You’ll need a photo on your Mac that’s present in your iPhone photo library. You may be using iCloud Photos and the photos will sync to your Mac in a flash, but that’s not always as fast. You can use AirDrop to share the photo to your Mac, but there’s an even faster way!
Thanks to the universal clipboard and some handy swipe gestures, you can transfer files and photos between iPhone, iPad and Mac super fast with a clever trick. For example, you can immediately place the photo in the Messages app and send it, or use it in other apps like Photoshop, Mail, etc.
Universal clipboard and handoff
For years I have been using the Universal Clipboard when I need photos or files from my iPhone on my Mac. Sometimes iCloud syncing gets slow and then using the Universal Clipboard is a handy solution when you need the media quickly.
This feature allows you to transfer files and photos between your own devices super fast. To use this feature, you must be logged in with the same iCloud account and connected to a (wireless or mobile) network. In addition, Bluetooth must be enabled and Handoff must be activated. How to do this and which devices support this, you can read here.
Transfer files with a trick
If you meet the above conditions, you can transfer files with a handy trick. It actually works very simply, we explain it with an example. You want to use a photo on your iPhone in the Photoshop app on your Mac.
- Open the photo on your iPhone
- Pinch the photo with three fingers or tap the share button and select ‘Copy photo’
- Now open Photoshop on your Mac
- Enter the key combination command⌘ + V out
- The photo is immediately pasted into the app
This way you can actually transfer all files. All you have to do is copy the file and then paste it to the new location. Do you want to exchange files between your iPhone and iPad? Then you can use the multi-touch gestures. Copy by pinching with three fingers and paste by spreading three fingers. Of course you can also use the traditional copy and paste method.
For own devices only
Transferring photos and files with this trick is only possible on your own devices. If you want to share a file with someone else, it is best to use AirDrop. Of course you can also AirDrop to yourself, only then a copy of the file is also saved.