iCloud Family Sharing- How to use Shared Albums?

Apple’s iCloud service offers a fantastic feature for family groups called iCloud Family Sharing. It lets you share storage space, purchase accounts, Apple Music subscriptions, and more between multiple iCloud users — including managed accounts for younger children. Family Sharing also integrates with Apple’s free Shared Albums feature to provide your family with a securely shared album where you can share images and video. Each family member has their own separate iCloud Photo Library or Photo Stream library, but the Family album allows them a space to store communal photos, images, and video. Here’s how to use iCloud Photo Sharing, access on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac.

• View the Family album on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac
• How to add new photos or video to the Family album on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac
• How to remove photos or video from the Family album on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac

What will you see?

• What is iCloud Photo Sharing?
• How to set up iCloud Photo Sharing on iPhone or iPad?
• View the Family album on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac
• Create A Shared Album on iCloud Family Sharing
• How to invite people to your shared album?
• Add Photos To A Shared Album on iCloud Family Sharing
• Subscribe To A Shared Album
•  Like & Comment On Photos on iCloud Family Sharing
• Save Photos From A Shared Album
• Delete Photos From A Shared Album
• How to remove a subscriber from a Shared Album?
• How To Use iCloud Photo Sharing On A Mac Computer?
• Use iCloud Photo Sharing On A Windows PC
• Shared Album Storage Limits
• Conclusion

What is iCloud Photo Sharing?

iCloud Photo Sharing is a free service offered with Apple’s iCloud services. It’s a great way to share your photos and videos with family, friends, and colleagues. You don’t need cables, USB, Bluetooth, or email to share your photos as iCloud Photo Sharing uses Wi-Fi. With iCloud Photo Sharing, you create a shared photo album for the images you want to share.

You can then choose who you want to share it with (up to 100 people) with iCloud Family Sharing. Subscribers can view, like, and comment on photos in a shared album. They can also add photos and videos of their own. Shared photos and videos are stored in iCloud. But they don’t count against your iCloud storage limit. You’re free to share up to 5,000 photos without having to pay for more storage.

How to set up iCloud Family Sharing on iPhone or iPad?

Before you begin sharing photos, you’ll need to set up iCloud Family Sharing on your iPhone. You can also use these instructions for setting up on your iPad. For the best experience, it’s advisable to update your iPhone or iPad to the latest iOS.

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Go to iCloud option then sign in with you Apple Id and password.
3. Once you’ve signed in to iCloud, go to Settings and click on your name.
4. Click on iCloud then on Photos.
5. Switch on the Shared Albums option.

View the Family album on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac

If you want to see what your family members have already added to this album. You’ll want to open the Shared section of your Photos app.

On iPhone or iPad

1. Launch the Photos app on your iPhone or iPad.
2. Tap on the Albums tab.
3. Scroll down to the Shared Albums section and select the Family album.
4. If you can’t see it, tap on See All and browse through the shared albums until you find it.

On MAC

1. Launch Photos on your Mac.
2. Under the Shared section of the Sidebar, click Shared Albums.
3. Select the Family album.

Create A Shared Album on iCloud Family Sharing

1. Open the Photos app on your iPhone.
2. Tap Albums (you might need to tap it twice) at the bottom of the screen to go to the main list of albums.
3. In the Shared Albums section, tap See All.
4. Click on Edit at the top right.
5. Then tap the [+] icon in the top left corner.
6. Type a name for your shared album, then tap Next.

How to invite people to your Shared Album?

1. Invite people by typing their email address or iPhone number into the To box. Or tap the [+] to the right of the To box to access your iPhone contacts list. 
2. Tap Create.
3. Your new shared album will appear at the top of the Shared Albums screen. Tap Done at the top right.

If you want to share albums with a non-iCloud user, here is the way you can do that:

Simply create a shared album in your iCloud Family Sharing, but don’t invite the person as a subscriber.

1. Open that new shared album, and tap the People tab at the bottom.
2. Turn on Public Website.
3. iCloud will create a link to your shared album on the iCloud.com website.
4. Tap Share Link to share that link with anyone you want.
5. When they click on the link, they’ll be able to view it.
6. Check the settings for this.
7. Open the album, then tap the People tab at the bottom of the screen.

Switch on any settings that you want for this. Subscribers Can Post means subscribers can add their own photos to your shared album. ‘Notifications‘ means you get notified when subscribers like, comment, or add photos to the album. Tab Back at the top left to return to the Shared Albums screen.

Add Photos To A Shared Album in iCloud Photo Sharing

When you want to add images to your Family album, you’ll do so like pretty much any other album addition.

On your iPhone or iPad

1. Launch the Photos app on your iPhone or iPad.
2. Tap on the Albums tab.
3. Scroll down to the Shared Albums section and select the Family album. (If you can’t see it, tap on See All)
4. Tap on the plus sign.
5. Select the photos you want to add and then tap Done in the upper right corner.
6. Type a description if you’d like, and then tap Post in the pop-up window.

On your Mac

1. Launch Photos on your Mac.
2. Click the photos you want to share with family (shift-click or command-click to select multiple).
3. Click the share button on the upper right of the window. It’s a box with an upward arrow.
4. Select Shared Albums.
5. Click Family. The images will then sync over to your family member’s device.

 Subscribe To A Shared Album

When someone else invites you to subscribe to their shared album and if you want to see the photos, you’ll need to accept their invitation. When you receive a notification, accept the invitation to view it.

Like & Comment On Photos in iCloud Family Sharing

iCloud Photo Sharing allows the creator and subscribers to like and comment on photos. Any subscribers signed in to iCloud can like and comment on the shared images. If you think a photo looks great, tap the Like (thumb) icon at the bottom right to let others know that you like it. To comment on a photo, tap Add A Comment at the bottom of the screen. Type your comment, and tap Send. Note that if you’ve already liked a photo, you’ll need to scroll up to see the Add A Comment option.

Save Photos From A Shared Album

If someone adds a photo to a shared album, you can save it to the Photos app on your own iPhone. Here’s how to do so in your device:

1. Select the photo you want to save, and tap the Share icon (square with up arrow).
2. Scroll down, then tap Save Image.
3. The photo will now be stored on your iPhone as well as in the shared iCloud album.

If the owner of the photo deletes it from the album, you’ll still have the image in the Photos app on your iPhone. Other users can save your photos to their iPhone by following the same steps.

Delete Photos From A Shared Album

1. Select the image you want to delete.
2. Tap the Delete icon at the top right.
3. Then tap Delete Photo

When you delete a photo, it gets deleted from the album on all your devices and all subscribers’ devices. But it doesn’t get deleted from its original location in the Photos app on your iPhone.

How to remove a subscriber from a Shared Album?

No longer want an image or video in your Family album? Any member of the family can delete content from the album at any time.

On your iPhone or iPad

1. Launch the Photos app on your iPhone or iPad.
2. Tap on the Albums tab.
3. Scroll down to the Shared Albums section and select the Family album. (If you can’t see it, tap on See All)
4. Tap Select in the upper right corner.
5. Select photos or video you want to delete.
6. Tap the Trash icon in the bottom right corner.
7. Select Delete Photos to confirm that you want to delete the selected photos.

On your Mac

1. Launch the Photos app on your Mac.
2. Click on Shared Albums in the sidebar.
3. Select the Family album.
4. Select the images you wish to delete.
5. Press the Delete key on your keyboard.
6. Click on Delete to confirm that you want to remove the photo from the shared album.

How To Use iCloud Photo Sharing On A Mac Computer?

Do you have photos or videos on your Mac computer that you wish to share with other people? If so, you can use iCloud Photo Sharing in the Mac Photos app – just like you do on your iPhone.

1. Make sure you’re signed in to iCloud with your Apple ID.
2. Go to System Preferences then click on iCloud.
3. Open the Photos app.
4. To ensure iCloud Photo Sharing is switched on, click Photos at the top left of the screen.
5. Select Preferences.
6. The select the iCloud tab.
7. Then ensure the Shared Albums box is checked.
8. Close the iCloud dialog box.
9. To create a shared folder on your Mac, ensure the Photos app is open.
10. On the left side menu, hover your mouse over Shared Albums and click the [+] icon.
11. Give your album a name, invite people, and add a comment if you wish. Then click Create.
12. Click the Share icon (a square with up arrow) at the top of the screen. Select Shared Albums from the dropdown menu.
13. Click the album that you want to add the photo to

Use iCloud Photo Sharing on a Windows PC

If you have a Windows PC, you can still use iCloud Photo Sharing to share your photos with others. You can create shared albums as long as you have an iCloud account/Apple ID on your PC. To enable iCloud Photo Sharing on Windows, download and install the iCloud For Windows software on your computer. Once you’ve installed iCloud For Windows, open it and sign in with your Apple ID. Use the same Apple ID that you use on your iPhone. Ensure the Photos box is checked. Then click on Options beside Photos. Check the iCloud Photo Sharing box. Click Done, then click Apply. Now create a shared album and invite people to view your photos. 

1. Open File Explorer on your computer.
2. Then open iCloud Photos from the left-hand sidebar.
3. Click the New Shared Album button at the top of the screen.
4. Add the iCloud email addresses for the people you want to invite.
5. Name your shared album, and click Next.
6. Select the photos you want to add, then click Done.
7. Your photos will be shared to the album. Other subscribers can now see your pictures.

Shared Album Storage Limits

You can share up to 200 albums via iCloud Photo Sharing. And each album can contain a maximum of 5,000 photos or videos. The best part is that photos and videos in the albums don’t count against your iCloud storage limit. So no need to worry about upgrading your iCloud storage plan.

Conclusion

If you want to share your iPhone photos with friends and family. You can do it with iCloud Photo Sharing, you can easily share photos and videos with just the people you choose. You can easily add or delete an album, invite people to view the images and videos you share. And the fun fact is people can like your pictures and can comment on the. It also lets you share storage space, purchase accounts, Apple Music subscriptions, and more between multiple iCloud users — including managed accounts for younger children.

Do you use Family Sharing from iCloud? Tell us below in the comments section.