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Angiea1114
Participant
November 30, 2017
Question

Lightroom and capture date

  • November 30, 2017
  • 4 replies
  • 3372 views

I’m not properly versed in all the techy details and I did try a search but I’m getting overwhelmed.

i just started using Lightroom as an organization for YEARS of pictures. We transferred folders from my husband‘s laptop , to my Dropbox and then I downloaded them from dropbox to an EHD connected to my computer.

I set up Smart collections by weeks and I ASSUMED the creation date of the photo would remain as it was and now I see it has changed the creation date to the day we Transferred the photos from his computer to my computer via the method described above. Why is this happening and more important, can I ( and How) do I stop it from  doing this??? Otherwise this program is useless in this manner for me.  What am I doing wrong?

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      4 replies

      R
      Rob Perrin
      Participating Frequently
      May 8, 2019

      First, I'm amazed exporting from LR doesn't currently have this as an option...easy to do. 

      I submitted a request to Adobe to add it...we'll see if it ever happens.

      There's obviously a need, otherwise the below programs wouldn't have been created.

      Use one of the below programs to change the "File Modified" date/time back to the "Capture Date/Time" that's in your EXIF data.

      The top 2 have previews to show the changes before you actually make the changes, which is nice.

      They are all extremely affordable, from Free to $15 to $30.

      For me, this is important due to needing the Modified date/time to remain original so I can import the images with their associated scanned data date/time group.  Current project 1800 images.

      https://www.advancedrenamer.com/

      https://www.infonautics-software.ch/dateidatumkorrigieren/

      https://www.relliksoftware.com/exifdatechanger/#download

      Cheers,

      Rob

      johnrellis
      johnrellis
      Legend
      May 8, 2019
      this is important due to needing the Modified date/time to remain original so I can import the images with their associated scanned data date/time group.

      Can you elaborate on this? When LR imports photos missing capture date (e.g. scans), it uses the files' last-modified dates as the capture dates to be recorded in the catalog. Then when you export such photos, they will have those capture dates written in the industry-standard EXIF metadata field that all other metadata-aware programs recognize.

      Is this not working for you?

      R
      Rob Perrin
      Participating Frequently
      May 8, 2019

      Got it, that makes sense. You could add this detailed use-case to this existing feature request: Lightroom: When exporting jpegs allow the user to set the date time created/modified to the original date | Photoshop Fa… (It's curious that a product from a company providing "Software to Automate the Photographic Industry" doesn't read the EXIF capture date.)

      Another workaround is to use the free ExifTool utility to set the file modified dates from the EXIF capture dates. ExifTool is the most authoritative and reliable tool for manipulating metadata, though it has a steep learning curve.  See this thread for an example: Set the file modification and creation date from EXIF info

      You could use the Run Any Command plugin to run ExifTool over a batch at the end of an export.  (ExifTool can process roughly 10 photos per second.)


      I just found out FLOW DOES read the EXIF Data...so my initial assumption was incorrect...so I'm glad I realized I was making that assumption.  So for me...."needing" the Modified Date to be the Capture Date, no longer exists. Sigh.... : )

      Just Shoot Me
      Just Shoot Me
      Legend
      November 30, 2017

      Where exactly are you seeing this date?

      Is it in LR or in the File manager program for the OS you mar using?

      In LR in the Library module look in the right hand panel in the Metadata section for "Date Time Original", "Date Time Digitized" and "Date Time" sections.

      Like this.

      If you are using the OS File Manager program it will show you the Date and Time the Files were copied to the hard drive. Not the Capture date and time the image was taken.

      This is normal behavior for the File Manager program for your OS.

      johnrellis
      johnrellis
      Legend
      November 30, 2017

      Are these photos older, or have they been processed with other photo software?  If they are missing the capture date in the industry-standard metadata, then it is very possible that the mere act of copying them from one computer to another is changing what you call the "creation date", and that the problem is unrelated to LR.

      To build on ManiacJoe, here's the complete list of questions:

      1. Which version of LR (do Help > System Info).

      2. Which version of Mac/Windows on the LR computer.

      3. Which version of Mac/Windows on your husband's laptop.

      4. How were the photos copied from one to the other.

      5. Are the victim photos older (e.g. scans) and/or have they been processed with other photo software in the past?

      With these answers, we can proceed to the next step.  There is most likely a workaround, but it will take attention to detail and multiple steps. 

      ManiacJoe
      ManiacJoe
      Inspiring
      November 30, 2017

      Mac or Windows? Which version?

      In the menu /help/system-info, what is the exact version of Lightroom you are using?

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