Find solution
How to synchronize IPhoto libraries between several Macs?

How do I take all the photos from two iPhoto libraries on two different Macs and put/import them into the iPhoto library of a third Mac?

  • Answer:

    Timothy's answer (export from both, import into a third or equally: export from one, import into the other) describes the manual way - only problem is that this way you lose your metadata like faces, places etc. iPhoto Library Manager (http://www.fatcatsoftware.com/iplm/) supposedly can do the job while keeping all your data. But NOTE: this only works with the same versions of iPhoto. You know how sometimes iPhoto says "the library has to be updated"? Now if one library has a different version number than the other, iPhoto Library Manager can't help either. Since you're talking about two different Macs, you might run into that problem. If anyone has a better option, I'd be glad to hear it since this problem has been bugging me for the last four years.

Felix Bauer at Quora Visit the source

Was this solution helpful to you?

Other answers

I've used iPhoto Library Manager to merge two libraries into a third.  It does work, and I was able to keep ratings and events (but not sure if the Faces came through).  Good piece of software.

Noah Van Loen

If you have Aperture then since the latest updates to that and to iPhoto you can import both iPhoto libraries into Aperture and then use the new library from iPhoto.  This will preserve all the meta data (places, faces, ratings, albums, etc).

Ask Bjørn Hansen

Simply export both libraries and import them on the new Mac. Okay, so it isn't quite that simple, but that is basically what needs to be done. Add the library files to the new Mac, open one, and copy all the files into the other. It is a bit complicated, but it certainly can be done.

Timothy McSwain

Related Q & A:

Just Added Q & A:

Find solution

For every problem there is a solution! Proved by Solucija.

  • Got an issue and looking for advice?

  • Ask Solucija to search every corner of the Web for help.

  • Get workable solutions and helpful tips in a moment.

Just ask Solucija about an issue you face and immediately get a list of ready solutions, answers and tips from other Internet users. We always provide the most suitable and complete answer to your question at the top, along with a few good alternatives below.