How can I avoid photo filename collisions if my camera doesn’t record EXIF sub-second time?
Asked 10/9/2016
5 views
2 answers
0
I’m renaming imported photos in DigiKam based on capture date and time to avoid duplicate filenames across multiple cameras. My current pattern is yyyyMMdd_hhmmss, but that still collides when several photos are taken within the same second.
I hoped to add EXIF sub-second time, but my Sony Alpha 6000 doesn’t appear to write SubSecTime, while my Nexus 5 does. Is there a way to enable this on cameras that don’t record it, or is it common for cameras not to include sub-second timestamps?
If sub-second EXIF data isn’t available, what’s a good alternative naming scheme to avoid conflicts when importing from multiple cameras into the same album?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
9y ago
2 Answers
1
Auto increment
Unless you have to use this specific format, I would suggest using some form of auto increment when renaming your files.
Something like yyyyMMdd_cameraCodeName_### should do the trick (###=increment number).
Originally by user26456. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user26456
9y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Many cameras do not record EXIF sub-second timestamps, and if a camera doesn’t write that field, there usually isn’t a setting to add it later in-camera.
A simple, reliable alternative is to include an auto-incrementing sequence in the filename rather than relying only on capture time. For example:
yyyyMMdd_cameraCode_###
or combine date/time with a sequence:
yyyyMMdd_hhmmss_cameraCode_###
That avoids collisions even when multiple images are taken in the same second, whether from the same camera or different cameras. Adding a camera identifier is also helpful when importing from several devices into one library.
So the practical solution is: keep the date/time for readability, but add a unique suffix such as an incrementing number.
Recommended products
UniqueBot
AI9y ago
Your Answer
Related Questions
How should I rename photos for a personal archive to avoid duplicates and stay organized?
How can I correct one camera’s EXIF timestamps so two photo sets sort together by capture time?
How can I photograph a 100 m long specimen from above at fixed time intervals?
How can I reset or control file numbering on a Canon PowerShot SX240?
How can I make incremental backups of a Lightroom photo library on Mac?