This article teaches you how to correct any errors in the People album on the Photos app in iOS 15, remove faces from the app, and change key thumbnails for people. 

What to Know

  • Tap Photos > Albums > People > Person > Ellipsis > Manage Tagged Photos to edit what photos are included.Remove faces by tapping Photos > Albums > People > Person > Select > Show Faces and untagging irrelevant pictures.Change a thumbnail by tapping Photos > Albums > People > Person > Select > Show Faces > tap a picture > Share > Make Key Photo.

How Do You Edit People in Apple Photos?

Sometimes, the Photos app on iOS mislabels people under the People category of photos. While iOS 15 has introduced improved recognition features, it’s not perfect. Here’s how to manually edit the people featured on Apple Photos.

  • Open the Photos app.
  • Tap the Albums tab.
  • Tap People.
  • Tap the person you wish to edit.
  • Tap the ellipsis in the top-right corner of the screen.
  • Tap Manage Tagged Photos.
  • Uncheck any photos that have been incorrectly tagged.
  • Add more photos by tapping Tag More Photos for iOS 15 to search for them.
  • Tap Done when finished.

How Do You Edit Faces on Pictures on iPhone?

The Photos app manages itself to an extent, with the app suggesting names from your contacts. However, if you want to add someone or individual photos to your People album, the process is simple. Here’s how to add them, then edit what photos are included. 

Open the Photos app.

Tap the Albums tab.

Tap People.

Tap the person you wish to edit.

Tap the ellipsis in the top-right corner of the screen.

Tap Manage Tagged Photos.

Uncheck any photos that have been incorrectly tagged.

Add more photos by tapping Tag More Photos for iOS 15 to search for them.

Tap Done when finished.

  • Open the Photos app.
  • Find the photo you wish to add to a Person tag.
  • Swipe up to see a thumbnail of the person’s face.
  • Tap the thumbnail.
  • Tap Tag with Name.
  • Enter the name.
  • Tap Next.
  • Tap Done.

How Do You Reset Faces on iPhone?

If your People album has incorrectly identified everyone and you want to reset faces manually, it’s possible. Here’s how to do it.

Find the photo you wish to add to a Person tag.

Swipe up to see a thumbnail of the person’s face.

Tap the thumbnail.

Tap Tag with Name.

Enter the name.

Tap Next.

Tap Done.

  • Open the Photos app.
  • Tap the Albums tab.
  • Tap People.
  • Tap Select.
  • Tap all the people you wish to reset.
  • Tap Remove.
  • Tap Remove from People Album.
  • The people are now removed and ready to re-add via the earlier methods. The algorithm will re-learn as you do so.

How Do I Remove Faces From Apple Photos? 

If the People album is misidentifying people, you can manually reset it so that faces are more accurately identified in the future. Here’s how to do so.

By doing so, you’ll effectively reset the iOS face algorithm so consider this the last gasp solution rather than your first port of call. It’ll take time for the algorithm to catch up in the future.

Tap Select.

Tap all the people you wish to reset.

Tap Remove.

Tap Remove from People Album.

The people are now removed and ready to re-add via the earlier methods. The algorithm will re-learn as you do so.

  • Open the Photos app.
  • Tap Albums.
  • Tap People.
  • Tap a person.
  • Tap Select.
  • Tap Show Faces to have photos focus on the face of the person.
  • Scroll through to find any that are incorrect.
  • Tap the share icon in the bottom left corner.
  • Tap Not This Person to remove the photo from the album.

How to Change a Thumbnail Photo in Photos

iOS 15 automatically assigns a face thumbnail for each person, but you can correct this. Here’s how to change it to something preferable.

Tap Albums.

Tap a person.

Tap Show Faces to have photos focus on the face of the person.

Scroll through to find any that are incorrect. 

Tap the share icon in the bottom left corner.

Tap Not This Person to remove the photo from the album.

  • Open the Photos app.
  • Tap Albums.
  • Tap People.
  • Tap a person.
  • Tap Select.
  • Tap Show Faces.
  • Tap the photo you want to use.
  • Tap the Share icon in the bottom left corner.
  • Tap Make Key Photo.

Tap Show Faces.

Tap the photo you want to use.

Tap the Share icon in the bottom left corner.

Tap Make Key Photo.

  • How do I hide photos on my iPhone?
  • Select the photos you want to hide and tap the Action icon (the square with the arrow coming out of it), then swipe on the list of options at the bottom of the screen and tap Hide. To see your hidden photos, go to Albums > Other Albums > Hidden.
  • How do I hide people in the People album on iOS?
  • In the People album, press and hold the person you want to hide, then tap Hide. All photos of that person will go to your Hidden album.
  • How do I use Spotlight to search for photos in iOS 15?
  • Swipe down on the lock screen and type Photos followed by your search term. You can search for people, places, or other things. To enable Spotlight search for photos, go to Settings > Siri & Search > Photos.

Select the photos you want to hide and tap the Action icon (the square with the arrow coming out of it), then swipe on the list of options at the bottom of the screen and tap Hide. To see your hidden photos, go to Albums > Other Albums > Hidden.

In the People album, press and hold the person you want to hide, then tap Hide. All photos of that person will go to your Hidden album.

Swipe down on the lock screen and type Photos followed by your search term. You can search for people, places, or other things. To enable Spotlight search for photos, go to Settings > Siri & Search > Photos.

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