How to Create Sub Albums When Organizing Your Pictures in Apple Photos

Whether you have been organizing pictures on your phone for decades or just getting started, it's helpful to know the difference between albums and folders in Apple Photos.

ALBUMS are a great way to organize your pictures so they are easy to find. You can create albums for vacations, holidays, birthdays, kids, grandkids, your hobbies... really, anything you like to take pictures of and want easy access to at a moment's notice. 


FOLDERS are a great way to organize albums with similar themes so they are even easier to find. Essentially, this is a way to create sub albums.

For example, I can create albums for each of my kids and then put all of those into a folder titled, "My Boys.

You could use this same idea for vacations, house projects, etc... 

How to Create Albums: 

• Open Apple Photos from your phone 
• Click "ALBUMS" at the bottom of your screen
• Click the "+" sign in the top left corner
• Select "New Album"
• Give your album a name and click "SAVE"
• Select the pictures you would like to go in this album 
• Click "DONE" in the top right corner

How to Create Folders:
Unfortunately, you cannot add albums you have already created into your folders. You will have to create a new folder and then a new sub album inside of that folder. 

I don't often teach people to use the folder option because the process can feel daunting, especially if you are just getting started with organizing your pictures!  However, if you are an organizing machine and want to check it out, the directions are below. 

And if it seems like too much work, at least now you know the difference between albums and folders! 
 

• Open the Apple Photos App from your phone 
• Click "ALBUMS" at the bottom of your screen
• Click the "+" sign in the top left corner
• Select "New Folder"
• Give your folder a name and click "SAVE"

• Click on your new folder to open it
• Click "Edit" in the top right corner of your screen
• Click the "+" sign in the top left corner of your screen
• Select "New Album"
• Give your album a name and click "SAVE"
• A screen will open with your most recent pictures. At the top, you will see a "Photos" option and an "Albums" option. 
• If you are in the "Photos" option, you will select pictures from your photo stream you can select to add to this new sub album. 
• If you are in the "Albums" option, you will need to click the blue "See All" button in the top right. Scroll down and open one of your albums. Then, select the photos you want in the new album and click "Add" in the top right corner. 
• Add another sub album or click "Done" in the top right corner to save your work in the new folder. 
• Click the arrow in the top left corner to exit 
• You will now see your new folder that contains your new sub albums

I would love to share with you my recent podcast on the importance of having a home inventory, especially if you don't have one yet! It's a quick listen and will motivate you to finally get this done for your family! You can listen on Apple or Spotify!

And if you need a little help along the way, check out our online  Step-by-Step Home Inventory class that will walk you through the process so you can get this done quickly and easily! 

Happy (almost) summer! 

All the best, 
Melissa