While Google Photos on iPhone doesn't feature a single "Select All" button to instantly pick every single photo in your entire library, you can efficiently select a large continuous block of photos using a simple touch gesture. This method is ideal for selecting many items quickly for actions like sharing, deleting, or adding to an album.
Steps to Select Multiple Photos in Google Photos
To select a range of photos, including a large quantity, follow these intuitive steps directly on your iPhone:
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Initiate Selection:
- Open the Google Photos app on your iPhone.
- Navigate to the "Photos" tab, where your pictures are displayed in chronological order.
- Press the first picture that marks the beginning of the selection you wish to make. Keep your finger pressed on this photo until a blue checkmark appears in the top-left corner of its thumbnail. This indicates it has been selected.
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Expand Selection with Sweep:
- Then, keep your finger pressed on the screen (you don't need to stay on the first photo, just keep your finger down).
- Sweep your finger down the screen. As you drag your finger, you will notice that all the photos you pass over will automatically become selected, indicated by the blue checkmark.
- Continue sweeping down until you reach the last photo you want to select. For selecting a very large number of photos or "all" currently visible ones, simply keep dragging your finger down; the app will automatically scroll, allowing you to select hundreds or even thousands of photos in one continuous motion.
Practical Insights for Efficient Selection
- Continuous Selection: This method is specifically designed for selecting a contiguous block of photos. It's the primary way to select many photos sequentially on your iPhone's Google Photos app.
- Managing Large Selections: If you have an extremely large library (tens of thousands of photos), selecting all of them at once using this method might still be time-consuming as you'll need to scroll through them. However, for a given day, month, or even year's worth of photos, this sweep gesture is incredibly efficient.
- Deselecting Photos: If you accidentally select a photo you don't want, simply tap on its thumbnail again while in selection mode to deselect it.
- Post-Selection Actions: Once your photos are selected, you'll see various options at the bottom or top of the screen, such as Share, Add to album, Delete, Back up, or Order prints, depending on the number of selected items and their backup status.
This method provides a practical and quick way to manage a significant number of your photos directly from your iPhone in Google Photos.
