How does the Leica Fotos app work with Apple's Photos app?

[Gregory J]

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Hello everyone,

I currently use Apple's Photos app as my photo library and for editing. I have Leica's Fotos app installed on my iPhone and iPad but have not set them up yet. When I set up Fotos, does it create its own library (which would be a waste of space) or does it interface with Photos' library? When I import via Fotos, are the photos being imported into my Photos library and, in turn, iCloud? If I continue to edit in Photos, will the results show up in Fotos?

Greg

Edited March 19, 2022 by Gregory J

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[Pelu2010]

Yes, 

they are imported into Fotos and you can access them in the Leica fotos app too and from there go to LIghtroom. If you want. 

[Gregory J]

Thanks for replying, Pelu2010. What I wanted clarification about was where Leica FOTOS stores the imported images. I asked Leica FOTOS app support and was told that FOTOS creates a subfolder in a smartphone's photo folder. As an iPhone user, I guess I should have asked whether FOTOS is integrated with iCloud Photos.

Greg

Quote

Leica FOTOS uses your standard photo folder on your smartphone and creates a subfolder there for the camera used.

 

[etzhar]

Hi 

 

I am struggling to get my Fotos app to work with Lightroom on the Ipad. It opens Lightroom but not with that Foto. When i try to add 

the photo from the Photo app or file it fails to add

Can you advise

[K.Olsen]

Is it possible, instead of using LightRoom just to use Apple Photos (I know it is much simpler) but then pictures could be integrated with my iPhone Pictures

[jaapv]

On 3/22/2022 at 3:48 PM, Gregory J said:

Thanks for replying, Pelu2010. What I wanted clarification about was where Leica FOTOS stores the imported images. I asked Leica FOTOS app support and was told that FOTOS creates a subfolder in a smartphone's photo folder. As an iPhone user, I guess I should have asked whether FOTOS is integrated with iCloud Photos.

Greg

 

It is integrated in your iPhone so your library should be synced with your iCloud storage. FOTOS cannot access your iCloud directly. It would be a quite insecure situation if your Apple Identity were bypassed. 

[Gregory J]

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Yes, I discovered that FOTOS creates an album in Apple's Photos app named Leica.

Quote

Is it possible, instead of using LightRoom just to use Apple Photos (I know it is much simpler) but then pictures could be integrated with my iPhone Pictures

K.Olsen, you can then use Photos to edit.

Greg

[Jon Warwick]

Just from a different angle - what is the workflow for getting a DNG in (say) an M11 to the stage of emailing or texting the image on an iPhone / iPad? Is it,

- import DNG into Leica Fotos app (the later I’ve got downloaded on iPhone and iPad)?
- from there, transfer the DNG to Apple Photos (if so, how), or can I “grab” the image straight within Leica Fotos and just email or text it from there?
- should there be an interim step, surely the DNG is not ideal given its large file size and readable format, shouldn’t it be a smaller jpeg for emailing or texting via an iPhone?
 

many thanks for any pointers. Just got an M11, off to the mountains in a few weeks, and would ideally like to send the Leica captured images to family, rather than taking separate iPhone images too just for sake of texting snaps!

Edited August 17, 2023 by Jon Warwick

[Gregory J]

Hello Jon,

While I have LEICA Fotos installed on my iPad and iPhone, I have not found much use for it, and have instead worked directly with Apple's Photos because I rarely send photos on the spot. I import my photos into Apple Photos via the SSD card reader slot on my MacBook Pro or an SSD card reader connected to my iPad or iPhone (handy when travelling). Once in Photos, you can edit and then share photos by email, text, and other ways using the Share button (a square with a vertical arrow coming out of it). Apple Photos takes care of the appropriate conversion from DNG for sharing. As I mentioned in my previous post, LEICA Fotos automatically creates an album named Leica in Apple Photos, allowing you to treat photos saved to the LEICA Fotos app in the same way.

If you prefer to send directly from the LEICA Fotos app, it too has a Share button and, depending on the format of the original photo, will prompt you for the format you'd like to use for sending the photo, JPEG or DNG. Experiment before you head off on your trip.

This is how it works for my M10-P. It may be different for your M11.

Greg

P.S. Forgot to mention that I use the SSD card reader because I have never bothered to pair LEICA Fotos with my M10-P for WiFi.

Edited August 18, 2023 by Gregory J
Additional info.

[elmars]

My problem with the Leica app is this: If you use it to load photos onto your iPhone/iPad, the photos are automatically imported into Apple's Photos app. But if you don't want to edit the photos there (and send/share them if necessary), but in Lightroom mobile, then you have two different locations for the photos. If you delete or edit in one app, it will not sync with the other. Since I really only work in Lightroom, I would like to be able to choose to import the photos from the Leica app only into Lightroom or only into the Photos app or both.

[Gregory J]

It is possible to set default apps in iOS 14 and later, but it does not appear that Adobe has enabled that feature for Lightroom. And I don’t think that Lightroom can be installed as an extension in Apple Photos like other photo editors such as RAWPower can.