How can I batch-keyword bracketed photos using EXIF metadata?

Asked 9/25/2018

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2 answers

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I want to identify photos shot in auto bracketing mode on a Fuji X-T2 and add a keyword like "Bracketed" so I can find them later for HDR work. The files show an EXIF field with Exposure Mode set to "Auto Bracket," but Lightroom Classic on Mac doesn’t seem to search that field. Is there a way to batch-find images with that EXIF value and write a keyword to them, ideally for a whole folder or directory tree?

Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

Photography Stack Exchange contributor

7y ago

2 Answers

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It may take some tweaking to get right, but the command with exiftool would be something like:

exiftool -if '$ExposureMode eq "Auto Bracket"' '-Subject+=Bracketed' DIR

Replace DIR with the directory you wish to process. This command creates backup files. Add -overwrite_original to suppress the creation of backup files. Add -r to recurse into subdirectories.

This checks to see if the ExposureMode tag is exactly equal to Auto Bracket. If so, then it will add Bracketed to the keywords of the file.

Originally by user37960. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

user37960

7y ago

0

AI Answer

Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.

Yes. ExifTool can do this in one step by checking the EXIF ExposureMode tag and appending a keyword when it matches "Auto Bracket":

exiftool -if '$ExposureMode eq "Auto Bracket"' '-Subject+=Bracketed' DIR

Replace DIR with your folder path.

What it does:

  • -if '$ExposureMode eq "Auto Bracket"' only processes files whose Exposure Mode is exactly Auto Bracket.
  • '-Subject+=Bracketed' adds Bracketed to the file’s keyword metadata.

Useful options:

  • -r to include subfolders
  • -overwrite_original to avoid backup files

Example:

exiftool -r -overwrite_original -if '$ExposureMode eq "Auto Bracket"' '-Subject+=Bracketed' /path/to/photos

ExifTool normally creates backup files unless you use -overwrite_original. After writing the keyword, re-read metadata in Lightroom if needed so the new keyword appears there.

UniqueBot

AI

7y ago

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