A graphics design artist using Adobe Photoshop on a Mac.
Kaspars Grinvalds/Shutterstock.com

A photo's metadata is the information embedded in the file that tells y'all (or your computer) about it. It includes things similar when a photo was taken, what photographic camera and settings it was taken with, the resolution of the image, and who took it (copyright metadata).

How Epitome Files Go Metadata

Some of this metadata, such equally information most the lens you used, is added automatically by your camera. However, other pieces of metadata, such as data about when a file was last opened, are kept up to date by your computer.

But you tin besides add some of import $.25 of metadata yourself, such as copyright information and contact details. Here's how to do it in Adobe Photoshop.

How to View a Photograph's Metadata in Photoshop

Open the photo that you want to edit in Photoshop and get to File > File Info. (You lot can also utilise the keyboard shortcut Control-Alt-Shift-I on a Windows PC or Command-Choice-Shift-I on a Mac.)

image info option highlighted

This will bring up the file information window.

To add together or edit something, click on information technology and beginning typing. When y'all're done, click "OK."

Note: Non all metadata is editable. Some things, like the camera that was used or the date upon which the file was created, are automatically set.

file information window

The metadata is described using a standard called XMP. It's split into 12 categories in the left sidebar, although not all of them are relevant to images. They are as follows:

  • Basic is some of the most important metadata, similar the file's writer, the copyright status, and the copyright information.
  • Camera Data is all of the information about the image added by the camera.
  • Origin is data virtually when the original piece of work was created. For example, if I scanned a celebrated photo today, information technology would have a file creation date of 2021. However, the original photograph is obviously much older.
  • IPTC and IPTC Extension are the International Press Telecommunications Council's metadata standards. This is used to add information about and categorize news, stock, and other professional person photographs.
  • GPS Data is information nearly exactly where an image was taken.
  • Audio Information and Video Data are only relevant for those particular file types. They're things similar artist, anthology, and frame rate.
  • Photoshop is an optional (and rarely used) log of the edits made to a file.
  • DICOM is medical metadata like patient name and file number.
  • AEM Backdrop is things related to an Adobe enterprise service. It's not relevant to photographers.
  • Raw Data enables you to see the raw XMP structure with all of the metadata that's embedded in the file.

What Metadata Should I Add?

OK, so in that location'southward a lot of metadata categories bachelor, but not many of them are relevant to photographers—some aren't even editable. My lovely photograph of a cow, for case, doesn't need the same metadata categories as an x-ray.

Well-nigh photo metadata either tells other people who created the file and other data about information technology—or makes it easier for yous to search and sort things. Some of the data worth adding is equally follows:

  • In Basic, add your name to "Author," under "Copyright Status," select "Copyrighted," and add your website or contact details to "Copyright Observe." This will list the file equally copyrighted anywhere that supports metadata. Y'all can also utilise this to release your piece of work nether a Artistic Commons license.
  • In Basic, add data virtually the photo to "Rating," "Clarification," and "Keywords" that you want to use to sort it. Apps like Adobe Bridge, Adobe Photoshop Lightroom, and other file browsers volition be able to read information technology and enable you to filter by them.
  • If you want to proceed your family photos incredibly well sorted or bundled like a peachy archive, fill in every bit much of the data in Origin as is relevant.
  • If you want to sell your images to news organizations or through stock photograph sites, or otherwise release them professionally, fill up in as much of the IPTC and IPTC Extension sections every bit you can.

copyright metadata

Does the Metadata Stay with the File?

Metadata stays embedded in a file—unless y'all, or someone else, removes it. Even when you change a file type, say, by converting a RAW image file to a Photoshop file, it will be conserved. If y'all upload it to your website and someone downloads it, they'll exist able to read information technology all using Photoshop or another app.

Nevertheless, some metadata is regularly stripped by social media sites, file storage apps, and other web services. Some go along the photographic camera information, but others, like Instagram, strip everything, including copyright details.

In that location's besides a example to be made for removing metadata earlier uploading your images, as it can place y'all or your subjects. The Export As feature in Photoshop (File > Export > Export As), for example, gives y'all the option to either embed "Copyright and Contact Info," or no metadata at all.

Personally, I like to leave copyright information embedded in my images. Even if it does get stripped at some point, information technology's a minor gesture toward maintaining ownership of my photos.

metadata removal options