MyPhotoLog Pro User Guide

What's New

July 2026

This release is about getting coordinates out of the app and into the rest of your kit, giving you more control over how the map looks, and being clearer about what leaves your device. Here's what changed — and why it matters in the field.

Tap Any Coordinates to Copy Them

Coordinates are now tappable wherever they appear. Tap once and they're on your clipboard, ready to paste into Windy, a Garmin unit, or whatever you navigate with. You choose the format in Settings > Display > Coordinate Format: decimal degrees, degrees and decimal minutes, or degrees/minutes/seconds. Whatever's on screen is exactly what gets copied, and decimal degrees are written without a degree symbol so they paste cleanly into apps that expect plain numbers.

There's also a quick format switcher right on the Location Details screen, next to the coordinates themselves — handy when one device wants decimals and another wants minutes.

Choose What Each Map Pin Shows

Every location now has a Map Marker setting, just below Icon & Color in Location Details. Set it to Photo to always show the thumbnail, Icon to always show the location type icon, or leave it on Automatic to follow your global preference. Useful when a handful of spots deserve to stand out visually while the rest stay tidy.

The global "Show Thumbnails on Map" setting also works properly now. It previously only affected locations typed as Photo — campsites, viewpoints, and trailheads always showed icons no matter what. It now applies to every location type that has a photo, and it's on by default.

Search Drops a Pin You Can See

Searching the map now places a pin at the result so you can see exactly where it landed before saving. Tap the pin to add it — the name comes pre-filled from the search. Long-press somewhere else if the pin isn't quite where you wanted.

Replacing a Photo Updates the Date

When you replace the photo on an existing location, the app now reads the new photo's capture date and updates the location to match. Date Taken and the Astronomical Data Photo Date tab both reflect the new photo rather than the one it replaced.

Clearer About What Leaves Your Device

Sun, moon, and Milky Way times have always been calculated on your iPhone, and they still are. Ground elevation for locations without it is the one thing that requires a lookup, so it's now an explicit choice: Settings > Data & Sharing > Look Up Elevation Online, off by default. Leave it off and nothing about your locations ever leaves the device. Photos that already carry elevation in their metadata show it either way.

1. Getting Started

If you've ever returned home from a trip and wished you could remember exactly where you took that one perfect shot — or where you parked to reach that trailhead — MyPhotoLog Pro was built for that moment.

Think of it as a field logbook designed for photographers. It records where you took each photo with GPS precision, captures the direction your camera was pointing, and stores astronomical data for the exact location and time. Beyond photos, you can log any spot that matters to your workflow: a campsite for tomorrow night, a trailhead you want to revisit, a viewpoint that's worth coming back to at golden hour, a parking pullout near a remote location. Everything shows up on an interactive map, and you can navigate directly to any saved spot with a single tap.

Landscape, nature, street, documentary, and architectural photographers — really anyone who works in the field and cares about location — will find something useful here.

When you first open the app, you'll see three sample photos of well-known landmarks: the Golden Gate Bridge, the Statue of Liberty, and the Eiffel Tower. These are there so you can explore the features before adding anything of your own. You can remove them any time in Settings when you're ready to start fresh.

The Three Main Tabs

Map

Displays all your saved locations as pins on an interactive map. Tap any pin to open the full details. When several locations sit close together, they cluster into a numbered group. Tap once to zoom in and see them separately; tap again to pick one.

List

Shows all your locations in a scrollable list with powerful filtering. This is where you'll search for a specific spot, sort by distance from where you are right now, and manage your library.

Settings

Configure the app, manage backups, set up sharing, and customize your location types.

2. Taking Your First Photo

Ready to log your first location? Here's how the whole process works, from tap to save.

Opening the Camera

Tap the camera button in the top-right corner of either the Map or List tab. The app opens its own built-in camera — portrait orientation, 4:3 aspect ratio, designed to feel familiar if you're used to Apple's Camera app.

You'll notice a small compass indicator on the screen. This tells you how accurate the device's heading sensor is at that moment:

Green

The compass is reading well. The app will record which direction your camera is pointing.

Yellow

Accuracy is acceptable. Direction will likely be saved.

Red

The compass is struggling. Try slowly moving your phone in a figure-8 pattern to recalibrate it.

Getting a green reading before you shoot means the app records not just where you were standing, but which way you were looking. That's genuinely useful when you return to a spot and want to recreate the same composition.

Reviewing and Adding Details

Once you take your photo, a review screen appears. If you're happy with it, tap "Use Photo." The Location Detail screen opens automatically, where you turn this photo into a useful log entry.

Fill in the fields that matter most to you:

Name

Be specific. "Morning light on east-facing sandstone wall" or "Parking pullout before canyon turn" will serve you far better in six months than "Photo 1."

Notes

Any context worth remembering: light conditions, access notes, ideas for a return trip, gear you used.

Tags

Short keywords for grouping and searching. More on this in Section 4.

Location Type

Choose what kind of location this is — Photo, Campsite, Viewpoint, and more. You can also pick a custom icon and color.

Tap Save when you're done.

What the App Records Automatically

While you're filling in your details, the app is quietly capturing several things on its own: GPS coordinates, the direction your camera was pointing (when the compass was accurate), the timestamp, and your approximate location by state and country. These are added in the background — you don't need to do a thing.

By default, photos are also saved to your Camera Roll with full EXIF metadata, including GPS coordinates and compass heading. If you'd prefer to keep photos only within the app, you can disable Camera Roll saving in Settings.

3. Understanding the Interface

Once you have a few locations saved, you'll find yourself moving between the Map and List views regularly. Here's a closer look at what each one offers.

Map View

The map shows your locations as pins, each styled with the icon and color of its location type. If you've enabled thumbnails in Settings, small photo previews appear directly on the pins, which makes it much easier to identify locations visually when you're scanning the map. When multiple locations cluster together on a zoom level, they collapse into a numbered group. Tap once to zoom in; tap again to pick from the individual locations.

Two controls sit in the map view:

Location button

Cycles through three tracking modes. Gray means the map is static. Blue (North Up) makes the map follow your position with north always pointing up. Blue with a compass icon (Track Up) rotates the map to match the direction you're heading — helpful when navigating on foot.

Globe button

Switches between Standard (street map), Hybrid (satellite with labels), and Satellite views. Hybrid and Satellite are especially useful for scouting terrain or identifying landscape features from above.

List View

The list gives you more control over what you're looking at. Three toggles near the top change how locations are displayed:

"Show Closest"

Sorts the entire list by distance from your current location. Excellent when you're in the field and want to know what's nearby.

"Map View Photos"

Narrows the list to show only locations visible in the current map viewport. Use this when you're focused on a specific geographic area.

"Filter Map View"

Pushes your current search and type filters to the map pins. When active, a banner appears on the map to remind you that filtering is on.

The search bar at the top searches across names, descriptions, tags, and place names simultaneously. Below it, filter chips let you show only specific location types. Tap a chip to filter; tap again to clear it. Combining search text with type filters gives you very precise results.

Location Detail View

Tap any location to open its full detail view. This is where all the information lives: the photo, name, notes, tags, GPS coordinates, elevation, state/country, photo direction, and the coordinate source (which tells you whether GPS came from the photo's EXIF data, your device at the time, or was entered manually).

From here you can access Astronomical Data, share the location with others, export a GPX waypoint for GPS apps, or navigate directly to the spot using your preferred maps app.

Copying Coordinates

Tap the coordinates on any location and they're copied to your clipboard. A green checkmark confirms it. Paste them into Windy, a Garmin unit, a text message to whoever you're meeting at the trailhead — anywhere that takes coordinates.

The small switcher next to the coordinates changes the format on the spot, and your choice sticks across the app. Three formats are available:

Decimal Degrees

44.42760, -110.58847 — what Windy, Google Maps, and most web tools expect. Written without a degree symbol so it pastes cleanly.

Degrees & Minutes

44° 25.656' N, 110° 35.308' W — what most Garmin and marine GPS units use.

Degrees, Minutes, Seconds

44° 25' 39.4" N, 110° 35' 18.5" W — traditional DMS, matching what iOS Photos and many cameras display.

Whatever format is on screen is exactly what gets copied. You can also set a default in Settings > Display > Coordinate Format.

4. Organizing Your Locations

Good organization pays dividends as your library grows. Tags are the main tool for keeping things findable, and the habits you build early will save you a lot of hunting later.

Using Tags

Tags are short keywords you attach to any location. They're searchable and case-insensitive, so "Bridge" and "bridge" are the same tag. The key to getting real value from them is consistency: decide on your naming conventions early and stick to them.

To add a tag, open any location, scroll to the Tags section, type your keyword, and press Return. The app remembers your five most recently used tags for quick access.

Some photographers use tags to describe subject matter ("waterfall", "arch", "cityscape"). Others use them for project or trip names ("iceland-2025", "project-highways"). Some use them for access notes ("permit-required", "4wd-only"). There's no single right approach — use whatever makes your future searches useful.

5. Astronomical Data

This is one of the most powerful features in the app — and one that directly affects the quality of your photography planning. Before you drive two hours to a remote location for a golden hour shoot, wouldn't you want to know exactly when and where the sun will set, and from which direction? The Astronomical Data screen gives you all of that, plus moon phases, Milky Way visibility, and more.

To access it: open any saved location, scroll to the Location section, and tap the purple "Astronomical Data" button. What you'll see is a complete picture of the sun, moon, Milky Way, and horizon conditions for that exact GPS coordinate — calculated for any date you choose.

Planning with Solar Data

The app shows sunrise and sunset times along with their compass directions (azimuth). This tells you not just when the light happens, but where it comes from. If you're shooting a west-facing cliff face, you can check whether sunrise will light it up or leave it in shadow. Golden hour — the warm, soft light just after sunrise and before sunset — and blue hour times are included. All times are displayed in the local timezone for the saved location, so if you've logged a spot in a different time zone, the app handles the conversion automatically.

Moon Tracking

The lunar section shows moonrise and moonset times with compass directions, current moon phase with a visual emoji for quick reference, illumination percentage, and the phase name. For night photographers, this matters enormously: a 95% illuminated moon will wash out the Milky Way, while a new moon leaves the sky dark and full of stars. Use the custom date selector to scout upcoming nights and find the right window for your shoot.

Milky Way Visibility

The app calculates when the Milky Way core rises, reaches its highest point (zenith), and sets for your specific location on a given date. It also identifies the best viewing window, which accounts for the sky being darkest well away from civil twilight. Keep in mind that Milky Way core visibility is seasonal — it's best from roughly March through October, depending on your latitude. If you're planning a dedicated Milky Way trip, check this screen before you commit to a date.

Understanding Your Location Data

Beyond celestial data, this screen also shows your precise GPS coordinates, elevation in both feet and meters, and distance to the horizon. That last one is calculated from your elevation and is useful for landscape planning — from a high ridge, you can see much farther than from a valley floor, which affects when and where you'll see the sun and moon.

The coordinates here are tappable, same as on the Location Details screen — tap to copy them in your chosen format.

Magnetic declination is also shown here. This is the difference between True North (geographic north) and Magnetic North (what your compass actually points to). If you use a traditional compass alongside the app, knowing this offset keeps your directional calculations accurate.

Choosing a Date

The date selector at the top of the Astronomical Data screen gives you three options:

Photo Date

Calculates data for the date and time the photo was actually taken. Useful for understanding why conditions looked the way they did in an existing shot. This tab only appears when the location has a photo — a pin you dropped on the map has no capture date to calculate from.

Today

The default view, and the quickest for spontaneous planning decisions.

Custom

Pick any date you like. Use this to plan a future return trip, or compare conditions across different days before committing to a drive.

If you replace the photo on a location, the Photo Date tab picks up the new photo's capture date automatically.

6. Map Features

Tracking Your Position

The location button in the Map view cycles through three modes. When it's gray, the map is static — it doesn't follow you. Tap once for North Up mode (shown in blue): the map scrolls to keep you centered, with north always pointing up. Tap again for Track Up mode (blue with a compass icon): the map rotates to match whichever direction you're facing. Track Up is especially helpful when navigating on foot, since the map orients the same way you're walking.

Switching Map Styles

Tap the globe button to switch between three map styles. Standard gives you a traditional street map view. Hybrid layers satellite imagery with road and place labels on top — a great balance of context and detail. Satellite shows pure aerial imagery with no labels, which is useful when you're trying to identify specific terrain features, ridgelines, or clearings from above.

Finding a New Place

The search bar at the top of the Map tab lets you search for any place by name, address, or landmark. Tap a result and the map centres on it with a pin marking the exact spot, so you can see where it landed before committing. Tap the pin itself — or the Add Location button — to save it, with the name already filled in from the search. If the pin isn't quite where you wanted, long-press the right spot instead and it moves there with a clean name field.

This is particularly useful during trip planning: you can mark places you intend to visit before you're actually there.

Dropping a Pin Manually

Press and hold anywhere on the map to drop a pin at that spot. A small action bar appears with "Add Location" and "Cancel" options. Tap "Add Location" to name it and assign a type. This works well for marking a trailhead or viewpoint you can see on the satellite view but haven't visited in person yet.

Syncing Filters Between List and Map

When you enable the "Filter Map View" toggle in the List tab, whatever search text or location type filter you've applied there will also filter the pins on the map. A banner appears on the map to confirm that filtering is active. This is useful when you want to visually scan just one category — for example, showing only parking spots while planning access to a remote area.

Jumping to a Specific Location

From any location's detail view, tap "Show on Map" to switch to the Map tab, zoom to that location, and highlight it with a green border. This is handy when you want to understand the geographic context around a specific saved spot.

7. Location Markers

MyPhotoLog Pro isn't just for photos. One of its most practical features is the ability to log any kind of location — with or without a photo attached. If you've ever needed to note a campsite, parking spot, or trailhead without actually photographing it, this is how.

The Seven Built-In Types

The app comes with seven built-in location types ready to use from the start:

Photo

Your standard photographic location, for shots you've taken.

Campsite

Overnight camping spots and campgrounds.

Photo Spot

Locations you've identified as promising shooting spots for a future visit, even if you haven't shot there yet.

Trailhead

Starting points for hikes and trails.

Viewpoint

Scenic overlooks and observation points.

Parking

Parking areas, pullouts, and vehicle access points.

Area of Interest

A general-purpose type for any landmark or notable place that doesn't fit neatly elsewhere.

You can customize the icon and color of any built-in type in Settings > Location Types > Default Location Types. Any change you make applies to all existing locations of that type immediately, so the update ripples through your entire library at once.

Choosing What a Pin Shows

Just below Icon & Color on any location's detail screen is a Map Marker setting, controlling what that specific pin displays on the map:

Automatic

Follows the global "Show Thumbnails on Map" setting. This is the default and suits most locations.

Photo

Always shows the photo thumbnail, even with the global setting off.

Icon

Always shows the location type icon, even with the global setting on.

This is per-location, so you can keep the map generally tidy with icons while letting a few key spots show their photos — or the reverse. Locations without a photo always show their icon regardless, and the setting tells you so.

Creating Your Own Location Types

If the built-in types don't fully cover your workflow, create your own. Go to Settings > Location Types and tap "Add Custom Type." Give it a name, pick an icon from the library of 60+ options (organized into eight categories), and choose a color. Custom types work exactly like built-in ones: they appear as filter chips in the list, they show their own icons on the map, and they travel automatically with any shared files.

To edit or delete a custom type later, return to Settings > Location Types. If you delete a type, locations that used it simply revert to the default Photo type — they're not lost.

The Icon Library

The 60+ icons span eight categories to make browsing easier: Photography, Outdoor, Astronomy, Nature, Road Trip, Water, Landmarks, and General. There's a coffee cup for the roadside cafe you keep coming back to, a ferry icon for water crossings, wildlife icons for nature photographers, and architectural icons for urban work. If you're out in the field, chances are there's a fitting icon for what you need to mark.

Adding a Marker Without a Photo

There are two quick ways to drop a marker without opening the camera. From the Map tab, press and hold anywhere on the map to drop a pin at that spot, then tap "Add Location" to save it. Or use the map's search bar to find a named place, tap the result to drop a pin, then save it as a location. Both methods take you to the same detail screen where you can name it, assign a type, and add notes.

Filtering Your Library by Type

In the List view, filter chips appear below the search bar for each location type you have in your library. Tap a chip to show only that type; tap again to deselect it. You can combine type filters with a text search for very precise results — for example, searching "utah" while filtering to Viewpoint shows only the viewpoints you've logged in Utah.

8. Sharing Locations

One of the most underrated features in the app is how smoothly it handles sharing. Whether you're sending a colleague a scouted viewpoint or sharing a full collection of locations from a road trip, it's built right into the workflow.

Before You Share: Set Your Name

Shared files include your name so recipients know who sent them. Go to Settings > Data & Sharing > Photo Sharing and enter your name. You only need to do this once.

Sharing a Single Location

Open any location, scroll to the Location section, and tap "Share Photo Location." This creates a .myphotolog file containing the photo, all metadata, GPS coordinates, tags, notes, and the location type configuration. Share it via AirDrop, Mail, Messages, or any other app in the share sheet. The recipient will need MyPhotoLog Pro installed to open it.

Sharing Multiple Locations at Once

In the List view, press and hold any location to enter selection mode, then tap additional locations to add them to the selection. Tap the share icon to export everything as a single .myphotolog file. The app shows you the file size before you export, so you can decide whether to email it or use AirDrop for larger batches.

What Travels Inside a Shared File

Everything the recipient needs: photos, GPS coordinates, tags, notes, location type assignments, and any custom location type definitions you've created. If a recipient has a custom type that conflicts with yours — same name but different icon or color — the app will flag it and ask which version to keep.

9. Importing Shared Locations

When someone sends you a .myphotolog file, opening it is straightforward. The app walks you through the import with a preview so you always know what you're bringing in before you commit.

Opening a Shared File

Tap the .myphotolog attachment in Mail, Messages, the Files app, or any cloud storage service. A preview appears showing the first couple of photos and their metadata, giving you a look at what's in the file before you decide to import. Tap "Open in MyPhotoLog" to proceed to the import screen.

You can also import from within the app itself: Settings > Data & Sharing > Photo Sharing > Import Shared Photo Location.

Reviewing Before You Import

The import preview tells you who shared the file, how many locations it contains, and how many of those are new versus duplicates of things you already have. "Import New Only" is the recommended choice for most situations, since it skips anything that's already in your library. Choose "Import All" if you specifically want to bring in duplicates.

Imported locations are automatically tagged "Shared by [Name]" so you can always see where they came from when browsing your library.

Handling Custom Location Types

If the shared file includes custom location type definitions, any new types are created in your library automatically. If a type has the same name as one of yours but different settings, the app flags the conflict and lets you choose which version to keep.

10. Google Earth and GPS Integration

MyPhotoLog Pro can exchange location data with Google Earth, Google Maps, and dedicated GPS devices using standard file formats. This makes it easy to collaborate with people who use other tools, load your waypoints onto Garmin devices, or keep a universally compatible backup of your locations.

Exporting to KML for Google Earth

KML (Keyhole Markup Language) is the format that Google Earth and Google Maps understand. Exporting your locations to KML lets you view them in Google Earth, share them with colleagues who prefer Google's mapping tools, or archive your waypoints in a format that almost any mapping application can read.

To export: Settings > Data & Sharing > Google Earth > Export to KML. Share the .kml file via AirDrop or Mail, or save it to Files. It opens in Google Earth Pro on desktop, Google Earth on mobile, or Google Maps on the web. Each location exports with its name, description, coordinates, timestamp, and an icon that reflects its location type.

Importing from KML

If you have KML files from other sources — a GPS device, a colleague, a previous mapping project — you can import them directly. This is part of the Full Version. Settings > Data & Sharing > Google Earth > Import from Google Earth. The import preview shows how many placemarks are in the file and flags any that would duplicate existing locations. Choose "Import New Only" or "Import All" to proceed.

Exporting GPX Waypoints for GPS Devices

GPX is the format used by Garmin and most dedicated GPS apps. From any location's detail view, tap "Share GPX Waypoint" to export that single location as a .gpx file. Send it to Garmin Connect, AllTrails, or any GPS application that accepts standard GPX files. The location type is included in the waypoint data so it carries meaning on the receiving end.

11. Backing Up Your Data

Your location library represents real field work — time, travel, and careful observation. A solid backup habit protects all of it, and with automatic backup enabled, you barely have to think about it.

What Gets Backed Up

A full backup (v2.0) captures everything: photos and their location data, custom location type definitions, icon and color customizations for built-in types, all app settings, tags, notes, and metadata. Restoring brings your complete setup back — not just the photos.

Automatic Backup (Recommended)

Go to Settings > Data & Sharing > iCloud Backup and confirm that "Automatic Backup" is on. It's enabled by default for new installs. The app backs up automatically whenever it moves to the background. The three most recent backups are retained in iCloud, giving you a safety net if something goes wrong.

Manual Backup

For extra peace of mind — especially before making major changes to your library — create a manual backup. Settings > Data & Sharing > Backup & Restore > Export Backup. Save it to Files or AirDrop it to your Mac as an additional copy.

Restoring a Backup

Settings > Data & Sharing > Backup & Restore > Import Backup. Browse to your backup file and confirm the restore. Location types and settings are restored along with photos. Older backup files from before v2.0 will still restore your photos correctly, though they won't include location type customizations.

12. Essential Settings

The Settings tab opens with your statistics and purchase status, then four sub-pages: Display, Location Types, Data & Sharing, and Other. Here's what each one controls.

Statistics and Purchase

Shows your total photo count and, if you're on the free version, how many of your 20 free locations you've used. Below that you can upgrade to the Full Version or restore a previous purchase. See Section 14 for how the two versions differ.

Display

Show Thumbnails on Map

Display photo previews on map markers instead of icons. On by default, and it applies to every location type that has a photo. Individual locations can override this — see Section 7.

Save Photos to Camera Roll

On by default. Turn this off if you're running low on storage and don't need a second copy.

Appearance

Light, Dark, or Automatic (follows your device's current setting).

Distance Units

Miles or Kilometers.

Coordinate Format

Decimal degrees, degrees and decimal minutes, or degrees/minutes/seconds. This is what you get when you tap coordinates to copy them. A live example below the picker shows each format.

Navigation App

Choose Apple Maps, Google Maps, or Waze for the Navigate button on any location.

Location Types

Manage your custom location types and customize the icons and colors for the seven built-in types. Any change to a built-in type updates all existing locations of that type simultaneously.

Data & Sharing

Everything involving data entering or leaving the app, grouped into five sections:

Photo Sharing

Set your name for sharing and exporting, and import .myphotolog files others have sent you.

Google Earth

Export all your locations to a .kml file, or import waypoints from an existing KML file.

iCloud Backup

Automatic backup settings, manual backup, and backup history.

Backup & Restore

Export and import full backup files.

Online Services

Look Up Elevation Online — off by default. See below.

Look Up Elevation Online

This is the only setting in the app that sends anything off your device. When it's on, the coordinates of a location you open in Astronomical Data are sent to an elevation service to fetch the ground elevation, and the result is saved so the same spot is never looked up twice.

Leave it off and nothing about your locations leaves your iPhone. Sun, moon, and Milky Way times are calculated on the device either way, and photos that already carry elevation in their metadata still show it.

Other

Legacy Data

Import your library from the older MapAPic app. Part of the Full Version.

Sample Data

Load or remove the three sample landmarks. Your real locations are unaffected.

Help and About

The User Guide you're reading now lives under Help. The About section shows your current app version and build number, along with contact details.

13. Tips and Tricks

Getting More from the Map

Enable thumbnails in Display Settings to see photo previews on each pin — it makes it far easier to identify locations visually when scanning the map. If the map feels cluttered, use the Filter Map View toggle to narrow down to just the category you care about. Long-pressing any map marker gives you a quick-delete option without needing to open the full detail view.

Planning a Shoot in Advance

Before driving to a remote location, open a saved spot nearby and use the Astronomical Data screen to check conditions for your planned date. Compare multiple days using the custom date picker. "Today" is fastest for spontaneous decisions; "Photo Date" lets you revisit the exact conditions when a previous shot was taken — useful for understanding what made it work and how to recreate it.

Naming Locations in the Field

It's tempting to skip the name and notes when you're excited about shooting. Try to resist. Even a short, specific name — typed in the 30 seconds before you pocket your phone — will save you significant time when you're hunting through your library months later. You can always add more detail when you get back to camp.

Working with the Compass

If the compass indicator stays red, move away from metal surfaces or electronic equipment. Vehicles, metal tripod legs, and even some jackets can interfere with the sensor. A slow figure-8 motion with your phone — tracing the shape in the air a few times — usually recalibrates it within seconds.

Navigating to Saved Locations

The Navigate button on any location detail screen opens your chosen navigation app with the coordinates pre-loaded. This works for any saved location, whether it has a photo attached or is just a plain map pin — trailheads, campsites, parking pullouts, all of them. Set your preferred navigation app once in Display Settings and the button will always use it.

Exporting to GPS Devices

Use GPX export from any location's detail view to send a waypoint directly to Garmin Connect or other GPS apps. Use KML export from Settings to share your full library with Google Earth users or create a universally readable backup. Both formats carry all the essential location data, including names, descriptions, and coordinates.

For a single coordinate, tapping to copy is often faster than exporting a file. Set the format to match whatever you're pasting into — decimal degrees for Windy and web tools, degrees and minutes for most Garmin units — then tap and paste. No file, no transfer, no app switching beyond the paste itself.

Checking Conditions Before You Commit

If you're deciding between two nights for a Milky Way shoot, open the same location twice and compare using the Custom date picker. Moon illumination is usually the deciding factor — anything above roughly 40% starts washing out the core. The best viewing window accounts for twilight, so it's a more honest answer than moonset time alone.

When You're Low on Storage

If your device storage is getting tight, turn off "Save Photos to Camera Roll" in Display Settings. Photos will still be saved inside MyPhotoLog Pro — and backed up to iCloud through the app's backup system — but won't create a duplicate copy in your Photos library.

14. Free and Full Versions

MyPhotoLog Pro is free to use, with a one-time purchase that removes the location limit and unlocks bulk importing. There is no subscription and nothing expires.

What the Free Version Includes

Everything that makes the app useful in the field. All the astronomical planning — sun, moon, Milky Way, golden and blue hour — works with no limit at all. So does compass direction, custom location types and icons, tagging, searching, coordinate copying, KML export, GPX waypoints, sharing your locations with others, and full iCloud backup and restore.

The one limit is how many locations you can save: 20.

What the Full Version Adds

Unlimited locations

Save as many as you like.

Google Earth KML import

Bring in waypoints from KML files in bulk.

Shared collections

Import .myphotolog files that other people send you.

MapAPic migration

Bring your library across from the older MapAPic app.

Exporting and sharing your own locations is free. It's bulk importing — bringing many locations in at once — that's part of the full version.

Keeping Track of Your Free Locations

Settings shows "Free Locations Used" with your current count. When you get within five of the limit it turns orange, so the wall doesn't arrive as a surprise. Once you upgrade, the row disappears entirely.

If you reach 20 and try to add another, the app tells you before you start — it won't let you take a photo or place a pin and then discard the work.

Upgrading and Restoring

Tap "Upgrade to Full Version" in Settings, or upgrade from the screen that appears when you reach the limit. It's a one-time purchase tied to your Apple Account.

If you get a new iPhone, reinstall the app, or already bought it on another device, tap "Restore Purchases" in Settings. There's nothing to buy again.