Sometimes, the easiest way to transfer photos to and from your iPad is to use cloud storage. That way you don’t need to connect your tablet via USB – all the syncing happens invisibly in the background over wi-fi. You can use any cloud storage to sync photos, but iCloud is probably the easiest, as it’s built into iOS. Apple gives every iCloud account holder 5GB of storage free.
If you have a large number of photo files to deal with, you may wish to purchase additional iCloud storage space from Apple. There are various payment plans available depending on how much storage you need.
Remember, you don't have to use iCloud - if you prefer, you can transfer photos from your iPad or iPhone via the USB cable connected to your computer.
How to transfer photos to an iPad via iCloud
On a Windows PC
First, on your iPad, tap Settings > iCloud > Photos and switch iCloud Photo Library on.
Next, on your PC, download and install iCloud for Windows if you don’t have it - head to Apple's support page to download this. Restart your PC, then sign in with your iCloud account. The iCloud control panel should open (if it doesn’t, click the iCloud icon in the Notification area).
Click Options next to Photos, then make sure iCloud Photo Library is ticked. Ensure there are also ticks next to Download new photos and videos to my PC and Upload new photos and videos from my PC, then click Done.
Click Apply, then click the iCloud icon in the Notification area and click Download Photos. Select the time period you want to download (or select All for all photos), then click Download.
New photos on your iPad will now automatically sync when it’s connected to wi-fi and will appear on your PC in the iCloud Photos folder in File Explorer. And any photos you place in the Uploads folder in iCloud Photos will be transferred to your iPad.
Using iCloud for photos with a Mac
The above process is much simpler on a Mac, as Apple expects users to choose iCloud as a way of keeping photos in sync. On your iPad, tap Settings > iCloud > Photos and switch iCloud Photo Library on.
On your Mac, open a new Finder window, then on the left-hand list click iCloud Drive. If you've never set this up before, you may need to follow a few steps to get started.
You should see a Photos folder within the iCloud Drive folder on your Mac - click this, and you'll see the latest photos from your iPad or iPhone, synced and up to date.