ucocuj
Level 1 (12 points)
Photos for Mac

Q: Is there a way to automatically rename picture files?

Hello.  I recently imported the photos on my iphone to my macbook.  Then I exported the original files from "Photos" to the Pictures folder.  The problem is the name of each photo doesn't reflect the date that the photo was taken.  Is there an easy way to rename all of these JPEG files to reflect the date?  I'm really hoping that I won't have to manually rename each one because there are over 3,000 photos.  Here's a screenshot in case it's helpful.  Thank you.

 

MacBook Pro (13-inch Mid 2012)

Posted on Jun 10, 2016 11:47 PM

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ucocuj

Q: Is there a way to automatically rename picture files?

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  • by léonie,

    léonie léonie Jun 10, 2016 11:59 PM in response to ucocuj
    Level 10 (105,183 points)
    iLife
    Jun 10, 2016 11:59 PM in response to ucocuj

    When you export originals, you have three options to name the files: The original filename, the title, or a fixed name with a running number.

    Screen Shot 2016-06-11 at 08.53.35GMT.png

     

    If you want to include the date, you first have to add the date to the title of the photo and then export the files using the "Use Title" preset.

    You can use one of the scripts in the User Tip section we posted to make the renaming easier: the user Tips are here:  Photos for Mac

     

    Try for example:   Script: Batch Changing the Title to the Capture Date

    https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-8432

     

    Or Old Toad's modified version:   Batch Change Title to Capture Date-Description-Padded Sequential Number

  • by ucocuj,

    ucocuj ucocuj Jun 11, 2016 12:35 AM in response to léonie
    Level 1 (12 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Jun 11, 2016 12:35 AM in response to léonie

    Thank you for your reply.  I'm afraid that I'm not tech savvy at all and I don't really understand the instructions given.  For instance, what is script editor and where do I find this?  I don't want to inadvertently mess up my computer.  I'm guessing that the only alternative is to manually rename each file.  Is that correct?  Thanks again.

  • by léonie,

    léonie léonie Jun 11, 2016 1:05 AM in response to ucocuj
    Level 10 (105,183 points)
    iLife
    Jun 11, 2016 1:05 AM in response to ucocuj

    The Script Editor.app is utility in the folder Applications > Utilities. It is always installed with OS X.

    Screen Shot 2016-06-11 at 09.42.24GMT.png

    Make a current backup of your Mac, before you try unknown scripts.

    And I would test on a separate Photos Library created just for testing.

    See this help page for how to switch between libraries:  https://help.apple.com/photos/mac/1.0/?lang=en#/pht6d60b524

     

     

     

    To run the script open the Script Editor application, then copy and paste the script into the window.  It should look like this.

    Select a few photos in your Photos Library, then press the run button.

    Screen Shot 2016-06-11 at 10.01.43GM.png

     

    If you should get timeout errors, select less photos.

     

    And yes, Photos has no built-in tools to rename photos.  The scripts are all we have in Photos.

    You could try tools like "A Better Finder" to help with renaming files.

  • by LarryHN,

    LarryHN LarryHN Jun 11, 2016 5:58 AM in response to ucocuj
    Level 10 (84,027 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Jun 11, 2016 5:58 AM in response to ucocuj

    There is no way to automatically rename exported photos to a custom string  using Photos

     

    You can using other software after export - look in the App store or use a web search to see if you can find something that will do you specific job

     

    and you can use Photos to set the name to the photos title - it is possible that you could write (or have written)  a custom to set the title to the desired file and and then use the Photos capability to set the exported file name to the title

     

    LN