P: Lens metadata field missing on import

[jonasflanken]

Since updating Photoshop and Lightroom, I've noticed that the aux:lens metadata field is being deleted from my images on import, such that there is no lens listed after import. I've determined that it's Camera Raw 9.5 that seems to be the culprit, as lens metadata is retained if I use an older version of the DNG Converter v8.8 to import the same images.

For example, I had an image shot on a Sony RX100 III at 8.8mm. If I import this image with the old version of DNG Converter, and then open the converted DNG in Photoshop, the lens is reported with the full-frame equivalent focal lengths, i.e., 24-70mm F1.8-2.8, and the raw metadata has the correct aux:Lens field (24-70mm F1.8-2.8).

Conversely, if I import the same image directly into Photoshop or Lightroom, the metadata will display the correct focal length, but will not display the lens information; Lightroom reports this only as "unknown lens," and in Photoshop the aux:Lens field is missing completely.

For now, I will use the old version of DNG Converter as a workaround, but this is inconvenient, and really should be fixed.

[rmoorlag]

I could not reproduce this with my equipment so it could be the interaction of DNG converter with your specific camera and/or lens. 

You can try it yourself. Here's the NEF i tested with: https://www.dropbox.com/s/nid1pimmdpsiup4/RM_20160227_134751.nef?dl=0

[jonasflanken]

Thanks for sending the example. Unfortunately, it did it with your image as well. Here's an excerpt of the EXIF raw data when I opened the image directly with Photoshop:

<aux:LensInfo>700/10 2000/10 28/10 28/10</aux:LensInfo>

<aux:LensID>162</aux:LensID>

<aux:ImageNumber>28829</aux:ImageNumber>

<aux:ApproximateFocusDistance>266/10</aux:ApproximateFocusDistance>

<photoshop:DateCreated>2016-02-27T13:47:51.001</photoshop:DateCreated>

Here's the EXIF data when I first converted with the old DNG Converter, and then opened in Photoshop (additional field bolded for emphasis):

<aux:LensInfo>700/10 2000/10 28/10 28/10</aux:LensInfo>

<aux:LensID>162</aux:LensID>

<aux:ImageNumber>28829</aux:ImageNumber>

<aux:ApproximateFocusDistance>266/10</aux:ApproximateFocusDistance>

<aux:Lens>70.0-200.0 mm f/2.8</aux:Lens>

<photoshop:DateCreated>2016-02-27T13:47:51.001</photoshop:DateCreated>

So unfortunately this looks like a replicable error across different lenses and cameras. Perhaps I have a corrupt installation of the latest version of Camera RAW. Does anyone know if there's a way to do a manual reinstall/update without losing all my data or settings?

[rmoorlag]

You could send me one of your images as a sample. I can make a screenshot of what Lightroom shows. Here is a screenshot of the information Bridge is showing me of the DNG a made with the latest DNG converter: https://www.dropbox.com/s/sfcel4o5zqllurh/lensinfo2.JPG?dl=0

[jonasflanken]

This is the RAW file directly copied from my camera: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4M7Ie_2T_HgV2lhTFR2dDdhT0U/view?usp=sharing

This is a DNG file after I imported the image using Lightroom, and then told it to export a DNG: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4M7Ie_2T_Hgb0xPc01uT0Q0Y2s/view?usp=sharing

I suspect the first image will have the lens info, whereas the second will not.

[rmoorlag]

Hmm, Bridge is showing me the lens information in both situations. Only thing i did was downloading te files and open them in bridge:
NEF: https://www.dropbox.com/s/6hp7u3ffvmyrp9i/NEFinBridge.JPG?dl=0
DNG: https://www.dropbox.com/s/rcgzacyy5zs8vze/DNGinBridge.JPG?dl=0

Lightroom does show the same information.
I'm testing on a windows 10 environment. I will repeat it on my Macbook. When the results are differtent i let you know.

[John R Ellis]

I think there's a bug in LR CC 2015.5 / 6.5 with respect to lens information.  I downloaded Roelof's sample NEF: https://www.dropbox.com/s/nid1pimmdpsiup4/RM_20160227_134751.nef?dl=0

When I import it into 2015.5, the Library Metadata panel doesn't show any Lens and the Lens column in the filter bar shows Unknown Lens:



But the Enable Profile Corrections panel in Develop infers the correct lens and profile:



In LR 5.7.1, however, the Metadata panel and the Lens column in the filter bar show the correct lens:



Tested on both OS X 10.11.2 and Windows 10.

[jonasflanken]

Yes, that's exactly the issue I'm having. The lens profile does appear to be imported correctly, but the Lens metadata is missing in 2015.5. I've only tested on OS X, but can re-test on Windows 10 tonight.

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

I have reproduced it to. In my 2015.5 on OS-X the lens metadata is missing. On my 2015.4 (Win 10) the information is showed. Looks indeed like a bug in 2015.5

[John R Ellis]

Here's another example of the problem from this thread, another NEF: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B61zs8oGmc6ENzFOUWl1VU12aWs/view?usp=sharing

  

[John R Ellis]

I looked at a number of raw files from Canon, Sony, Pentax, Fujifilm, and Nikon cameras. Of the files I looked at, only Nikon raw files (from several different models) show the problem -- lens info imported into LR 5 but not LR 6.

[jonasflanken]

Good point. I should clarify my original post to note that I haven't actually checked this with my non-Nikon cameras; the Sony RX100 example was to point out the aux:Lens field that's missing in my imported Nikon NEF files. I can re-test with Sony and Panasonic RAW files at a later point in time, but I suspect that these will import correctly.

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

John has kindly posted the link to my thread and a sample image and would also like to add that the problem appears on both my iMac and my MacbookPro.  So, it is not a case of a bad update on a single machine.

Also, to re-iterate from the more detail info in the link to my post that John has kindly posted, the lens correction function within Lightroom does correctly detect the lens model used for each image.  The display of the EXIF info is lacking and thusly, in the library database it is listed as an unknown lens.

So it "seems" that Lightroom does see the EXIF fields in the photo for the lens model, but does not display a lens model in the info display and apparently does load the info into the "database".

[J453]

We're able to repro here as well. Engineering is investigating and we will address this in the next update.

Please note - the metadata is still in the file - just hidden from display.

Thanks!

[John R Ellis]

Excellent, thanks.

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

Thank you Jeffrey.

[Caton88]

I have a Nikon D750 with Tamron lenses. Prior to the latest update, LR 6 (Windows) displayed the lens field in Metadata. Now, in version 6.5, it does not. Thank you for working on a fix.

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

There No Lens information displayed  in Develop-view options-lens LR2015CC 2015.5 update

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

My D7200 with Nikon 50mm f1.8 and sigma 70-200 f2.8 are also displaying unknown lens!

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

I have just run across a new wrinkle with this issue.  Not that it really matters in this case but could help solve the issue, I have been doing library re-arranging and creation and have found that re-importing JPEGs that were created with my Canon SX-40 also do not show lens type.  In the original library created with the previous version, it clearly displayed 4.3-150.5 mm in the EXIF display window.  The imports into the new library no longer display this info.

Again, this case doesn't really matter as it is an advanced point and shoot with a fixed zoom lens, but may give some more leads as to what the issue may be.

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

I have reproduced the same problem with all my Nikon lenses and Lightroom 6.5 (camera raw 9.5) on windows 8.1.
I confirm that LENS metadata is lost in the creation of the DNG file.
Please let provide a fix asap.
Without the fix all imported images will have lost the lens model forever!

[rmoorlag]

No Mauro, no information is lost in DNG creation. It does only not show in LR6.5/2015.5.

[Mollysnoot]

I've hit the same problem in 2015.5 running on Win 7. I use a Nikon D750.

This is a pretty major issue for those of us who rely on this - basic - functionality in LR. It also impacts on my smart collections that rely on lens data (they simply don't "see" newly imported images) as well as creating exported files that also fail to include the lens metadata.

This for me is bad enough that I've had to roll back to 2015.4: a big inconvenience, and not what I expect from Creative Cloud. Fingers crossed that in another three months you'll manage to fix it with 2015.6... Hopefully that version will have had some serious beta testing done first. 

[Caton88]

There is a workaround provided by Byron Chin on this page. Download the free Adobe DNG converter 8.8. Convert your photos from your camera card into a folder on your computer. Open LR and import those photos using Add. You have to use version 8.8 (or maybe other earlier versions) because the latest version 9.5 also does not import the lens field. (probably the same engine as used in LR 6.5.) Note that the DNG converter gives you the opportunity to customize the converted file name. I use a custom word + a numeric sequence that corresponds to the file number assigned by my camera, which is equivalent to Custom + Original File Number in LR Import. After you Add the photos, Lens field will be present and you can filter by Lens type.

[jonasflanken]

Yeah, for me, the DNG converter is a passable workaround for now, as I usually converting my NEFs to DNG in any event. I think any version before 9.5 should still import properly. That said, I sure hope this is fixed by the time the D5 & D500 come around; as someone seriously considering a D500, it would sure be nice to be able to import images with Lens data into Lightroom...

[itguy08]

Same issue here.  Nikon D750 and Nikon 28-300 and Nikon 14-24 lenses showing up as Unknown lens in the Library Module but the Develop module correctly identifies them.  Lightroom CC 2015.5 on OS X.