An EXIF file is a form of data storage that provides specific information about photographs, like the camera settings, time and date, and location where a photo was taken. Learn more about the pros and cons of the EXIF format, how you can use it, and more.
What is an EXIF file?
EXIF (Exchangeable Image File Format) files store important data about photographs. Almost all digital cameras create these data files each time you snap a new picture. An EXIF file holds all the information about the image itself — such as the exposure level, where you took the photo, and any settings you used.
This makes it easier to filter photos on your storage device by particular image characteristics. It’s useful for photographers to learn how to read and understand the EXIF format to make cataloging your images easier.
If you see a photo on a website that you want to find out more about, you can often access EXIF data if the website is using the original photograph file. But some people prefer to remove the EXIF file before loading their personal images to a website to protect any personal information, like their GPS location.
You might also encounter audio data like decibel range, bitrate, or mono/stereo information for any video footage in an EXIF file.
History of the EXIF file.
The EXIF first launched in 1995. Created by the Japan Electronic Industries Development Association (JEIDA), this file format initially stored basic metadata (that is, data about other data — in this case, image data) such as date and time information, plus a small thumbnail to view the image in a folder structure.
Over the following decade, more versions were released with additional data features. Almost 30 years later, today’s EXIFs hold a range of image or video metadata — including photo and audio data.
EXIFs borrow much of their file structure from TIFF files. Like TIFFs, EXIFs store image metadata, but their purpose is related to storage and cataloging ease instead of the image editing and manipulation capabilities of TIFFs.
How to use an EXIF file.
Whether you’re a professional or a hobbyist, EXIFs are great documentation tools for photographers. They’re useful in a variety of scenarios, including:
The EXIF file format makes storing and retrieving your photos as easy as possible. EXIFs store metadata — or data about your photos’ image data — so that you can group them based on certain criteria, like GPS location, time and date, or even specific camera settings.
If you see and like a particular photo while surfing the web or viewing a photographer’s digital portfolios, you might be able to request or access that image’s EXIF data. This way, you could discover the photo’s original settings to try to recreate the style yourself. Just make sure to give credit to the original photographer, of course.
Pros and cons of EXIF files.
There are several advantages and disadvantages to the EXIF file format that every photographer should know about.
How to open an EXIF file.
Almost all major operating systems can open an EXIF file. To open in Windows, right-click on the EXIF image file to view its data. Scroll down to Properties and then click on Details.
For macOS, open the photo you want to view in Photos. Then select the Tools dropdown menu at the top of the screen. From there, click Show Inspector. Then select the EXIF data tab to view the recorded information.
How to create and edit an EXIF file.
EXIFs are created automatically by your digital camera when you take photographs. The information saves within your photo’s properties.
To edit an EXIF or hide any information you don’t want others to access, you’ll need a tool that lets you edit and remove image metadata. There are a variety of free and paid tools online that can help you do this.
For example, Adobe Bridge not only lets you edit image metadata, but also lets you choose what information you want displayed or redacted when your photo is published.
Editing image metadata is simple. Just make sure you have the image open in Adobe Bridge. Then select Edit > Preferences, before choosing the metadata dropdown option.
From there, you can edit and remove your metadata options.
EXIF ni aina ya kuhifadhi data ambayo hutoa habari maalum kuhusu picha, kama vile mipangilio ya kamera, tarehe na wakati, na mahali ambapo picha ilichukuliwa. Jifunze zaidi kuhusu faida na hasara za muundo wa EXIF, jinsi unaweza kuutumia, na zaidi. Faili ya EXIF ni nini? Faili za EXIF (Exchangeable Image File Format) huhifadhi data muhimu kuhusu picha. Karibu kamera zote za dijiti hutengeneza faili hizi za data kila mara unapochukua picha mpya. Faili ya EXIF ina habari zote kuhusu picha yenyewe <unk> kama vile kiwango cha mfiduo, ambapo ulichukua picha, na mipangilio yoyote uliyotumia. Hii inafanya kuwa rahisi kuchuja picha kwenye kifaa chako cha kuhifadhi kwa sifa maalum za picha. Ni muhimu kwa wapiga picha kujifunza jinsi ya kusoma na kuelewa muundo wa EXIF ili kufanya orodha ya picha zako iwe rahisi. Ikiwa unaona picha kwenye wavuti ambayo unataka kujua zaidi juu yake, mara nyingi unaweza kupata data ya EXIF ikiwa wavuti inatumia faili ya picha ya awali. Hata hivyo, baadhi ya watu hupendelea kuondoa faili ya EXIF kabla ya kupakia picha zao binafsi kwenye tovuti ili kulinda habari yoyote ya kibinafsi, kama vile eneo lao la GPS. Unaweza pia kukutana na data ya sauti kama vile decibel mbalimbali, bitrate, au mono / stereo habari kwa ajili ya picha yoyote ya video katika faili EXIF. Historia ya faili ya EXIF. Mfumo wa EXIF ulianzishwa mwaka 1995. Kuanzishwa na Japan Electronic Viwanda Development Association (JEIDA), hii muundo wa faili awali kuhifadhiwa metadata ya msingi (yaani, data kuhusu data nyingine - katika kesi hii, picha data) kama vile tarehe na wakati habari, pamoja na thumbnail ndogo ya kuona picha katika muundo folda. Katika muongo uliofuata, matoleo zaidi yalitolewa na vipengele vya ziada vya data. Zaidi ya miaka 30 baadaye, EXIFs ya leo huhifadhi aina ya picha au video metadata, ikiwa ni pamoja na picha na data ya sauti. EXIFs kukopa mengi ya muundo wao faili kutoka faili TIFF. Kama TIFFs, EXIFs kuhifadhi picha metadata, lakini kusudi lao ni kuhusiana na kuhifadhi na cataloging urahisi badala ya picha uhariri na uwezo wa udhibiti wa TIFFs. Jinsi ya kutumia faili ya EXIF. Kama wewe ni mtaalamu au hobbyist, EXIFs ni zana kubwa ya nyaraka kwa wapiga picha. Wao ni muhimu katika hali mbalimbali, ikiwa ni pamoja na: EXIF faili format hufanya kuhifadhi na kupata picha yako rahisi iwezekanavyo. EXIFs kuhifadhi metadata au data kuhusu picha yako, data ya picha, ili uweze kuwakusanya kulingana na vigezo fulani, kama vile eneo la GPS, wakati na tarehe, au hata mipangilio maalum ya kamera. Ikiwa unaona na kama picha fulani wakati wa kutembelea mtandao au kutazama kwingineko za dijiti za mpiga picha, unaweza kuomba au kupata data ya EXIF ya picha hiyo. Kwa njia hii, unaweza kugundua mipangilio ya awali ya picha kujaribu kuunda tena mtindo mwenyewe. Hakikisha tu kutoa sifa kwa mpiga picha wa awali, bila shaka. Faida na hasara za faili za EXIF Kuna faida kadhaa na hasara kwa EXIF faili format kwamba kila mpiga picha wanapaswa kujua kuhusu. Jinsi ya kufungua faili ya EXIF. Karibu mifumo yote kuu ya uendeshaji inaweza kufungua faili ya EXIF. Kufungua katika Windows, right-click juu ya faili ya picha EXIF kuona data yake. Scroll chini kwa Mali na kisha bonyeza Maelezo. Kwa macOS, fungua picha unayotaka kuona katika Picha. Kisha kuchagua zana dropdown orodha juu ya skrini. Kutoka hapo, bonyeza Onyesha Inspekta. Kisha kuchagua EXIF data tab kuangalia taarifa kumbukumbu. Jinsi ya kuunda na kuhariri faili ya EXIF. EXIF huundwa moja kwa moja na kamera yako ya dijiti unapochukua picha. Habari huhifadhiwa ndani ya mali ya picha yako. Kuhariri EXIF au kuficha habari yoyote ambayo hutaki wengine kupata, utahitaji zana ambayo inakuwezesha kuhariri na kuondoa metadata ya picha. Kuna aina mbalimbali za bure na kulipwa zana online ambayo inaweza kukusaidia kufanya hivyo. Kwa mfano, Adobe Bridge haikuruhusu tu kuhariri metadata ya picha, lakini pia hukuruhusu kuchagua ni habari gani unayotaka kuonyeshwa au kuondolewa wakati picha yako inapochapishwa. Uhariri wa metadata ya picha ni rahisi. Tu kuhakikisha una picha wazi katika Adobe Bridge. Kisha kuchagua Hariri > Mapendekezo, kabla ya kuchagua metadata dropdown chaguo. Kutoka hapo, unaweza kuhariri na kuondoa chaguzi zako za metadata.