With the release of iOS 15 came a powerful feature that makes it easier to find content other people have shared with you. This might include photos, videos, podcasts, websites, and more. And that content will show up in the apps you normally use for each type of content. Today, we'll focus on the most frequently shared content: photos and videos.
The Shared with You feature allows you to instantly access photos and videos shared with you on a dedicated section in your photo library. Here’s everything you need to know.
How to Find Photos and Videos Shared With You
With Shared With You, you can easily find photos and videos shared with you through the Messages app in the Shared with You section in your Photos app.
Just go to Photos, tap the For You tab, then scroll down to Shared with You.
However, be sure that the feature is turned on. Just head to Settings > Messages > Shared with You, then toggle the switch on for Photos. If you want to turn it off, just go back here and toggle the switch for Photos off.
Interacting With Photos and Videos Shared With You
You can do several things with Shared with You content. Tap a photo to enter full-screen mode, then choose to share it, save it to your library, or delete it. You can also see all the content shared with you by tapping See all.
You can also go to Library, then tap All Photos. Thumbnails of photos and videos you were present for, or appeared in, display a chat bubble on their lower-left corners. You can tap the thumbnail to save, delete, or share them.
In the same way, you can immediately save photos while you're still in Messages. An icon should appear beside the photo indicating that you can download it. Once it no longer shows, it means that the image is saved on your photo library already.
Alternatively, photos shared with you will appear with a person's photo or initials plus a From [Name] label on top of the image. Tapping this leads you to your conversation in Messages where you can send your reply.
Note that photos and videos shared with you that you didn’t save will also be deleted if you delete the conversation they were in.
Find Everything in One Place
With Shared with You, you no longer need to sift through conversations to find the photo or video shared to you by your friends—they are automatically organized in one place—the Photos app. Moreover, the feature isn’t limited to Photos but works across the whole system, making it a lot easier for you to access relevant content just when you need it.