what is the .AAE extension?

"Forget about the AAE files for now.

When importing photos from iOS 8 to your Mac:

– Importing them with 'Image Capture' will give you the original photos

– Importing them with 'AirDrop' will give you the edited photos.

So you can have both versions on the Mac should you so desire."

This is not my experience.

i have a number of photos on my iPhone and until recently when importing to my Mac I was able to import the photos to any folder of my choice where they would show up as jpegs. Now, unless I import to Photos I only get the .AAE file, but Photos is useless to me as it won't allow me to access the jpeg I can only "share" to a variety of destinations. I have never used iPhoto, and I've no real use for Photos either; I prefer to maintain all photos in an indexed hierarchical folder structure rather than use "library" apps.

Either there is something wrong (I am using the latest public beta of Yosemite or this is another example of Apple taking control of something away from the user, which is the way they seem to be heading now.

OK... I'm using Adobe Photoshop CS4 and I downloaded about 50 shots made with my iPhone to my iMac. I go into PS and try to use the image processor to downsize these photos so I can actually create a "How-To" thread in an automotive Forum. Used to be a piece of cake... now Photoshop sends me a pop-up saying there are no files in the specified directory that can be read. In the directory are both JPG and those AAE files. I can edit the JPS individually, but cannot do a quick, down and dirty "Image Processor" function?

How do I fix this? I have no use for Apple's editing, its way too limited compared to Photoshop.

Mike

I have got a solution for those who want to transfer their edited/cropped pictures to mac.

1, Select all the pictures on iPhone.

2, iMessage them to your Mac.

This way pictures are sent in their final version & in .jpg format.

Cheers.

Thanks for your useful advice! I have tons of photos in Photos on my MacBook Pro. Unfortunately, I have to export them to change the filename. I was doing this when I ran into a bunch of .AAE files. What would you do if you didn't see the AAE files until you'd already renamed all the movies and images?

You would llose any edits you made to the images, unless you renamed them using a photo management app that knows about newer image management standards.

Thanks, Lawrence. Thinking back on the way I exported the photos in question, I chose "Export Unmodified File" instead of "Export 220 Photos." When the files appeared on my desktop, many of them had a white sheet of paper icon with a turned down corner sitting in front of and slightly above the photo thumbnail. Perhaps the "Export Unmodified File" option exports the AAE file separately?

1lefsa4 wrote:

Forget about the AAE files for now.

When importing photos from iOS 8 to your Mac:

– Importing them with 'Image Capture' will give you the original photos

– Importing them with 'AirDrop' will give you the edited photos.

So you can have both versions on the Mac should you so desire.

I have found this to be true.

Also note: I had been concerned that the "creation date" info would be lost with the AirDrop process, but it turns out that this time/date stamp is preserved. This is important to me because I am collecting vacation photos from two family iPhones plus a (GPS-equipped) camera, and I want to order the whole set chronologically before performing further edits with PhotoShop. (I don't use iPhoto, Photos, or Aperture.) So although it is a pain to separately AirDrop the on-cam-edited photos, at least there is a way to bring them into the on-computer editing process.

I just emailed my AAE pictures from my iPad to myself and the jpeg version came thru

I have always used Image capture to transfer my photos and movies from my iPhone to my Mac. Since iOS 8, with edited media, I've been getting the jpg/png/mov and AEE sidecar files. After transferring the media from my phone I often delete it (to make space). Does anyone know if it's possible to apply the AAE file to the corresponding jpg/png/mov file???

Thanks,

Steve

I haven't tried, but you should be able to open the images with an app that knows about .AAE files, such as Adobe Photoshop Elements.

This is Apple's note on it: What to expect when you import edited photos from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod to your Mac or PC - Apple Support

Hello Lawrence, I found on another thread (on exactly the same subject) that you and your counterpart jumped to the same conclusion : when wanting to get back your photos files with the jpg extension (and NOT the aae extension we get now when wanting to backup on PC, since OS 8) you simply have to use the "camera function". I might be dumb but I did not understood what you guys meant there and it's all the more frustrating that it seems to be the key point!

Would you mind elaborating a little more on that and give concrete precisions. Thanks in advance for helping me getting my jpg back.

Regards

Here are Apple's instructions: Copying personal photos and videos from iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to your computer

And some supplemental information: What to expect when you import edited photos from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod to your Mac or PC - Apple Support

Additional information:

If you have Windows, don't use Windows Explorer. For XP use the Camera and Scanner Wizard, for Windows 7 and later, use Import pictures and videos. Here are the full instructions from Windows Help:

How do I get pictures from my camera to my computer?

Here's one common way to copy pictures and video clips from your digital camera to your computer:

1. Connect the camera to your computer by using the camera's USB cable.
2. Turn on the camera.
3. In the AutoPlay dialog box that appears, click Import pictures and videos using Windows.
4. (Optional) To tag the pictures, type a tag name in the Tag these pictures (optional) box.
5. By default, the folder name includes the date the pictures and videos are imported and the tag name.
6. Click Import.
7. A new window opens and shows the imported pictures and videos.

Other methods:

For either Mac or Windows, use a 3rd party photo manager, such as Google Picasa or Nikon ViewNX. Both are free. There are also tools that are not free but work well.

If you have iOS 8.3 or later, go to Settings/iCloud and turn on iCloud photos. Pictures will be transferred to iCloud as soon as they are taken. They can be viewed and managed by logging in to https://icloud.com. If you have a Mac you can also see them in Yosemite's Photos app.

For yet another option, you can use apps from Google and Shutterfly to upload them to Picasa or Shutterfly.

For yet another option, you can save them to dropbox or box.com.

Thanks very much Lawrence for your fast and extensive reply. There seems to be only a viable solution, which is " the Camera and Scanner Wizard" but I still do not understand what is the " the Camera and Scanner Wizard" on my computer (actually my initial question). I guess this fin toon may be founf on my windows xp equipped PC, but where exactly? Or on my iPod but where. Haven't found them I am afraid...sorry but could you pls explain again this very solution?

regards

In Windows XP connect the iPhone. If a dialog opens asking what you want to do choose "import pictures." If the dialog does not open you have disabled this "autoplay" feature. In that case open "My Computer", find the Camera Roll in the iPhone, right-click on it and choose the desired option. Or go to Start/Control Panel and double-click Scanners and Cameras. If you go to Start/Help and search for Camera this is what comes up:

To get pictures from a scanner or digital camera

1. Plug your camera or scanner into your computer.
2. If your camera is Plug and Play, the Scanner and Camera Wizard starts.
3. -or-
4. If your camera is not Plug and Play or you are using a scanner, right-click the camera or scanner from which you want to get pictures, and then click the appropriate option for that device.
5. Follow the instructions on your screen.

Notes

To open Scanners and Cameras, click Start, click Control Panel, and then double-click Scanners and Cameras.

To work directly from your camera, click advanced users only on the first page of the Scanner and Camera Wizard.

To obtain pictures, the scanner or camera must first be installed, turned on, and connected to your computer.

To preview an image after you download it, double-click it to open it in Windows Picture and Fax Viewer.

Thanks for this new reply.

when you say the camera, you mean the (camera of the) ipod, right?

to make sure, I really understand : to get the menus in question, you are asking me to right click on the symbol of the iPod on my computer.

Is this correct?

regards