Filed under: iLife, Software, Productivity, Tips and tricks
Directly access digicam images in iPhoto
The fact that iPhoto, even the latest and shiniest '06 version, doesn't allow access to a camera's storage card to pick and chose which images get imported has irked users across this great planet of ours for years - until now. macosxhints has discovered that striking the return key twice when the import screen is displayed (upon connecting a camera or card) will enter users into a manual browsing mode, allowing them to browse their images directly from the device, the way it was meant to be (at least as an option; I'd bet this is yet another undocumented feature).The original hint poster stated that they couldn't manually move images over; he/she could only browse them. Rob Griffiths, however, added that he could in fact manually import a custom selection of photos, suggesting that this might work on a per-camera basis. He requests, and I echo, that users who try this out post their camera model and experience over at macosxhints so they can get a good list of working models.
![TUAW [Cafepress]](http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.tuaw.com/media/tuaw-cafepress-promo.png)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
mingistech said 12:12PM on 8-16-2006
just use "Image Capture" if you wanna browse the device.... it's installed on all Macs.
http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/imagecapture/
Reply
oxjox said 12:53PM on 8-16-2006
I second Image Capture. Been using it since before iPhoto came out.
Reply
Jon said 12:55PM on 8-16-2006
I must say as a soon to be Mac user from Windows I was rather surprised to here you couldn't select which images to download to the hard drive. This is a major request I should think. Thank god for comment #1 to reassure me that Mac's are the more superior OS.
Reply
Josh said 1:38PM on 8-16-2006
Superior OS because you can pick individual images to import? Just like you can on Windows? Get a grip. You should get a washcloth to clean your nose off.. it's a little brown.
Reply
jimp said 4:06PM on 8-16-2006
Just tried it with a Fuji FinePix A345 and it works great, if a little slow. It brings you into edit mode with the pictures above which you can then drag into whatever album you like. IMHO it's too slow for me but it would be nice to be that organized - maybe in another life.
Reply
beneditor said 4:45PM on 8-16-2006
Eh?
If you want to manually select which pictures you want to import from your camera, just ignore the import screen and select 'import to library' from the file menu. Browse to your camera in the finder, and select the photos you want.
What's the problem? I always keep photos on my camera for a while after the import, and can't stand waiting for iphoto to skip all the duplicates.
Reply
ondratoral said 5:26PM on 8-16-2006
Canon digi ixus i: browsing only, not importing. Pretty cool anyway:)
Reply
spil said 5:44PM on 8-16-2006
I think you mean "choose", not chose.
Reply
Mr Lizard said 6:24PM on 8-16-2006
I've longed for this feature in iPhoto.
I don't connect my camera directly via usb, but I use a usb memory card reader.
It's 4GB, so I don't often delete images on there. I also want to decide which ones I want iPhoto to have.
I personally think opening the finder and dragging selected images to the iPhoto library is a bit messy, given there's a nice flashy 'import' screen, but I do it anyway.
If there was a 'choose images' button as well as import, I don't think there would be anything for me not to like about iPhoto. Apart from this missing feature, I think it's great.
I note the comment about using File > Import to library, but I don't use the column view in finder, and you can't see thumbnail images when in list view.
Reply
Dan Warne said 6:43PM on 8-16-2006
I just wish Apple would add the ability for iPhoto to retrieve photos taken on a cameraphone via Bluetooth. There's a real awkwardness in the way Apple uses iTunes to put photos on iPods and Bluetooth File Transfer to get files on and off phones. It could be a lot more seamless from an end user perspective if Apple put the effort into documenting directory structures on different models of phones and built in downloading into iPhoto.
Reply
one1step1 said 8:17PM on 8-16-2006
I always use Image Capture to do this, but if it's built into iPhoto, it would a welcome feature.
Reply
Lawson Stone said 8:28PM on 8-16-2006
The use of File>Import only works if your camera mounts as a drive when you connect it. Most Kodak EasyShare cameras don't do that, and you can't use the Import command under "File." But...since you can't see the thumbnails using this "hit enter twice" tip, I don't see the benefit. Image Capture is still the best option for many of us.
Reply
coalxman said 10:36PM on 8-16-2006
To think I did not know about image capture that is a great program, thx.
Reply
Galactico said 11:47PM on 8-16-2006
I still think that iPhoto is weak, in comparison to a free application such as Canon ImageBroswer which comes with a purchase of a camera.
I like ImageBrowser because one could create a folder anywhere in the Finder, and then be able to access that folder just as you created it, with the option to not create any thumbnail images - instead of having to "import" in to the application's own browser system that does not create a folder in the Finder.
For those of you who've owned Canon ImageBrowser you know what I am talking about - and I also like the simple page setup/print option in that software as well. Just so much easier and intuitive than iPhoto.
Reply
Danny said 4:21AM on 8-17-2006
I prefer Image Capture, not only because you can see the thumbnails, but because I have ExifRenamer run immediately after importing my photos to rename them all to the exact date and time that the photo was taken. (I use yymmdd-hhmmss.jpg)
Then I just import that folder into iPhoto if I want to. Exif Renamer runs as a "post action" in Image Capture.
I would be you could even run iPhoto as a post action though to have the photos you extract from your card import directly to iPhoto without any interaction with the Finder.
Reply
Danny said 4:23AM on 8-17-2006
@Galactico
I think the benefit of iPhotos directory structure is that it keeps track of original and modified photos in case you want to revert back (say you crop down on section of a photo, print, revert to original, then crop on the next section. There are other benefits as well. Do you not let iTunes manage your music files either?
Reply
Whit Downer said 1:34PM on 8-17-2006
Hey, great tip! It worked for me with my MacBook and my Canon S2 IS. I had just been discussing the need for such a thing with someone the night before seeing this tip here! Way cool!
Reply
Mike McCallum said 1:22AM on 8-21-2006
Powershot G2 works this way, but it is S L O W. I'd agree that I.C. is an overall better choice, but it is nice to have options, especially when Apple decides that older apps won't be updated or even go away (as Sherlock will the next version...).
Reply