How to Recover Deleted Photos, Videos & Music Files from iPhone 11 Pro

How to Recover Deleted Photos, Videos & Music Files from iPhone

Summary: Learn how to recover deleted photos, videos and music files from iPhone using the best recovery software —Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone.

There are zillions of tutorials one can find on how to take incredible photos with the A10 fusion chipped smartphone; however, few know how to recover deleted photos from iPhone. As a coin has two sides, through this post, we will explore the other untouched, unexplored side.

iPhone has been the epitome of perfection ever since it entered the smartphone realm. With stellar features and functionality, iPhone has become the highest selling property. There are some hidden iPhone camera features that users can utilize and take amazing photos and videos which leave a lasting impression.

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Recovering deleted photos from iPhone is a straightforward process and do not involve much complexity, provided the right steps are implemented in the right manner.

Without much ado, you can recover deleted iPhone photos or videos with these simple steps. Let’s delve into it in detail.

Solution 1:

Apple has made it easy to recover deleted iPhone photos. Here’s what you need to follow:

Go to the Albums and access your photos.
Scroll down and select ‘Recently Deleted’ folder.
In this folder, you will find all the photos that have been deleted.
Simply tap the photo you want to recover and press “Recover.”
To permanently delete a photo, press “Delete”.

Figure 1 represents how to recover photos from Recently Deleted folder

**Important: In the ‘Recently Deleted’ folder, you’ll find photos, video & music files that have been deleted within the last 30 days only. To recover them before that period, either you have to restore from iTunes or iCloud backups or use iPhone photo recovery software .

Solution 2:

iCloud Photo Library to Your Rescue:

You can recover iPhone photos or videos through iCloud Photo Library. iCloud Photo Library securely stores your photos and videos on iCloud. It automatically saves all your photos and videos in iCloud so that you can access the library from any device.

Follow these steps to turn on the iCloud Photo Library:

Go to settings < [your name] < iCloud < Photos, then turn on iCloud Photo Library (iOS 10.3 or later).
In iOS 10.2 or earlier, go to Settings < iCloud < Photos.

**Important: Ensure that you’re signed in to iCloud with the same Apple ID as on all of your devices. Things can be complicated as iCloud Photo Library is synced with your different Apple devices which means there could be multiple copies and if a photo, video or music file is deleted from a device, it will not be available on the other devices as well. Deletion sync across all the devices.

Solution 3:

iTunes Backup is there to recover all your photos.

Click File menu, select Devices < Restore from Backup.

Open the iOS device’s Summary tab. There are two ways to access this:
Click the device button in the upper right corner.
In iTunes tab, click the View menu and select Show Sidebar. Select your iOS device in iTunes under Devices.
Click the Restore Backup button.

Solution 4:

Use Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone:

iPhone Data Recovery Software by Stellar is an ideal tool to recover lost data from your Apple devices. Utilizing its advanced algorithm, you can scan and recover data (photos, videos, calendar, notes, messages, call history, etc.) from your device. Furthermore, you can recover data from iCloud and iTunes backup as well.

Connect your iPhone to your system and launch “Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone” software.
Select “Recover from iPhone” and the software will scan your device for the contents.
Click on any file to see its preview.
Finally, click “Save” to save the recovered file to the preferred location.

The Final Word

Apple reflects perfection in its design and innovation; therefore, it constantly thrives to provide its consumers with the best platform. One such feature is that iOS can back up your photos on cloud services automatically so that you have access to them at any given time.

Moreover, there are iTunes backup, iCloud backup options available along with iPhone Data Recovery Software as well; but, it is advisable to backup your iPhone photos or videos timely and manually to avoid unnecessary issues.

How to Restore iPhone from Backup when iTunes Backup is Corrupt or not compatible

Summary: Are you receiving the error, ‘iTunes backup was corrupt or not compatible’ while trying to restore iPhone? iPhone recovery is not possible from a corrupt backup file. This post shares how you can resolve corrupt iTunes backup file issue and restore iPhone’s lost data.

‘I dropped my iPhone and broke it. I got it repaired and formatted to factory settings to fix the various issues caused due to the fall. Since I had a backup in iTunes, so was not worried about my data. But had least idea that my iTunes backup file was corrupted! As I tried to restore iPhone from iTunes, a message appeared –: ‘iTunes backup was corrupt or Not compatible.’ Now I don’t know how to restore my iPhone. Please help.’ – Simon, UK

It’s not new when users get bowled over by iTunes when trying to restore their iPhone. iTunes sometimes shows a message that it could not restore iPhone because the backup was corrupt or not compatible with the iPhone that was being restored.

It may be because iTunes does incremental backup by updating the previous backup. It’s possible that some old backup data was corrupt, which results in the error message.

Whatsoever, it’s a fact that there’s no recovery possible from a corrupt backup file.

So how to fix such corrupt iPhone backup in iTunes and restore iPhone in such cases?

Here we share the best ways to fix corrupt iTunes backup file and efficient methods to restore iPhone’s lost data.

You can apply these methods on all iPhone models including series of iPhone 15, 14, 13, 12, 11, XS, XS Max, XR, X, 8 Plus, 8, 7 Plus, 7, 6S Plus, 6S, 6 Plus, 6, 5S, 5c, 5, 4S and 4 with latest iOS 16.x.

What you can do to fix ‘iTunes backup was corrupt or Not compatible’

Since you can’t repair or recover from a corrupt or incompatible iTunes backup file, it is best to delete such corrupt files and next try to create a new backup in iTunes.

How to delete your corrupt iPhone backup file in iTunes

Launch iTunes on your PC or Mac
Windows users click Edit > Preferences (on Windows PC). Mac users click iTunes Menu > Preferences
Select Find your iPhone backups
Select the corrupt or incompatible backup. Click Delete Backup
Close the iTunes Preferences window

How to delete the old iTunes backup files manually

If you don’t see the old backup in iTunes, then delete the backup manually.

In iTunes, under Summary click on Serial Number. You will see the iPhone’s UDID. Note it down.
Navigate to the iTunes backups folder on your computer.

On Mac follow: Finder > Option> Go menu> Library> Application Support >MobileSync> Backup

On Windows 11/10/8 follow: In Search box type %appdata%\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup. Press Enter key

If you installed iTunes from the Microsoft Store, follow: In Search box type %userprofile%\Apple\MobileSync\Backup. Press Enter key.

You will see the backup folders named by your device UDID
Select the folders with your device UDID and delete them
Next go to iTunes and take the backup again

How to backup iPhone in iTunes again

Connect your iPhone to computer via lightning cable
Launch iTunes
Click on Back Up Now The backup process begins.

| Did you get a message — iTunes can’t back up your iPhone because an error occurred? Here’s what you should do…
• Update your iOS to the latest version
• Update your iTunes to the latest version
• Disable antivirus software on your computer
• Now create backup in iTunes

|
| — |

How to restore iPhone when iTunes backup file is corrupt

Method 1: Restore iPhone from iCloud backup

Method 2: Recover from iCloud backup without erasing existing data

Method 3: Restore lost data directly from iPhone/ iPad

Method 1: Recover from iCloud backup

Instead of iTunes, you can restore iPhone by using the alternative backup solution, iCloud.

Steps to restore iPhone with iCloud

Click to follow Settings > General > Reset> Erase all Contents and Settings

A dialog box pops up, choose Erase Now
Follow the instructions until you get on to the Apps & Data screen
Tap Restore from iCloud Backup

Sign in to your iCloud account
Choose the recent backup and click Restore

Method 2: Recover specific files from iCloud without losing existing iPhone data

In case you want to restore specific data from backup, instead of complete backup, use an iPhone recovery software.

Steps to restore specific files from iCloud:

Download and launch Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone on your computer.
Select Recover from iCloud Backup on main screen of software.

Select what you want to recover. Click Next
Enter the Apple ID and password
Select the relevant iCloud backup and click Scan

Select the data in the iCloud backup files list on left and preview

Click Save
In the dialog box select computer or iPhone to save the recovered data. To save directly onto your iPhone, connect your iPhone to the computer.

Method 3: Recover data from iPhone

If iTunes could not restore iPhone or iPad because the backup was corrupt and neither iCloud is able to restore backup, recover data from the device directly. You can easily restore lost photos, videos, messages, calendar, voice memos, Safari bookmarks, etc., with this method. It works in cases of broken/ water-damaged iPhone, factory reset, iOS crash etc.

Steps to recover lost data from iPhone/ iPad

Connect your iPhone to computer
Launch Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone
On the home screen select Recover from iPhone

Select the data you want to restore
Click Next

Preview the data and click Save. You can save the recovered data on computer or iPhone

Conclusion

You cannot repair or recover data from corrupt iTunes backup file that gives — ‘iTunes backup was corrupt or Not compatible’ message.

However, the situation can be tackled by deleting the corrupt backup file and creating a fresh new backup in iTunes.

To restore iPhone, you may use either the new iTunes backup or bypass iTunes by using alternative recovery methods. Other than iTunes, iCloud or Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone are the effective ways to restore lost data on your iPhone. Among these too, if you wish to restore specific data like photos, videos, voice memos, or contacts etc., Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone would be the best solution.

What should I do if I don’t find the deleted iPhone files after scanning?

Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone is an efficient software to recover all kinds of lost data from iPhone, iTunes, and iCloud.

In case you are unable to find the lost data after quick scan through Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone , choose to perform Deep Scan.

Deep scan is a next level of aggressive scanning. It involves thorough scan of the device and the backups (iTunes and iCloud) using advanced algorithms. Deep Scan recovers as much data as possible from the selected device or backup. It searches for lost files on the basis of file signature. This recovery option recovers everything that is found in the selected source. This option is especially helpful in case of severely deleted and corrupted iPhone data.

How to perform Deep Scan?

Once quick scan is completed, in the preview window choose Click Here option at the bottom left of the window to start Deep Scan.

When the scanning process is completed, a dialog box displaying the message ‘Deep Scan completed’ is displayed.

In case the additional data is not recovered through Deep Scan, the dialog box displays the message ‘Deep Scan completed. No additional data found.’

Files found during Deep Scan can be viewed in the preview window and saved at any desired location.

Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone® Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone® is the best DIY software to recover missing or accidentally deleted Contacts, Messages, Calendar, Photos, Videos, Call History etc directly from iPhone or iPad.

iPhone users adore its camera. Capturing priced memories using its compelling features is one of the biggest attraction of the iOS device. However, like any other phone, the digital photos may get lost from iPhone too.

And the situation can be devastating if the lost photos include your precious memories — of a vacation, wedding, your child’s first birthday or a friend’s party, which you wanted to keep with you for a lifetime.

Helping you out in such a situation, here we bring the methods to recoup your memories back into your iPhone.

Why are your photos lost from iPhone?

There could be many possible reasons for the loss of photos from iPhone. Some common reasons are listed below:

Accidental deletion
Factory reset
Camera Roll or Photo Stream crash
Failed iOS update
iPhone jailbreak
Water damaged, stolen iPhone, and others

Methods to recover permanently deleted photos from iPhone

Different situations call for distinct methods to restore lost photos from iPhone.

Since with iCloud and iTunes, Apple ensures a backup for the iPhone photos, if available, get back the lost iPhone photos from there.

Wherein in absence of backup, an iPhone photo recovery software is the best way to get back the deleted or missing photos on your iPhone and iPad. An efficient iPhone recovery software , works regardless of the reason of the photo loss.

Other methods such as photo recovery from ‘Recently Deleted’ folder or turning on iCloud Photos can also work in specific situations.

These methods can be applied on all iPhone models including series of iPhone 15, 14, 13, 12, 11, XS, XS Max, XR, X, 8 Plus, 8, 7 Plus, 7, 6S Plus, 6S, 6 Plus, 6, 5S, 5c, 5, 4S and 4.

1. Recover photos from ‘Recently Deleted’ on iPhone

The ‘Recently Deleted’ folder on iPhone keeps all the deleted photos for 30 days. Beyond this duration, the photos are automatically deleted from iPhone and this time permanently.

You can find the deleted photos from Camera Roll, Photo Stream, WhatsApp, SnapChat or Instagram etc., in this folder.

Check the ‘Recently Deleted’ folder on your iPhone. Find the required photos and move them back to your album.

Steps to restore photos from ‘Recently Deleted’ on iPhone:

Go to the Photos app > Albums > Recently Deleted
Find the missing photo and tap on it to Recover

2. Use iPhone Photo Recovery tool

In case of absence of photos backup, download and install Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone on your Mac or PC. Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone works with all the iPhone models including series of iPhone 6, 7, 8, X, XS, XR, 11, 12, 13, and 14. It supports latest iOS 16.

Situations when you should use Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone:

No backup of photos
Permanently deleted photos from iPhone
Accidentally deleted photos
Unable to restore photos from iCloud
Unable to restore photos from iTunes
Photos lost after iOS update, Factory reset or jailbreak
Photos lost after iPhone black screen of death
Stolen iPhone, water/ liquid damaged iPhone etc.

Note: Apart from photos, Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone can recover your deleted Videos, Contacts, Texts, Calendar, text messages, Notes, and other data.

Try the Free Demo Version of the software to recover your lost and deleted photos in Mac System or in Windows Desktop/Tablet

Step-by-step: Recover deleted photos from iPhone

Connect your iPhone to the computer
Launch Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone
On the first screen select Recover from iPhone
Select Camera Roll and Photo Stream. To recover Instagram, SnapChat or other App’s photos, select Apps Library

Click Next
Preview and choose the photos you want to recover from the list

Click Save

3. Recover from iCloud backup

Do you maintain iCloud backup of your photos? Then bring back the deleted photos on your iPhone via iCloud. iCloud photos recovery is possible in situations of accidentally or permanently deleted photos from iPhone. You can also recover photos lost after your iPhone is set on factory reset, damaged, or stolen.

Steps to restore photos from iCloud on iPhone:

Click to follow Settings > General > Reset> Erase all Contents and Settings

A dialog box pops up, choose Erase Now
Follow the instructions until you get on to the Apps & Data screenTap Restore from iCloud Backup

Choose the recent backup and click Restore to get back the deleted photos on iPhone

How to recover Photos from iCloud without losing existing iPhone data

This method of iCloud photo recovery protects your existing iPhone data. It also allows you to select and recover only the lost photos from iCloud instead of complete backup data.

Follow the below steps to restore only the lost/deleted photos from iCloud:

Download and launch Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone on your computer. Note: You don’t need to connect your iPhone for recovering photos from iCloud backup files.
Select Recover from iCloud Backup on main screen of software.

Select Camera Roll and Photo Stream and click Next.
Enter the Apple ID and password.

List of all available iCloud backup files appears. Select the relevant backup of your iPhone and click Scan.
Click Camera Roll and Photo Stream in the iCloud backup files list on the left window. Preview the existing and deleted photos or search for a specific photo by typing a keyword in the search box. If the desired photo is not in the recovered files list, click Deep Scan.
Click Save. In the dialog box select either computer or iPhone to save the recovered photos. To save the photos on iPhone, make sure the iOS device is connected to the computer.

4. Recover deleted photos from iTunes

For those of you who maintain iTunes backup, it is the easiest way to retrieve the deleted photos of iPhone. iTunes backup also helps to restore photos lost due to deletion or after factory reset.

Steps to restore photos from iTunes backup:

Connect iPhone to your PC/Mac
Launch iTunes
Select your iPhone under the device list
Select the recent backup date
Click Restore Backup

All your lost and deleted photos will be restored on your iPhone.

How to recover Photos from iTunes without losing the existing iPhone data

Use Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone to protect your current data on iPhone. The software allows you to select and recover only the lost photos from iTunes. With this method, you can prevent unnecessary data recovery on your iOS device.

Follow the below steps to recover only the lost/deleted photos via iTunes:

Download and launch Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone software. Note: You can connect your iPhone to computer, if want to save the recovered photos in the iOS device.
Select Recover from iTunes Backup on the main screen of the application.
Select Camera Roll and Photo Stream option. Click Next.

From the list of the iTunes backup files, select the relevant iTunes backup from which you want to restore photos.

If your iTunes backup is encrypted, a dialog box will open prompting you to enter the password. Enter the password and click OK.
From the backup files list in the left pane, click Camera Roll and Photo Stream. Preview the existing and deleted photos or search for a specific photo by typing a keyword in the search box. Click Deep Scan at the bottom left side, if your desired photos are not in the list.

Click Save. A dialog box appears asking to select the location to save photos. You can save the recovered photos either onto your iPhone or computer.

5. Enable iCloud Photos

Sometimes you could see the photos on iPhone but not on your synced iPad, iPod Touch, or Mac. To view these missing iPhone pictures on the synced iOS devices turn on iCloud Photos.

iCloud Photos stores the photos in iCloud. It ensures you can view them on your synced devices. If you can’t find a photo on your synced iPad, iPhone, or Mac etc., enable iCloud Photos under Settings of the iOS device.

Steps to turn on iCloud Photos on iPhone/iPad/ iPod Touch

Click to follow Settings > [your name] > iCloud

Tap Photos
Toggle on iCloud Photos.

To turn on iCloud Photos on Mac

Go to System Preferences > iCloud.

Next to Photos, click Options

Select iCloud Photos

Next, connect to Wi-Fi and wait for some time until your photos appear again on the synced devices.

Tip: When you turn on iCloud Photos, photos upload to iCloud but they are not duplicated in your iCloud backup. So make backup of your photo library. You can download your photos from iCloud.com to your PC/Mac and store them as a separate library or store them on a separate drive.

Comparison — iPhone Photo Recovery Methods

| Stellar Data Recovery for iPhone | Recover from iCloud | Recover from iTunes | Recently Deleted folder | Enable iCloud Photos |
| — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Success Rate | High | Medium | Medium | Low | Medium |
| Photo Recovery without backup | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Effect on iPhone’s existing photos & other data after recovery | Existing data remains in iPhone | Deletes the existing iPhone data | Deletes the existing iPhone data | Existing data remains in iPhone | Existing data remains in iPhone |
| Select Photo and restore | Yes | No | No | Yes | Not applicable |
| Preview photos before recovery | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Difficulty level | Nil | Medium | Medium | Nil | Medium |
| Recovery options | Recovers from iPhone, iPad, iCloud & iTunes | Recovers from iCloud only | Recovers from iTunes only | Recover from iPhone & iPad (within 30 days of photo deletion) | Recover on iPhone synced devices |

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How to Recover Deleted Photos, Videos & Music Files from iPhone 11 Pro | Stellar