How to add metadata to files

Published by on May 6, 2019May 6, 2019

One file at a time:

Select one file that you would like to add metadata to. Open the editor either by clicking on the Metadata button shown at the top of this topic, or by using the shortcut key Ctrl+T (Command–T on the Mac).

The metadata editor opens with the default editor. Note that there are several editors available. If you want to select a different editor (each editor has a different layout and may contain different metadata fields), choose your favorite by clicking on the File menu and then choosing the Select editor menu option.) You can also customize the editors or create a new editor to fit your needs. See the Choosing Metadata Editor topic for more information on using different editors.

Add text in the desired field. If you are happy with the text changes you made, click on the OK button. If you change your mind, click on the Cancel button to avoid saving the changes.

Note that it is possible to add text to more than one file using this method. Select the files you would like to add text to. Open the editor as described above. Add the required metadata to the first file. You can now choose between the following options:

• Click on the OK button. The text is saved and the editor will open once more, enabling you to add new metadata to the next file.
• Click on the Cancel button. The text change is not saved. The metadata editor will open with text for the next file.
• Click on the Cancel All button. The text is not changed for the currently open file and editing of the remaining files is aborted.

Many files at the same time:

 Sometimes you may want to add the same metadata to several files. For images, this could for example be adding information such as where the images were captured, caption and copyright information. This can easily be done by using the Add to selected files option found on FotoStation’s Metadata menu:

1. Select the files that you would like to add information to. Select more than one file by clicking on the first file in a range, then Shift-clicking on the last file, or by holding down the Ctrl key (Command key on the Mac) and clicking on each file that you would like to add text to.
2. Click on the Metadata menu and select the Add text to selected files option (shortcut key Shift+Ctrl+T on Windows and Shift–Command–T on the Mac) from the menu. A new window will open.
3. In this window you must select how the text you enter should be handled if any of the fields that you insert new text into already contain some text. You can choose between deleting previously entered text (Replace the existing text) and adding new text after any previously entered text (Append new text to existing text). Click on the OK button.
4. The metadata editor will open. Notice that all text fields appear to be empty and that the preview area in the editor (provided that the metadata editor chosen has a preview area) doesn’t show any preview. This is because you are about to add text to several files, in which case it doesn’t make sense to be able to view previously added text or previews of the files.
5. Type new text into the desired fields. When you are done, click on the OK button to add the inserted text to the selected files. If you decide that you don’t want to change the text after all, click on the Cancel button.