Limit Displayed Fields in Metadata Template

[icurate]

I would have sworn we did this for a project a few years ago, but I can't remember how. We want to use a metadata template to only fill out event info such as event name, session name, etc. I would like to have it only display the fields we need so that the person filling in the metadata doesn't have to hunt every time. Is there a way to only display specific fields in a metadata template? If not, is there another option for this that I am forgetting?

[Bob Russell]

Hello,

Yes, this is an easy task in Photo Mechanic.  Go to the Accessibility preference page and click the Metadata (IPTC) Template button in the Customize section on the left. You might have previously created a Snapshot menu entry for this configuration so click the lightning bolt button at the bottom to check. Click the entry if it exists to load that configuration. 

If there isn't any Snapshot entry, then just uncheck the boxes in the Visible column, for any field you wish to hide.  You can also click and drag a field or group of fields to a new location to make the Metadata Template easier to use. Click the OK button to save the changes.  If you will be using this configuration at a later date, then you should save it in the Snapshot menu. Click the Lightning bolt button and then click the Save option. A dialog will open to give it a name. Call it something that will make sense in the future. Eg, Just Event fields.

regards,

--Bob

[icurate]

I knew it could be done! Thank you Bob.

[icurate]

The second part of my question: Is there a way to share this saved template among machines, like I can do with the Metadata Presets? I can't find a file to distribute.

[Bob Russell]

Hello,

  Yes, you can share a Snapshot entry file with other computers running Photo Mechanic. To locate the Snapshot file, go back to the Accessibility preference page and click the Metadata (IPTC) Template button.  Next open the Snapshot menu and Option-click ( Mac ) or Shift-click ( Win ) the Snapshot entry.  This will open a Finder or Explorer window with that file selected. Now you can copy the Snapshot file to a thumbdrive or to the other computer if it's networked.

On the other computer, start Photo Mechanic and go to the Accessibility preference page to open the Customize Metadata (IPTC) Template dialog. If the Snapshot menu is empty, just click the Save option and call the Snapshot Default. Now you can Option-click the Default entry to Open the Snapshot folder. Next move the Snapshot file from the Thumbdrive into this folder.   If you don't want to create a Default Snapshot entry, then use the Manage Snapshots entry from the Snapshot menu. This will open a window with CustomizeIPTCStationaryDialog folder selected. Just move the Snapshot into the folder and now it will be available in the Snapshot menu.

regards,

--Bob

[icurate]

Thank you very much, Bob.