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Photos for OS X is designed to appeal to a broad audience, with simple editing tools that let anyone improve their photographs. But is that it? Even though it’s a 1.0 product (replacing iPhoto and Aperture), a lot of editing power is actually hidden beneath that user-friendly surface.
For example, when you edit a photo and click the Adjust button, you’re presented with sliders for improving light and color. Dragging a slider makes the image brighter or darker (Light), or more or less saturated (Color); you can also click the Auto button that appears when the mouse pointer moves over the tool. Clicking the down-facing arrow icon, however, exposes individual controls.
That’s just the beginning.
Jump into editing
To access the editing view, normally you click the Edit button when viewing an image, but there’s a better way: simply press the Return key. This shortcut also works in the Moments view when a photo is selected.
Shortcuts also go directly to specific tools, even if you’re not yet in the editing view. Press C to open the Crop tool, F for filters, A for the Adjust tool, R for the Retouch tool, and E for the Red-eye tool. While you’re editing, press the arrow keys to switch to the previous or next photo without leaving the editing view.
To compare your edits to the original version of the photo, press the M key for a quick before-and-after.
Choose which version to edit
If you shoot with your camera set to Raw+JPEG format (which records both a raw image and a high-resolution JPEG version), Photos treats the two separate images as one. However, the application defaults to editing the JPEG instead of the richer raw version.
To switch, open the photo in the editing view and choose Image > Use RAW as Original. (The option is disabled unless you’re in the editing view.)
Add more adjustments
The Light, Color, and Black & White adjustments in the Adjust tool are just the most common adjustments. Several more are available by clicking the Add menu (see image below). I find having the Histogram visible to be helpful, for example. If you use some controls regularly, such as White Balance, choose Save As Default at the bottom of the Add menu; those adjustments will appear every time you edit a photo.
Extend edit ranges
A funny thing happened one day when I accidentally pressed the Option key while editing a photo: The tick marks on several of the adjustment controls moved.
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Many of the controls use a scale that ranges from –1.00 to +1.00, with the image’s original value sitting in the middle at zero. The Exposure control, for example, darkens the image significantly at –1.00, but doesn’t turn it black. When you hold Option, that range changes to between –2.00 and +2.00, letting you darken the photo even more (or go the other direction and brighten a dark photo).
This feature is also useful when you’re looking for more pop or an extreme treatment for a drab photo. In the images below, I’ve taken a photo of dried leaves and pushed the contrast to its initial maximum value of 1.00. With the Option key held, however, I can push that higher and get a more dramatic effect.
Multiple levels of Levels
The Histogram is good for identifying the color and tonal values in a photo, but it’s there just for reference. The Levels adjustment, however, lets you manipulate those values in some sophisticated ways. Choose Levels from the Add menu to view it.
Looking at a histogram, the left side represents dark values (with black at the far left) and the right side represents light values (with white at the far right). The colored areas within indicate the distribution of red, green, and blue (RGB) pixels within the scene. If you want to isolate and edit any of those channels, click the options menu that appears when you move your mouse cursor over the controls. You can also choose Luminance to view only the brightness values.
The teardrop-shaped handles at the bottom of the Levels histogram control (from left to right) the black point, midtones, and the white point. To brighten an image, for example, drag the white point to the left—the values to the right of the white point get pushed to their full luminance, increasing the overall brightness of the photo (see below).
Similarly, dragging the black point makes the image darker, and dragging the midtones lightens or darkens the values that fall between the light and dark extremes; the smaller handles that flank the midtones control affect shadows (left) and highlights (right). Sometimes, for instance, it may be better to adjust the midtones to brighten an image to avoid clipping, which is when pixels are pushed all the way to pure white or black.
There’s more to the Levels adjustment, however. The handles at the top of the Levels adjustment allow you to fine-tune the edits made with the bottom handles. In the image below, I’ve reduced the white point setting (by moving it to the right) so the lightest areas aren’t blown out, and then also dragged the top-center control to brighten the midtones. The result is a brighter, more saturated sky, but also detail in light areas such as the pyramid-topped building in the center of the skyline. You can also hold Option and drag a top handle to also move its connected bottom handle in unison, maintaining the relationship between the two.
Copy and paste adjustments
After you’ve edited a photo to your liking, you probably have similar shots taken at the same time that would benefit from those adjustments. Rather than try to replicate everything by hand, it’s much easier to copy the work you did on the first one and paste it onto another.
While you’re still in the editing view, choose Image > Copy Adjustments (or press Command-Shift-C). Next, switch to the unedited photo and choose Image > Paste Adjustments (or press Command-Shift-V). All the changes you made to the first apply to the second.
Looking ahead
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These advanced or hidden editing features exist in the current 1.0.1 version of Photos for OS X, and there’s more to come. An update arriving with the upcoming OS X El Capitan will support editing extensions: third-party developers can create modules that will enable you to edit your images within Photos for OS X using the developer’s tools. This capability already exists on iOS—you can use the editing tools of Pixelmator or Camera Plus, to name just two examples, without leaving the Photos app on your iPhone or iPad.
For now, though, Photos for OS X turns out to be a much more capable photo editor than it first appears, which is a good place to start moving forward.
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Photos helps you keep your growing library organized and accessible. Powerful and intuitive editing tools help you perfect your images. Memories displays the best images from your photo library in beautiful collections. And with iCloud Photos, you can keep a lifetime’s worth of photos and videos stored in iCloud and up to date on all of your devices.
Before you begin
- Update your Mac to the latest version of macOS.
- If you use iPhoto or Aperture to manage your photos and videos, upgrade to the Photos app.
Access all of your photos from anywhere
iCloud Photos automatically keeps all your photos in iCloud, so you can access them on your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Apple TV, Mac, iCloud.com, or on a PC. When you edit and organize images in the Photos app, your changes are kept up to date and visible everywhere.
Manage your iCloud storage
The photos and videos that you keep in iCloud Photos use your iCloud storage. Before you turn on iCloud Photos, make sure that you have enough space to store your entire collection. You can see how much space you need and then upgrade your storage plan if necessary.
Turn on iCloud Photos
It's easy to get started. Just turn on iCloud Photos in your Settings and make sure that you're signed in with the same Apple ID on all of your devices. On your Mac, go to System Preferences > iCloud and click the Options button next to Photos. Then select iCloud Photos.
Keep your photo library organized
On your Mac, your photo collection is separated into four main categories: Photos, Moments, Collections, and Years. The Photos tab shows all your photos and videos in chronological order. In Moments, Collections, and Years, you'll find your photos and videos grouped together based on the time and place they were taken.
The Photos app sorts your photos into Memories, Favorites, People, and Places in the sidebar under Library. The sidebar also shows what you and your friends have shared, your photo albums, and projects that you've created.
Do more with the Photos app
Your Mac is the place that you go to get things done. That’s why the Photos app makes it easier than ever to create a stunning slideshow, share with anyone you like, and quickly find the moment you’re looking for. All with a few clicks.
Play a slideshow
Instantly prepare a slideshow directly in Photos. Open any album and click Slideshow. Customize the theme and music, and you're ready to go.
Or you can click the title of a Moment, Collection, or Year. Then click .
Share with friends
Use to share photos in Shared Albums, Mail, and more. Or send photos to your social media accounts, such as Facebook and Twitter.
Select multiple photos
The Photos app makes working with multiple photos and videos from your library quick and efficient. Just select more than one photo or video, and immediately see how many you've selected in the upper-right corner of the Photos app. Then you can move them into an album, hide, delete, get info, and more.
Search your photos
Find the photo or video you're looking for in no time. Just use the search bar that's built directly into the Photos toolbar. You can search for photos using names of family and friends, locations, or what appears in the photos, like cake or balloons.
Or try the filter in the upper-right corner of the Photos app. Next to Showing, click All Items. Then choose to show only Favorites, Edited, Photos, or Videos.
Delete photos and videos from your library
If there are photos and videos that you don't want anymore, you can delete one at a time, or several.
Delete one photo
- Select the photo that you want to delete.
- Press the Delete key.
- Confirm that you want to delete the photo.
Delete multiple photos
- Press and hold the Command key.
- Select the photos that you want to delete.
- Press the Delete key.
- Confirm that you want to delete the photos.
When you delete a photo, it goes into your Recently Deleted album, where it stays for 30 days. If you use iCloud Photos, the photos that you delete are moved into the Recently Deleted album on your other devices too. After 30 days, Photos deletes the photos permanently. You can permanently delete photos right away when you click Delete All in the Recently Deleted album.
When you delete photos directly from an album by pressing the Delete key, you only remove them from the album and not your entire photo collection. If you want to delete photos from both the album and your collection, press Command-Delete.
Edit your photos
Photos includes powerful, easy-to-use editing tools. You can apply adjustments to your photos and make them look exactly the way you like. Then if you want to start over, you can always revert to the original photo. Here's how to get started:
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- From the Photos view, or from within an album, double-click the photo you want to edit.
- Click Edit or in the upper-right corner of Photos.
- The editing tools appear along the right side of the window. Click the tool you'd like to use.
After you edit your photo, click Done. Want to start over? Click Revert to Original. If you use iCloud Photos, you'll see the changes on all of your devices.
With Photos for macOS High Sierra and later, you can also send a photo to most third-party photo apps for editing, then save the changes right back into your library. Learn more about editing your photos with third-party apps and extensions.
See and add information about a photo
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You can also add details to your photos, like a description, keywords, or a specific location. You can even Add Faces to name your friends and family in each photo.
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To view the Info window, double-click a photo to open it and then click in the upper-right corner, or select a photo and use the keyboard shortcut Command-I. Once you add information, you can use the Search bar to find photos by keyword, title, description, faces, or location.