Losing precious photos can be devastating. Fortunately, if you’ve used iCloud to store your images, retrieving old photos is often possible. This guide provides comprehensive steps on How To Get Old Photos From Icloud, covering various scenarios and recovery methods.
Recovering Photos from iCloud.com
If you’ve deleted photos from your device but had iCloud Photos enabled, your images are likely still safe on iCloud.com. Here’s how to recover them:
- Visit iCloud.com and log in with your Apple ID.
- Click on “Photos.”
- Browse your photo library for the images you want to retrieve. If you recently deleted them, check the “Recently Deleted” album. Remember, photos in this album are automatically deleted after 30 days.
- Select the photos you want and click the download icon to save them to your computer. You can choose to download the original, unmodified files or versions optimized for compatibility.
Restoring from the Recently Deleted Album
iCloud offers a grace period for deleted photos. Items deleted from your devices but synced with iCloud Photos are moved to the “Recently Deleted” album for 30 days.
- Access iCloud.com and log in.
- Open “Photos” and navigate to the “Recently Deleted” album.
- Select the photos you wish to recover and click “Recover.” They will be restored to your iCloud Photos library.
Using iCloud Backup to Restore Photos
If you backed up your device to iCloud before deleting the photos, you can restore your entire device to that backup. Warning: This will overwrite your current device data.
- Go to “Settings” > “General” > “Reset” > “Erase All Content and Settings” on your iPhone or iPad.
- During setup, choose “Restore from iCloud Backup.”
- Select the relevant backup containing your photos.
Retrieving Photos from iCloud Drive
If you manually uploaded photos to iCloud Drive, you can retrieve them directly:
- Log in to iCloud.com and open “iCloud Drive.”
- Browse your files and locate the photos you need.
- Select and download the images to your computer.
Recovering Photos After 30 Days
Recovering photos deleted from iCloud after 30 days is significantly more challenging. While data recovery software exists, success is not guaranteed. Regularly backing up your photos to multiple locations is crucial for preventing permanent loss.
Downloading Photos to Your Devices
Once you’ve located your photos on iCloud.com, downloading them to your devices is straightforward. The process may differ slightly depending on the device:
iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch: Enable iCloud Photos in Settings and choose “Download and Keep Originals.”
Mac: In the Photos app, select Preferences > iCloud and enable “iCloud Photos” and “Download Originals to this Mac.”
Windows PC: Install iCloud for Windows, enable “Photos,” and select the “iCloud Photos” option.
Conclusion
Retrieving old photos from iCloud can be accomplished through several methods depending on your specific circumstances. Understanding these methods and proactively backing up your photos are essential for safeguarding your memories. Using a third-party service like MultCloud to back up your iCloud Photos to another cloud service adds an extra layer of protection against data loss.
