Surely on more than one occasion you have stood before the predicament of not knowing how to transfer photos from Mac to iPhone. It does not matter if it is a photo you were editing, a creation you have made, videos or images downloaded from the internet. In any of these cases it is possible to transfer the photos and videos from your computer to the mobile. There are several methods and next we are going to show you the most effective.
Photos and videos from Mac to iPhone with AirDrop
This is the fastest method, but also the one focused on easier transfers. If you want to transfer many photos from Mac to iPhone, this option will be very tedious if you do not have all the files in the same folder, however it is very useful when you have all in one place. To do this you must follow these steps.
- Open the Control Center on the iPhone.
- Press and hold the box where the connections are.
- Tap the AirDrop icon and select Contacts only or Everyone.
- On the Mac, go to the folder where you have the photo or the set you want to transfer and select them.
- Right-click on the photo file and select Share.
- Click on AirDrop.
- Click on the iPhone with which you want to share the photo.
Once you have done you will see how the photograph or all of them appear instantly on your iPhone. It will automatically open through the Photos app. You will have them ready to see whenever you want or share them through your mobile.
With iCloud sync
One of the advantages of the so-called “Apple ecosystem” is the fact that all your devices can be synchronized without having to do anything. The photos and videos that you store in the photo application on your Mac may appear on your iPhone automatically if certain options are activated.
On your iPhone you must go to Settings> Photos and activate the Photos in iCloud box . In this way, the photos and videos that you store on your mobile will also appear on the Mac if you have activated the same options in System Preferences> Apple ID> iCloud and activating the Photos box .
You will also have to open the Photos application on the Mac and in the toolbar follow the route Photos> Preferences. Once there you must go to the iCloud tab and activate the Photos in iCloud box .
In this way you can have both teams always synchronized. Sometimes it may take time for the content to appear on one of the devices, so you will have to open the application, have an internet connection and wait a few minutes for the synchronization to finish running.
From iTunes or Finder
Another classic method that continues to serve today is to use a cable that connects both devices. On Mac with older versions of the operating system, iTunes should be used, the classic manager for our computers designed by Apple also for Windows computers. In the latest versions, Finder is used, although really both are not far off when it comes to the process of transferring photos.
With macOS Catalina or later
Since macOS 10.15, known as Catalina, the synchronization options with devices such as iPhone, iPod or iPad must be done from Finder.
- Connect iPhone to Mac via cable.
- Open a Finder window and click on the iPhone, located in the left panel.
- In the top bar, tap on Photos. If you have iCloud photos activated, this option will not appear, since both computers automatically synchronize.
- Check the box Synchronize photos with the device from and in the drop-down menu select the source of the photos you want to synchronize.
- Now do one of the following:
- If you chose the Photos app as the source, click on All photos and albums or Selected albums where you can choose which photos are transferred.
- If you chose to sync from a folder, click All folders or Selected folders.
- Now select the Include videos box if you also want them to be transferred. If you chose synchronization from the Photos app, you can activate the Only favorites box so that only these are transferred to your iPhone. Also with this origin app you can choose dates when the photographs have been taken so that only those from that period are transferred.
- Click Apply.
Once this is done, the synchronization will start, which can take a few minutes depending on the volume and weight of the photos and videos that you are transferring from your Mac to the iPhone.
With macOS Mojave or earlier
If you have a Mac with a version of the operating system that is not current, you will have iTunes as a manager between your iPhone, iPod and iPad with your computer. In these cases the process is similar to that performed with Finder in more current versions.
- Connect iPhone to Mac via cable.
- Open iTunes and tap on the iPhone icon at the top.
- Tap on Photos. If you have iCloud photos activated, this option will not appear, since both computers automatically synchronize.
- Check the box Synchronize photos with the device from and in the drop-down menu select the source of the photos you want to synchronize.
- Now do one of the following:
- If you chose the Photos app as the source, click on All photos and albums or Selected albums where you can choose which photos are transferred.
- If you chose to sync from a folder, click All folders or Selected folders.
- Now select the Include videos box if you also want them to be transferred. If you chose synchronization from the Photos app, you can activate the Only favorites box so that only these are transferred to your iPhone. Also with this origin app you can choose dates when the photographs have been taken so that only those from that period are transferred.
- Click Apply.
The process may take a few minutes depending on the size and number of photos and videos that you are synchronizing between your Mac and iPhone.
Upload them to iCloud Drive
Apple has a cloud storage service called iCloud Drive, which is not only present on your devices but is also accessible from Android or Windows. This is an advantage if you want your photos or videos to be accessible from any operating system.
To upload photos and videos from your Mac to iCloud Drive, all you have to do is open a Finder window and open the corresponding iCloud Drive folder. You can if you want to create all the folders you want inside and you just have to select and drag the photos and videos from a normal folder to this one. If you also want to keep those files on your Mac, you should simply copy and paste them.
The time it takes to upload this content to the cloud can take several minutes depending on the weight of these photos and your internet connection , which must be enabled. Then on the iPhone you will have to download them beforehand to view them or save them in your Photos app.
Other methods
There are a multitude of third-party applications on the internet that are designed to transfer photos and videos from Mac to iPhone, although there are also some other applications that without this being their objective allow you to transfer photos. A case of this is Telegram, which allows you to have your own chat with yourself in which to transfer files such as images and videos without compression, with all the quality. Then on the iPhone you just have to save them on your reel. In any case, we believe that the above methods are more than enough to sync your Mac and iPhone.