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Drew22472634kqap
Participant
July 1, 2024
Answered

HEIC in Photoshop Elements 2024

  • July 1, 2024
  • 3 replies
  • 4617 views

Hi, I just purchased Photoshop Elements 2024 and I can't open HEIC files.  I have installed the HEIC and HEVC extensions and then cleared the media cache, following the instructions on this page,  which appears in PE's error message and in various threads in this community.

 

I encountered this problem first in Windows 11, then tried in Windows 10 and had the same experience.

 

Is there something I'm missing?  Any new information about this issue?

    Correct answer Greg_S.

    Try contacting Elements support. You can start a chat session by going to the Contact Adobe Support page  and clicking on the chat button in the lower right corner of the page. Make sure you are signed into your Adobe account and try typing Agent when the chat window opens.

    3 replies

    Greg_S.
    Community Expert
    Greg_S.Community Expert
    Community Expert
    July 2, 2024

    @Drew22472634kqap, thanks for getting back to us with what you were told by Support. Unfortunately, they gave you some bad information.  I believe Elements for Mac has always supported .heic files - at least, since that OS has supported the format natively.  Elements for Windows has supported .heic files since at least Elements 2023, although as I said earlier, based on my experience, there has always been some issues with these files.

     

    As far as I can tell, Windows 11 does not require (or support) the Microsoft extensions for HEIC or HEVC files, as supposedly the OS no longer requires them to view these files.  Strangely, my Win 10 to Win 11 upgraded computer still has the extensions installed but I cannot delete them or do a fresh install of the extensions.

     

    But as Support suggested, I also recommend using the iPhone setting to transfer photos from your phone to the computer using the Automatic (not Keep Originals) setting on your phone.  This will allow you to transfer the files as jpegs.  (But you have to use another application to make the transfer - even the Windows Photos app.   The Organizer's Photo Downloader will keep the files as .heic. despite the setting.)  I realize this does not help you with the photos already downloaded to the computer.  But you can use a free converter like the iMazing Converter to batch convert them.

      G
      Gemknight
      Participating Frequently
      July 17, 2024

      That's sad. Been about 2 years and releases where the iPhone formats have trouble on the windows install.

      Greg_S.
      Community Expert
      Greg_S.Community ExpertCorrect answer
      Community Expert
      July 1, 2024

      Try contacting Elements support. You can start a chat session by going to the Contact Adobe Support page  and clicking on the chat button in the lower right corner of the page. Make sure you are signed into your Adobe account and try typing Agent when the chat window opens.

      D
      Drew22472634kqapAuthor
      Participant
      July 1, 2024

      Thanks!

      Greg_S.
      Community Expert
      Greg_S.Community Expert
      Community Expert
      July 1, 2024

      Although Elements 2024 has some problems with the orientation of .heic files, there should be no issue importing them into the Organizer or editing them in the Editor in either Windows 10 or 11.  Can you be more specific about which program you are using and what workflow you are following.  How are you importing the files to the computer?  Please provide a copy of any error message you are getting.

      D
      Drew22472634kqapAuthor
      Participant
      July 1, 2024

      Hey Greg, thank you for replying!  

       

      I'm using Organizer 2024 and Photoshop Elements 2024.  I'm trying to bring several years worth of phone photos (many in .heic, stored in folders on a hard drive) into Organizer/PE as a centralized repository for my family's photos.  For the most part, the images were downloaded from Google Photos using Takeout.

       

      The problem occurs in a couple ways.  In Photoshop Elements 2024, if I use File>Open to try and load a .heic, I see this error:

       

      In Organizer 2024, if I try to import all the files in a certain folder that has .heic files in it, the .heic files fail and I see this type of error message:

       

       

      Thanks so much for your help!

      A
      akearneysf
      Participant
      May 20, 2025

      I'm having the exact same issues with Elements 2025. I had upgraded to 2025 version hoping that import of heic files would be seemless given reports the program had supported the format since 2023. I followed suggestions provided by adobe app to download and install heif file extension and bought and installed hevc app from MS store. Video imports ok, but heic files would not import into PSE 2025. I can view the heic files in MS Photos but not PSE 2025. Incredibly disappointing that I have to convert all the heic images to jpgs! PLEASE FIX ADOBE!

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