It’s the worst feeling in the world when you notice a special photo is gone. When you lose a photo, you lose more than just a file. You are losing a slice of a memory.
You start tapping through your gallery, and it just isn’t there, and it feels as though it’s gone forever.
This can happen for a variety of reasons. Maybe you were attempting to free up some space and got a little too tap-happy. Or perhaps there was a glitch, and the app deleted your photo.
Do not panic! We’ve all been there, and it is totally the worst feeling. Luckily, we have some good news.
Most of the time, those photos are not really deleted forever; you just need to know where to look.
This guide will tell you the steps on how to recover recently deleted photos. We’ll go into detail step-by-step for almost any device you may have to recover your pictures.
You can easily recover your deleted photos, and we’ll show you how!
Recovering Deleted Photos on Your Smartphone
The majority of us take pictures on our phones, so we will start there.
Both iPhone and Android phones have a safety net already built in to get your pictures back, and it is usually easier than you can imagine.
For iPhone and iPad Users
Apple understands and recognizes that accidents can happen. This is why they have an album just for your deleted pictures. Your first step should always be this album.
The “Recently Deleted” Album: Your First Step
- Open the Photos app on your iPhone or iPad.
- Tap the Albums tab at the bottom of the screen.
- Scroll to the very bottom of the page until you see “Other Albums.”
- Tap Recently Deleted. You will most likely need to use your Face ID or Passcode to enter it.
There you will see every picture and video you recently deleted within the last 30 days. You will permanently. To recover a picture that you want back, simply tap on it and tap Recover.
It will pop right back into your regular photo library.
Recovering from an iCloud Backup
What happens if it has been longer than 30 days? If you back up your iPhone to iCloud, you might have another option available to you, but this is a more convoluted method.
You would need to erase your phone first, and then restore your iPhone from an earlier backup. Use this process only if the photos are very valuable!
Be sure to have a recent backup for your phone before proceeding.
You could check for a backup in Settings > [Your Name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup.
If you decide to continue, you should perform a reset of your phone, then select “Restore from iCloud Backup” during the setup process.
For Android Users
Android devices have a similar feature, likely with a slightly different name depending on whether you have a device from Samsung or Google Pixel. Otherwise, the concept is similar.
Checking your “Trash” or “Bin” in your gallery app
- Open your main gallery or photos app.
- Find the menu, likely three dots or three lines, located in the corner.
- Look for something referring to Trash, Bin, or even, in some cases Recycle Bin.
- Tap on it, and you will find your recently deleted photos.
These photos should hold for an outstanding amount of time, generally for about 30 to 60 days. Just like on the iPhone, select the photos you want back and hit the Restore button.
Leveraging Google Photos for Recovery
A lot of Android users utilize Google Photos to save their images.
This app is useful for the recovery of deleted photos, as it has its own Bin (some versions may use Trash), and it is available on all of your devices.
- Launch the Google Photos app.
- Click on the Library tab in the bottom right-hand corner.
- You should see a number for Bin or Trash at the top.
- Your deleted images should be waiting there. They stay in the bin for 60 days.
Simply tap and hold an image to select it, and then tap restore at the bottom. Your image will be saved back to your Google Photos library, and it’s as easy as that.
Recovering Deleted Photos on Your Computer
Losing photos from your PC or Mac can be just as frightening as it is with phones. The recovery process is just as simple.
For Windows Users
Windows has been helping users recover files for a long while now. The renowned Recycle Bin remains your best friend for finding lost files.
The Recycle Bin: The Obvious First Check
When you delete a file on a Windows computer, it goes straight to the Recycle Bin. It will stay there until you decide to empty it.
- Find the Recycle Bin icon on your desktop.
- Double-click it to open it.
- Look for your missing photos. You can sort the files by date to find them faster.
- Right-click on the photo you want back and choose Restore.
The photo will disappear from the Recycle Bin and go right back to the folder it was deleted from. It’s a simple, yet powerful, tool.
Using File History for Photo Recovery
If you have emptied your Recycle Bin, don’t lose hope. If you have File History turned on, Windows has been saving copies of your files automatically.
To use it, connect the backup drive you use for File History. Then, go to the folder where your photos used to be.
Click the History button in the Home tab of the File Explorer ribbon. You will be able to look back in time and restore the folder to a point before you deleted the photos.
For macOS Users
Mac computers also have several easy ways to get your photos back. The process is very similar to how it works on an iPhone.
The “Recently Deleted” Album in the Photos App
Just like on an iPhone, the Photos app on your Mac has a safety net. It keeps your deleted photos for you for a short time.
- Open the Photos app on your Mac.
- On the left-hand sidebar, click on Recently Deleted.
- You will see all the photos you have deleted in the past 30 days.
- Click on a photo and then click the Recover button in the top-right corner.
Restoring from a Time Machine Backup
Time Machine is an amazing backup feature on Macs. If you use it, it has been making copies of all your files.
Connect your Time Machine backup drive to your Mac. Then, open the folder where your photos were stored.
Click the Time Machine icon in the menu bar and choose Enter Time Machine. You can travel back in time to find and restore your lost photos.
Advanced Photo Recovery Methods
Sometimes, the easy ways don’t work. Maybe your photos have been gone for a long time, or they were on an SD card that got corrupted.
In these cases, you might need a little extra help. This is where special software comes in.
Using Photo Recovery Software
Many software programs can find and recover lost files. The software scans your SD card or hard drive deeply enough to find bits and pieces of old photos and put them back together.
Some popular options are Recover (for Windows) and Disk Drill (for Mac and Windows). Most offer a free scan to see if you can get your pictures back before you pay.
Usually, the process is pretty straightforward to follow. You install the software, select the drive you want to scan, and let it identify your lost images.
Learning how to recover photos you’ve recently deleted with this software can be a huge advantage.
If you have weird colors or lines in some of the recovered images, we can help you fix these problems with our color correction services.
Recovering from an SD Card
Within a short time after photos are deleted from the memory card, it is important to take a fast resort to a few ideas. First step using the card immediately.
If you have used the card again and added information, it will write over or cover the space where the previous photos were saved, and it will be difficult or impossible to recover in some cases.
You can recover lost images by using software for SD card recovery.
First, take your SD card out of the camera, insert it into a reader connected to a USB, and unplug your camera from the USB.
Then, run software like Disk Drill, and have it scan and examine the SD card. It will often find images and store them in some kind of state that you thought was lost.
If so, any of those images will be restored.
Conclusion
We hope this guide has helped you recover your deleted photos. It’s such a relief to see them returned to your gallery safe and sound.
We’ve covered all the information you need to know about recovering your recently deleted photos.
FAQs
Where is the first place to look for missing photos?
You should start by looking in the “Recently Deleted” album if you use an iPhone or in the “Trash” or “Bin” folder when you open the gallery app on an Android phone. Your missing photos may be waiting there for up to 30 days.
How about recovering photos that I deleted a year ago?
That is almost virtually impossible. Most trash folders delete their contents after a 30-60-day period. Unless it is stored in an old backup on your computer or cloud storage, it is almost impossible.
Where do people permanently lose their deleted photos?
They really don’t go anywhere. They simply mark the space used as an empty area on your device’s memory. This allows for new files to be saved, permanently erasing the previous photograph.
Can I recover photos from a phone that is broken?
Yes, you can if the internal storage is not damaged. You would need to take the device to a professional data recovery service. They have special tools to access files on broken hardware.
