How to Access Hidden Photos on Mac: Step by Step

If you like taking photos, you may store a huge number of personal and cherished memories on your Mac. For some reason, you may need to hide them. Then, it becomes important to retrieve these hidden images when you need to view these old memories again.

To save your time and keep all your important files at your beck and call, we’ll guide you through how to uncover and access hidden photos on your Mac. With simple clicks, you can access and enjoy your entire picture collection.

Where Are Hidden Photos on Mac?

Mac stores hidden photos in the same locations where regular photos are stored. For example, you can find hidden photos in the Photos or specific folders like “Pictures.” Due to specific settings, you cannot see them in regular views. These files are concealed because of file attributes or because they are located in system directories that are not displayed by default.

Why Is My Hidden Album Not Showing Up?

If you can locate the hidden files of photos, you can access the hidden photos. However, for some reason, your hidden album is not showing up. If you want to regain access to your valuable memories, learn these causes and change the settings.

• The photos could have been accidentally deleted and gone to the Trash or Recently Deleted folder.
• You may set to hide the Hidden album in the Photos app settings.
• Temporary bugs in the Photos app can stop the Hidden album from showing up.
• If you use iCloud Photos, the sync issues may keep the Hidden album from appearing.
• Your Photos library is corrupted and ruining the Hidden album.
• You don’t grant permissions to access the hidden photo album.
• You may set Finder not to show hidden files.
• The Photos app settings could be misconfigured.
• The Hidden album may not appear due to System settings.
• Your user account may have display problems that prevent the Hidden album from being visible.
• Corrupted system files might cause this problem.

How to View Hidden Photos on Mac?

You might have hidden photos on your Mac for a while, but forgotten how to access them. Don’t worry. Here, we’ll demonstrate several ways to access hidden photos on your Mac.

Access Hidden Photos on Mac via Keyboard Shortcuts

1. Press the keyboard shortcuts “Command + Space” to open Finder under Spotlight.
2. Use the Command + Shift + G keyboard shortcut to open the "Go to Folder" dialog box.
3. Enter the path to the folder where your hidden photos might be stored. Common folders include: ~/Pictures/, ~/Library/, ~/Desktop/, and ~/Documents/

Access Hidden Photos on Mac via Finder

1. Open Finder in the Dock.
2. Tap on the Go tab at the top of your screen.
3. Access the Library and see your hidden photos.

Access Hidden Photos on Mac via the Photos App

1. Click on the Photos icon in the Dock and choose the "Albums" in the left sidebar.
2. Tap on “View” and choose the “Show Hidden Photo Album” option, then you can see the hidden photos under the “Utilities”.
3. Click on the "Hidden" album to view all the photos.

Access Hidden Photos on Mac via Terminal

1. Navigate to Applications, Utilities, and Terminal.
2. In the Terminal window, type the command: defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles TRUE and press "Enter"
3. Type the command - killall Finder in Terminal and press the “Enter” button. Restart Finder to apply the changes. This is going to show the hidden photos in Finder.
4. Open Finder and navigate to the folders where hidden photos might be stored. You may find them in ~/Pictures or ~/Desktop.

Access Hidden Photos on Mac via Spotlight

1. Press Command + Space to open Spotlight.
2. In the Spotlight search bar, type the name or part of the name of the hidden photo. Then Spotlight will display the search result.
3. Click on the hidden photo in the search results to open the hidden photos.

FAQs About Hidden Photos on Mac

By the end of the post, we’ve collected several FAQs about hidden photos on Mac. Keep reading and better understand how to manage them on your Mac computer.

1. How to Turn On Hidden Photos on Mac?

   To turn on the hidden photos on your Mac, follow the steps below:

   1. Open the Photos app on your Mac.
   2. Navigate to Preferences and General.
   3. Check the “Show Hidden Album” option.

2. How to Fix the Show Hidden Photo Album Greyed Out?

   If the “Show Hidden Photo Album” option is greyed out on your Mac, you can try the following solutions:

   • Sometimes, a quick restart can fix minor glitches and restore the “Show Hidden Photo Album” option.
   • The hidden album can only be added to the Sidebar. Toggle the Sidebar and check again.
   • The "Hidden Photos" album won’t be displayed if there aren’t hidden photos.
   • Make sure you are running the latest version of macOS, as older versions might have different settings.
   • Check preferences for the Photos app and verify the “Show in Finder” option.
   • Check iCloud Photos settings and make sure iCloud Photos is enabled.

3. Can I Lock Hidden Photos on a Mac?

   Yes, you can lock hidden photos on your Mac to prevent them from unexpected access. This can also be achieved under the “Photos” app.

   1. Navigate to the hidden album under the “Photos” app.
   2. Find the photos you wish to lock. Select the photos and click the “Add to album” option.
   3. Make a new album and name it like “Private”.
   4. Turn back to Photos, Preferences, and General. Turn on “Lock Hidden Album”.

4. Are Hidden Photos Synced to Mac?

   Yes, you can sync photos from your Mac to iCloud and access them on other iOS devices. To sync hidden photos, you can:

   1. Open the Photos app and go to Settings and iCloud.
   2. Turn on iCloud Photos.
   3. After syncing, you’ll see hidden photos in the hidden album on other iOS devices.

5. Can You Make a Photo Album Private on Mac?

   Yes, you can make a photo album private on a Mac with the “Hidden” album. It’s quite simple to set up a “Hidden” album on your Mac: Open the Photos app, select the photos you want to hide, and click on the “Hide” button. Then these photos will only appear in the “Hidden” album. They become private and not visible in the regular album views.

Bonus Tip: How to View and Delete Duplicated Photos on Your Mac?

When you organize and clear up a collection of photos to free up the space on your Mac, you may find duplicates. They clutter your storage and make it difficult to locate images. Whether it was because you imported the same batch of photos multiple times or you synced a group of photos several times, it’s difficult to locate and delete the duplicated photos by yourself.

Fortunately, you can use special tools to identify and remove these duplicates. One such tool is BuhoCleaner. With it, you can clean various types of files and system elements involving duplicated photos, videos, documents, and music.

Step 1. Free install BuhoCleaner and open it on your Mac.

Step 2. Select the “Duplicates” option from the sidebar and locate the Photo folder.

Step 3. Click the Auto Select drop-down menu and choose Smart Select to automatically select duplicate photos.

Conclusion

It’s time to access hidden photos when you need to recall old times, share them with your friends, or access an important project. Normally, they are stored in “Photos” or “Pictures”. To regain access to it, make sure to grant permissions to access the hidden photo album.