Exif???

[hudakore]

Pardon my ignorance but what is EXIF?

[Byron Gale]

Briefly stated - it is the metadata which is embedded in an image which conveys information about the image. Things like the date the image was taken, the make and model of the camera, the shutter speed and aperture settings. And so on.

[i&ej]

like the one the S:(ny A200 leaves on every image and that I have to remove manually each time. :)

[johnrellis]

In common usage, the EXIF metadata also includes captions (descriptions, subject), notes, star ratings, copyright, author, keyword tags, and other such textual information that may be added with tools like PSE after the image was created.

Other similar terms you might encounter are:

- "IPTC", which is commonly used to refer to metadata such as captions/descriptions, copyright, author, and keyword tags.

- "XMP", which is the metadata standard being pushed by Adobe for encoding all metadata.

Note that these terms have technical meanings that can be confusingly somewhat different than their common usage. For example, technically, "EXIF" stands for Exchangeable Image File Format, a standard defined by camera and software vendors, which is the most common file format for encoding JPEG images. Technically, IPTC- and XMP-format metadata is embeded within the EXIF file format.

But among photographers, "EXIF" is usually used to mean all the metadata information embedded within an image.

[johnrellis]

like the one the Sony A200 leaves on every image and that I have to remove manually each time.
You can tell the Organizer not to import those annoying Sony or Olympus "captions" by deselecting the option Edit > Preferences > Files > Import EXIF Caption.

[i&ej]

I will try that John it will be good not to have the caption. The camera is fine but that caption is really irritating.:cool:

[baycruisers]

like the one the S:(ny A200 leaves on every image and that I have to remove manually each time. :)

I wouldn't remove any metadata from an image unless I was posting it to the web and, for some reason, wanted to remove any potential identifying information. I'm not sure why I'd want to do that, but your mileage may vary.

EXIF, IPTC and other metadata can be extremely useful for organizing images, not to mention recalling long-forgotten shooting details.

[i&ej]

But the DSC caption turns up at inopertune moments like in most photo frames and some web appointments show it. It does detract from some images. :)

[johnrellis]

I wouldn't remove any metadata from an image unless I was posting it to the web and, for some reason, wanted to remove any potential identifying information.
That’s a good principle in general, but it doesn’t apply here.

Some camera vendors add their brand to the EXIF:ImageDescription field, which many programs like PSE interpret as “caption” or “subject”. For example, my Olympus C-50Z inserts “OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA” in that field.

This adds no value for anyone except perhaps the camera vendors. The Image Description field is supposed to be for human-supplied descriptions of the image, not vendor branding. Note that the other EXIF fields Make and CameraModelName provide more precise identification of the vendor and model.

Normally, when you import a photo into the PSE Organizer, if there is a value in EXIF:ImageDescription, PSE will use it as the caption in the Organizer. But no one wants “OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA” as their caption. Thus, deselecting the PSE option Edit > Preferences > Files > Import EXIF Caption simply tells the Organizer not to import EXIF:ImageDescription as a caption.

Note that the option does not overwrite EXIF:ImageDescription in the image. That will only happen if you change the caption in the Organizer.

[i&ej]

My point precisely, and I find it anoying so it's realy useful to be able to remove it.
Many thanks.