That said, checking through a sizable Google Photos library could be a time-consuming task. For that, it’s worth combing through your Google Photos snaps before you begin your download. While the export process allows you to select albums and years to include in your download, it doesn’t permit more detailed fine-tuning. What to do before downloading all your Google Photos Instead, each one has to be opened and saved individually, which could prove laborious if you have a large number. The downside? You can’t download multiple albums at once. The benefit of this approach is that you can selectively download your snaps in just a couple of clicks, and keeps them organized on your hard drive.
#HOW TO SET UP GOOGLE PHOTOS ON MAC ZIP FILE#
This will compress all of the images and videos contained in the album into a single zip file for you to download.
Click an individual album and, once it’s loaded, hit those three dots in the top right and select ‘download all’. Under the ‘albums’ tab, select ‘view all albums’ to see your entire collection. If you’ve already sorted your snaps into Google Photos albums – or saved some of Google’s suggested ‘smart albums’ – you can easily download their pre-sorted contents.
#HOW TO SET UP GOOGLE PHOTOS ON MAC HOW TO#
How to download albums from Google Photos
This makes it easy to save similar images, such as ones from the same place. Use the search bar to filter your images – such as by location or date – then pick from the results. If you’re planning on categorizing snaps on your hard drive, it’s also a good opportunity to download batches to match your sorting criteria. From June 2021, Google will also offer a free storage management tool to help you find and delete shots that are underexposed or blurry, which should make it easier to pick through pictures to find your favorites.
While this method isn’t as simple as downloading all of your Google Photos images in one go, it allows you to save data by selecting only the shots you really want to keep. Google will compress your chosen shots into a single zip archive, ready for saving. Once you’re happy with your choice, click the three vertical dots in the top right corner, then click ‘download’.