JRSC

Q: Importing from iPhoto '11 to Photos on new Mac

We have been using an offline Mac for photo storage. That Mac runs OS X 10.7 and has iPhoto '11 9.2. There are currently 300 gigs of photos on that machine. I just got a new Mac with El Capitan and Photos. I understand that Photos is similar to iPhoto but no longer uses events, etc.

 

We would like to move all the photos from the old computer to the new one. We have Time Machine set up on the old computer, so is it as simple as opening the Time Machine backup, and literally copying the 300 gig "iPhoto Library" file and pasting it in the "Pictures" folder on the new computer? Is that something that can be done all at once, or do I need to piecemeal it by doing chunks of photos at a time? If I copy that file over, will it convert the events, etc into the Photos equivalent? If it imports all the pictures into Photos, will it create a new photo data file (i.e. will I have TWO 300 gig files on my computer?).

 

Thanks for any guidance.

Posted on Sep 10, 2016 5:59 AM

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Q: Importing from iPhoto '11 to Photos on new Mac

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  • by léonie,

    léonie léonie Sep 10, 2016 6:14 AM in response to JRSC
    Level 10 (105,761 points)
    iLife
    Sep 10, 2016 6:14 AM in response to JRSC

    You cannot copy the iPhoto Library out of the Time Machine backup. Run Time Machine on the new Mac to restore the iPhoto Library from the backup to the Pictures folder on the new Mac.

     

    Or copy the library directly from the old Mac to the new Mac by booting the old Mac in Target Disk Mode:

    See this document: https://support.apple.com/kb/PH3838?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US

     

    s that something that can be done all at once, or do I need to piecemeal it by doing chunks of photos at a time?

    Once the iPhoto Library is on the new computer, you create a Photos Library from it by dragging the iPhoto Library onto the Photos icon in the Dock. Photos will read the library and create a migrated new Photos Library.

    The old iPhoto Library will be renamed to "iPhoto Library.migratedphotolibrary", and the new Library will recalled "Photos Library.photoslibrary".

     

    To get you started with Photos for Mac, have a look at these links:

  • by LarryHN,

    LarryHN LarryHN Sep 10, 2016 6:13 AM in response to JRSC
    Level 10 (84,210 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Sep 10, 2016 6:13 AM in response to JRSC

    No - you do not use TM backups directly - you have to use TM to restore them

     

    TO move a library the easiest way is to move it - connect the two systems together using a network or FireWire target mode or use an external drive formatted Mac OS extended (journaled) ad drag the library to the pictures folder of the new system - then drag it to the Photos icon in the Dock to n=migrate it to Photos - this must only be done as a single move - you do not move things in small pieces

     

    this describes how the migration takes place  Details of how Photos handles the migration from iPhoto  and no it does not duplicate the space requirements - Photos saves disk space by sharing images with your iPhoto or Aperture libraries - Apple Support

     

    These articles may help understand the differences between Photos and iPhoto

     

    Moments in Photos are the New Events

    Photos 1.5 vs iPhoto 9.6.1:  Features and Capabilities

    How to Simulate Star Ratings in Photos

    Photo Editing Extensions for Photos for Mac

    LN

  • by JRSC,

    JRSC JRSC Sep 10, 2016 11:11 AM in response to léonie
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Sep 10, 2016 11:11 AM in response to léonie

    Thank you - I do have a followup question though regarding copying over the library. If I hook the time machine HD up to the new computer and choose NOT to use it as a time machine for that device, doesn't it let me see the time machine files within directories in finder to where I could just copy the file? Or am I totally off on that? If not, and I plug the old Time Machine drive into the new computer and set it up for Time Machine, will I have issues restoring since the OS versions are so far removed from one another?

     

    Thanks!

  • by léonie,

    léonie léonie Sep 10, 2016 11:17 AM in response to JRSC
    Level 10 (105,761 points)
    iLife
    Sep 10, 2016 11:17 AM in response to JRSC

    I'm not sure if this still works, but see Pondini's tip:   http://pondini.org/TM/E2.html

  • by JRSC,

    JRSC JRSC Sep 10, 2016 1:46 PM in response to LarryHN
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Sep 10, 2016 1:46 PM in response to LarryHN

    Thank you for this response. I don't have a cable to connect the two macs, so I see two ways forward.

    1) I can copy the iphoto library file to an external HD and then copy it to the new Mac. Question on that - there is not a photos folder on the new mac yet (it's a clean computer - nothing on it yet). do I create one? or should I import a few pictures to photos first so one gets created?

    2) I can hook up my time machine EHD to the new computer, load time machine and restore JUST the iphoto library, right? will that time machine backup work since the OS versions are about five years and multiple versions apart?

     

    Thanks!

  • by léonie,

    léonie léonie Sep 10, 2016 11:53 PM in response to JRSC
    Level 10 (105,761 points)
    iLife
    Sep 10, 2016 11:53 PM in response to JRSC

    JRSC wrote:

     

    Thank you for this response. I don't have a cable to connect the two macs, so I see two ways forward.

    1) I can copy the iphoto library file to an external HD and then copy it to the new Mac. Question on that - there is not a photos folder on the new mac yet (it's a clean computer - nothing on it yet). do I create one? or should I import a few pictures to photos first so one gets created?

    2) I can hook up my time machine EHD to the new computer, load time machine and restore JUST the iphoto library, right? will that time machine backup work since the OS versions are about five years and multiple versions apart?

     

    Thanks!

    I would use the external drive than to copy the library over. Just ensure, that the drive has the correct file system MacOS Extended (Journaled), or the iPhoto Library may fail to copy because of file errors. If the drive has a different file system, save any documents from the drive elsewhere and reformat it as described here for Aperture - the same will work for iPhoto and Photos:  Format external drives to Mac OS Extended before using with Aperture - Apple Support

    Enable  the "Ignore Ownership Flag" for this drive.  This will prevent permission errors, since you are copying between differnet computers with different user accounts.

     

    To create your new Photos Library copy the iPhoto Library into the Pictures folder on your Mac. You will see the Pictures folder when you open the Home folder.

    If it does not yet show in the sidebar enable it. While you are in the Finder go to the main menu bar, open the "Finder" menu, then Preferences. Click the Sidebar tab and enable all items you want to show in the sidebar.

    Screen Shot 2016-09-11 at 08.45.46GMT.jpg

     

    Once your iPhoto Library is in your Pictures folder, drag it onto the Photos icon in the Dock. Photos will create a new Photos library from the iPhoto Library.

     

    To your question 2:  The procedure described in Pondini#s tip I linked to should work, but I cannot test it on my Macs. They are all running different systems. Since you still have the original iPhoto Library it is much saver to copy the library instead of trying to restore it from a backup.

  • by léonie,

    léonie léonie Sep 10, 2016 11:55 PM in response to léonie
    Level 10 (105,761 points)
    iLife
    Sep 10, 2016 11:55 PM in response to léonie

    To set the ignore ownership flag on the external drive:

     

    See:  https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201517

    1. Select this drive in the Finder.
    2. Choose File > Get Info.
    3. In the Info window, find the Sharing & Permissions section. You may need to click the disclosure triangle to see the details for this section.
    4. Click the lock in the lower-right corner of the Info window. Enter an administrator name and password when prompted.
    5. Select the option to Ignore Permissions on this volume (usually selected by default).
    6. Copy your  library to this drive.

    portable drive