Allow access to iPhotos app

[GeoPark]

Unable to allow access to iPhotos on my iPad using the Affinity V2. I am not new to Affinity Photo app. Long time user to prior product. I sent to Affinity V2 app on iOS settings. No way to allow access. 

[walt.farrell]

Welcome to the Serif Affinity forums, @GeoPark.

What happens if you long-press on the New icon on the app Home Screen, and then choose Import from Photos?

[GeoPark]

Walt, it worked. Thank you very much.🙏✌️

[walt.farrell]

You're welcome.

[Salus]

I am so glad someone has asked this question and it has been answered! I just spent 20 minutes trying to figure out how to open a photo from the photo library on my iPad. I went into the Help search in Photo 2.0 and it just talked about going into Privacy settings on the iPad itself and allowing Photo 2.0 to access all photos — but, of course, since I had not been able to figure out how to use 2.0 to ask to open the library, this was of little help as 2.0 was not yet in the list of apps I could allow to access my images. Long clicking opened the drop down menu (I failed to notice the little arrow until I already knew there was a drop down menu hidden there) and solved the problem! Many thanks! (Somehow I think this was a pretty silly and dramatic change to the new version, making it so difficult to figure out how to even open an image, but I can now move on thanks to the forum.)

[Eleve]

I just found this tiny triangle/arrow to access the “hidden” menu this morning. During the past days I copied the files from Fotos via Icloud to Affinity Photo 2….was quit inconvenient. So I am glad to open the files in a quicker and more simple way now. That’s at least what I thought.

When importing a file from Fotos then a window pops up and I am informed that AF Photo wants to access my foto library. Now I can chose between “add other files” or “keep current selection”. Then I select whatever is needed. So far, so good. 

But when I try to import another file then there is no window popping up anymore. So I cannot add further files and I have to terminate AF Photo. After restarting it is working as normal - but only once. If I want to import the next file I have to terminate and restart again. Am I doing something wrong? Or is it a bug?

[walt.farrell]

9 minutes ago, Eleve said:

But when I try to import another file then there is no window popping up anymore. So I cannot add further files and I have to terminate AF Photo. After restarting it is working as normal - but only once. If I want to import the next file I have to terminate and restart again. Am I doing something wrong? Or is it a bug?

I'm unclear on what you're doing, Eleve.

Are you trying to Open another file? If so, just return to the Home Screen and long-press New again, and you should be able to open a new file.

Or, are you trying to add files to an existing document you have open? In that case, perhaps you want to use the document menu and choose Place.

If neither of those is what you want, perhaps a screenshot or a screen recording would help clarify what you're doing, and what's happening.

[MEB]

Hi @Eleve,
Welcome to Affinity Forums
I've reproduced the issue here. You are correct it only lets you pick images you have selected previously without a way to add more. Restarting the app does display the pop-up with the question again. I'm logging this to be looked at. Meanwhile i suggest you go to iPad Settings, Privacy & Security, select Photos on the right then, Photo 2, and tick All Photos. This will give the app access to the whole library so you can work on whatever image you want until this issue is looked at.

[Eleve]

19 minutes ago, walt.farrell said:

I'm unclear on what you're doing, Eleve.

Are you trying to Open another file? If so, just return to the Home Screen and long-press New again, and you should be able to open a new file.

Or, are you trying to add files to an existing document you have open? In that case, perhaps you want to use the document menu and choose Place.

If neither of those is what you want, perhaps a screenshot or a screen recording would help clarify what you're doing, and what's happening.

Hi Walt, thanks for your quick answer. I just was preparing some screenshots to demonstrate the issue when MEB was replying in the meantime. Since he has confirmed my observations I guess there is no need for uploading the pictures - unless you want me to 🙂

[Eleve]

7 minutes ago, MEB said:

Hi @Eleve,
Welcome to affinity Forums
I've reproduced the issue here. You are correct it only lets you pick images you have selected previously without a way to add more. Restarting the app does display the pop-up with the question again. I'm logging this to be looked at. Meanwhile i suggest you go to iPad Settings, Privacy & Security, select Photos on the right then, Photo 2, and tick All Photos. This will give the app access to the whole library so you can work on whatever image you want until this issue is looked at.

Thanks for your swift reply, MEB. I will follow your advice and will add all pictures from the library.

[walt.farrell]

1 minute ago, Eleve said:

unless you want me to 🙂

No, if he's recreated it, that's fine

I found that when I used it one of my options at that prompt was to allow everything, which is what I did. It sounds like he gave you a different route to get the same results.

[Eleve]

Just wanted to confirm that it’s working now, the way MEB has advised.

Thank you.😀

[Dave.Wilson]

I am still not able to access the Photos library. Long pressing on the Home Screen icon just shows recently accessed photos. I tried following the steps suggested by MEB using the Privacy & Security settings option, but Photo 2 does not show up as one of the Apps that has requested Photo access. I have other Apps listed as requesting Photos access, but not Photo 2. 

In case this information helps, I am running iPadOS 16.1.1 on a 2021 M1 iPad Pro 11 inch. 

Edited December 3, 2022 by Dave.Wilson

[Dave.Wilson]

I found a solution to give Affinity Photo access to my Photos library. On the Affinity Photo startup screen, I long pressed on the downward pointing triangle that is part of the New icon. I was presented with a list of options by which I could create a new document. One of these was "Import from Photos". When I selected that option, I could give Affinity Photo access to my Photos library. I was then allowed to select an image from the Photos library to import into Affinity Photo and start editing. 

Open still does not list my Photos library as an option, but I can import images from my Photos library by long pressing on the New icon. See the attached screen shot. 

Edited December 5, 2022 by Dave.Wilson

[walt.farrell]

8 hours ago, Dave.Wilson said:

Open still does not list my Photos library as an option, but I can import images from my Photos library by long pressing on the New icon. See the attached screen shot. 

I believe that's how you're supposed to do it with V2 of the Affinity apps.

[MEB]

@Dave.Wilson,
When you select Import from Photos, it does ask you if you want to give access to the Full Library (or select just a few) and if you allow full access, all will work as expected.
Eleve's issue only becomes obvious if you select the other option, where you pick just a few images which was what Eleve did. Going this route allow you to add more images to the selection up to a certain point, then you get stuck because the pop-up menu stops appearing and you no longer have the option to add more images nor allow full access from within the app anymore.