How to Transfer Photos from External Hard Drive to iPhone

For some reason, you want to transfer your photos from an external hard drive to your iPhone or iPad, but you know that Apple has made it difficult to transfer photos between computers and devices. If you choose to sync your pictures using iTunes, it will delete the existing media content on your device, resulting in data loss.

So, how to transfer photos from external hard drive to iPhone? Fortunately, there are three other ways to help you easily transfer photos to your iPhone or iPad. Read on to learn more.

Method 1. Quick Way Transfer Photos from External Hard Drive to iPhone/iPad

Whether you want to transfer a large number of photos or a few photos, the free iOS data transfer tool named AOMEI FoneBackup can help you complete the transfer quickly.

⭐ It helps you transfer photos between iDevice and computer.
⭐ It lets you preview and select the pictures you want to transfer.
⭐ It will not erase any existing photos or other data on your device.

It supports all iPhone/iPad models, including the latest iPhone 16. Download AOMEI FoneBackup for free on your computer, and then here is a full guide on how to transfer pictures from hard drive to iPhone with AOMEI FoneBackup:

Step 1. Launch AOMEI FoneBackup > Plug in your iPhone/iPad. (You may need to enter the passcode on iPhone/iPad so the software can access your device.)

Step 2. On the Home screen, click PC to iPhone option.

Step 3. Click the “+” icon > Choose the pictures stored in external hard drive > Click Open to continue.

Step 4. Click Start Transfer to transfer photos from hard drive to iPhone.

Step 5. Click OK when the transfer is completed.

Note✍: It also supports transferring data between iPad and iPhone. Refer to this How to Transfer Photos from iPad to iPhone guide to learn more.

Method 2. Transfer Photos from External Hard Drive to iPhone/iPad via Cloud Services

Nowadays, cloud services provides an easy way to help users store and share data. To move photos from external hard drive to iPhone or iPad, you can first upload pictures to cloud storage and then save the pictures on device. Take iCloud as an example:

• On computer: Open a browser and go to iCloud.com > Sign in with your Apple ID and passcode > Click Photos > Click Upload Photos to select pictures stored on an external hard drive.
• On iPhone or iPad: Go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Photos to turn on iCloud Photos.

If you are using Dropbox, Google Photo, or OneDrive, you should first go to the App Store to download the app on your iPhone or iPad and then you can see your pictures.

Method 3. Transfer Photos from External Hard Drive to iPhone/iPad via Email

If you just want to transfer one or two pictures from external hard drive to iPhone/iPad, you can simply send yourself an email with the picture attachment.

• On the computer: Send an email to yourself with photos attachments.
• On iPhone/iPad: Go to the Mail app to check email and download pictures on the device.

Conclusion

This is all about how to transfer photos from external hard drive to iPhone or iPad. If you want to transfer photos to your device wirelessly, you can utilize cloud services or email to do so; if you look for a safer way to transfer your photos from external hard drive to iPhone, let AOMEI FoneBackup help you easily transfer selected photos to your iPhone.Now download AOMEI FoneBackup and enjoy its wonderful features!