DATE & TIME STAMP: Working in security, I sometimes need to have a date/time imprint on my pictures with my Nikon D780. I cannot find where on a menu to do this. Any suggestions.

NikonKid Loc: Vermilion on Lake Erie

Working in security, I sometimes need to have a date/time imprint on my pictures with my Nikon D780.
I cannot find where on a menu to do this. Any suggestions.

rmorrison1116 Loc: Near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

Not sure if this helps but, did you look in the manual, hard copy or online?

jscorbin Loc: Woodinville, WA

The Lightroom Classic tool for adding watermarks is fairly limited, and does not include the ability to add metadata (such as date/time) to the watermark. However, the 3rd-party Lightroom add-in Mogrify2 does have that capability, where you can add a customized watermark during export to a jpeg. Mogrify2 was last updated in January 2019, so it may work with the current Lightroom; I haven't tried it. It is donation-ware to access the full capabilities. See https://www.photographers-toolbox.com/products/lrmogrify2.php

Victoria Brampton, The Lightroom Queen, has a brief article about it, and a comment in that article has an example of adding the date in the watermark. https://www.lightroomqueen.com/watermarking-with-lightroom-and-lr2mogrify/

Hip Coyote

Batch Photo Pro does it...and I use it on occasion...it is what you are after. Easy peezy.

BTW, mogrify caused a serious fault in my computer causing me massive problems...it works, but not a fan.

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

Modern professional cameras don't do time/date-stamps. As digital files, that can be completely manipulated via software editing.

cedymock Loc: Irmo, South Carolina

NikonKid wrote:

Working in security, I sometimes need to have a date/time imprint on my pictures with my Nikon D780.
I cannot find where on a menu to do this. Any suggestions.

Easy way place your mobile phone in photo you will taking with time and date.

howardberliner

NikonKid wrote:

Working in security, I sometimes need to have a date/time imprint on my pictures with my Nikon D780.
I cannot find where on a menu to do this. Any suggestions.

Mogrify will work with the latest Lightroom. I use the date/time imprint daily.

BebuLamar

As Paul said if the date and time stamp is to prove the date and time the picture was taken then there is no use as someone can edit and modify it. If you need it to know when you took the picture then it's in the exif data.

BobHartung Loc: Bettendorf, IA

CHG_CANON wrote:

Modern professional cameras don't do time/date-stamps. As digital files, that can be completely manipulated via software editing.

But it is in the EXIF data.

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

BobHartung wrote:

But it is in the EXIF data.

You can manipulate that too. EXIF is just text in the 'header' region of the file over the image data payload. I edit EXIF most every day when working with scanned film JPEGs to create images that have the rich EXIF as if from a digital camera, adding shooting dates, film ISO, camera and lens data, etc.

BobHartung Loc: Bettendorf, IA

CHG_CANON wrote:

You can manipulate that too. EXIF is just text in the 'header' region of the file over the image data payload. I edit EXIF most every day when working with scanned film JPEGs to create images that have the rich EXIF as if from a digital camera, adding shooting dates, film ISO, camera and lens data, etc.

I know that, but the OP has access to the date & time if he so chooses to add it to the image area. As long as it is only in his possession he has the knowledge that it has not been manipulated.

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

BobHartung wrote:

I know that, but the OP has access to the date & time if he so chooses to add it to the image area. As long as it is only in his possession he has the knowledge that it has not been manipulated.

And multiple software has been suggested on how, if desired, to add a date-stamp into the image payload, but that is a created / derived image, not the original. Shooting in JPEG is required, maintaining the original / unaltered files along with the edited versions, even if 'editing' is to rename the file to a datestamp-subject-counter and to pump-in the timestamp.

I'd defer to experienced professionals in forensic photography for the actual best practices, likely a new card is needed for each session, stored as controlled evidence like everything else from the case.

Architect1776 Loc: In my mind

NikonKid wrote:

Working in security, I sometimes need to have a date/time imprint on my pictures with my Nikon D780.
I cannot find where on a menu to do this. Any suggestions.

Canon used to have a data verification kit for some cameras.
Not sure if anything like this exists today as a stand alone.
It was for law enforcement to ensure there was NO manipulating the image or EXIF was ever done without detecting.
As far as a visual date and time stamp directly on the photo I have not seen that touted in quite some time.

SuperflyTNT Loc: Manassas VA

CHG_CANON wrote:

You can manipulate that too. EXIF is just text in the 'header' region of the file over the image data payload. I edit EXIF most every day when working with scanned film JPEGs to create images that have the rich EXIF as if from a digital camera, adding shooting dates, film ISO, camera and lens data, etc.

A date/time stamp has always been meaningless. Not only can EXIF data be easily manipulated but there’s also no control over the date and time set on the camera. Anyone could easily change the settings on the camera to make it look like the photo was taken at a particular time.

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

SuperflyTNT wrote:

A date/time stamp has always been meaningless. Not only can EXIF data be easily manipulated but there’s also no control over the date and time set on the camera. Anyone could easily change the settings on the camera to make it look like the photo was taken at a particular time.

That's why you need a picture of the hostage newspaper headline ...