Palarin22
Level 1 (1 points)

Q: How to transfer iPhone 6 photos to iMac

I'm new to iMac but I'm trying to learn.  I have an iMac that is running Yosemite and an iPhone 6 Plus.  I want to transfer all of my photos on my iPhone to my iMac using the easiest way possible.  I don't have iPhoto and I'm not sure if it's even compatible with Yosemite. 

 

Could you please provide me with the steps on how to complete this task?

 

Thanks!

iMac with Retina 5K display, OS X Mavericks (10.9.5)

Posted on Jul 8, 2015 12:10 PM

by FoxFifth,Solvedanswer
FoxFifth FoxFifth
Level 7 (27,551 points)
iPhone
A:

There are a number of possibilities and what is best may vary depending on your requirements. Your post says Yosemite but your signature says Mavericks. I'm going to base the answer on Yosemite.

 

One of the easiest is to use iCloud Photo Library. With that, all of your photos will be on your phone, on your Mac and also viewable at iCloud.com. It is completely automatic once turned on. To turn it on in your Mac, go to Apple menu > System Preferences > iCloud > Options and put a check mark in front of iCloud Photo Library. On your phone go to Settings > iCloud > Photos > and turn iCloud Photo Library on (and you may also want to turn on Optimize iPhone Storage on that same screen to reduce the storage space required on your phone. More info: iCloud Photo Library FAQ - Apple Support

 

Other methods include:

via USB cable: Import photos and videos from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to your Mac or Windows PC - Apple Support

via 3rd party apps such as http://www.photosync-app.com

via Photo Stream: My Photo Stream FAQ - Apple Support

via 3rd party services such as Dropbox

Posted on Jul 8, 2015 1:03 PM

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Palarin22

Q: How to transfer iPhone 6 photos to iMac

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  • Helpful answers

  • by FoxFifth,Solvedanswer

    FoxFifth FoxFifth Jul 8, 2015 1:03 PM in response to Palarin22
    Level 7 (27,551 points)
    iPhone
    Jul 8, 2015 1:03 PM in response to Palarin22

    There are a number of possibilities and what is best may vary depending on your requirements. Your post says Yosemite but your signature says Mavericks. I'm going to base the answer on Yosemite.

     

    One of the easiest is to use iCloud Photo Library. With that, all of your photos will be on your phone, on your Mac and also viewable at iCloud.com. It is completely automatic once turned on. To turn it on in your Mac, go to Apple menu > System Preferences > iCloud > Options and put a check mark in front of iCloud Photo Library. On your phone go to Settings > iCloud > Photos > and turn iCloud Photo Library on (and you may also want to turn on Optimize iPhone Storage on that same screen to reduce the storage space required on your phone. More info: iCloud Photo Library FAQ - Apple Support

     

    Other methods include:

    via USB cable: Import photos and videos from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to your Mac or Windows PC - Apple Support

    via 3rd party apps such as http://www.photosync-app.com

    via Photo Stream: My Photo Stream FAQ - Apple Support

    via 3rd party services such as Dropbox

  • by Palarin22,

    Palarin22 Palarin22 Jul 8, 2015 1:13 PM in response to FoxFifth
    Level 1 (1 points)
    Jul 8, 2015 1:13 PM in response to FoxFifth

    I don't want to share my photos with all devices, I just want to move all of my photos from my iPhone to my iMac, so that I can delete them from my iPhone to free up more space.  I did state that I'm running Yosemite on this iMac.  I tried using iPhoto before and it kept locking up the machine.  I did uninstall and reinstall but it didn't make any difference.  I read somewhere to try using Image Capture or Preview. Are these available in Yosemite?

  • by LarryHN,

    LarryHN LarryHN Jul 8, 2015 1:26 PM in response to Palarin22
    Level 10 (85,678 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Jul 8, 2015 1:26 PM in response to Palarin22

    Yes - FoxFifth posted a link giving exact instructions for using Image Capture via a USB cable - did you read their post and links?

     

    LN

  • by Palarin22,

    Palarin22 Palarin22 Jul 8, 2015 1:32 PM in response to LarryHN
    Level 1 (1 points)
    Jul 8, 2015 1:32 PM in response to LarryHN

    Sorry, I didn't see the web link because I was reading FoxFifth's Reply via the Mail app, the link doesn't display like it should.

    I'll check it out, Thank you both for your help!

  • by Old Toad,

    Old Toad Old Toad Jul 8, 2015 1:34 PM in response to Palarin22
    Level 10 (141,721 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Jul 8, 2015 1:34 PM in response to Palarin22

    The easiest and quickest would be to connect your iPhone to your Mac with its USB cable, launch Photos and import all of the photos.

     

    Next would be to use the Image Capture app (in the Applications folder) to download all of the iPhone's files to a folder on the Desktop and then import that folder into the Photos library.

     

    The iCloud Photo Library would do all of that automatically but you would have to probably purchase additional iCloud space to accommodate your photos in the cloud and the iPhone would also have to include all of the photos in your library, probably at a reduce resolution size so they can be stored on the phone.  Be sure to read iCloud Photo Library FAQ - Apple Support  carefully before going that route.  It's not a straight forward as it seams.  Uploading your library to the cloud can take weeks depending on the size of your library.

    OTsig.png

  • by RoberStrange,

    RoberStrange RoberStrange Jul 15, 2015 2:06 AM in response to Palarin22
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jul 15, 2015 2:06 AM in response to Palarin22

    You can try to use Photo Stream. Enable Photo Stream on your phone. Go to Settings → Photos & Camera. Toggle "My Photo Stream" on. Go to Systems Preferences and click on iCloud. Make sure Photo Stream is checked.  Go to iPhoto preferences and click Photo Stream. Make sure My Photo Stream is checked. If you want to automatically transfer iPhone 6 photos to iMac, make sure Automatic Import and Automatic Upload are both checked. That way, when you open iPhoto, as long as your phone is connected to wifi, your photos will automatically upload to your iMac.