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Deleting Pictures

How do I delete pictures off my MacBook pro without deleting pictures from my iPhone?

MacBook Pro Apple Silicon

Posted on Nov 10, 2022 7:28 AM

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3 replies

Nov 11, 2022 9:00 AM in response to JPate17

If your Mac and your iPhone are connected through iCloud, then the are synchronized, meaning they will always have the same pictures. If you add or delete pictures on one device, the same will happen on the other. Of course, that's what synchronized means!


Why do you want them un-synchronized? If it's to save storage space, you can, in Mac Photos, go to Photos>Preferences>iCloud and check "Optimize Mac Storage." The devices will still have the same pictures, but the Mac will keep smaller versions to save space. The full image will still be available for editing and printing.


If you are embarrassed by a picture you can hide it:

Hide photos from view in Photos on Mac - Apple Support (BY)


OK--there are other reasons to hide pictures rather than just embarrassment

Nov 11, 2022 8:11 PM in response to Richard.Taylor

This has nothing to do with "hiding" pictures, I just want to know if there's a way to delete a picture from my MacBook and not have it deleted from other's devices.


After time, I move my pictures to an external hard drive, this way I don't lose them if something were to happen to the laptop. Some pictures I want to keep on my phone, pics of my wife, children, pets, car...etc, etc...So when I move them and then I try to delete them, because the two are synchronized, I'm prompted with the message stating I'll lose it on both devices. So I guess my "new" question is, how do I unsync my laptop from the iPhone?

Deleting Pictures

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