Gengarface
Level 1 (4 points)
Desktops

Q: I need help downloading my photos from iCloud to my iPhone 6s

Since I turned off iCloud for saving photos from my phone, I got an email saying that I have 30 days to download my iCloud photo library. These are the instructions it gives me:

 

1. Connect to a power source and Wi-Fi.

2. Go to Settings and tap iCloud, then select Photos.

3. Tap Download and Keep Originals.

 

When I follow these instructions, I do NOT see it say "download and keep originals" anywhere. Does this mean that my photos are already downloaded to my phone? What do I need to do?

 

Thanks.

iPhone 6s, iOS 9.0.1

Posted on Nov 6, 2015 1:21 PM

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Gengarface

Q: I need help downloading my photos from iCloud to my iPhone 6s

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  • Helpful answers

  • by Pmintz25,

    Pmintz25 Pmintz25 Nov 6, 2015 1:30 PM in response to Gengarface
    Level 4 (1,679 points)
    Nov 6, 2015 1:30 PM in response to Gengarface

    Go to www.icloud.com

     

    Sign in with your Apple ID and select Photos. See if there are any photos here. If there aren't any photos, then you probably didn't use iCloud for photos in the first place.

     

    Read through this article too.

     

    My Photo Stream FAQ - Apple Support

  • by Gengarface,

    Gengarface Gengarface Nov 6, 2015 1:30 PM in response to Pmintz25
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Desktops
    Nov 6, 2015 1:30 PM in response to Pmintz25

    I just checked my iCloud, all my photos are in fact in there. What do you think I could do? Is there a chance that my photos actually will be removed from my phone after 30 days?

  • by Pmintz25,

    Pmintz25 Pmintz25 Nov 6, 2015 1:54 PM in response to Gengarface
    Level 4 (1,679 points)
    Nov 6, 2015 1:54 PM in response to Gengarface

    Yes that is how iCloud works with photos.

     

    Take a look at this article. Click on Photos and Videos and get your read on!

    Look at "Copy content from My Photo Stream and iCloud Photo Sharing on your iOS device" specifically.

     

    Make sure My Photo Stream is checked under Settings > iCloud > Photos, otherwise My Photo Stream won't appear in the Photos app on your iPhone.

     

    Archive or make copies of your iCloud data - Apple Support

  • by Gengarface,

    Gengarface Gengarface Nov 6, 2015 2:10 PM in response to Pmintz25
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Desktops
    Nov 6, 2015 2:10 PM in response to Pmintz25

    Hmm okay, I'm a little confused. I just turned the "My Photo Stream" switch on (in iCloud settings). But I don't see any photos in the "my photo stream" folder in my Photos app. But I do see all my photos in my camera roll.

     

    My main question is: Why don't I see the "Download and Keep Originals" option in my iCloud photo settings? Why doesn't it let me download my iCloud photos to my phone? The only options I see are "iCloud Photo library", "My Photo Stream", and "iCloud Photo Sharing". Where's "Download and Keep Originals"?

  • by Gengarface,

    Gengarface Gengarface Nov 6, 2015 3:45 PM in response to Pmintz25
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Desktops
    Nov 6, 2015 3:45 PM in response to Pmintz25

    It seems like since my photos are already in my camera roll, that I don't have a problem and they're already in my phone's physical storage. I have one more question though, in case you might know... If I bring my photos from my 6s onto my iMac, and then I put the photos into a folder and sync the photos onto my iPhone again with iTunes, is there any way to still use them as live photos? It seems that this disables the live photo feature of the pictures. I just want to organize my photos so that they aren't all in camera roll.

  • by Pmintz25,

    Pmintz25 Pmintz25 Nov 9, 2015 9:52 AM in response to Gengarface
    Level 4 (1,679 points)
    Nov 9, 2015 9:52 AM in response to Gengarface

    I'm not 100% about live photos (since I only have a an iPhone 6), but I would imagine they will still work if they are in Photos/iPhoto. Once you take them out of Photos, I have no idea. But you can use iTunes to sync pictures from Photos. You don't have to put them in external folders, you can sync them directly from Photos.

     

    I used to have tons of folders of pictures, and I finally put them in iPhoto and organized them. Now I can sync individual events from Photos using iTunes.

    Hope that helps and good luck!