What is Metadata?

Do you have a relative who wrote details including names, dates, and places on the backs of photos? Now, 50 or 100 years later, those handwritten notes are priceless because they tell the story and details of a photo that would otherwise be lost.

Metadata is the same thing, but for digital and scanned photos. Instead of writing on the back of a photo, metadata is an industry-standard way to embed these details inside a digital or scanned photo. Metadata is also better than handwritten notes because you can store all the metadata you want and you’re not limited to the space on the back of a photo or the edge of a slide mount.

A few other highlights of metadata:

• Metadata is saved in the file, but it’s not visible on the photo, obscuring the image.
• If you want to add the names of all 24 kids in a class photo, you can do that.
• If you want to add five sentences about the story of a photo in the caption field, you can do that too.
• Metadata is flexible and allows you to capture the details that are important to you.
• Using industry-standard metadata, such as keywords and captions, persist across almost any kind of computer, phone, or software.

There are two main categories of metadata:

• Capture (EXIF): This records how a photo was captured, such as the ISO, shutter speed, lens, and camera used. This metadata is captured automatically and can’t be changed.

• Content (XMP): This kind of metadata describes the content of a photo such as names, places, and events. This is entered manually and can require a lot of work, but it’s the best way to preserve the stories behind your photos.

So what’s the benefit of adding XMP metadata to digital and scanned photos? Because adding this information allows you to search your photo archive instead of browse for your memories. We search for everything else: products on Amazon, recipes, movie reviews, map directions, music, hotels, and so on. But we browse our photos which is slow, ineffective, and annoying. Without metadata you’ll always be browsing photos. With metadata you can search, find, and share the photos you care about.

We start every project by gathering digital photos and scanning physical photos. Adding searchable metadata to those memories makes them enjoyable, searchable, and shareable. Unfortunately, free photo services including Apple Photos, Google Photos, and Amazon Photos don’t keep metadata permanently in your files. If you want to do this project right and keep your memories safe for future generations you want to make sure your keywords and captions, faces and places, dates and details are properly embedded in your digital files.

If you’re ready to search and enjoy your photo memories, please reach out to discuss how we can help with your project.

Metadata Foundations Course

Do you want to learn about professional best practices for organizing photos with searchable metadata? The Metadata Foundations Course is the course for you!

Interested in working with Chaos to Memories?

If you’re near Chicago and ready to get started, come visit our Wheaton Studio Monday – Friday, 10-5. Please bring your memories with you.

Contact us for more information, shipping instructions, and to get started on your project.