devlin Terence Devlin Sep 3, 2014 3:39 PM in response to Talking Finger
    Level 10 (139,475 points)
    iLife
    Sep 3, 2014 3:39 PM in response to Talking Finger

    If it found 7 gigs of space from 14k photos then they are truly enormous photos.

  • by Talking Finger,

    Talking Finger Talking Finger Sep 4, 2014 11:59 AM in response to Terence Devlin
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 4, 2014 11:59 AM in response to Terence Devlin

    Lots of dups! Too many family members with access to cloud uploads etc and auto uploads. Not enough syncing. And they do a lot of HD pics, and of course vids are included in this, so a single iPhone movie could be a large file.

  • by Leo1heart,

    Leo1heart Leo1heart Dec 25, 2014 8:15 PM in response to lwebb1508
    Level 1 (1 points)
    Dec 25, 2014 8:15 PM in response to lwebb1508

    I just tried this and it seemed to fix the problem.

     

    - Went to the iPhoto tool bar and selected iPhoto and then Preferences.

    - Clicked on far right Advanced button.

    - Make sure the box on the first item Importing: Copy items to the iPhoto Library, is not checked.

     

    Mine was checked for some reason so I unchecked it and it seemed to fix the problem.

     

    Good Luck, and Merry Christmas!

  • by LarryHN,

    LarryHN LarryHN Dec 25, 2014 9:40 PM in response to Leo1heart
    Level 10 (84,170 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Dec 25, 2014 9:40 PM in response to Leo1heart
    - Make sure the box on the first item Importing: Copy items to the iPhoto Library, is not checked.

    Very bad suggestion - do NOT do this - it is strongly not recommended and is storing up massive problems for the future - see iPhoto and File Management for more details on why this is a terrible suggestion

     

    LN

     

    PS: and has nothing at all to do with duplicates or with identifying or deleting duplicates - the subject of this thread

  • by léonie,

    léonie léonie Dec 26, 2014 2:13 AM in response to Leo1heart
    Level 10 (105,636 points)
    iLife
    Dec 26, 2014 2:13 AM in response to Leo1heart

    I just tried this and it seemed to fix the problem.

     

    - Went to the iPhoto tool bar and selected iPhoto and then Preferences.

    - Clicked on far right Advanced button.

    - Make sure the box on the first item Importing: Copy items to the iPhoto Library, is not checked.

     

    Mine was checked for some reason so I unchecked it and it seemed to fix the problem.

     

    Good Luck, and Merry Christmas!

    This default setting is there for a very good reason. If you uncheck it, iPhoto will not import the original images into the iPhoto library. They will stay - unprotected - in their original location, and iPhoto is referencing them there. If you accidentally delete the originals from that folder, iPhoto can no longer edit or export your photos and you have lost them for good. Also, if you ever need to move your iPhoto library to a new drive or restore the library from a backup, iPhoto has no tools to support this, if the originals are referenced. And sooner or later you will have to replace your drive or restore from a backup.  Don't recommend this option without pointing out the risks as well, because importing this way cannot be undone.

  • by r_screenname,

    r_screenname r_screenname May 4, 2016 1:04 PM in response to léonie
    Level 1 (4 points)
    May 4, 2016 1:04 PM in response to léonie

    Reviving old thread of Persistent question.     By now, in 2016, is there an iPhoto  (non -app ) way to delete duplicated that "help" fill my iPhoto library? I want to do this before I upgrade system and go over to Photo.

  • by LarryHN,

    LarryHN LarryHN May 4, 2016 1:31 PM in response to r_screenname
    Level 10 (84,170 points)
    Photos for Mac
    May 4, 2016 1:31 PM in response to r_screenname

    No - neither iPhoto nor Photos will find and delete duplicates - both take third party software

     

    LN

  • by Kurt Triffet,

    Kurt Triffet Kurt Triffet May 4, 2016 2:32 PM in response to LarryHN
    Level 1 (94 points)
    May 4, 2016 2:32 PM in response to LarryHN

    This app is free and works great:

    https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/duplicate-cleaner-for-iphoto/id586862299?mt=12

     

    They'll keep nagging you to upgrade, but well worth enduring the nag screens for how well it works.

  • by Hansfords,

    Hansfords Hansfords Aug 11, 2016 6:31 AM in response to lwebb1508
    Level 1 (4 points)
    iLife
    Aug 11, 2016 6:31 AM in response to lwebb1508

    I can't believe all of the convoluted answers (that never solved the issue) that were given for this simple question!  The question is real simple, so please keep the answer REAL SIMPLE!  The question is simply:  "How can I delete all of the duplicate photos in iPhoto on my Mac desktop?"  I don't want to know how to prevent this from happening after the fact - just how to easily delete the duplicates that got in there already!!!!!

  • by LarryHN,

    LarryHN LarryHN Aug 11, 2016 8:15 AM in response to Hansfords
    Level 10 (84,170 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Aug 11, 2016 8:15 AM in response to Hansfords

    The issues is solved and there is a Real simple answer - purchase tested third party software  - sorry that Rude ThreadJackers have obscured the simple answer

     

    iPhotoLibrary Manager

    PhotoSweeper

    Duplicate Annihilator

     

     

    LN

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