Alternative to Photos app - want to access files easily

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Level 1

5 points

Alternative to Photos app - want to access files easily

I've just bought a new MacBook Air, but am looking for an alternative programme to save my photos into as I've found the Photos app infuriating on my old MacBook.

The main thing I'm looking for is a programme to upload photos to from my iPhone and Cameras which will store the files locally, rather than hidden within the app. I often want to upload photos online, to websites such as PhotoBox, and it's a nightmare when they're saved to Photos as the original files are hidden so I have to move files manually by dragging to a folder. This has also removed the original time/date stamp so the new files are impossible to organise.

Photo's has also somehow created 2/3/4 copies of some images within the app, taking up lots of extra storage space - a fault I've heard that friends have also experienced.

I've been considering Photoshop Elements, as the additional editing tools would be useful - will this solve my problems in terms of where the photo files are saved?

Thanks.

MacBook Air (13-inch, Early 2015)

Posted on Apr 30, 2017 12:58 AM

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Answer 1

rye_lass Author

Level 1

5 points

Apr 30, 2017 11:49 AM in response to rye_lass

Thank you both for taking the time to respond.

There are some features of Photos which are great, and the design is very usable - I do like having a programme to organise my photos within. However, with the old iPhotos app photos could be uploaded within the app, and the files could be very easily located using finder. This is the type of set up I am looking for.

I have done a fair bit of research and unless I'm mistaken, since iPhoto was upgraded to Photos the original files are hidden and not locatable within Finder - is this right?

I need to locate the files easily in Finder to upload online, often in bulk. But I also like somewhere to organise them and make simple edits - which is why I was looking for an alternative app.

Thanks

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Answer 2

léonie

Level 10

200,735 points

Apr 30, 2017 2:22 AM in response to rye_lass

If you do not want to use Photos to browse and organize and share your photos, manage them in sub folders of the Pictures folder yourself. From your description it looks like you have been fighting Photos eínstead of using the workflows in photos efficiently. I rarely have the need to access my photos from outside Photos, since I can access the external editors from Photo's Edit panel.

To manage your photos yourself,

To store them: set up a set of folders in the Finder
To download them form a camera or other devices: You can use the Image Capture.app to transfer photos from a camera.
To edit them and browse them: Basic edits can be done with Preview, for more advanced edits use a third party editor - Affinity Photos, Picktorial, Pixelmator are some I like and that are fully compatible with Sierra.

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Answer 3

LarryHN

Level 10

106,142 points

Apr 30, 2017 6:52 AM in response to rye_lass

You are confused - Photos does not create multiple copies of photos if fact that is one (of many) reasons to use Photos rather than a file based system like you request

Nothing is hidden within the App - you can easily access your photos using the Photos application or the media browser - Photos is not a file manager and you do not access the photos directly but using the supplied tools

For what you want simply use Image capture to load your photos, the finder to organize them and preview or PSE or any other old fashioned destructive editor to view and edit them (but of course you then do have to have many copies of photos since there is no way to undo an edit except to duplicate you photo prior to editing (another great reason to use Photos - no copies and totally non destructive editing)

What you do is totally your choice but you would be really smart to learn how to use Photos as it is a much better system than what you want and is he wave of the future - all new, modern photo managers work to some degree like Photos

LN

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Answer 4

léonie

Level 10

200,735 points

Apr 30, 2017 12:01 PM in response to rye_lass

There are some features of Photos which are great, and the design is very usable - I do like having a programme to organise my photos within. However, with the old iPhotos app photos could be uploaded within the app, and the files could be very easily located using finder. This is the type of set up I am looking for.

The structure of the iPhoto Library and the Photos Library are very similar. Both can manage the photos inside the library or reference them outside the library. and both have a share menu to upload the photos to other services - to FaceBook, Flickr, ..

Using external editors with Photos is much easier than with iPhoto. In iPhoto you had to designate one external editor; in Photos you can switch freely between different extensions and editors using the "External Editors" extension. If you invest in PowerPhotos it s easy to reveal any original file in the Finder, even if you did not import it as referenced, but it is rarely necessary to access the originals in the Finder.

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