EXIF Editing

[mklass]

PM has always been great at updating metadata, but there are some limitations. In particular, if I shoot with a non CPU lens, there is no lens info in the EXIF. I use various Lensbabys and other non-CPU lenses. Trying to keep track of which I shot with is something I like to do.  PM does not allow editing this part of the EXIF. My workaround has been to put the lens into into the SOURCE field of the metadata. I can do this automatically for chipped lenses by using the lt variable, or enter it manually. PM6 is much better than earlier PM versions at getting the automatic data, when it is available.

For quite a while, I also used EXIF Changer by Marc Rochkind to change the actual EXIF lens data. It was a GUI front-end for Phil Harvey's ExifTool, and it worked really well. However, the developer stopped supporting the app a few years ago, and with the latest version of iOS, it has stopped working altogether.

I've tried a few other Mac GUIs that allow changing the EXIF lens data, but it seem that they do not write the EXIF in a way that PM can read it (or at least that seems to be the case).

Does anyone know of a GUI app for Mac that will run in Catilina and write changes in a format that PM reads correctly?

I know I could use ExitTool on the command line, but I am not good at that sort of thing, and am afraid I would mess-up with files.

[Dub]

Exif Editor on the APP Store...

 

[mklass]

Thanks for the recommendation.

I did look at EXIF Editor in the AppStore, but the reviews are not particularly good and going to the author's website leads me to think he is no longer updating the app. All the information is old.

[Dub]

I use it for some time to complete the EXIF of my TIF. Mainly the photo lens...
No particular problem...
See if a trial is possible?

 

[mklass]

No trial, but I guess I can buy it, then, if it doesn't work, I can ask the AppStore for a refund.

[mklass]

Exif Editor did not work.

No matter which field I put the lens information into, and there are several options, PM6 or PM6Plus reports Lens as :Manual Lens No CPU.

These are the fields I tried and what I entered in Exif Editor:

EXIF DATA
LENS
Lens Make: Lensbaby
Lens: Lensbaby Trio 28mm f/3.5
Lens Model: Trio 28mm f/3.5

XMP
GENERAL
Lens: Lensbaby Trio 28mm f/3.5
Exif EX
Lens: (left blank as this field only wants a number)
Focal Length: 28

I have no idea why PM does not pick up these changes. I used to be able to make them appear in PM using EXIF Changer, before it stopped working with Catilina.

Any suggestions?



 

[Dub]

Hello mklass,

Indeed, PM6, is not changed !!!
With a Nikon NEF, I find the lens modification in Preview and Photoshop, but not in CameraRaw ... and PM6 !!!
I don't know where PM6 finds the {lenstype} field?
With a TIF it works properly...

Extracted from the raw data from Photoshop, I changed a 70-200 Nikon VR to Sigma 150-600:
     <aux:LensInfo>700/10 2000/10 28/10 28/10</aux:LensInfo>
     <aux:Lens>Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports</aux:Lens>

If Kirk goes through this... 

PS: The photo lens is found in two different fields... on the face of it...

[Dub]

Tested with a RAW Canon CR2, it works for PM6 variable {lenstype}.
I changed the Canon 300mm by the Sigma 150-600.
(See screenshot)
A problem with {lenstype} on Nikon NEF ?

[Dub]

I wonder if EXIF Editor doesn't mix the variables LensType and LensModel
LensModel not supported by PM6?

 

[mklass]

The variable {lens} returns a number, which is the focal length at which the photo was taken.
{lens35} convers {lens} to the 35mm equivalent for crop sensor cameras.
{lt} or {lenstype} returns a text string describing the lens.
There is also a variable {lenstypenum}. I'm not sure what the does, but when I tried it it always equals 0 for any lens.

I am not sure how PM maps the various EXIF/XMP fields to it own variables.

[Dub]

I am not sure how PM maps the various EXIF/XMP fields to it own variables.

Yes, it would be interesting to know...
For example, I have a Canon CR2 photo, or I see well on all the software "Canon EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 USM" and PM6 insists on showing me "EF75-300mm f/4-5.6 USM" !!!

 

[Mick O (Camera Bits)]

I, too, am interested in this.   I have gotten CLOSE to be able to create a droplet in Mac Automator that will simply execute an exiftool command on the passed list of files.... but I am coming up short in my Automator skills. 

The end goal would be to have a handful of droplets (one per lens) that I could then set up as external editors in Photo Mechanic, so I could select a group of files in PM, right click and choose "Edit selected files in..." and choose a droplet that would then run an exiftool command on those files (setting the lens related EXIF fields).   It works great in my head :-)   maybe someone with better Automator skills could chime in?   Once I got one droplet, I know exiftool well enough I could just edit the automator item to create new ones.

[Mick O (Camera Bits)]

I am not sure how PM maps the various EXIF/XMP fields to it own variables.

Yes, it would be interesting to know...
For example, I have a Canon CR2 photo, or I see well on all the software "Canon EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 USM" and PM6 insists on showing me "EF75-300mm f/4-5.6 USM" !!!

 

Note that a popular use of Code Replacements in Photo Mechanic is to fine tune how lens EXIF is displayed for exactly this reason. 

Here is an example of a Code Replacement file. You can now make these in Google sheets and download as Tab Separated Values file (.tsv).   (Note the "//" indicates a comment)
If you make that in GSheets, download as a .tsv  and load into Photo Mechanic (Edit > Settings > Set Code Replacements), then you can use

Code: [Select]

={lenstype}=  instead of just {lenstype} to give you the string you prefer.


More info on Code Replacements here: https://docs.camerabits.com/support/solutions/articles/48000223660-introduction-to-code-replacements-in-photo-mechanic

[mklass]

Mick:

I am not an Automator expert, so I can’t be much help.

I desktop icon to drop on might be better, as PM only allows 10 “Edit with...” choices.

Even so, are you sure PM will correctly interpret the results? It hasn’t worked so far with my trials of other Mac exif editors.

[Mick O (Camera Bits)]

Well, I did just figure how to create individual exiftool droplets that work with PM. I can now apply them in PM when using my vintage lenses. Hurrah for me :-) though as you say, this may not be practical in your case with many different lenses, sadly.  In any case, here is how I did it:

In Automator, I choose to make an Application, and chose the "run shell script" as the option. Here are some screenshots of the process. The main things I needed to watch out for was

1. set the full path to exiftool
2. make sure to change "pass input" to "as arguments"
3. make sure to use the -overwrite_original option for exiftool
4. Saved as "Application" (I made a folder for these in my Applications folder). In my example i chose name "Set50mm" but i should probably be a little more descriptive. Lot of 50mm lenses to choose from)
5. Set as external editor in PM.

Now I can select a number of photos and give them the exif for the specific lens.  (and  i don't ever have to look up command line stuff after doing this once. :-)