appending metadata with iview, different file types

[thorirv]

hello

i'm in the process of getting my img collection up to date (with a somewhat out of date cataloging software) and need some advice on a little something.

to append metadata (author, copyright and contact info and such), i want to create a temp catalog with iview to append this info all at once (to save me from going through all the folders with bridge). i've figured out that i can do this by entering the info i need (actually by choosing the bridge template), and choose action/sync annotation, which in the case of jpegs (and, i suppose, other non-sidecar based formats) writes the info to the file. in any case the information now shows up in bridge, so it seems to have done what i wanted it to do.

however, in the case of my raw files (nikon nefs), it apparantly writes some of the fields in the iptc core, but only some of them. of the fields i use, it only writes to nefs instructions, and copyright notice, and leaves all the other fields empty. it does not write a sidecar file, and the nef file shows it has been modified. so i was wondering, as i thought nefs were pretty much inaccessible by third party software (when it comes to writing to them that is), if some fields in the iptc core were in fact accessible, but not all? (or if nefs contained a different format for metadata?). and as a side thought, and probably a much more important one, would i possibly be ruining the nef by accessing/writing to it with iview, that is, its accessability for other apps (raw processors mostly). fwiw, acr doesn't seem to have any trouble with it, but i'd be curious to know if people had any experience with this.

best i get to the point; the procedure seems to work fine with jpegs (and like i said, i'm assuming it'd work equally well with tiffs and psd's).
what'd be a similarly good approach for raw files?


appreciate all input.

best
thorir v.

[peterkrogh]

Thorir,
This is one of those places where DNG really simplifies the workflow.  A few points:

1. iView writes to NEF with Nikon-supplied libraries. THese should not damage the NEF, to the extent Nikon provides good software.
2. Not all the IPTC core fields are supported by NEF
3. The Mark as Copyrighted field is not supported by iview (bummer)
4. You might consider doing this with Lightroom (even a dem version of Lightroom, if it's a one-time thing).  This can be a tricky process depending on what data made by what application is associated with what files.

DNG makes this as simple as working with JPEGs.
Peter

[roberte]

Hi Thorir,

Newer NEF files support XMP and IPTC Core. Nikon have yet to update their SDK (iView/Expression Media uses) to reflect this. So you can only sync legacy IPTC fields in iView.

-- Robert.

[thorirv]

peter, robert, thanks for replies.

i know, this is of course a grand example, and a case really, for dng conversion. the quick explanation about why i don't, is that it would exclude a world full of wonderful raw processors whose manufacturers still haven't bought adobe's way of doing things. but now i'm talking politics (or religion) so i'd rather not go any deeper into the subject...

i'll probably end up doing the nefs the slow way, in bridge, folder by folder.
(and to make it worse, the raw processor(s) i use the most, don't read the bridge sidecars, so when i've processed the nefs, i need to manually sync metadata with the processed files, be it jpeg, tiff, or dng. but i never said my workflow was clever, i hope ,-)

again, thanks for input. now i know more about the architecture of these things...

best
thorir

[johnbeardy]

Going DNG doesn't necessarily mean throwing away the raw files. I keep a couple of copies and see them as an extra backup in another format.

John

[thorirv]

john, of course not. and personally i'd never do that.

i do convert to .dng btw, only not with the adobe processors. that way i get a file that's corrected for optical distortion as well as CA, plus some other goodies that gets applied to some files and some not. this at the cost of loooong metadata workaround, since that particular raw processor doesn't read .xmp.

guess there isn't such a thing as perfect...

thorir v.