Apple's Photos apps for iOS 10 & OS X 10.12 to restore iPhoto editing features - report

Posted:
in macOS edited February 2016
Apple is said to be planning big changes in its Photos applications for both iOS 10 and OS X 10.12, more closely aligning the capabilities of the iPhone and Mac apps, and also restoring some absent functionality that was previously found in iPhoto.




Citing a reliable source with knowledge of the software's development, Macotakara reported on Thursday that that Apple is working to make the new versions of Photos "at the same level" as the now-defunct iPhoto apps for iOS and OS X. Both iPhoto and its professional-grade counterpart Aperture were pulled from the Mac App Store last April.

Last year's transition from iPhoto to Photos meant some key editing features were axed. They included brush correction, adjusting the brightness of a selected portion of an image, the ability to flag pictures, and EXIF data editing capabilities.

Photos for Mac is also incapable of making batch changes to the names of photo files, which the now-defunct iPhoto could accomplish. Users also cannot change the order of photos displayed between ascending and descending.

Thursday's report didn't provide any specifics about exactly what iPhoto features might return to the Photos apps for Mac and iOS devices. However, it did say that Photos for Mac "will be improved to the level of iPhoto 9.6.1."

However, Apple apparently has no plans to appease former Aperture users, as the report indicated that higher-end functionality from that application is not in the works for Photos for Mac.

Aperture and iPhoto remain functional for users who already had them installed, but new users cannot access the applications. iPhoto was first released in 2002 as part of Apple's iLife suite, while Aperture launched in 2005.

Apple is expected to reveal both iOS 10 and OS X 10.12 at this year's Worldwide Developers Conference in June. New iOS releases typically arrive in September, while OS X updates usually arrive shortly after.

Beyond changes to Photos, Apple is also said to be planning to bring Siri to the Mac with OS X 10.12. A new rumor this week claims Apple will add a Siri button to the Mac's menu bar, and always-on "Hey Siri" support will also be available if the Mac is plugged into a power outlet
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 27
    Adobe, with Lightroom, Photoshop and a compliment of programs and apps has absolutely killed Apple in serving the professional photography market.  

    I would like a refund for Aperture.
    bdkennedy1002latifbp
  • Reply 2 of 27
    calicali Posts: 3,494member
    I really want iOS photo apps to be cross compatible with Mac so they can be used as "plug-ins". Would increase app sales and creativity/flexibility.
    edited February 2016
  • Reply 3 of 27
    paxmanpaxman Posts: 4,729member
    I would like a refund for Aperture.
    Ha ha, you are funny. 

    On the other hand, the history of Apple developing high end apps targeted at pros or semi pros is not a great one. Pros should always bear that in mind and never fully let go of dedicated apps from dedicated pro developers. I would love to hear from the horse's mouth about the thinking and policies behind the development and consequent retirement of a number of apps in Apple's history. 
    Aieeeeeee!argonaut
  • Reply 4 of 27
    It'd also be nice of Apple to stop using LivePhotos as a lock-in feature and give us true export for them.  Right now, the best (maybe only) thing you can do is install iCloud on a Windows PC and download your photos library there - it's not perfect (LivePhotos export as a separate image and MOV file) but it's about all there is.
  • Reply 5 of 27
    The feature I want most is the iPhoto organization. Copying photos between events, merging events, renaming events (or whatever events are called in Photos now). I have not yet seen a screenshot of how photos are organized in Photos. It sounds horrendous, in the sidebar? Not full screen as in iPhoto. Also we need to know if keywords and descriptions are preserved.
    brian green
  • Reply 6 of 27
    snovasnova Posts: 1,281member
    I own LR 6.x, Capture One. Aperture, still the one that just feels right. Too bad it's missing capabilities.  This announcement can't be a bad thing.  
    steveh
  • Reply 7 of 27
    fingers crossed for a neutral-gray/dark background, with adjustability.

    White background for viewing and black background for editing, with zero adjustment, just doesn't cut it.
    jovike
  • Reply 8 of 27
    Adobe, with Lightroom, Photoshop and a compliment of programs and apps has absolutely killed Apple in serving the professional photography market.  

    I would like a refund for Aperture.
    I got into bed with Adobe back in 1993 when I started publishing a specialist darkroom (remember those?) photo magazine, and must have spent upwards of three thousand dollars on their software since... only to be slapped in the face with their monthly-rental scheme last year which was an absolute no-no for me on principle! I continue to use Lightroom - which can still be purchased, unlike Adobe's other software - but I'm rapidly getting up to speed with "Affinity Photo" which is an amazing package. Affinity also have "Designer" with an "InDesign" style-package promised in beta at the end of this year... only for Macs, of course, and remarkably cheap at under $50 with free updates.
    stevehmanfred zornAieeeeeee!argonaut
  • Reply 9 of 27
    Pretty pathetic that it is taking apple so long to bring back features in photos. I went to adobe lightroom and it is now my software of choice for photo editing. Apple is dropping the ball pretty fast as far as user friendly complete software solutions. Google and Microsoft are getting better and better while I still believe that the first editions of Mac OS X with previous versions of iTunes and iPhotos were better and more stable that they are today and when I mean by better, it did not take the time it takes to figure out how it worked.
  • Reply 10 of 27
    IPhoto 9.6.1 is working fine on Yosemite and El Capitan here. For me to move to Photos, which I consider dreadful, it would have to have the useful organization of iPhoto. In particular that means events, albums, albums in folders, and folders in folders. Not impressed by the wow factor of seeing 30,000 tiny thumbnails of my photos in one window. I need to be able to organize and find things. Keywords are a lame way to do this. Taking the file system out of a mac app makes no sense.
    brian greenjovike
  • Reply 11 of 27
    I have literally screamed and yelled at Apple at every opportunity to bring back one-click edit in external editor! Yes, editing in Photos is better than editing in iPhoto, but neither holds a candle to PHOTOSHOP! It's inconceivable that Apple would think their editing advancements came even close to those of Photoshop. So, yes, I too have switched to Lightroom. It seems that Apple's notion of advancement is one step forward and 2 steps backward.
  • Reply 12 of 27
    Adobe, with Lightroom, Photoshop and a compliment of programs and apps has absolutely killed Apple in serving the professional photography market.  

    I would like a refund for Aperture.
    I got into bed with Adobe back in 1993 when I started publishing a specialist darkroom (remember those?) photo magazine, and must have spent upwards of three thousand dollars on their software since... only to be slapped in the face with their monthly-rental scheme last year which was an absolute no-no for me on principle! I continue to use Lightroom - which can still be purchased, unlike Adobe's other software - but I'm rapidly getting up to speed with "Affinity Photo" which is an amazing package. Affinity also have "Designer" with an "InDesign" style-package promised in beta at the end of this year... only for Macs, of course, and remarkably cheap at under $50 with free updates.
    I still use Lightroom and CS6, but there is no way in hell I'm going to pay Adobe for their stupid Creative Suite. I started using Pixelmator until I checked out the Affinity Photo beta last year. I'm really loving Affinity. I'm still learning the software, but so far, its really great. If you are into HDR, check out the new program Aurora HDR. 
  • Reply 13 of 27
    crowleycrowley Posts: 10,453member
    alumis said:
    It'd also be nice of Apple to stop using LivePhotos as a lock-in feature and give us true export for them.  Right now, the best (maybe only) thing you can do is install iCloud on a Windows PC and download your photos library there - it's not perfect (LivePhotos export as a separate image and MOV file) but it's about all there is.
    What else are you expecting from this "true export"?  An image and a movie file is exactly what Live Photos are.
  • Reply 14 of 27
    GOOD!! The Photos app is worthless. It would be one thing if they let me keep using iPhoto, but as soon as you update iPhoto disappears with no option to bring it back. 
  • Reply 15 of 27
    Now we just need iCloud Photo Library to have better family sharing functionality. We need two users with two or more devices to be able to share a Photos library without having to practically hack the devices and use a single Apple ID. We need the camera roll brought back so two people can see photos and videos taken on their own devices without them being completely intermingled with all other photos and videos from the Mac app and other devices, We need permissions so we can choose whether one user/device has access to the camera roll and albums on another device (specifically helpful if you don't want a child to see something). We need smart album support that syncs the smart albums between devices and a Mac. And so so so much more.
    brian green
  • Reply 16 of 27
    TCTC Posts: 2member
    An amazing feature would be to sync descriptions and or keywords from your Mac to the iOS device

    i have a feeling I'll still be waiting .

    id think the ability to type something to describe the name of a building you took a picture etc,  with your iPhone might be a useful feature too but it seems I'm alone in wanting this.

    sigh
    brian green
  • Reply 17 of 27
    The most useless "feature" of photos is its inability to read the folder structure of you images folder and retain it. The idiotic ordering by date or by place renders the photos app totally useless. Apple seem unable to grasp that some people put their photos in an order which is not date or location based. Google, on the other hand, with its Picasa application does this perfectly, its makes no attempt to re-organise your images, just reads the folders and displays them. The other thing that Picasa does, which is very useful, is that if you add images to a folder it is watching, it automatically indexes them for you. Such a simple task but such a useful timesaving one.
    jovike
  • Reply 18 of 27
    Sounds like we are in the same boat. If this update restores 10 or 20 things that iPhoto could do, esp. with organization, then we need a list.
    DonaldRW said:
    IPhoto 9.6.1 is working fine on Yosemite and El Capitan here. For me to move to Photos, which I consider dreadful, it would have to have the useful organization of iPhoto.
  • Reply 19 of 27
    That's great, but I do not need Apple for this anymore. FotoMagico is way more powerful these days. I dropped iPhoto at the moment it did not allow me to key sound in slideshows precisely at the moments I needed (and I do not not need some software to decide for me what's the best for my perception of aestatics). As far as high quality processing I can stick to Adobe Photoshop or for free to GIMP if I do not need that level as provided by Photoshop.
    edited February 2016
  • Reply 20 of 27

    Last year's transition from iPhoto to Photos meant some key editing features were axed. They included......... EXIF data editing capabilities.

    Is this right?  When Photos came out I could edit the date a photo was taken very easily on a Mac.  This is extremely useful when adding old film photos to your library by scanning them in as JPEG.  
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