You know about Shared Albums, but the latest iPhone software update also brings shared iCloud libraries. With Apple 's iOS 16 , users can create an entire library to share with friends and loved ones .
Improved photo sharing thanks to iOS 16
How is a Shared Library different from a Shared Album? First, with a Shared Library, you can take photos and videos directly to the shared space without going through the extra process of adding them to an album. Also, all participants have equal access to adding, editing, and deleting photos and videos.
Last but not least, the Shared Library feature is smart, meaning you can set it to automatically recognize photos by people or dates and offer suggestions for what to share. Essentially, it's a fun feature that makes sharing photos a lot easier.
How to set up iCloud Shared Photo Library with iOS 16
1. To get started, open Settings and then Photos
2. In Photos, tap Shared library to start setting up.
3. Add participants
Tap “Add Participants” to invite people you want to share your library with. This will take you to another screen where you can add people by typing their name.
Once you’ve added the first participant, add more by tapping “Add Participants” again. You can add up to five people to share with. When you’re done, tap “Continue.”
4. Choose how you want to transfer photos
The next screen will give you three different options for which photos should go to the Shared library. Once you've chosen an option, you'll be able to preview how it will look so you can go back and change it if you decide you don't want to make your entire library accessible to everyone.
- All my photos and videos: This will move everything in your personal library to your Shared library.
- Select by People or Date: Maybe your Shared Library is for sharing photos of your kids or dog with family members, or your vacation with a group of friends. This option lets you include photos based on specific people (or animals) in the photos or specific dates.
- Select Manually: Manually select any photos you want to bring into your Shared library.
Tap “Preview Shared Library” to see how your photos will look (or you can just tap “Skip and Continue” to skip the preview.) If you’re happy with the preview, tap “Continue” to finish setting up.
5. Send the invitations
Once your Shared Library looks good, it’s time to share it. Tap “Invite via Messages” to send the invitation in a group message to all participants, or “Share Link” to copy the link and share it in another way.
6. Select camera settings
Once you send the invitation, you’ll be asked about a setting called “Camera sharing.”range Bluetooth of the participants, any photos or videos you take will automatically go to the Shared library. Tap “Automatic sharing” to turn it on, or “Manual sharing only” to keep it off.
Tap “Done” on the next screen and your Shared Library is ready. On this screen there are some additional details about how it works.
To switch between Personal and Shared libraries, tap the setting at the top of the screen when using your camera. To enable Shared Library Suggestions, go back to Settings, then Photos, then Shared Library. Here you'll also find options to add or remove participants, turn camera sharing off/on, and delete your Shared Library.
All participants can add, edit, delete, and organize photos and videos using the tool and the three-dot icon, just like you would in a Personal Library.
