dumb question -- can I customize folder names

[leland]

Hi,

This is a very dumb question, I'm just getting started and playing with the software.

I'm trying to use a directory structure on export that is something like this:

Photos\YYYY\MM\YYYY-MM-DD\YYYY-MM-DD-HH-MM-SS_SEQUENCE#.ext

1. Can I use the syntax and customize folder and file names like this on import? Or do I need to import and then rename?
2. When files are on the camera (or in an import directory), what is the best way to separate them into different jobs if I want to add a short descriptive name for the job type and/or camera type?

[Kirk Baker]

I'm trying to use a directory structure on export that is something like this:

Photos\YYYY\MM\YYYY-MM-DD\YYYY-MM-DD-HH-MM-SS_SEQUENCE#.ext

1. Can I use the syntax and customize folder and file names like this on import? Or do I need to import and then rename?

You can get Ingest to create folder structures like you have described.  You'll have to indicate your wishes in two different places in the Ingest dialog.  First for the folder naming, you need to change the 'Copy Photos:' popup to read 'into folder with name' and then in the 'Folder Name:' field enter:

{year4}\month0}\{year4}-{month0}-{day0}

Then set the checkbox titled 'Rename Ingested photos as:' to on and enter:

{year4}-{month0}-{day0}-{hour24}-{minute}-{second}_{seqn}

Then you need to setup the format of your sequence number.  Click on the 'Set {seqn} var...' button and enter your preferred format.  Enter leading zeros if you want to have numbers that sort well in Windows Explorer.  For instance if you have fewer than 1000 photos on your card, enter:

001

as your sequence number.  Then click on the OK button to set your sequence.

Now click on the Ingest button and you should get exactly what you were describing.

2. When files are on the camera (or in an import directory), what is the best way to separate them into different jobs if I want to add a short descriptive name for the job type and/or camera type?

I don't know.  What would be a distinguishing characteristic of the photos that would help you tell them apart?

-Kirk

[ostonica]

2. When files are on the camera (or in an import directory), what is the best way to separate them into different jobs if I want to add a short descriptive name for the job type and/or camera type?

I don't know.  What would be a distinguishing characteristic of the photos that would help you tell them apart?
-Kirk

Before I use ingest to move the files from my cards to a dated folder I use PM to write a location into the files on the card. Then I just add -{location} to the folder name as in
{year4}\{month0}\{year4}-{month0}-{day0}-{location}. If I shoot a different locations on the same day, I use a different card for each location.

Jim Swift

EDIT: fixed missing brace and misspelled 'locaion'.  I just didn't want anyone to be confused when things didn't work right. -- Kirk

PS Many thanks for picking that up, Kirk. ... Jim

[leland]

Thanks for the tips. Very useful and appreciated.

I'm relieved to see the slash works the way I think it should. I've learned by experience not to mess around in programs without a 'preview' button when I can do a lot of damage. At least not without checking somewhere else first

My photos have no identifying characteristic, it's just that sometimes on a card I will have two or three different shooting sessions. What I should probably use is something like a job ID, and just make that a shorthand location/event identifier.

[vAfotoriporter]

My photos have no identifying characteristic, it's just that sometimes on a card I will have two or three different shooting sessions. What I should probably use is something like a job ID, and just make that a shorthand location/event identifier.

On some cameras you can control folders manually allowing you to shoot different assignments to different folders. This way you can ingest them one by one separately or use the {foldernum} variable as their identifiers. But you can also sort the files on the card into different folders before ingest (either with PM or some other file manager+image viewer).

If you mix only two category of images and one of them is not so many pix but held in the same shooting folder, you may tag them in camera and have ingest only tagged first and ingest the rest with different settings.

PM offers a great deal of solutions even to problems you wouldn't expect.