Opening files in a folder on a MacBook (Big Sur)

Is there a way to open a folder full of photo files and then view them one at a time by using the arrow key to navigate through the folder?

I'm a former PC user and I'm frustrated when I open a folder full of photo files on my Mac and have to double-click each to open it, then close it, then double-click the next one, etc. IIRC, with my Windows machine, I was able to open the top file, then use the down arrow key to move to the next one, opening it and automatically closing the previous one.

Thanks for any help! I'm getting to that age where fighting with computers is a frequent occurrence.

Sure there is! Open the folder where the pictures are. Highlight the ones that you want to view. Put the cursor on any of the highlighted files and do a double click. All of the highlighted files will be opened (in Preview), and you can use the up and down arrows to move between them.
Andy

Hmm... still not very convenient having to highlight all the files in a folder, and then have 170 files open at once, in the example i just tried.


So far the best alternative I've found is to open the folder, enlarge it to "full screen' and then change the folder view option from "columns" (which I prefer) to "gallery" and then arrow-key through them. That works OK.

Yes... You need "Raw Right Away"... It's in the app store... it runs continuously in the background and doesn't take any resources...I've been using it for years... it doesn't OPEN a file, it's just a viewer... but it's fast and unobtrusive... it also shows you the important camera settings/speed/exposure with the image...

Place cursor on the file, and just tap the space bar...if you want to view multiple files, place cursor on first file, tap space bar, and then just scroll down by tapping the down arrow key... views RAW files too...