RollmarkHow to make a year in review from your iPhone photos
Photos may build a year memory for you, but the version you make by hand is better. Pick one photo from each month, put them in an album called with the year, and share the twelve as a grid. It takes about an hour spread over a year, or an evening in December.
Coming soon to iPhone
What is the quickest way to get a year in review?
Ask Photos. It generates memories from your library, and some versions create a yearly one near the end of the year. Look in the Memories area or search the word year in Photos. If one appears, you can play it, edit the music and the title, and share it. The result tends to reflect volume, so the months in which you took the most photos get the most time on screen.
How do I build my own, one photo per month?
Doing the choice right after a month ends is easy. Doing twelve choices in December takes longer and feels like homework.
- Open Photos and create an album named with the year, for example 2026 Best of.
- Search for the first month with Search, such as January 2026.
- Scroll the month once and tap the heart on the photo that sums it up.
- Add that photo to the album with Add to Album.
- Repeat for each month. Twelve photos make the year.
How do I choose the photo for a month?
Ask which one you would keep if it were the only one left. It does not need to be the sharpest or the prettiest. The best choice for a month is the one that brings the month back: a person, a place, a small moment. If two compete, take the one with a story. If none stands out, choose by light, and move on.
What can I do with twelve photos?
| Use | How | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Share a grid | Make a 3 by 4 collage in an editor or an app | A social post or a family chat |
| Print a poster | Send the album to a print service | A wall near the desk |
| Make a slideshow | Select the album in Photos and create a slideshow | Holiday gatherings |
| Send as a letter | Share the grid with a note | Relatives who do not follow social media |
How does Rollmark do it?
Rollmark, an iPhone app in development, builds the year as you sort. An up swipe marks the photo that holds the month, and the Marks tab shows a 3 by 4 grid for the year, with an empty dashed slot for each month you have not marked. It can make a Year card of 1080 by 1920 pixels for a Story or 1080 by 1080 for a Post, with a line such as "N of 12 months marked". The footer with the logo and QR code stays on every card. See the share cards page and the monthly mark page.
Do I have to show people?
No. A private album is a fine result. If you share, choose what shows. Rollmark's Share screen has a switch to show photos on the card or replace them with soft color tiles, and Settings holds the default. A year in review for your own eyes is still worth making, because it forces the one useful question: what mattered this year?
What if a month has no good photo?
Leave it empty or use a photo that is honest about the month. A quiet month with a plate of food or a view from a window still belongs. Do not invent a highlight. Twelve photos with a few plain ones read as a real year, while a perfect set reads as a feed.
How do I start for a year already past?
If the year has 8,000 photos, this costs about an hour, because you only choose; you do not delete anything. A separate cleanup can follow.
- Choose the year and open January using Search.
- Go through the month once, and pick one photo.
- Add it to the album before moving on.
- Do three months in a sitting.
- Finish the year in four sittings.
Can this connect with deleting?
Yes, and it makes the cleanup easier. Once the best photo of a month is chosen, the rest of that month feels less precious, and thinning it out is calmer. The guide to cleaning up your camera roll shows a routine that ends each session with a choice.
How do I add a caption to each month?
Open the photo in Photos, swipe up and tap Add a Caption. A line of five words per photo is enough: the place, the person, the weather. Captions are searchable, so a year of twelve captioned photos is also an index to the year. Write them right away, because the memory is fresh and the line takes ten seconds.
What if I want a video instead of a grid?
Create a slideshow or a memory movie from the album. Open the album, tap the three-dot menu and look for the Play Movie or Slideshow option, which varies by iOS version. Keep it short: twelve photos at three seconds each is 36 seconds, which people actually watch. Choose a song you have the rights to use if you plan to post it.
Is a year in review worth the time?
It is one of the few photo chores that gives something back. Sorting is work, and the result is a smaller library. Choosing twelve photos is a short exercise with a visible outcome: a page you can look at and show. For many people, that is what makes a regular routine stick.
How long should the whole thing take?
Allow about five minutes per month if you pick the photo while you scroll. A full year done at once is an hour or a bit more. If that sounds like too much, split it across a week. The slow part is looking, and looking is the point.
Frequently asked questions
Does iPhone make a year in review automatically?
Photos can create memories automatically, and some versions build a yearly one. If you do not see one, make an album by hand.
How many photos should a year in review have?
Twelve is a clean number: one per month. A larger set can work for a slideshow.
Can I share a year grid from Rollmark?
Yes. The Year card is one of four share cards, available as a Story or a Post. Rollmark is in development and not yet on the App Store.
What if I only started this year in July?
Mark the months you have. The grid shows empty slots for the rest.