Where are my photos from 2016

Valerie618_S wrote:

... (I can still log into google and find photos that are over ten years old, and haven’t had to pay them monthly….) Now the only photos that show up are the ones that are on my current device/ one phone previous. All the years are just missing

Don't expect iCloud Photos to be an independent cloud storage like Google offers. iCloud Photos is very different and has been designed for a different purpose. It is a syncing service, meant to keep the photos in iCloud and on all synced devices identical. Because of the syncing, the photos stored in iCloud Photos are the same as you are seeing currently on your iPhone or any other device, when signed into iCloud with the same AppleID. When you work with your photos on one device, the changes will be propagated to iCloud and all other synced devices. Any photo you delete on one device, will deleted from iCloud Photos and all other devices as well. Any photo you import to photos will appear on all your other devices. Could it be, that you deleted the older photos on an older device, while it has still been syncing with iCloud? This would have erased the photos from iCloud and all other devices.

Which system version is installed on your new iPhone? iOS 9, as shown below your question, cannot be right for a new iPhone?

If you are using iOS 16, and have enabled the Shared iCloud Photos Library on your new iPhone, your photos will be split across two libraries, the Shared Library and your personal Library. You will only be seeing all photos, if you set the toggle switch to "Both Libraries" in the (•••) menu. On devices with an older system version you can then only see the photos in your personal library, not the Shared library.

Valerie618_S Said:

"Where are my photos from 2016: I have been an iPhone user for over 10 years and have been paying for iCloud storage whenever it asks! Where are my photos from the beginning of 2017, 2016, 2015 and so on??!"

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Troubleshooting Missing Photos:

Four Things to Try:

A. Start here: If you're Missing Photos or Videos in the Photos app - Apple Support

B. Check iCloud, Directly:

For Photos: Go here, and see if they reside in iCloud: https://www.icloud.com/photos

C. Restore your iPhone from a Backup:

Have any backups of this iPhone prior to this occurrence? If so, restore your iPhone from one that has these photos (the most recent backup, ideally). If not, then take this as a learning experience, knowing to always back up your device for recovery purposes. Important: Back up you iPhone prior to performing this restoration, should anything go wrong from here on out.

D. Where Else to Check:

1. PC
2. PDA
3. eMail
4. Mac Device
5. Cloud Storage
6. Android Phone
7. USB Flash Drive
8. External Hard drive
9. Secure Digital Card
10. Compact Flash Card

Valerie618_S wrote:

I have been an iPhone user for over 10 years and have been paying for iCloud storage whenever it asks! Where are my photos from the beginning of 2017, 2016, 2015 and so on??!

Are your photos available when you use your same Apple ID, and log into iCloud.com?

Valerie618_S wrote:

I tried that recently expecting to find all my photos there, as I know I have done that in the past. (I can still log into google and find photos that are over ten years old, and haven’t had to pay them monthly….) Now the only photos that show up are the ones that are on my current device/ one phone previous. All the years are just missing

You mention a previous device. Did you possibly use a different Apple ID? If so, this is the expected result. Photos are stored per Apple ID.