How to Fix Microsoft Photos App Opens With a Black Screen

Microsoft Photos is an image viewer and image organizer developed by Microsoft that is used to gather photos from your PC, phone, cloud storage accounts, and other devices. However, sometimes Microsoft Photos shows a black screen after you open it. Here is a true example:

Sometimes when opening a photo in the Photos app, the app opens but just has a black screen. Occasionally, if I wait long enough, it'll say "File System Error" and fail to open the photo. I have tried everything to fix it. This happens on my desktop PC, as well as my laptop. It makes me wonder if it's a problem with the app or with my Windows account. Does anyone have any ideas on fixing this issue permanently?

answers.microsoft.com

Now let’s see what should you do when pictures turn black after opening.

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Fix 1. Troubleshoot Windows Store Apps

Windows provides a built-in feature called Troubleshoot that uses diagnostic data to detect and fix common problems automatically. You can run a Windows Store Apps troubleshoot when the Microsoft Photos app opens with a black screen.

Step 1. Press Windows + I key combinations to open Windows Settings. Then select Apps > Update & Security.

Step 2. Move on to the Troubleshoot section and scroll down to click Windows Store Apps, then click Run the troubleshooter.

Step 3. Wait for the process to complete and check whether the issue has gone.

Fix 2. Repair or Reset Microsoft Photos

When there are some problems with Microsoft Photos itself, such as the installation of it is corrupted. In such case, you can fix Windows 10 Photos black screen by repairing or resetting Microsoft Photos.

Step 1. Press Windows + I to open Settings and select Apps.

Step 2. Find Microsoft Photos from the applications list and click it to hit Advanced options.

Step 3. In the new window, click Repair to find and fix problems with it. If the repair does now work, you can click Reset to reset Photos.

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After that, reopen your pictures with Photos and check whether the black screen issue has been solved.

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Fix 3. Update the Graphics Driver

When your graphics driver is outdated, Photos can also open with a black screen. So, you can try to fix the black screen by updating the graphics driver.

Step 1. Right-click the Windows logo key to select Device Manager.

Step 2. Expand Display adapters and right-click the graphic driver to select Update driver.

Step 3. Follow the instructions on your screen to complete the process.

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Fix 4. Change a Photo Viewer

The last way to fix the “Microsoft Photos app opens with a black screen” issue is to change a photo viewer. You can read this post to find your favorite one: 16 Best Photo/Image Viewers For Windows 10.

Bottom Line

Now I believe you already know what should you do when your Microsoft Photos app opens with a black screen. If you have found any other good solutions to this issue, welcome to tell us by leaving your comments below.