The Apple Watch may have a small screen, but it's still large enough to show off those pictures of your little one's dance recital to the grandparents. As long as you've got an album synced from your iPhone, you can even view pictures while your smartphone is out of range.

apple_watch_photos
To help you get the most out of your photo viewing experience, we've put together this tutorial to explain how to set up and customize the Photos app on Apple Watch

Create an Album in Photos on iPhone

The first step to getting the most important pictures on your Apple Watch is to create an album for it in your Photos app on iPhone.

  1. Open the Photos app on the iPhone and select "Albums." Then tap the add icon (+) to create a new one.
  2. Name the new album. For simplicity, I named mine Apple Watch Photos.
  3. Select the photos you wish to add to the album and select done.

apple_watch_photos_setup

Sync an Album to Apple Watch

  1. Open the Apple Watch app on your iPhone and navigate to My Watch.
  2. Scroll down and select the Photos app from the list.
  3. Tap Synced Album. Then select your newly created Apple Watch album.
  4. Photos will automatically sync with your Apple Watch and be available to view, even when your iPhone is out of range.

You can also select a preexisting album instead. You might prefer the immediacy of syncing with your Camera Roll or Photo Stream for currently added pictures instead. The Apple Watch Photos app is defaulted to your Favorites album.

Manage Photo Storage

You can customize how many photos you want synced to your Apple Watch for more control over how much room they take up. Select from 25 to 500 photos or five to 75 MB of storage space.

Apple Watch Photos App 4

Use Photos App to View a Synced Album

Apple Watch Photos 1Once you've synced an album to Apple Watch, view the pictures on your wrist via the Photos app. When you open it, the first screen will be a collage of all pictures in your album. Rotate the Digital Crown to zoom in.

Tap a picture to view it full screen. Use the Digital Crown to zoom in closer. Drag your finger on the screen to pan. Double Tap to fill the screen. Double-tap again to see the full picture. You can browse your album by swiping to the left or right to switch between photos.

Now that you know how to set up and customize your Photos app on Apple Watch, showing off important moments in your life will be simple.

When Apple updates watchOS to version 2 later this year, we will also be able to view videos from within the Photos app and use single photos or photo albums as backgrounds for watch faces.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch 10
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Neutral)

Top Rated Comments

DavidTheExpert Avatar
125 months ago
Can I make a request? I would really like to see a tutorial on how to view the time on the Apple Watch. I've had this thing for over a month and I still can't figure out how to make it show me the date and time. Is there some hidden setting?
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
captain cadet Avatar
125 months ago
Or just pull your phone out to show people on a screen that they can actually see your face on...
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
UnfetteredMind Avatar
125 months ago
I have to agree with captain cadet, unless you don't have your phone with you, why wouldn't you just take out the iPhone to which the :apple:Watch is tethered to show the pics? Maybe for very brief encounters where you don't even want to bother pulling out the phone (but then maybe it's not even worth trying to show the pic in the first place).
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Noble Actual Avatar
125 months ago
Please...do not use your Watch to show some pictures when you can just use your iPhone or iPad.

Its so damn small. And it's common knowledge that as you grow older, your eyesight gets worse. They probably can't even see it. Showing it on the iPad...now that's a magical and beautiful experience.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
doelcm82 Avatar
125 months ago
How to view photos on the Apple Watch.

* Bring up a photo on the Watch screen.
* Orient your eyes so that they are both directed at the watch
* Orient the watch so that the screen is facing your eyes
* Focus your eyes so that the watch face is sharp (optional lenses worn over or in contact with your eyes not included)
* View the photo.

I am the proud owner of an Apple Watch, but I haven't yet seen one in person. Mine is "On Vehicle for Delivery Today".
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
pubwvj Avatar
125 months ago
A more useful guide to these things:

https://www.apple.com/watch/built-in-apps/

https://manuals.info.apple.com/MANUALS/1000/MA1708/en_US/apple_watch_user_guide.pdf

Perhaps this is where MacRumors Bot is skimming from...

How about skipping the fake how-to click-bait and stick to real rumors that we care about...

And if you don't like complaints about bad articles just skip the comments complaining about them.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

Generic iOS 18

iOS 18.3 Coming Soon: Here's What's New

Monday January 13, 2025 5:33 am PST by
iOS 18.3 is currently in beta for developers and public beta testers. So far, the upcoming iPhone software update is very minor in scope. Below, we outline what is new in iOS 18.3 so far. The only potential new feature coming to iPhones with iOS 18.3 so far is robot vacuum support in the Home app, but this functionality is not yet live. Apple is laying the groundwork for the feature,...
new magsafe charger

Apple Releases Updated MagSafe Charger Firmware

Tuesday January 14, 2025 11:30 am PST by
Apple today released new firmware designed for the 25W MagSafe Charger that is compatible with the iPhone 12 and later and the latest AirPods and Apple Watch models. The updated firmware is version 2A143, up from the 2A138 firmware that the accessory shipped with. In the Settings app, you'll see a different version number than the internal firmware number. The 2024 MagSafe charger was...
iPhone 17 Slim Feature Single Camera 1 Redux

'iPhone 17 Air' Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Wednesday January 15, 2025 7:16 am PST by
While the so-called "iPhone 17 Air" is not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the "ultra-thin" device. Overall, the "iPhone 17 Air" is shaping up to be a mixed bag. Due to its thinness, the device is expected to have some limited specifications compared to the iPhone 17 Pro models, including only a single rear camera, only a single speaker, no SIM...
iPhone 17 Pro Dual Tone Feature 1

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 8 New Features

Thursday January 9, 2025 5:45 am PST by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. iPhone 17 Pro concept based on rumors Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of January 2025: More aluminum: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models ...
HomePod mini and Apple TV

HomePod Mini 2 and New Apple TV Launch Timeframe Narrowed Down

Sunday January 12, 2025 4:11 pm PST by
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman recently reported that Apple plans to release new HomePod mini and Apple TV models this year, and now he has provided a more precise timeframe. In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman said Apple is currently aiming to launch the new HomePod mini and Apple TV models "toward the end of the year." That timeframe suggests the devices will be released at some point...
severance new york promo 1

Apple Promotes Severance Season 2 Premiere With Lumon Industries Pop-Up and Visits From Actors

Tuesday January 14, 2025 3:47 pm PST by
Ahead of the season two premiere of hit TV show Severance, Apple is marketing the show with a fun Severance pop-up at the Grand Central Terminal in New York City. Apple has assembled a glass cube with workstations that are identical to the setups that Lumon employees use on the show, complete with employees "working," doing yoga, playing catch, throwing paper airplanes, sipping coffee, and...
airpods pro 2 gradient

AirPods Pro 3 Expected This Year: Here's What We Know

Wednesday January 8, 2025 7:05 am PST by
Despite being released over two years ago, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 continue to dominate the wireless earbud market. However, with the AirPods Pro 3 expected to launch sometime in 2025, anyone thinking of buying Apple's premium earbuds may be wondering if the next generation is worth holding out for. Apart from their audio and noise-canceling performance, which are generally regarded as...
General Apps Messages Redux

Phishing Attacks Use This Simple Trick to Defeat iPhone Message Security

Monday January 13, 2025 6:11 am PST by
A new social engineering tactic is being used by cybercriminals to trick iPhone users into disabling iMessage's built-in phishing protection, in a bid to expose them to malicious links and scams, according to BleepingComputer. The scam exploits a security feature in iMessage that automatically disables links from unknown senders. Apple told the outlet that when users reply to these messages...