Where do my files go when I click "save to computer

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@lisaflynnart wrote:

When I click on "save to computer" my file goes to Pictures/Photos Library.photoslibrary/originals/B/file name

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That location on a Mac is a folder that we are not supposed to edit directly as users. It is normally hidden because that folder must be managed automatically by Apple Photos. So why is Photoshop going there? My guess is that at some point, you might have selected a photo in the Apple Photos application and edited it in Photoshop. That made Photoshop open the file from the location where Apple Photos was storing it, which is that normally hidden location.

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@lisaflynnart wrote:

I can't figure out how to find this path beyond the photos library.

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Because the Apple Photos library is where Apple Photos automatically manages all its files, by default normal users like us are kept out of it. You cannot use the normal double-click to enter

Pictures/Photos Library.photoslibrary

because it is a special kind of Mac folder, called a “package.”

It sounds like you found out one of the ways to break into a macOS package (right click, Show Package Contents), and that you want to “clean up” the images in there. Don’t do it. Let Apple Photos manage its private .photoslibrary package. If you see images in there that you don’t want, open Apple Photos and manage/delete the photos from there.

The reason macOS keeps us out of there is because Apple Photos expects that the files it arranged in there are going to be where it left them, which is where its database recorded them. If we go in there and start moving, deleting, or renaming files, the next time Apple Photos opens, it will be confused: Why are the files in the hidden .photoslibrary folders not in the locations recorded in the Photos database? That will cause problems: You might start having trouble and errors using Apple Photos with other photos you stored there, it might complain about a corrupted library, and it might even stop working.

One big reason is that Apple Photos automatically creates and manages multiple versions of every photo you add to it. One will be the original, if you edit it another auto-created version will be the edited derivative, and there can be lower-resolution copies used as previews. You would only be managing some versions and unknowingly not managing the other versions consistently, which would again confuse Apple Photos. Again, do not mess with any files inside Photos Library.photoslibrary if the integrity of the Apple Photos database is important to you.

Instead, here is what you should do when you save files on your computer: Use the standard Mac controls in the Photoshop Save dialog box to choose another location that is not inside

Photos Library.photoslibrary

Like saving from any other Mac application, saving the document almost anywhere else in your Home or Pictures folder (except ~/Library) is OK, any external drives are also OK.

Ultimately this is not really about Photoshop, it is a question about macOS, Apple Photos, and the macOS Save As dialog box that Photoshop uses. I tried this with another image editor, Affinity Photo, and its Save As dialog box also defaulted to the hidden Photos folder path.

You can save the files you edited in Photoshop anywhere in the device you want. The Photoshop does not save anywhere but you save the document as per you're need.

You can navigate through your folder structure and save exactly where you want. Photoshop is not forcing you to save anywhere in particular but must open some folder to start with. Learn how to navigate folder structure on Mac and use that knowledge in Save As dialogue which will allow you to move and navigate through folder structure on your machine.