Batch editing of EXIF data - Need Help Please
Jul 21, 2016 07:54:31 #
lamiaceae wrote:
I don't know how to batch edit EXIF, but if Lightroom can't do it, it can't be done in batch.
It might work on JPG with sync but not raw. Remember, LR is non destructive and doesn't let you change a raw file.
Jul 21, 2016 08:44:06 #
pithydoug wrote:
It might work on JPG with sync but not raw. Remember, LR is non destructive and doesn't let you change a raw file.
Yes and no.... :)
I believe you will find that exif changes are not part of the non-destructive part of Lightroom....
Lightroom will not change a raw file because it CANNOT write to the raw file, raw is a proprietary format and as such is not changeable by Lightroom... if the file is a non proprietary, like DNG or TIFF then Lightroom will change the EXIF, even though it will not change the raw picture data.... works the same for JPG, image data is never touched by Lightroom, only parameters are applied to create a different view, the original raw, jpg, tiff still exists in the file.
When editing a NEF it is true that exif changes are not written to the file by Lightroom, but it has nothing to do with non-destructive editing and everything to do with nef is a proprietary raw file that Adobe products cannot write to, which is why a xmp side car file is created.
Jul 21, 2016 14:00:50 #
Dngallagher wrote:
When editing a NEF it is true that exif changes are not written to the file by Lightroom, but it has nothing to do with non-destructive editing and everything to do with nef is a proprietary raw file that Adobe products cannot write to, which is why a xmp side car file is created.
It is not related to the proprietary nature of the RAW file formats.
Proprietary file formats can still be well known, the only difference is that the specific definition of the format comes only from the owner, with no input from industry or users. Others can learn what the definition is, both in order to read the file and also to write to the file.
The reason for "nondestructive editing", where edits are maintained as xmp commands either added to the original file or written to a side car file, is because the demosiacing process by which the raw sensor data from a Bayer Color Filter encoded data set is converted to an RGB image data set is not reversible. It is impossible to generate "raw sensor data" from an RGB image file, whether there are edits after conversion or not. All that can be done is to save the command parameters used to demosaic the original data and then save the commands used for editing.
The Exif data itself is written in a specific format defined by the "Exchangeable image file format" (which is properly "Exif" and not "EXIF") according to the specifications released by the Japan Electronic Industries Development Association (JEIDA). Exif is defined for TIFF and JPEG image files, and it happens that almost all RAW files are some variation of a TIFF format.
It is relatively easy to modify the Exif data and then rewrite a RAW file. That is not related to modifying the sensor data, which cannot be done in any useful way (i.e., relating new raw sensor data to edits made to an RGB image produce from the original raw sensor data).
Jul 21, 2016 14:30:15 #
Exiftool can be used to modify dates in Nikon raw files. It can be used in a batch mode as well. For consistency, you should change all dates in the Exif data. I highly recommend you make copies of your files and experiment with them; you can make a tangled mess of things with Exiftool and you don't want to have to sort it out on originals.
And the dirty little secret is that you can change Exif data for whatever reason you want. But you can also change system creation/modification dates on any file. You have nefarious purposes; no problem.
And the dirty little secret is that you can change Exif data for whatever reason you want. But you can also change system creation/modification dates on any file. You have nefarious purposes; no problem.
Jul 21, 2016 15:09:18 #
jerryc41 wrote:
I've used EXIF Date Changer for making corrections.
https://www.relliksoftware.com/exifdatechanger/download
https://www.relliksoftware.com/exifdatechanger/download
This one seems to be the winner. I took a look at Exiftool but the command line syntax seemed a little too daunting for me (and I have a Masters in Computer Science!) I downloaded the EXIF Date Changer and it does everything I need and has a reasonable and easy to use interface. I did purchase the "Pro" version of the software as the free version only works on Jpegs. The web sight said the "Pro" version was $19.99, but on checkout there was a 30% discount, so I only had to pay $13.97 for the full featured software. I have all ready used it to change the dates on a few hundred files in 3 separate batches, both Nikon NEF (raw) and JPEG. Bottom line: problem solved. Moving on to importing files to Lightroom as I am slowly learning that software. Thanks to all who responded with suggestions and assistance. Once again UHH came to the rescue.
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