Changed timestamps are discarded in shared iCloud albums

Hi there,


I’m using iCloud Photos for my photo library. On vacations, I usually take photos during the day, and add some explaining screenshots in the evening to my library. Since I want the screenshots to appear next to the actual objects in my library, I adjust the timestamp of the corresponding screenshot to roughly match the timestamp of the photo of the described object. Example: a took a photo of a building at 1 pm, and added a screenshot describing the building at 9pm. Afterward, I adjusted the timestamp if the screenshot to 1:02 pm so that they are displayed next to each other.


If I now select these photos and share them via a shared iCloud album via the public iCloud link option, the screenshots have their original timestamp. Thus, they appear at a different order than the original photo. In the example, the screenshot of the building was displayed at the end of the shared online album instead of next to the photo of the building.

The behavior is the same if I simply select the photos, and let the photo app generate a 30-day temporary iCloud link.


Is this intentional? Or is this a bug? Or is there a way to avoid this problem?


thank you in advance!

iPhone 12 Pro, iOS 18

Posted on Aug 28, 2025 03:31 PM

Reply
1 reply

Aug 28, 2025 03:50 PM in response to Muckl94

The timestamps are not discarded, they’re performing their intended task. Just not the one you want.


More than a few photographers and photography-adjacent folks implement their own photo management system, learning and adapting as they evolve the system over time.


This particular case is, however, a very common mistake with these home-grown image and video data management: do not use and do not trust the file system metadata for your dates, use the embedded EXIF data, and use your own folder names. Again, do not use the file dates.


Store any particular event dates or contract dates or location info or most other info and other related metadata in the files. Why? Because the file system metadata can get modified when you might not or do not want it modified.


The displayed dates are just not dependable for archiving.


Related example tool: exiftool

Changed timestamps are discarded in shared iCloud albums

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