This article explains how to copy your entire photo library file to Google Drive.  This keeps your full library intact as a backup.  Uploading may take several hours.  When you receive your new laptop you’ll need to download it and open it in the Photos app. 

 

Click the Finder icon in your dock

In the left sidebar, click Pictures. The Pictures folder may not appear in your left sidebar by default. If it is not there, please follow the next steps to add it.

To add the Pictures folder to your Sidebar, select Finder from the top menu bar (next to the Apple logo) and click Settings.

In Settings select Sidebar then select the Pictures checkbox.

Now that the Pictures is in your Sidebar, you can continue following the backup steps below.

In your Pictures folder, look for a file called Photos Library.photoslibrary

 

Next we will compress your Photos Library file and copy the compressed file to your Google Drive.

Right click on your Photos Library file and choose “Compress."

 

 

 

 

Depending on the file size, it may take some time to compress. When complete, you will have another file called "Photos Library.photoslibrary.zip." This file must be copied to your Google Drive.

 

Open another Finder window by pressing Command N on the keyboard or by going to the Finder Menu --> File --> New Finder Window

 

In the sidebar on your new Finder Window browse to Google Drive and open My Drive

 

Drag Photos Library.photoslibrary.zip into your My Drive folder

 

Depending on the file size it may take some time to copy to Google Drive. Please wait until the file has been fully copied before you turn off or close your computer. You can continue with other tasks on your computer while the file copies.