Use Mail's Photo Browser to Add an Image to an Email

If you use the Mail application on your Mac to share images via email—and let's face it, who doesn't—you may drag an image from the Finder or from within the Photos or iPhoto app to the email message you're writing. While the drag-and-drop method works fine, especially if the image you want to share is loosely stored in the Finder, there's a better way.

Apple's Mail app includes a built-in Photo Browser that you can use to look through your Aperture, Photos, or iPhoto libraries. You can then select the image you want to share and add it to your message with just a click

Using the Mail Photo Browser is a lot easier than opening Aperture, Photos, or iPhoto, and then dragging an image to the Mail app. It also has the added advantage of not taking up system resources to launch one of the photo applications.

Using Mail's Photo Browser

The process of using the Photo Browser in the Mail application couldn't be easier:

1. Launch Mail if it isn't already running by clicking its icon in the Dock.

2. Open a new message screen and begin typing your message.

3. Click the Photo Browser icon in the top right corner of the new message toolbar. It looks like two stacked photos.

   You can also access the Photo Browser by selecting Window on the Mail menu bar and clicking Photo Browser in the drop-down menu.

4. Click Photos or one of the other available library options in the Photo Browser drop-down menu.

5. Scroll through the thumbnail images located in the chosen library.

6. Double-click on any thumbnail to see a larger version of the image.

7. Click and drag the chosen photo to the body of the Mail message. It is inserted wherever your cursor is positioned, but you can select and drag it to another location. Don't worry if it looks too big at this point.

   You can drag from either the thumbnail view or the enlarged view in the Photo Browser.

   When you drag a photo to your message, a line is added to the email header for Message Size and Image Size.

8. Open the Image Size drop-down menu in the email header and choose Small, Medium, Large, or Actual Size to change the size of the image in the email.

   Don't overlook this step, particularly if you are attaching several images. With photos at Actual Size or Large, your email may become too large for your provider to handle.

Other Ways to Add Photos to an Email

You can click and drag a photo to an email message from almost any location, including the desktop, a Finder window, or an open document in another application.

You can also attach a photo to an email message by clicking the Attach paperclip icon in the message window toolbar. From there, locate the target image on your Mac and click Choose File.

Keep Files Small

When you send files via email, remember that you may have message size limitations with your email provider, and the recipients may have message size limitations with their email providers. As tempting as it may be to send full-size images, it's usually better to send smaller versions. You can toggle between sizes to pick the best size for your email, but the Small and Medium options are most likely the best choice for emails.