Windows 10: Microsoft Photos - disable some photos appearing at the top of the program's opening page

In Photos, some pictures from my PC are automatically displayed in a row at the top of the opening page of the program. I would like to disable this unwanted feature permanently. I do not know what to call it, and I can never figure out how it selects the pictures it chooses to display, or why Microsoft would create this feature in the first place. How can I disable this feature by any means possible?

:)

 

Microsoft Photos - Preventing Only Collections from Appearing at Top at Open

I do not want Collections to appear across the top whenever I open Photos. There is a Hide button, but I do not want to have to use it every time. I want to choose what photos I see at open, and not have the program make a mysterious choice on which photos
have to look at when I want to open the program Photos.

Another post does describe how to prevent the entire Pictures folder structure from appearing in Photos at open, but that makes Photos harder to use. I just want Collections at the top to permanently go away at open, or alternatively to be able to choose
exactly what pictures go into Collections on a permanent basis--which I would likely use to put in one blank photo and solve the problem that way.

More generally, Collections is obviously not a folder in File Explorer, and it is obviously some kind of subset of the Pictures folder. Hows does Photos select that subset, and is there really no way to direct the program regarding which photos or category
or source to use to put into Photos Collections? If there is not, I find this feature very strange really, "pointlessly coercive" would be a good description. I already used MS Feedback.

 

Photos are opening with Paint instead of Photos app

Hello,

It's likely that your default application for opening photos is Paint. To change your default program in Windows 10 from
Paint to the Photo app, we suggest that you perform the following steps:

• On the Start menu, select Settings.
  
• Go to System, then go to Default apps.
  
• Select Photos or any app that you like to be the default under
  Photo viewer.

Update us if the steps above helped you in resolving your concern.

 

Microsoft photo

There's no need to disable Photos. The only thing that's 'in' the Photos app is an index that lists your images and points to where they are stored. Just because Photos has a list of your images it doesn't mean your files are linked in any way to the Photos app. You are free to do with them what you will.

Once you have something else set as the default for opening your photos you can safely ignore the Photos app, it shouldn't reappear and bother you again.