How to access photo files in Finder?

What doesn't make sense is that you can access your Photos when attaching a file to a chat, or a support forum as I just discovered, yet you can't access them in Finder. It's obviously possible to do safely. It shouldn't be this hard.

What you've just discovered there is the Media Browser, referred to multiple times in the thread.

It makes perfect sense that you cannot directly access the files in the Finder. Doing so risks corrupting not only the Library on your Mac but also the iCloud Photo Library and the Libraries on any device linked to the iCPL. How? Things like moving or even renaming files will do this. It's a simple protection against carnage caused by the inexperienced or unwary user.

If you don't use the iCPL then simply run a referenced library - referenced libraries cannot be used with the iCPL. But be aware that Photos does not have the tools to adequately manage such a library and your data remains at risk - especially for the inexperienced and the unwary.

Why do you want to access the original file?

Depending on what your intended use is, there are ways and means to achieve it.

Thank you Larry for clarifying the method NOT to use. I am currently using Photos, running newest OS Sierra, but am planning on moving all of my images over to Lightroom. I have 100,000 images. What would you suggest as the soundest way to transfer my images out of Photos?

Your help is appreciated!

There's no good way. There is simply no way at all to preserve the relationship between the master and processed images.

The best way is to use the iPhoto importer in LR. It's imperfect. See the Adobe forums for more.

either select the photos in Photos and export the unmodified originals or is you are positive that you are done with Photos right click on the Photos library and show Package contents and copy the masters folder and impor to LightRoom

LN

Thank you Larry - and Terence for chiming in too! That was just what I was looking for…I am interested in the original Masters more than the edits I made in Photos, since I will be starting fresh with Lightroom. I will plan on creating folders on an external hard drive and copying over the masters files to those before I import them into Lightroom.

I'll be sure to check out the Adobe forums before I transfer as well.

Thank you again!

Elissa

I will plan on creating folders on an external hard drive and copying over the masters files to those before I import them into Lightroom.

Lr is a lot more powerful than Photos and can do that for you.

Using the Lr importer will preserve any metadata you have added.

There are hundreds of videos online full of tips for Lr. I found those very useful when I made the transition.

You highlight just one of the many reasons I tried and gave up on the crippleware that Photos is. I too often use the Reveal In Finder function of iPhoto to drag original media into video or graphics apps, and would have to have to Export each item I needed to do that to, then import into the other apps. Photos is still a giant step back from iPhoto, which, I am deciding to stick to versus this weak app Photos.

Good news is that I had only imported 9 videos from an iPhone into Photos. They were easy enough to find right now with the Show Package Contents to reveal the files at

/Volumes/4TB SSD/IMRAN_Videos.photoslibrary/Masters/2017/07/06/20170706-215314

I am just copying them to the desktop before I delete and get rid of Photos library. Maybe in a few years it will have the functionality iPhoto offered for years.

One suggestion is to check out the Photos version of iPhoto Library Manager, which often can do things better than Apple's own team can, and has been impressive to see in use. I can't be sure but they may have some capability to reveal things in finder. Of course, that is not a free app, and I do not have any connection to them.

It is funny (and sad) to see some Mac users, though trying to be helpful, telling you that you do not need a basic functionality that you not only need, but already use in existing APPLE products, AND know how to use safely. Others give convoluted 12 step processes like Windows users of the past used to give to do what we MacUsers could do with one click, and that we laughed at them for. Now it is a step backwards for us, as if Apple has been hiring fired Windows UX designers and product managers.

Good luck.

I.

Photos is not crippleware. As any unbiased research will tell you it is, in fact, far more powerful at editing, includes the whole iCloud Library and the seamless syncing across devices that us utterly absent from iPhoto. I used iPhoto from v1 and can count on my fingers the number of times I used the Reveal In Finder option. It is still possible to have it in Photos too, in a referenced Library. But most importantly, the fact that it's missing a feature that you prefer is no reason to carry on these inaccurate editorial posts. Use the Feedback mechanism.

Just because you did not use a feature (Reveal In Finder) in iPhoto does not make you the authority on why that feature would not be regularly used by others or be of great importance to others

And the opposite is true. Just because you used it sometimes does not mean that it's of great importance to any significant number of users. But what is undoubtedly true is that the feature is available in Referenced Mode. So, stop saying it's not there. It's unfair to other users of the forum to be inaccurate.

Photos is supposedly such a great (and better?) replacement

There is no argument about this. It's a much better editor in itself. it's interoperability with other editors is far better than iPhoto - you're not restricted to one. It has the ability to manage and seamlessly sync your photos across all your MacOS and iOS devices. It's just a more powerful app for less - it's free.

What part of

...the feature is available in Referenced Mode

is unclear? Is it that you don't understand what Referenced Mode is? Is that the problem?

So, let's be unambiguous: The feature you want is present in Referenced Mode. Stop saying it isn't. If you want that feature run in Referenced. Problem Solved. But stop posting inaccurate information, please.

The new Photos.app does not allow to reveal managed photos in the Finder, like iPhoto does.

You can only reveal referenced image in the Finder, that you manage yourself and have not been copied into the Photos Library.

if you want access to the original image files, that you imported, use "File > Export" to place a copy onto your Desktop.

The management of original files in Photos is much more complicated than in iPhoto, so it does not make much sense to reveal the originals. Photos can contemporarily have several copies of them - in the Masters folder, in iCloud, or in a folder with temporary items. And if you are using "Optimize Mac Storage", there may be no file to reveal at all, because the only copy will be in iCloud and not on your MAc.

LarryHN, your reference is to iphoto, it is different from Photo.

I have the same issue as Simonevm, and I guess Leonie is right. But Apple must have some idea on how people would work with photos in other application than photo. I mean Photo is super basic. For example, I want to use Final Cut Pro to mix Movies and pictures. I have an Album in photo with pics and video. Do I really have to export 191 photos and videos, then import to Final cut pro?

Also, if someone know of a simple software that can mix video and photo, let me know. Final Cut Pro seems like an overkill

But the media browser is the same in Photos.

Yes I most certainly know that iPhoto and Photo are different programs and in both it is exactly as I stated - it is for iPhoto but is mostly applicable to Photos - what part of that is confusing to you?

although this is for iPhoto is is still most applicable to Photos - How to Access Files in iPhoto

Bottom line is that in either program you do not and should not use the finder to access your photos - you use the application , the media browser or export them

And of course Léonie and I are right - that is why we have provided so many correct answers

Have a nice day

LN

I mean Photo is super basic. For example, I want to use Final Cut Pro to mix Movies and pictures. I have an Album in photo with pics and video. Do I really have to export 191 photos and videos, then import to Final cut pro?

Both Final Cut Pro and iMovie are giving you access to your Photos Library in the Media panel.

For example in Final Cut Pro X 10.2.3 you would browse your Photos albums like this:

In iMovie it is similar. I can browse the photos and videos in my photo libraries from iMovie and drag them to the timeline of an iMovie project without having to import them to iMovie.

The good integration of native Apple applications is one reason why I am not switching to a third-party photo database application. I like the integration of the Apple applications with the Media Browser. It is easy to access videos, audio, photos from other applications, as long as all applications have been updated to the newest versions.