perldoc > exiftool(1)

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📖 NAME

exiftool - Read and write meta information in files

🚀 Quick Reference

Use Case	Command	Description
Read all metadata	exiftool FILE	Extract all available metadata from a file
Read specific tag	exiftool -TAG FILE	Extract value of a specific tag (e.g., -CreateDate)
Write metadata	exiftool -TAG=VALUE FILE	Set a tag value (e.g., -Comment='Hello')
Delete metadata	exiftool -TAG= FILE	Delete a tag by leaving value empty
Delete all metadata	exiftool -all= FILE	Remove all metadata from file
Copy metadata between files	exiftool -tagsFromFile SRCFILE DSTFILE	Copy all writable tags from source to destination
Rename/move files by date	exiftool '-FileName<CreateDate' -d %Y%m%d_%H%M%S%%-c.%%e DIR	Rename files based on CreateDate timestamp
Geotag from GPS track	exiftool -geotag TRACK.LOG FILE	Add GPS coordinates from a track log using DateTimeOriginal
Export to CSV	exiftool -common -csv DIR > out.csv	Export common tags to CSV file
Import from CSV	exiftool -csv=in.csv DIR	Update metadata from CSV file
Verbose debug	exiftool -v FILE	Show verbose processing messages
List all tag names	exiftool -list	Print all known tag names
List supported file types	exiftool -listf	Print all supported file extensions

📋 SYNOPSIS

📖 Reading

exiftool [*OPTIONS*] [-*TAG*...] [--*TAG*...] *FILE*...

✏️ Writing

exiftool [*OPTIONS*] -*TAG*[+-<]=[*VALUE*]... *FILE*...

📋 Copying

exiftool [*OPTIONS*] -tagsFromFile *SRCFILE* [-[*DSTTAG*<]*SRCTAG*...] *FILE*...

🔧 Other

exiftool [ -ver | -list[w|f|r|wf|g[*NUM*]|d|x] ]

For specific examples, see the EXAMPLES sections below.

This documentation is displayed if exiftool is run without an input *FILE* when one is expected.

📝 DESCRIPTION

A command-line interface to Image::ExifTool, used for reading and writing meta information in a variety of file types. *FILE* is one or more source file names, directory names, or "-" for the standard input. Metadata is read from source files and printed in readable form to the console (or written to output text files with -w).

To write or delete metadata, tag values are assigned using -*TAG*=[*VALUE*], and/or the -geotag, -csv= or -json= options. To copy or move metadata, the -tagsFromFile feature is used. By default the original files are preserved with "_original" appended to their names -- be sure to verify that the new files are OK before erasing the originals. Once in write mode, exiftool will ignore any read-specific options.

Note: If *FILE* is a directory name then only supported file types in the directory are processed (in write mode only writable types are processed). However, files may be specified by name, or the -ext option may be used to force processing of files with any extension. Hidden files in the directory are also processed. Adding the -r option causes subdirectories to be processed recursively, but subdirectories with names beginning with "." are skipped unless -r. is used.

Below is a list of file types and meta information formats currently supported by ExifTool (r = read, w = write, c = create):

File Types
-----------+-------------+-------------+-------------+------------
360   r/w  | DR4   r/w/c | JNG   r/w   | O     r     | RAW   r/w
3FR   r    | DSS   r     | JP2   r/w   | ODP   r     | RIFF  r
3G2   r/w  | DV    r     | JPEG  r/w   | ODS   r     | RSRC  r
3GP   r/w  | DVB   r/w   | JSON  r     | ODT   r     | RTF   r
A     r    | DVR-MS r    | JXL   r     | OFR   r     | RW2   r/w
AA    r    | DYLIB r     | K25   r     | OGG   r     | RWL   r/w
AAE   r    | EIP   r     | KDC   r     | OGV   r     | RWZ   r
AAX   r/w  | EPS   r/w   | KEY   r     | ONP   r     | RM    r
ACR   r    | EPUB  r     | LA    r     | OPUS  r     | SEQ   r
AFM   r    | ERF   r/w   | LFP   r     | ORF   r/w   | SKETCH r
AI    r/w  | EXE   r     | LIF   r     | ORI   r/w   | SO    r
AIFF  r    | EXIF  r/w/c | LNK   r     | OTF   r     | SR2   r/w
APE   r    | EXR   r     | LRV   r/w   | PAC   r     | SRF   r
ARQ   r/w  | EXV   r/w/c | M2TS  r     | PAGES r     | SRW   r/w
ARW   r/w  | F4A/V r/w   | M4A/V r/w   | PBM   r/w   | SVG   r
ASF   r    | FFF   r/w   | MACOS r     | PCD   r     | SWF   r
AVI   r    | FITS  r     | MAX   r     | PCX   r     | THM   r/w
AVIF  r/w  | FLA   r     | MEF   r/w   | PDB   r     | TIFF  r/w
AZW   r    | FLAC  r     | MIE   r/w/  | PDF   r/w   | TORRENT r
BMP   r    | FLIF  r/w   | MIFF  r   c | PEF   r/w   | TTC   r
BPG   r    | FLV   r     | MKA   r     | PFA   r     | TTF   r
BTF   r    | FPF   r     | MKS   r     | PFB   r     | TXT   r
CHM   r    | FPX   r     | MKV   r     | PFM   r     | VCF   r
COS   r    | GIF   r/w   | MNG   r/w   | PGF   r     | VRD   r/w/c
CR2   r/w  | GPR   r/w   | MOBI  r     | PGM   r/w   | VSD   r
CR3   r/w  | GZ    r     | MODD  r     | PLIST r     | WAV   r
CRM   r/w  | HDP   r/w   | MOI   r     | PICT  r     | WDP   r/w
CRW   r/w  | HDR   r     | MOS   r/w   | PMP   r     | WEBP  r
CS1   r/w  | HEIC  r/w   | MOV   r/w   | PNG   r/w   | WEBM  r
CSV   r    | HEIF  r/w   | MP3   r     | PPM   r/w   | WMA   r
CZI   r    | HTML  r     | MP4   r/w   | PPT   r     | WMV   r
DCM   r    | ICC   r/w/c | MPC   r     | PPTX  r     | WTV   r
DCP   r/w  | ICS   r     | MPG   r     | PS    r/w   | WV    r
DCR   r    | IDML  r     | MPO   r/w   | PSB   r/w   | X3F   r/w
DFONT r    | IIQ   r/w   | MQV   r/w   | PSD   r/w   | XCF   r
DIVX  r    | IND   r/w   | MRC   r     | PSP   r     | XLS   r
DJVU  r    | INSP  r/w   | MRW   r/w   | QTIF  r/w   | XLSX  r
DLL   r    | INSV  r     | MXF   r     | R3D   r     | XMP   r/w/c
DNG   r/w  | INX   r     | NEF   r/w   | RA    r     | ZIP   r
DOC   r    | ISO   r     | NKSC  r/w   | RAF   r/w   |
DOCX  r    | ITC   r     | NRW   r/w   | RAM   r     |
DPX   r    | J2C   r     | NUMBERS r   | RAR   r     |

Meta Information
----------------------+----------------------+---------------------
EXIF           r/w/c  |  CIFF           r/w  |  Ricoh RMETA    r
GPS            r/w/c  |  AFCP           r/w  |  Picture Info   r
IPTC           r/w/c  |  Kodak Meta     r/w  |  Adobe APP14    r
XMP            r/w/c  |  FotoStation    r/w  |  MPF            r
MakerNotes     r/w/c  |  PhotoMechanic  r/w  |  Stim           r
Photoshop IRB  r/w/c  |  JPEG 2000      r    |  DPX            r
ICC Profile    r/w/c  |  DICOM          r    |  APE            r
MIE            r/w/c  |  Flash          r    |  Vorbis         r
JFIF           r/w/c  |  FlashPix       r    |  SPIFF          r
Ducky APP12    r/w/c  |  QuickTime      r    |  DjVu           r
PDF            r/w/c  |  Matroska       r    |  M2TS           r
PNG            r/w/c  |  MXF            r    |  PE/COFF        r
Canon VRD      r/w/c  |  PrintIM        r    |  AVCHD          r
Nikon Capture  r/w/c  |  FLAC           r    |  ZIP            r
GeoTIFF        r/w/c  |  ID3            r    |  (and more)

⚙️ OPTIONS

Case is not significant for any command-line option (including tag and group names), except for single-character options when the corresponding upper-case option exists. Many single-character options have equivalent long-name versions (shown in brackets), and some options have inverses which are invoked with a leading double-dash. Unrecognized options are interpreted as tag names (for this reason, multiple single-character options may NOT be combined into one argument). Contrary to standard practice, options may appear after source file names on the exiftool command line.

🔧 Option Overview

Tag operations

• -TAG or --TAG — Extract or exclude specified tag
• -TAG[+-^]=[VALUE] — Write new value for tag
• -TAG[+-]<=DATFILE — Write tag value from contents of file
• -TAG[+-]<SRCTAG — Copy tag value (see -tagsFromFile)
• -tagsFromFile SRCFILE — Copy tag values from file
• -x TAG (--exclude) — Exclude specified tag

Input-output text formatting

• -args (--argFormat) — Format metadata as exiftool arguments
• -b (--binary) — Output metadata in binary format
• -c FMT (--coordFormat) — Set format for GPS coordinates
• -charset [[TYPE=]CHARSET] — Specify encoding for special characters
• -csv[[+]=CSVFILE] — Export/import tags in CSV format
• -csvDelim STR — Set delimiter for CSV file
• -d FMT (--dateFormat) — Set format for date/time values
• -D (--decimal) — Show tag ID numbers in decimal
• -E,-ex,-ec (--escape(HTML|XML|C)) — Escape tag values for HTML, XML or C
• -f (--forcePrint) — Force printing of all specified tags
• -g[NUM...] (--groupHeadings) — Organize output by tag group
• -G[NUM...] (--groupNames) — Print group name for each tag
• -h (--htmlFormat) — Use HTML formatting for output
• -H (--hex) — Show tag ID numbers in hexadecimal
• -htmlDump[OFFSET] — Generate HTML-format binary dump
• -j[[+]=JSONFILE] (--json) — Export/import tags in JSON format
• -l (--long) — Use long 2-line output format
• -L (--latin) — Use Windows Latin1 encoding
• -lang [LANG] — Set current language
• -listItem INDEX — Extract specific item from a list
• -n (--printConv) — No print conversion
• -p FMTFILE (--printFormat) — Print output in specified format
• -php — Export tags as a PHP Array
• -s[NUM] (--short) — Short output format
• -S (--veryShort) — Very short output format
• -sep STR (--separator) — Set separator string for list items
• -sort — Sort output alphabetically
• -struct — Enable output of structured information
• -t (--tab) — Output in tab-delimited list format
• -T (--table) — Output in tabular format
• -v[NUM] (--verbose) — Print verbose messages
• -w[+|!] EXT (--textOut) — Write (or overwrite!) output text files
• -W[+|!] FMT (--tagOut) — Write output text file for each tag
• -Wext EXT (--tagOutExt) — Write only specified file types with -W
• -X (--xmlFormat) — Use RDF/XML output format

Processing control

• -a (--duplicates) — Allow duplicate tags to be extracted
• -e (--composite) — Do not generate composite tags
• -ee[NUM] (--extractEmbedded) — Extract information from embedded files
• -ext[+] EXT (--extension) — Process files with specified extension
• -F[OFFSET] (--fixBase) — Fix the base for maker notes offsets
• -fast[NUM] — Increase speed when extracting metadata
• -fileOrder[NUM] [-]TAG — Set file processing order
• -i DIR (--ignore) — Ignore specified directory name
• -if[NUM] EXPR — Conditionally process files
• -m (--ignoreMinorErrors) — Ignore minor errors and warnings
• -o OUTFILE (--out) — Set output file or directory name
• -overwrite_original — Overwrite original by renaming tmp file
• -overwrite_original_in_place — Overwrite original by copying tmp file
• -P (--preserve) — Preserve file modification date/time
• -password PASSWD — Password for processing protected files
• -progress[:[TITLE]] — Show file progress count
• -q (--quiet) — Quiet processing
• -r[.] (--recurse) — Recursively process subdirectories
• -scanForXMP — Brute force XMP scan
• -u (--unknown) — Extract unknown tags
• -U (--unknown2) — Extract unknown binary tags too
• -wm MODE (--writeMode) — Set mode for writing/creating tags
• -z (--zip) — Read/write compressed information

Other options

• -@ ARGFILE — Read command-line arguments from file
• -k (--pause) — Pause before terminating
• -list[w|f|wf|g[NUM]|d|x] — List various exiftool capabilities
• -ver — Print exiftool version number
• -- — End of options

Special features

• -geotag TRKFILE — Geotag images from specified GPS log
• -globalTimeShift SHIFT — Shift all formatted date/time values
• -use MODULE — Add features from plug-in module

Utilities

• -delete_original[!] — Delete "_original" backups
• -restore_original — Restore from "_original" backups

Advanced options

• -api OPT[[^]=[VAL]] — Set ExifTool API option
• -common_args — Define common arguments
• -config CFGFILE — Specify configuration file name
• -echo[NUM] TEXT — Echo text to stdout or stderr
• -efile[NUM][!] ERRFILE — Save names of files with errors
• -execute[NUM] — Execute multiple commands on one line
• -list_dir — List directories, not their contents
• -srcfile FMT — Process a different source file
• -stay_open FLAG — Keep reading -@ argfile even after EOF
• -userParam PARAM[[^]=[VAL]] — Set user parameter (API UserParam opt)

🔧 Option Details

Tag operations

-*TAG*

• Extract information for the specified tag (e.g., -CreateDate). Multiple tags may be specified in a single command.
• A tag name may include leading group names separated by colons (e.g., -EXIF:CreateDate).
• Special tag name "All" indicates all meta information. Wildcards "?" and "*" may be used.
• Append "#" to disable print conversion on a per-tag basis.
• If no tags are specified, all available information is extracted.

--*TAG*

• Exclude specified tag from extracted information. Same as -x option.
• Group names and wildcards permitted.
• Once excluded, may not be re-included by subsequent option.

-*TAG*[+-^]=[*VALUE*]

• Write a new value for the specified tag. Delete the tag if no *VALUE* is given.
• += and -= add or remove list entries, shift date/time, or increment/decrement numbers.
• ^= writes empty string instead of deleting when no value.
• Wildcards "*" and "?" allowed; "Unsafe" tags not written with wildcards.
• "All" tag deletes all metadata or entire group.
• Integer values may be specified in hexadecimal with leading "0x".

-*TAG*<=*DATFILE* or -*TAG*<=*FMT*

• Set tag value from contents of file *DATFILE*.
• File name may be given by *FMT* string with %d, %f, %e.
• If no file provided, tag is deleted.

-tagsFromFile *SRCFILE* or *FMT*

• Copy tag values from *SRCFILE* to *FILE*.
• Wildcards permitted in tag names; if no tags specified, all possible tags are copied.
• Redirection feature: '-*DSTTAG*<*SRCTAG*' or '-*SRCTAG*>*DSTTAG*'.
• Advanced formatting: strings with $tag syntax.
• Notes: "Unsafe" tags only copied if specified explicitly; maker notes copied as block; order of operations matters.

-x *TAG* (--exclude)

• Exclude the specified tag. Multiple -x options allowed. Same as --*TAG*.

Input-output text formatting

-args (--argFormat)

• Output information as exiftool arguments, suitable for use with -@.

-b, --b (--binary, --binary)

• Output metadata in binary format without tag names or descriptions.
• With double dash, suppress tags containing binary data.

-c *FMT* (--coordFormat)

• Set print format for GPS coordinates. Uses printf syntax (degrees, minutes, seconds).
• Disabled with -n to get signed decimal degrees.

-charset [[*TYPE*=]*CHARSET*]

• Set ExifTool character encoding for output/input. Default UTF8.
• If no *CHARSET*, list available character sets.
• Other *TYPE* values: FileName, EXIF, ID3, IPTC, Photoshop, QuickTime, RIFF.

-csv[[+]=*CSVFILE*]

• Export/import tags in CSV format. First row must be ExifTool tag names.
• Special "SourceFile" column; "*" for default.
• Empty values ignored; use -f to delete.
• List-type tags stored as simple strings; use -sep to split.

-csvDelim *STR*

• Set delimiter for CSV entries. Default comma.

-d *FMT* (--dateFormat)

• Set format for date/time tag values using strftime codes. ExifTool adds %f for fractional seconds.

-D (--decimal)

• Show tag ID number in decimal.

-E, -ex, -ec (--escapeHTML, --escapeXML, --escapeC)

• Escape characters in output tag values for HTML, XML, or C.

-f (--forcePrint)

• Force printing of tags even if not found; prints dash for missing.

-g[*NUM*][:*NUM*...] (--groupHeadings)

• Organize output by tag group. Family numbers 0-7.

-G[*NUM*][:*NUM*...] (--groupNames)

• Print group name for each tag.

-h (--htmlFormat)

• Use HTML table formatting. Implies -E.

-H (--hex)

• Show tag ID number in hexadecimal.

-htmlDump[*OFFSET*]

• Generate dynamic web page with hex dump of EXIF information.

-j[[+]=*JSONFILE*] (--json)

• Use JSON formatting for console output or import JSON file.
• Combine with -g, -G, -struct, etc.

-l (--long)

• Use long 2-line Canon-style output format.

-L (--latin)

• Use Windows Latin1 encoding (cp1252).

-lang [*LANG*]

• Set current language for tag descriptions and converted values.

-listItem *INDEX*

• Extract only the item with specified index from list-type tags.

-n (--printConv)

• Disable print conversion for all tags, revealing machine-readable values.

-p *FMTFILE* or *STR* (--printFormat)

• Print output in format specified by file or string. Tag names prefixed with $.
• Supports #[HEAD], #[TAIL], #[SECT], #[BODY], #[IF] directives.

-php

• Format output as a PHP Array.

-s[*NUM*] (--short)

• Short output format. -s1 prints tag names, -s2 no extra spaces, -s3 values only.

-S (--veryShort)

• Same as -s2.

-sep *STR* (--separator)

• Specify separator string for list-type tags. Default ", " when reading.

-sort, --sort

• Sort output by tag description or name. With --sort, disable grouping.

-struct, --struct

• Output structured XMP information instead of flattening. When copying, structured is default.

-t (--tab)

• Output tab-delimited list of description/values.

-T (--table)

• Output tag values in table form. Equivalent to -t -S -q -f.

-v[*NUM*] (--verbose)

• Print verbose messages. Level 0-5.

-w[+|!] *EXT* or *FMT* (--textOut)

• Write console output to files with specified extension or format. Supports %d, %f, %e, %c.
• Advanced features: substring, copy number, sequential numbering.

-W[+|!] *FMT* (--tagOut)

• Enhanced version of -w, creates separate output file per extracted tag.
• Supports %t, %g, %s, %o format codes.

-Wext *EXT*, --Wext *EXT* (--tagOutExt)

• Specify output file type for -W.

-X (--xmlFormat)

• Use ExifTool-specific RDF/XML formatting. Implies -a.

Processing control

-a, --a (--duplicates, --duplicates)

• Allow (-a) or suppress (--a) duplicate tag names. Default suppressed.

-e (--composite)

• Extract existing tags only, don't generate composite tags.

-ee[*NUM*] (--extractEmbedded)

• Extract information from embedded documents in EPS, PDF, MPO, etc. Implies -a.
• Use -g3 or -G3 to identify originating document.

-ext[+] *EXT*, --ext *EXT* (--extension)

• Process only files with (-ext) or without (--ext) specified extension. Case insensitive.

-F[*OFFSET*] (--fixBase)

• Fix maker notes base offset. If no offset, best guess used.

-fast[*NUM*]

• Increase speed: -fast1 skips scanning for trailers, -fast2 avoids MakerNote, -fast3 returns only system tags, -fast4 uses extension only, -fast5 disables composite tags.

-fileOrder[*NUM*] [-]*TAG*

• Set file processing order by sorted tag value. Use "-" prefix for reverse order.

-i *DIR* (--ignore)

• Ignore specified directory name. Special values: "SYMLINKS", "HIDDEN".

-if[*NUM*] *EXPR*

• Conditional file processing. *EXPR* is Perl-like with $tag names. Multiple -if options ANDed.
• Special functions: End(), EndDir().

-m (--ignoreMinorErrors)

• Ignore minor errors and warnings. Enables writing to files with minor errors.

-o *OUTFILE* or *FMT* (--out)

• Set output file or directory name when writing. Can create XMP, EXIF, etc. from scratch.

-overwrite_original

• Overwrite original file instead of preserving with "_original".

-overwrite_original_in_place

• Similar but preserves original file attributes (creation date, metadata, etc.).

-P (--preserve)

• Preserve filesystem modification date/time (FileModifyDate) when writing.

-password *PASSWD*

• Password for password-protected PDF documents.

-progress[:[*TITLE*]]

• Show file progress count. With colon, set console window title.

-q (--quiet)

• Quiet processing. One -q suppresses informational messages, two -q suppress warnings.

-r[.] (--recurse)

• Recursively process subdirectories. Add "." to include hidden directories.

-scanForXMP

• Scan all files for XMP information unless found already.

-u (--unknown)

• Extract values of unknown tags with numerical ID's.

-U (--unknown2)

• Extract unknown tags and unknown binary data blocks.

-wm *MODE* (--writeMode)

• Set mode for writing/creating tags. Default "wcg" (write, create, create groups).

-z (--zip)

• Read from .gz/.bz2 compressed images; write compressed metadata if supported.

Other options

-@ *ARGFILE*

• Read command-line arguments from file (one argument per line). Comments start with #.

-k (--pause)

• Pause before terminating with "press any key".

-list, -listw, -listf, -listr, -listwf, -listg[*NUM*], -listd, -listx

• List various capabilities: tag names, writable tags, file extensions, groups, etc.
• Can be combined with group arguments, -l, -lang, -s, -f.

-ver

• Print exiftool version number. Add -v for system info, -v2 for Perl include directories.

--

• End of options. Remaining arguments treated as file names.

Special features

-geotag *TRKFILE*

• Geotag images from GPS track log. Writes GPSLatitude, GPSLongitude, etc.
• Uses DateTimeOriginal by default. Supports Geosync and Geotime.
• Multiple -geotag options concatenate tracks. Wildcards allowed.
• Supported formats: GPX, NMEA, KML, IGC, Garmin XML, TCX, etc.

-globalTimeShift *SHIFT*

• Shift all formatted date/time values when reading. Does not apply to -n output.

-use *MODULE*

• Add features from plug-in module. Currently only MWG is distributed.

Utilities

-restore_original

• Restore files from "_original" backups.

-delete_original[!]

• Delete "_original" backups. With !, skip confirmation.

Advanced options

-api *OPT[[^]=[VAL]]*

• Set ExifTool API option. Overrides config file.

-common_args

• Arguments following this option are common to all -execute'd commands.

-config *CFGFILE*

• Load specified configuration file instead of default .ExifTool_config.

-echo[*NUM*] *TEXT*

• Echo text to stdout (-echo1) or stderr (-echo2) during parsing. -echo3/4 after processing.

-efile[*NUM*][!] *ERRFILE*

• Save names of files with errors (1), unchanged (2), failed -if (4), or combination.

-execute[*NUM*]

• Execute command for all arguments up to this point. Allows multiple commands on one line.

-list_dir

• List directories themselves instead of their contents.

-srcfile *FMT*

• Specify a different source file based on the original FILE name.

-stay_open *FLAG*

• Keep reading from -@ argfile even after EOF, enabling persistent process.

-userParam *PARAM[[^]=[VAL]]*

• Set user parameter, accessible in -if and -p expressions as $PARAM.

Advanced formatting feature

Allows modification of tag values in -if, -p, or -tagsFromFile strings using Perl expressions in braces after the tag name: ${TAG;EXPR}. Default expression removes illegal Windows file name characters. Helper functions: DateFmt, ShiftTime, NoDups.

🪟 WINDOWS UNICODE FILE NAMES

In Windows, command-line arguments use the current code page. To support Unicode file names, use -charset filename=utf8 and place file names in a UTF-8 encoded -@ argfile. Wide-character i/o routines are triggered. Warning issued if filename contains special characters and charset not provided. FileName and Directory tag values use the same encoding as other tags.

✏️ WRITING READ-ONLY FILES

ExifTool can write to read-only files if user has write permission in the directory. Exceptions: -overwrite_original_in_place, writing only pseudo System tags, Windows files with Unicode names when -overwrite_original or _original backup exists. Hidden files in Windows behave as read-only; use -if to avoid them.

📖 READING EXAMPLES

• exiftool -a -u -g1 a.jpg — Print all meta information including duplicate and unknown tags, sorted by group (family 1).
• exiftool -common dir — Print common meta information for all images in "dir".
• exiftool -T -createdate -aperture -shutterspeed -iso dir > out.txt — Tab-delimited column output.
• exiftool -s -ImageSize -ExposureTime b.jpg — Print tag names and values.
• exiftool -l -canon c.jpg d.jpg — Print standard Canon information.
• exiftool -r -w .txt -common pictures — Recursively extract to .txt files.
• exiftool -b -ThumbnailImage image.jpg > thumbnail.jpg — Save thumbnail.
• exiftool -b -JpgFromRaw -w _JFR.JPG -ext NEF -r . — Extract JPG from NEF files.
• exiftool -a -b -W %d%f_%t%-c.%s -preview:all dir — Extract all preview images.
• exiftool -d '%r %a, %B %e, %Y' -DateTimeOriginal -S -s -ext jpg . — Formatted date/time.
• exiftool -IFD1:XResolution -IFD1:YResolution image.jpg — Extract thumbnail resolution.
• exiftool '-*resolution*' image.jpg — Extract all tags with "Resolution".
• exiftool -xmp:author:all -a image.jpg — Extract all author XMP.
• exiftool -xmp -b a.jpg > out.xmp — Extract complete XMP record.
• exiftool -p '$filename has date $dateTimeOriginal' -q -f dir — Custom format output.
• exiftool -ee3 -p '$gpslatitude, $gpslongitude, $gpstimestamp' a.m2ts — GPS from AVCHD.
• exiftool -icc_profile -b -w icc image.jpg — Save ICC_Profile.
• exiftool -htmldump -w tmp/%f_%e.html t/images — Generate HTML hex dump.
• exiftool -a -b -ee -embeddedimage -W Image_%.3g3.%s file.pdf — Extract embedded images from PDF.

✏️ WRITING EXAMPLES

• exiftool -Comment='This is a new comment' dst.jpg — Write new comment.
• exiftool -comment= -o newdir -ext jpg . — Remove comment and write to new directory.
• exiftool -keywords=EXIF -keywords=editor dst.jpg — Replace keywords.
• exiftool -Keywords+=word -o newfile.jpg src.jpg — Add keyword to list.
• exiftool -exposurecompensation+=-0.5 a.jpg — Decrement ExposureCompensation.
• exiftool -credit-=xxx dir — Delete Credit if value is "xxx".
• exiftool -xmp:description-de='kühl' -E dst.jpg — Write alternate language with HTML escape.
• exiftool -all= dst.jpg — Delete all metadata.
• exiftool -all= -comment='lonely' dst.jpg — Delete all then add comment.
• exiftool -all= --jfif:all dst.jpg — Delete all except JFIF.
• exiftool -Photoshop:All= dst.jpg — Delete Photoshop metadata.
• exiftool -r -XMP-crss:all= DIR — Recursively delete XMP-crss.
• exiftool '-ThumbnailImage<=thumb.jpg' dst.jpg — Set thumbnail from file.
• exiftool '-JpgFromRaw<=%d%f_JFR.JPG' -ext NEF -r . — Write JPG from raw sidecar.
• exiftool -DateTimeOriginal-='0:0:0 1:30:0' dir — Subtract 1.5 hours from date.
• exiftool -createdate+=3 -modifydate+=3 a.jpg b.jpg — Add 3 hours to timestamps.
• exiftool -AllDates+=1:30 -if '$make eq "Canon"' dir — Shift dates for Canon images.
• exiftool -xmp:city=Kingston image1.jpg image2.nef — Write to XMP group.
• exiftool -LightSource-='Unknown (0)' dst.tiff — Delete LightSource if unknown.
• exiftool -whitebalance-=auto -WhiteBalance=tung dst.jpg — Set WhiteBalance only if previous was Auto.
• exiftool -comment-= -comment='new comment' a.jpg — Write comment only if none exists.
• exiftool -o %d%f.xmp dir — Create XMP sidecar files.
• exiftool -o test.xmp -owner=Phil -title='XMP File' — Create XMP from scratch.
• exiftool '-ICC_Profile<=%d%f.icc' image.jpg — Write ICC_Profile from file.
• exiftool -hierarchicalkeywords='{keyword=one,children={keyword=B}}' — Write structured XMP.
• exiftool -trailer:all= image.jpg — Delete trailer after JPEG EOI.

📋 COPYING EXAMPLES

• exiftool -tagsFromFile src.cr2 dst.jpg — Copy all writable tags.
• exiftool -TagsFromFile src.jpg -all:all dst.jpg — Copy preserving original groups.
• exiftool -all= -tagsfromfile src.jpg -exif:all dst.jpg — Erase all then copy EXIF.
• exiftool -exif:all= -tagsfromfile @ -all:all -unsafe bad.jpg — Rebuild EXIF from scratch.
• exiftool -Tagsfromfile a.jpg out.xmp — Copy to XMP data file.
• exiftool -tagsFromFile a.jpg -XMP:All= -ThumbnailImage= -m b.jpg — Copy all, delete XMP and thumbnail.
• exiftool -TagsFromFile src.jpg -title -author=Phil dst.jpg — Copy title and set author.
• exiftool -TagsFromFile a.jpg -ISO -TagsFromFile b.jpg -comment dst.jpg — Copy from multiple sources.
• exiftool -tagsfromfile src.jpg -exif:all --subifd:all dst.jpg — Copy EXIF excluding SubIFD.
• exiftool '-FileModifyDate<DateTimeOriginal' dir — Set file modification date from metadata.
• exiftool -TagsFromFile src.jpg '-xmp:all<all' dst.jpg — Copy all to XMP format.
• exiftool '-Description<${FileName;s/\.[^.]*$//}' dir — Set Description from filename.
• exiftool -@ iptc2xmp.args -iptc:all= a.jpg — Convert IPTC to XMP.
• exiftool -tagsfromfile %d%f.CR2 -r -ext JPG dir — Copy from CR2 to JPG.
• exiftool '-keywords+<make' image.jpg — Add camera make to keywords.
• exiftool '-comment<ISO=$exif:iso Exposure=${shutterspeed}' dir — Set comment from multiple tags.
• exiftool -TagsFromFile src.jpg -icc_profile dst.jpg — Copy ICC_Profile.
• exiftool -TagsFromFile src.jpg -all:all dst.mie — Copy all to MIE file.
• exiftool -o dst.mie -all:all src.jpg — Same as above but won't overwrite existing.

📁 RENAMING EXAMPLES

• exiftool -filename=new.jpg dir/old.jpg — Rename file.
• exiftool -directory=%e dir — Move files into directories named by extension.
• exiftool '-Directory<DateTimeOriginal' -d %Y/%m/%d dir — Move into date-based hierarchy.
• exiftool -o . '-Directory<DateTimeOriginal' -d %Y/%m/%d dir — Copy instead of move.
• exiftool '-filename<%f_${model;}.%e' dir — Add camera model to filename.
• exiftool '-FileName<CreateDate' -d %Y%m%d_%H%M%S%%-c.%%e dir — Rename by CreateDate.
• exiftool -r '-FileName<CreateDate' -d %Y-%m-%d/%H%M_%%f.%%e dir — Rename and move into date directories.
• exiftool '-FileName<${CreateDate}_$filenumber.jpg' -d %Y%m%d -ext jpg . — Set filename from CreateDate and FileNumber.

🌍 GEOTAGGING EXAMPLES

• exiftool -geotag track.log a.jpg — Geotag using DateTimeOriginal.
• exiftool -geotag t.log -geotime='2009:04:02 13:41:12-05:00' a.jpg — Geotag at specific time.
• exiftool -geotag log.gpx '-xmp:geotime<createdate' dir — Geotag with XMP tags.
• exiftool -geotag a.log -geosync=-20 dir — Account for time offset.
• exiftool -geotag a.log -geosync=1.jpg -geosync=2.jpg dir — Linear drift correction from two images.
• exiftool -geotag a.log '-geotime<${createdate}+01:00' dir — Specify timezone.
• exiftool -geotag= a.jpg — Delete geotag-added GPS tags.
• exiftool -xmp:geotag= a.jpg — Delete XMP GPS tags.
• exiftool -xmp:geotag=track.log a.jpg — Geotag with XMP tags.
• exiftool -geotag a.log -geotag b.log -r dir — Combine multiple track logs.
• exiftool -geotag 'tracks/*.log' -r dir — Read all logs from directory.
• exiftool -p gpx.fmt -d %Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ dir > out.gpx — Generate GPX track log from images.

🔗 PIPING EXAMPLES

• cat a.jpg | exiftool - — Extract info from stdin.
• exiftool image.jpg -thumbnailimage -b | exiftool - — Extract info from thumbnail.
• cat a.jpg | exiftool -iptc:keywords+=fantastic - > b.jpg — Add keyword in pipeline.
• curl -s http://a.domain.com/bigfile.jpg | exiftool -fast - — Extract info from URL.
• exiftool a.jpg -thumbnailimage -b | exiftool -comment=wow - | exiftool a.jpg -thumbnailimage'<=-' — Add comment to thumbnail.

🚦 INTERRUPTING EXIFTOOL

Interrupting with CTRL-C or SIGINT does not cause partially written files or temporary files. ExifTool traps SIGINT, defers it until critical processes complete, then cleans up.

🚪 EXIT STATUS

The exiftool application exits with a status of 0 on success, 1 if an error occurred, or 2 if all files failed the -if condition (for any of the commands if -execute was used).

👤 AUTHOR

Copyright 2003-2022, Phil Harvey. This is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the same terms as Perl itself.

📚 SEE ALSO

• Image::ExifTool(3pm)
• Image::ExifTool::TagNames(3pm)
• Image::ExifTool::Shortcuts(3pm)
• Image::ExifTool::Shift.pl

```

📖 NAME 🚀 Quick Reference 📋 SYNOPSIS 📝 DESCRIPTION ⚙️ OPTIONS 🪟 WINDOWS UNICODE FILE NAMES ✏️ WRITING READ-ONLY FILES 📖 READING EXAMPLES ✏️ WRITING EXAMPLES 📋 COPYING EXAMPLES 📁 RENAMING EXAMPLES 🌍 GEOTAGGING EXAMPLES 🔗 PIPING EXAMPLES 🚦 INTERRUPTING EXIFTOOL 🚪 EXIT STATUS 👤 AUTHOR 📚 SEE ALSO