PhotoStream2Folder

PhotoStream2Folder can detect when new photos get available in the PhotoStream and send copies of them to the selected folder.

The application is quite unobtrusive, as it works hidden in the Menu Bar. Moreover, you can have access to settings via its menu. Unluckily, it does not come with any help documentation so you will have to figure out everything by yourself.

One of the things you will need to configure is the destination folder. Likewise, you may pick one of the format fields available or create a custom one. Additionally, you should select your photo library folder. Finally, you can decide how you want the photos to be tagged. For instance, you can use tags to specify the geographical location or include specific keywords.

It is a good thing that the application can integrate with Lightroom, in case it is installed on your system. In this regard, it is possible to specify where Lightroom stores pictures as well as decide if you want to convert PNG images to JPG format.

I appreciate that PhotoStream2Folder can do all that automatically so you do not even need to bother about doing the scan yourself. However, what I do not like is that it works quite like a “black box” as you do not get much feedback about what the tool is doing.

All in all, PhotoStream2Folder is an excellent way to capture photographs being sent via PhotoStream and create local copies of them, which you can process with the desired application. Fortunately, the product is free to use. Still, donations are encouraged.