How to keep shooting date as creation date when exporting

[berithillnc]

Lightroom Version Number

Lightroom Classic 11.4

Operating System

1. macOS 12 Monterey

I’m fairly new to LR and started to export pictures after editing so I can easily share them from the finder without having to use LR. Now I noticed by default, the create date is the export date not the original shooting date I took the picture. I do select to keep the meta data, but the finder only has the option for sorting by creation date and I also want the person on the other end to have the correct creation date. Is there a way to choose what date is used when exporting? Thank you!

 

[Jim Wilde]

The "Created" date in Apple Finder refers to the time/date that the jpeg export file was created (i.e. the time that you did the export), it does not relate to the date that the image was initially captured. In fact, Apple makes it frustratingly difficult to view the capture date, even using "Get Info" doesn't show it. The only place I can see the capture date using Finder (which it calls the "Content Created" date) is to use the Gallery view, then in the right-hand Information display panel click on the "Show More" button and you should then see that field.

If the person on the other end uses Windows, however, they will find that the File Explorer is much better at displaying the capture date.

 

[berithillnc]

The "Created" date in Apple Finder refers to the time/date that the jpeg export file was created (i.e. the time that you did the export), it does not relate to the date that the image was initially captured. In fact, Apple makes it frustratingly difficult to view the capture date, even using "Get Info" doesn't show it. The only place I can see the capture date using Finder (which it calls the "Content Created" date) is to use the Gallery view, then in the right-hand Information display panel click on the "Show More" button and you should then see that field.

If the person on the other end uses Windows, however, they will find that the File Explorer is much better at displaying the capture date.

Thanks so much! So there is no way to choose the keep the original created date when exporting then?

 

[johnrellis]

So there is no way to choose the keep the original created date when exporting then?

There is no way with built-in LR commands to set an exported file's Date Created from the capture date recorded in the original photo's metadata.

However, the Metadata Wrangler plugin will optionally set the exported file's Date Modified (but not Date Created) to the capture date recorded in the photo's metadata. That would allow you to sort exported files in Finder by their capture dates. You could ask the author of Metadata Wrangler to add an option to set the file's Date Created as well, which should be easy for him to implement.

Alternatively, you could use the Run Any Command plugin to run the free Exiftool utility (which is used by Metadata Wrangler) to set the file's Date Created. See this post for a hint about the correct command-line magic spell:
https://exiftool.org/forum/index.ph...de41eb21194f9e03&topic=5007.msg24088#msg24088

Alternatively alternatively, you could use the A Better Finder Attributes utility to set the Date Created from the capture date recorded in the photo's EXIF fields.

A huge caveat: Relying on files' Date Created and Date Modified for a workflow is quite fragile. Too many programs and utilities, including some from Apple itself, won't preserve those fields in the way you'd like. That's why the photo industry long ago decided to encode the capture date inside the photo's metadata.

 

[Philippe Coudé du Foresto]

The file is a container whereas the image is the content inside the container. They are 2 different objects and as such have with their own metadata.
The file is is a computer thing. It's creation date is set by the OS when this object is created, in your case when you did the export. (Note that some OS have up to 8 different dates in the file metadata :Creation date, Copy From date, Copy To date, Modified date, Backup date, Moved date etc.). Unfortunately not MacOS nor Windows !
The image, OTOH, has also a creation date which is the capture date, when the image has been created by your camera.
Having at export the file creation date set to the image capture date wouldn't be coherent. (This doesn't mean you may not have good reason to do so...)

 

[prbimages]

Given the above answers, you might like to rethink your export process. It is possible to rename your files as they are exported - for example, you could rename them according to a template YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS_SequenceNo, in which case Finder can simply show the files in alphabetical order, which will then be the same as shooting date.

 

[clee01l]

In fact, Apple makes it frustratingly difficult to view the capture date, even using "Get Info" doesn't show it. The only place I can see the capture date using Finder (which it calls the "Content Created" date) is to use the Gallery view, then in the right-hand Information display panel click on the "Show More" button and you should then see that field.

The easiest place to see the Capture Date is using the Preview app to view the image and the Inspector tool. There is is found in the EXIF tab and called "Date Time Original" Apple treats Image files as any other data file in Finder and uniquely in the (image) Preview app.

 

[GregJ]

This is interesting.
The capture date is always in the metadata of the raw file because I always see it in LR no matter what. It is also in the exported JPEG Exif and metadata info.

JPEGs? I create them from LR, use them how I want (like email, posting to Flickr, etc.), then I delete them. The raw of course is permanently stored.
However, that said, I want the capture date to be in the metadata of the exported jpeg because I want to be able to see that on my Flickr jpeg. You always want to know the date-time of capture no matter what kind of file you are viewing. No one cares when the jpeg was created from the raw. What matters is capture and when the raw file was digitized. But the date of jpeg creation is there too, along with any modifications.

Here is a paste from the EXIF of a full-size JPEG I posted to Flickr (exported from LR). There is all kinds of date and time data from capture and jpeg creation and modifications dates. Here is one from a shot I took in Sicily on 30 May.

• Make - LEICA CAMERA AG
• Software - Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Classic 11.3.1 (Windows)
• Date and Time (Modified) - 2022:06:01 10:19:36
• Artist - Greg Johnson
• Copyright - Greg Johnson
• ISO Speed - 50
• Exif Version - 0231
• Date and Time (Original) - 2022:05:30 13:18:33
• Date and Time (Digitized) - 2022:05:30 13:18:33
• Offset Time - +02:00
• Offset Time Original - -06:00
• Offset Time Digitized - -06:00
• Date Created - 2022:05:30
• Time Created - 13:18:33-06:00
• Digital Creation Date - 2022:05:30
• Digital Creation Time - 13:18:33-06:00
• Title - Sicily - Parco Naturale della Madonie (Madonie Mountains) - Petralla Soprano - May 2022
• Lens Model - SUMMILUX 1:1.7/28 ASPH.
• Lens Info - 28mm f/1.53125-2.97265625
• Creator Tool - Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Classic 11.3.1 (Windows)
• Metadata Date - 2022:06:01 10:19:36+02:00