Finder no longer shows me image dimensions

Since the same images show dimensions on the RAID but not on the boot SSD, I’d agree this doesn’t look like a simple Finder view setting.

Apple still documents View > Show View Options > Show item info as the setting that displays image dimensions in Icon view, and dimensions should also be available in Finder’s Preview pane. Get file, folder and disk information on Mac – Apple Support (AU)

One useful check: select one of the affected images on the SSD, choose View > Show Preview, then View > Show Preview Options. If the dimensions are missing there too, while the same file copied to the RAID shows them, that would point more toward Finder/metadata handling on that volume than Spotlight indexing.

Since you’ve already rebuilt Spotlight and checked View Options, I wouldn’t keep repeating those steps. I’d also test in a newly created user account before changing anything deeper. If it behaves normally there, that would narrow it to your user environment; if not, it makes a Tahoe issue more likely.

In Terminal, enter this command (you can copy and paste), leave a space, then drag in a file that doesn’t show dimensions. Hit return.

mdls 

If the output doesn’t have dimension data, then the metadata hasn’t been extracted. macOS doesn’t use the raw data embedded in the file in the Preview. It has to import the metadata and index it. A few os versions ago, it stopped importing some file types. If it had already been indexed, the metadata will still be there.

angelann wrote:

Thanks. mdls did not return dimensions but the app Preview does and the same file on my raid shows it so I strongly suspect some sort of spotlight indexing anomaly even though I've completely re-indexed several times. I appreciate all the ideas!

I am absolutely certain that re-indexing won’t help, as it will remove the meta data for existing files that had it before the change happened. Until Apple fixes the MD importer for those file types, the data will be stripped off if you attempt to reimport it. If the data exists for those certain file types, Finder will show the data until you attempt to reimport them, and then it’ll be stripped away. All that assumes the problem was not fixed somewhere in Tahoe.

I don’t know for certain, but I believe Preview actually looks at the embedded tags (EXIF) and not Apple’s metadata.

This is either a bug in macOS Tahoe or Apple decided to change the information shown. It applies to image files and videos. To have Apple consider your feedback, submit it here:

Feedback - macOS - Apple

For example, here's the Get Info window of the same movie file, top is Tahoe and bottom is Sequoia.

Note that as a workaround, you can open the image in Preview or the video in QuickTime Player and use the Inspector (Command-I or View menu > Show Inspector) to view the info that used to be shown in Finder > Get Info.

Have you shut down and restarted?

A SafeBoot Start up your Mac in safe mode - Apple Support will sort many anomalies

Does a quick disk repair before it fully boots up, and certain system caches get cleared and rebuilt, third party system modifications and system accelerations are disabled temporarily.

Login and test. Reboot as normal and test. Caches get rebuilt automatically.

verify your software is up to date—

The current stable release of Tahoe including bug fixes, security updates is macOS 26.6.2

Keep your Mac up to date - Apple Support

Keep your Mac up to date - Apple Support

angelann wrote:

rebuilding the spotlight index, etc., have all failed.

Image dimensions and other metadata aren't displayed on volumes that are not Spotlight-indexed or where Spotlight index is corrupted. So re-try to rebuild Spotlight index.

steve626 wrote:

Barney-15E wrote:

In Terminal, enter this command (you can copy and paste), leave a space, then drag in a file that doesn’t show dimensions. Hit return.

mdls

If the output doesn’t have dimension data, then the metadata hasn’t been extracted. macOS doesn’t use the raw data embedded in the file in the Preview. It has to import the metadata and index it. A few os versions ago, it stopped importing some file types. If it had already been indexed, the metadata will still be there.

I don't understand this. I am using a 2019 MacBook Pro 16" for this. Every jpg (and png etc.) I check shows dimensions in Get Info.

Here is an example.

https://discussions.apple.com/content/attachment/cb484b7e-9241-4d6b-b425-a4e2c0cc1d86

I also just made a brand new different jpg, created today, and it also shows the dimensions in Get Info.

Could this be something that somehow is different on Silicon versus Intel? I am on 26.6.2 on this 2019 MacBook Pro. I will be upgrading to an M5 or M6 MacBook Pro later this year and it would be a shame to lose this information that shows on the "old" Mac but maybe not on the new one?

I don’t understand what you don’t understand.

Several macOS versions ago macOS stopped importing the embedded EXIF (or any tag spec) data for some file types. I have little use for those things, so I did not check if the issue is fixed in Tahoe. I currently have no way to check, either.

angelann wrote:

Thank you! Claude AI had me do this and there is no dimensional data. I've reported this to apple since it doesn't seem like I'm doing anything obviously wrong :). I do appreciate all the help!

I reported it to Apple when it first started, or at least when people started noticing. I have no way to check if Tahoe has fixed the issue. There is at least one thread in here somewhere talking about the issue, but I don’t know if it had any way to resolve the problem without a fix by Apple. The bottom line is Finder only displays the Apple metadata information that it extracts from the file itself. It does not show the embedded data. If you have the files stored on a file system (FAT) that does not support storing metadata alongside the file, then you will see no dimensions. I don’t think that is your problem based on your description, but throwing it out there as a source of where some people might see this.

Barney-15E wrote:

In Terminal, enter this command (you can copy and paste), leave a space, then drag in a file that doesn’t show dimensions. Hit return.

mdls

If the output doesn’t have dimension data, then the metadata hasn’t been extracted. macOS doesn’t use the raw data embedded in the file in the Preview. It has to import the metadata and index it. A few os versions ago, it stopped importing some file types. If it had already been indexed, the metadata will still be there.

I don't understand this. I am using a 2019 MacBook Pro 16" for this. Every jpg (and png etc.) I check shows dimensions in Get Info.

Here is an example.

I also just made a brand new different jpg, created today, and it also shows the dimensions in Get Info.

Could this be something that somehow is different on Silicon versus Intel? I am on 26.6.2 on this 2019 MacBook Pro. I will be upgrading to an M5 or M6 MacBook Pro later this year and it would be a shame to lose this information that shows on the "old" Mac but maybe not on the new one?

Barney-15E wrote:

A few os versions ago, it stopped importing some file types. If it had already been indexed, the metadata will still be there.

I don’t understand what you don’t understand.

Here is what I don't understand. You indicated that several macOS versions ago it stopped importing the embedded EXIF data for some file types. And that if it had already been indexed the metadata would still be there.

What I meant to convey was that I have jpg, png, etc. files created over many years, over many different versions of the macOS. Yet all of them (on my Mac) show the dimensions in Get Info. Including ones created 10 years ago and others created under Tahoe. I was trying to reconcile this with what you said about EXIF data not being imported anymore starting with several macOS version ago.

So I was speculating maybe this works on Intel machines but not Silicon; but the OP indicated that their Silicon machine is ok but it is their Intel machine that won't show her the dimensions. Which contradicts my speculation.

Several macOS versions ago macOS stopped importing the embedded EXIF (or any tag spec) data for some file types. I have little use for those things, so I did not check if the issue is fixed in Tahoe.

For me the issue is not there in Tahoe (26.6.2) but I am on an Intel MacBook Pro.

Could you post a screenshot, so we are seeing the Finder data for an image? What is the file format of your images? Are the RAW images or JPEGs or HEIC or another format?