Are there any apps for OS X that can edit photos metadata (such as keywords, etc.) without all the bells and whistles of full stack photo management apps (such as Lightroom, iPhoto, etc.) with the option of embedding it in the file rather than keeping it in a separate place?
Some more info:
- I want to retain my own folder structure with photos and don’t prefer programs organizing them in their own way and their own place.
- I want to hard code all the metadata in the photos themselves so they are easily portable.
- I want to be able to edit metadata in a batch when necessary
- No command line tools, GUI apps only (thanks, @IconDaemon)
Best Answer
The quintessential photo editor that uses folder structure is Photo Mechanic from Camera Bits - it's a professional workhorse designed for triaging 10,000 photos in a weekend and priced accordingly.
It stores all metadata in the images using industry-standard and cross-platform metadata fields and formats. It's highly automated and highly optimized for speed in rendering images to screen and rapidly moving through images for bulk tagging and classification.
Automator lets you make droplets to bulk edit photos, so you might start with that and move up if you find yourself spending more time or money on making a tool than it would cost to buy a tool.
For an example of the power of automation on OS X - check out this workflow. It explains how to use scripts and photo metadata fields that Finder and OS X support out of the box: