The Photos app is receiving a significant update with iOS 27, iPadOS 27, and macOS Golden Gate, bringing a combination of Apple Intelligence, new editing capabilities, improved organization, and useful iCloud upgrades. Many innovations are subtle, while the new AI tools enable advanced operations.
In this article, we’ll walk you through all the new features step by step, from Apple Intelligence Tools like Clean Up, Expand, and Reframe to starred metadata, new categories, improved shared albums, and a handy Sync Immediately option for iCloud.
Apple Intelligence tools in Photos
The most significant innovation is the introduction of the updated Apple Intelligence Tools, a set of AI-driven editing options presented as a separate section within the Photos editing interface.
- Open Photos for iPhone, iPad, or Mac
- Navigate to the photo you want to edit
- Tap the three horizontal sliders or click Edit
- Select the ‘Tools’ option in the toolbar
These tools include an optimized Clean Up feature, the smart Expand feature, and the Reframe option for post-perspective adjustment. Please note that the AI ​​capabilities are part of Apple Intelligence and only work on supporting devices.
Clean up in Photos
Spacious already existed, but in previous versions it was mainly useful for removing small disturbing elements in relatively quiet backgrounds. With update 27, Ruim uses new AI models, allowing the function to handle complex scenes and larger objects much better. In addition, you can now choose from three variants to have the elements removed.
- Quick is for quick, easy retouches and responds quickly to adjustments.
- High quality takes more time, but reconstructs details in busy backgrounds much more realistically, for example in city photos or wooded landscapes.
- Automatic lets Photos choose the right mode based on the scene you select, useful for users who don’t want to think about the right quality mode.
On a Mac, you can select the Retouch option directly from the Image Quality sidebar once you’ve chosen the Retouch option. On an iPhone or iPad, you can adjust this after activating the Clean Up tool and tapping the drop-down menu.
In practice, this means that things like unwanted passers-by, trash cans, or distracting signs disappear more credibly from photos, both on iPhone and iPad and in Photos on Mac.
Literally expand photos
Reframing: retrofitting perspective
Reframe lets you adjust the virtual camera angle afterwards as if you were reframing the photo when taking it. This works by combining the spatial data captured as the photo is taken with Apple Intelligence that fills in missing pixels.
With one finger you can adjust the perspective, while with two fingers you can pan, zoom or rotate until you find the ideal angle. AI then generates only the necessary parts of the image to bring the new crop to life. Apple emphasizes that Herkadder is not only effective for spatial photos, but can also be applied to all types of photos, where the composition and viewing angle in particular can be corrected without having to restrict hard.
Metadata: keywords and stars
Apple now lets you add keywords and star ratings to photos and videos in Photos. You can rate images from one to five stars and then use filters to display only photos with four stars or higher, for example.
In addition to stars, you can assign keywords, which in previous versions was mainly a macOS feature but now works more consistently across iPhone, iPad and Mac. Swipe up a photo or video on your iPhone or iPad to associate a keyword or star. On a Mac, this can be done by right-clicking on the photo and choosing ‘Show info’.
In the library you can sort and filter by both stars and keywords, and the new Show Selection view lets you change metadata for a selection of images in one go.
Improvements for shared albums
Apple has given the album view and especially shared albums a major upgrade. It’s now easier to create a shared album directly from any album with a separate option Create shared album in the album menu, instead of having to go to a separate shared section first.
It is notable that Apple now makes it possible for Android and Windows users to contribute to iCloud shared albums via links and web interfaces, so that shared album projects no longer have to remain strictly within the Apple bubble.
High quality
A limitation from previous versions was that shared iCloud albums did not always contain full-resolution photos and videos. In the new version, Photos supports adding full-quality photos and videos to shared albums, including common file formats. The uploader is responsible for the iCloud storage.
Allow shared albums to expire
You can let shared albums expire after 30 days, which is ideal for temporary albums after a vacation, event, or project. Open the shared album, tap or click the two silhouettes, then choose Temporary Album.
Slideshows from every collection
Where you previously relied mainly on Flashbacks for dynamic slideshows, you can now turn virtually any collection of photos and videos into a slideshow. In each album, tap the three dots and choose Start slideshow, or select a number of individual photos in the library and start a slideshow from there.
Slide shows can be further expanded with different transition styles, duration per slide and background music. You can also export a slideshow as a video so you can easily replay it later, share it on social media, or save it as a summary of a trip or project.
Other innovations
- Save a frame from a video as a single photo
- There is a new option in the Photos settings Sync instantly added. This feature lets you immediately prioritize iCloud sync for the day, so new photos and videos are uploaded almost immediately instead of Photos waiting for a more power-efficient time.
- Apple is further tightening the intelligent recognition of people and pets, both in the people and pet albums and in the search results.
- Under ‘Other’ in collections there are new options: Recorded by me and identity documents.