Can’t copy/paste and share photos on iPhone 12

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Level 1

4 points

Can’t copy/paste and share photos on iPhone 12

Unable to copy/paste or share photos on iPhone 12 Pro. Happens with older pix transferred from prior iPhone 7. Updated to iOS 16, many restarts. Tried every option including pressing and holding on thumbnail image and selecting “copy” then switching to messaging or email (text body) and tapping to paste but the only submenu option is to manipulate text — there is no longer an option to just “paste”. This isn’t a problem with newer photos sourced from this phone’s camera. Problem occurred when air dropping to another person’s iPhone (150 images), but when handling my older photos from prior phone, copy/paste and sharing failed, error message: “Unable to share. There was an error while preparing to share. Please try again later.”

iPhone 12 Pro Max, iOS 16

Posted on Sep 25, 2022 5:48 PM

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Answer 1

Sep 27, 2022 12:19 PM in response to mszymanski

Hi mszymanski,

For help with sharing photos from your iPhone, test the steps found in the article here: Share photos and videos on iPhone - Apple Support

If the issue continues, close the Photos app and restart your iPhone to test again.

"How to restart your iPhone X, 11, 12, or 13

Press and hold either volume button and the side button until the power-off slider appears.
Drag the slider, then wait 30 seconds for your device to turn off. If your device is frozen or unresponsive, force restart your device.
To turn your device back on, press and hold the side button (on the right side of your iPhone) until you see the Apple logo."

If needed, the article here can help you with closing the Photos app. Close an app on your iPhone or iPod touch

Should the issue remain, reach out to Apple Support directly to further assist.

Contact - Official Apple Support

Contact Apple for support and service - Apple Support

Best.

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Answer 2

mszymanski Author

Level 1

4 points

Sep 28, 2022 4:47 AM in response to OrigamiFan1

Apple escalated support concluded others are experiencing the same problem with older photos after suggesting I needed to upgrade icloud storage. The older photos, transferred when I moved from a 7 to a 12, reside on my current phone, not icloud. I can see the photos, and the full metadata showing source as iphone 7 when in airplane mode with wifi turned off. This appears to be an iOS problem and supposedly a fix is in progress in a future update.

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Can’t copy/paste and share photos on iPhone 12

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