How HEIC photos get into a PDF
iPhones and iPads save photos as HEIC by default, a format that many computers, upload forms and office programs cannot open. A PDF cannot hold HEIC either, so each photo is decoded first and then stored in the PDF as a high-quality JPG (quality 92, up to 6000 pixels on the long side). Safari opens HEIC by itself. In Chrome, Edge and Firefox a decoder of about 3 MB is loaded once when you add your first HEIC photo, and after that everything runs on your device, the same as in the HEIC to JPG converter.
Portrait photos stay upright: the orientation stored by the camera is applied before the photo is placed on the page. If a photo still comes out sideways, turn it with the rotate button in the list before you create the PDF.
Page size for photos of documents
For photos of paper, receipts and forms, choose A4 or Letter: every photo is centered on a standard page with a small margin, and Auto orientation turns the page for wide shots. For a photo album, Fit to image gives pages in the shape of each picture without empty paper. Full-resolution iPhone photos make large PDFs; turn on "Smaller file" to scale each one to 2000 pixels on the long side, which is still plenty for a printed page, or run the finished file through Compress PDF. To add the photos to an existing document, use Merge PDF afterwards.
How to convert HEIC files to PDF
- 1Drop the files on the box above, choose them from your device, or paste an image from the clipboard.
- 2Put them in order, rotate any that are sideways, and pick the page size, fit and margin.
- 3Name the file and press Create PDF. The PDF downloads right away.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to convert HEIC to JPG first?
No. Drop the HEIC files straight in. They are decoded in your browser and stored in the PDF as JPG. If you also want the photos as separate JPG files, the HEIC to JPG converter does that.
Does this work in Chrome and on Windows?
Yes. Safari opens HEIC by itself; Chrome, Edge and Firefox load a decoder of about 3 MB once, and from then on the photos are decoded on your device, on Windows, Mac, Linux or Android alike.
Why are my photos sideways in the PDF?
The tool applies the orientation the camera stored, so this is rare. If a photo is still turned, press the rotate button under its thumbnail until it is upright; each press turns it by 90 degrees.
Are my photos uploaded?
No. The HEIC files are decoded and the PDF is written by your own browser. Nothing leaves your iPhone, iPad or computer.