Google Photos Skill

Overview

Claude can manage your Google Photos library to browse images, create albums, search photos, and organize your memories. This includes using AI-powered search, creating collages, and managing storage.

Quick Install

curl -sSL https://canifi.com/skills/google-photos/install.sh | bash

Or manually:

cp -r skills/google-photos ~/.canifi/skills/

Setup

Configure via canifi-env:

# First, ensure canifi-env is installed:
# curl -sSL https://canifi.com/install.sh | bash

canifi-env set GOOGLE_EMAIL "your-email@gmail.com"

Privacy & Authentication

Your credentials, your choice. Canifi LifeOS respects your privacy.

Option 1: Manual Browser Login (Recommended)

If you prefer not to share credentials with Claude Code:

Complete the Browser Automation Setup using CDP mode
Login to the service manually in the Playwright-controlled Chrome window
Claude will use your authenticated session without ever seeing your password

Option 2: Environment Variables

If you're comfortable sharing credentials, you can store them locally:

canifi-env set SERVICE_EMAIL "your-email"
canifi-env set SERVICE_PASSWORD "your-password"

Note: Credentials stored in canifi-env are only accessible locally on your machine and are never transmitted.

Capabilities

Browse and view photos and videos
Search photos by content, people, places, or dates
Create and manage albums
Share albums and photos
Edit photos with built-in tools
Create collages, animations, and movies
Organize by people and faces
Archive and delete photos
View storage usage
Download photos and albums
Add photos to favorites
View photo metadata and location

Usage Examples

Example 1: Find Photos

User: "Find photos from my trip to Hawaii"
Claude: Searches for "Hawaii" and/or date range of trip.
        Reports: "Found 156 photos from Hawaii. Showing beach, sunset,
        and hiking categories..."

Example 2: Create Album

User: "Create an album called 'Best of 2024' with my favorite photos"
Claude: Creates album "Best of 2024", adds starred/favorited photos.
        Returns: "Created album with 43 photos: [link]"

Example 3: Share Album

User: "Share the vacation album with my family"
Claude: Opens album, creates share link or adds specific people.
        Confirms: "Album shared. Link: [shareable link]"

Example 4: Search by Content

User: "Find all photos with dogs"
Claude: Uses AI search for "dog", shows results.
        Reports: "Found 28 photos containing dogs across 12 dates"

Authentication Flow

Claude navigates to photos.google.com via Playwright MCP
Authenticates with GOOGLE_EMAIL if needed
Handles 2FA if prompted (notifies user via iMessage)
Maintains session for subsequent Photos operations

Selectors Reference

// Search box
'input[aria-label="Search your photos"]'

// Photo grid
'.p137Zd' // Photo thumbnails

// Individual photo
'[data-latest-bg]'

// Create button
'[aria-label="Create"]'

// Album option
'[aria-label="Album"]'

// Share button
'[aria-label="Share"]'

// Favorite button
'[aria-label="Add to favorites"]'

// Delete button
'[aria-label="Delete"]'

// Download button
'[aria-label="Download"]'

// Edit button
'[aria-label="Edit"]'

// Albums navigation
'[aria-label="Albums"]'

// Upload button
'[aria-label="Upload"]'

Search Operators

dog                    // Content search
beach sunset          // Multiple terms
"vacation 2024"       // Exact phrase
selfie                // Photo type
screenshot            // Photo type
food                  // Content category
wedding               // Event type
Tokyo                 // Location
2024-06               // Date (June 2024)
last week             // Relative date
videos                // Media type

Error Handling

Login Failed: Retry 3 times, notify user via iMessage
Session Expired: Re-authenticate automatically
Photo Not Found: Broaden search, check archive and trash
Album Creation Failed: Retry, verify photo selection
Share Failed: Check sharing settings, verify recipients
Storage Full: Notify user, suggest storage management
Download Failed: Retry, try individual photos vs batch

Self-Improvement Instructions

When you learn a better way to accomplish a task with Google Photos:

Document the improvement in your response
Suggest updating this skill file with the new approach
Include specific search terms that work well
Note any face recognition or AI search improvements

Notes

Free storage ended June 2021; now counts against Google One quota
AI search can find objects, scenes, text in photos
Face grouping requires enabling in settings
Partner sharing allows automatic sharing with one person
Location data from EXIF or estimated from content
Original quality vs storage saver affects file size
Live Photos from iPhone preserved as motion photos
Trash items deleted after 60 days