Shared albums allow you to collaborate with friends, family or colleagues by sharing photos and videos with them. You can add or remove people from your shared albums anytime. Here's how to manage subscribers for your shared albums on iPhone, iPad and Mac.

What are Shared iCloud Photo Albums?

Shared albums are a way to share photos and videos with other people using iCloud Photo Sharing. When you create a shared album, you can add people you want to share it with. Anyone you add will be able to view, like and comment on the photos and videos in the album.

Benefits of using shared albums:

• Share photos and videos with family, friends or anyone else you want
• Collaborate on projects by sharing media with team members
• Create shared memories of events like vacations, weddings, etc.
• Get feedback on your photos and videos from others
• View photos and videos shared with you in shared albums

How to Create a New Shared iCloud Photo Album

Follow these steps to create a new shared album on your iPhone, iPad or Mac:

1. Open the Photos app.
2. Tap the Shared tab at the bottom (on mobile) or click Shared in the sidebar (on Mac).
3. Tap the + button to create a new shared album.
4. Give the album a name and tap Next.
5. Select the photos/videos you want to add to the album. Tap Done.
6. Tap Invite People to add subscribers who can view the album. Enter names or emails.
7. Tap Share when ready to share the album.

That's it! The album will now show up in the Shared tab so you can add more photos or manage subscribers.

How to Add People to a Shared Photo Album

To grant other people access to a shared album you've created, you need to add them as subscribers. Here's how to do it:

On iPhone/iPad

1. Open the Photos app and go to the Shared tab.
2. Tap on the shared album you want to add people to.
3. Tap the People button at the top.
4. Tap Invite People.
5. Enter the name, email address or phone number of the person you want to add.
6. Tap Done once you've added everyone you want.

The album will now show up in the people's Photos app so they can view the contents.

On Mac

1. Open Photos and click Shared in the sidebar.
2. Double click the shared album to open it.
3. Click the Share button at the top.
4. Enter the email addresses or names of people you want to add.
5. Click Share when finished.

The added subscribers will get a notification that they've been invited to join the shared album.

How to Remove People from a Shared Photo Album

To stop someone from being able to view a shared album, you need to remove them as a subscriber. Here's how:

On iPhone/iPad

1. Go to the Shared tab and open the shared album.
2. Tap People at the top.
3. Tap the name of the person you want to remove.
4. Tap Remove Subscriber.
5. Confirm by tapping Remove.

On Mac

1. Click the shared album to open it.
2. Click the People button at the top.
3. Click the X icon next to the person's name you want to remove.
4. Click Remove when prompted.

Once removed, that person will no longer be able to access the shared album.

How to Leave a Shared Photo Album Yourself

If you've been added to a shared album you no longer want to be part of, you can remove yourself as a subscriber:

On iPhone/iPad

1. Go to the Shared tab in Photos and tap the shared album.
2. Tap the People button.
3. Tap your name at the top of the list.
4. Tap Leave Shared Album.

On Mac

1. Click Shared in the Photos sidebar and double click the shared album.
2. Click People at the top.
3. Click your name in the list.
4. Click Leave Shared Album.

This will remove you as a subscriber so you won't get future updates to the album.

Quick Tip to ensure your videos never go missing

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Simply Download PicBackMan (it's free!), register your account, connect to your online store and tell PicBackMan where your videos are - PicBackMan does the rest, automatically. It bulk uploads all videos and keeps looking for new ones and uploads those too. You don't have to ever touch it.

How to Turn Off Notifications for a Shared Album

When you're added to a shared album, you'll get notifications whenever someone adds photos, likes a photo you added, or leaves a comment. You can mute these notifications:

On iPhone/iPad

1. Open the shared album that's sending you too many notifications.
2. Tap the More (...) button at the top.
3. Toggle off Notifications to disable them.

On Mac

1. Double click to open the shared album.
2. Click the Share button at the top.
3. Uncheck the box next to Notifications.

This will stop notifications from that album only while still allowing you access to view it.

Share Only Select Photos in a Shared Album

When creating a shared album, you can choose to only share certain photos rather than the entire library.

1. After creating the shared album, tap Add Photos instead of Done.
2. Select only the photos you want to share in this album.
3. Tap Done. Only the chosen photos will be shared.

You can also remove any photos you don't want in the album later on so only selective photos remain shared.

See Shared Albums You've Been Added To

Any shared albums you've been invited to will show up in the Shared tab of the Photos app so you can view the contents. To see shared albums on:

iPhone/iPad

• Open the Photos app.
• Tap Shared at the bottom.
• Shared albums you have access to will display here.

Mac

• Open Photos
• Click Shared in the sidebar.
• Shared albums you've joined will be listed here.

Tap any album to view the photos/videos people have shared with you. You can like and comment on them to interact.

Who Can Do What with Shared Albums?

Here are the specific abilities different types of subscribers have for shared albums:

• Owners: Can add/remove people, add/delete photos, edit the album, share to social media, change sharing settings, etc. Full control.
• Viewers: Can view photos, play videos, like and comment. But can't add photos or people. Limited access.
• Contributors: Can add their own photos/videos to the album. But not remove photos. Somewhere in between owners and viewers.

The owner assigns these permissions when adding subscribers. Owners have the most flexibility in managing shared albums.

Tips for Using Shared Albums

• Add a description to explain the purpose of the album.
• Disable notifications if an album is too active and cluttering your notifications.
• Leave albums you don't need access to anymore.
• Use smart album rules to automatically add photos based on criteria like date or location.
• Share occasionally instead of your entire library for privacy.
• Use shared albums for events, trips or projects to collaborate.

Conclusion

That covers the complete guide on using shared photo albums to collaborate with others! To recap, you can add or remove subscribers anytime, leave albums yourself, and control permissions on who can do what. Use shared albums for vacations, projects, events or to get feedback.

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Common Questions about Managing Shared Photo Albums

How do I know who can view my shared album?

The list of subscribers is visible when you tap People inside the album. This shows everyone who currently has access and their role.

Can I recover photos I deleted from a shared album?

Unfortunately, no. Just like deletes in your personal Photos library, deletes from shared albums are permanent and can't be undone or recovered.

What happens when I remove myself from a shared album?

You'll immediately lose access to view the album and its photos. Any likes, comments or photos you added will remain, but you won't get notifications or updates.

Can I save shared photos to my own Photos library?

Yes! Just tap the photo, then the Options button and choose Save Image. It will save a copy of the photo to your personal library.

How many people can share an album?

Up to 100 people can collaborate on a shared iCloud photo album together.

Can I password protect my shared albums?

No, there is no way to password protect albums currently. The only control is adding/removing subscribers from the People list.