How to import photos from your digital camera to a specific folder on Mac

Photos on macOS Catalina
Photos on macOS Catalina (Image credit: iMore)

When you use your digital camera to take amazing photos, you're going to want to import those photos onto your Mac to edit, share, and store them. You can even set up the Photos app on Mac to import photos automatically from that specific device. In macOS Monterey, you can also select which album you want those photos to go to. If you're trying to import a bunch of pictures from a specific event, you can also create a brand new folder and move them directly to it for better organization.

Here's everything you need to know about how to import photos from your best digital camera to your Mac.

How to select a folder to add new photos from your digital camera in the Photos app on Mac

In macOS Monterey, after you prepare your digital camera to import to the Photos app, here's how to select a specific folder to relocate to.

  1. Launch the Photos app on your Mac if it doesn't open automatically.
  2. Click on your digital camera from the sidebar if it isn't already selected.

Open camera photos in Photos on Mac: Launch Photos, then click on your camera (Image credit: iMore)
  1. Select the photos you want to import to a specific folder.
  2. Click on Library at the top of the Photos app window.
  3. Select the folder you want to import the selected pictures directly to.

Select folder for imported photos: Click on Library, then click on an album folder (Image credit: iMore)

The pictures will be imported directly to the folder you selected. If you want to import multiple photos to different folders, follow the steps above and select which photos you want to import to each folder until you've imported them all.

How to create a new folder to import photos from your camera to Mac with the Photos app

If you're just about to dump all of your vacation photos into the Photos app on your Mac but haven't created a dedicated folder for it yet, no problem; you can do so right before importing.

  1. Launch the Photos app on your Mac if it doesn't open automatically.
  2. Click on your digital camera from the sidebar if it isn't already selected.

Open camera photos in Photos on Mac: Launch Photos, then click on your camera (Image credit: iMore)
  1. Select the photos you want to import to the newly created folder.
  2. Click on Library at the top of the Photos app window.
  3. Click on New Album.

Create new album for Photos on Mac:Click on Library, then click on New Album (Image credit: Name album for photos on Mac: iMore)
  1. Enter an album name.
  2. Click on OK.

Enter an album name, then click OK (Image credit: iMore)

The pictures will be imported directly to the folder you created. If you want to import multiple photos to different folders, follow the steps above and create new folders for each until you've imported them all.

How to find the photos you've just added to a folder in the Photos app on Mac

After you've created or selected a specific folder to import your photos to, you can find them under My Albums.

  1. Launch the Photos app on your Mac.
  2. Click on My Albums in the sidebar.
  3. Double-click on the Album.

Find photos in album you've createdL Click on My Albums, then double-click on your album (Image credit: iMore)

There they are!

Where your pictures go if you don't select a specific folder to import photos from your camera to Mac with the Photos app

If you don't select a folder to import your photos to, you can still find them easily. They will always be delivered to your Photos library (it's the one right at the top of the sidebar) whether you send them to a specific folder or not. You can also find them in your Imports section, where you will find all of the photos that you have imported from your camera to Mac (unless you've deleted them).

  1. Launch the Photos app on your Mac.
  2. Click on Imports.

You can filter your imported content by favorited, edited, only photos, only videos, or keyword (if you've tagged your photos).

Click on Showing in the upper left and select a filter.

Find imported photos on Mac: Launch the Photos app, then click on Imports. Click on Showing to customize filters (Image credit: iMore)

Transfer those photos to your iPhone

Now that you know how to import photos to the location you what, learning how to transfer photos from your Mac to your iPhone is an excellent way to post your favorite shots to your social media accounts. Happy shooting!

Updated March 2022: Updated for the latest version of macOS Monterey.

Luke Filipowicz
Staff Writer

Luke Filipowicz has been a writer at iMore, covering Apple for nearly a decade now. He writes a lot about Apple Watch and iPad but covers the iPhone and Mac as well. He often describes himself as an "Apple user on a budget" and firmly believes that great technology can be affordable if you know where to look. Luke also heads up the iMore Show — a weekly podcast focusing on Apple news, rumors, and products but likes to have some fun along the way. 


Luke knows he spends more time on Twitter than he probably should, so feel free to follow him or give him a shout on social media @LukeFilipowicz.