ExifTool Interface
(Android)
The ExifTool Interface provides an interface to the ExifTool
command line from within FastPhotoTagger.
ExifTool is designed as a command line utility and implements a rich
and powerful command language. FastPhotoTagger implements only a
limited graphical user interface (GUI) to ExifTool. To enjoy the
full potential of ExifTool a command line is required.
Even if you are not comfortable with command lines, there
are a number of predefined commands that are safe and easy to use,
but read the warnings first.
If you are comfortable with command lines virtually any ExifTool
command line can be built and executed.
Predefined Commands
o Copy Tag to Tag
Copy the value in one tag to another tag. For example, if you want
to switch from using XMP:KEYWORDS to IPTC:KEYWORDS use this command
to copy the values.
When copying a field with non-English characters to an IPTC field,
you may also need to add this option:
-IPTC:CodedCharacterSet=UTF8.
o Copy Some Tags from Reference File
A Reference File contains metadata values you wish to use in other
files. For example, the reference file may contain your copyright
notice and your name as the photographer. You may want to create
several reference files, each tailored to a specific purpose or
project.
Use this command to copy specific metadata tags from the reference
file to other files.
Hint: One way to create a useful reference file is to delete
all the metadata in the reference file using the "Delete All
Metadata" command (below), then set only the metadata fields that
you will wish to copy again and again.
o Copy All Tags from Reference File
Use this command to copy all tags from a reference file to other
files. Warning: Don't do this unless the reference
file has been prepared using the hint above.
o Delete All Metadata
Delete all the metadata in an image file. Warning: You
should NOT do this to RAW images, except DNG.
o Validate Files
ExifTool is not an image validator but it can do some correctness
checks, mainly for JPEG and TIFF-format images.
o Attempt to Repair Files
ExifTool is not an image repair program but may be used to fix some
problems in image files. Some metadata from the original image may
be lost in the process. Read the ExifTool documentation.
o Other
This is for advanced users only. It supplies a blank command line
which can be filled in as you see fit. This command may be written
to use image files and/or folders.
Using the ExifTool Interface
The steps for using the ExifTool Interface are
o Select one or more image files and/or folders.
o Press Metadata / ExifTool.
o Select a command by pressing on the top line where it says "Press
here...".
o Press on each blank line to select values for the command.
o Press Run ExifTool.
o Review the output from ExifTool.
o Press Cancel to exit the ExifTool Interface.
Example
Copy Creator and Copyright fields from a reference file to two
photos:
1. Select the two photos. Press Metadata / ExifTool.
2. Press on the top line where it says "Press here...". Select "Copy
Some Tags from Reference File".
3. Press on the Source Tags line. Select MWG:Copyright and
MWG:Creator. Press OK.
4. Press on the Source File line. Find and select the reference
file. Press OK.
5. Press "Run ExifTool".
6. Examine the output from ExifTool.
For Advanced Users Only:
Command line operations are potentially destructive to your
files. You should not use this capability unless you are
comfortable with ExifTool command line
processing. Test operations on unimportant files before
applying to important files.
Use the ExifTool Interface as described above. But before pressing Run
ExifTool, you may modify the command line in any way you see
fit.
If no image files or folders are selected ExifTool will be called
once with exactly the command line you build.
If some image files or folders are selected ExifTool will be called
once for each selected file/folder with exactly the command line you
build plus the selected file path appended to the end.
When you modify the command
line:
o Always enter full paths to files and folders, e.g.,
/storage/emulated/0/Pictures/IMG-123.jpg, not IMG-123.jpg.
o Fully qualified (Group0:Group1:Tag) metadata names are not
required but are helpful to avoid ambiguity. Using IPTC:Keywords
is preferable to just Keywords.
o Images in zip files are read-only.
o Pre v3.1 & Android 11: Any SD card folders that you enter on
the command line will be read-only. Attempts to modify these
items will fail.
o Pre v3.1 & Android 11: Renaming or moving files using the
ExifTool command line is not recommended and may fail on SD Cards.
Custom commands:
You may add your own ExifTool commands to the command menu. Put your
commands in .FastPhotoTagger/exiftool.txt in Download (or
pre-Android 11 in your primary storage folder), two lines per
command. Line 1: menu text. Line 2: ExifTool options. The options
text consists of everything on the command line between exiftool and
the list of selected files/folders. For example:
Copy Filename to Caption-Abstract
-overwrite_original_in_place
-IPTC:Caption-Abstract<${FileName;s/\.(...|....)$//i}
If you change exiftool.txt you must stop and restart
FastPhotoTagger.
