Is there a way to do batch changes in Photos (like we could in iPhoto)?

You can't.

http://www.apple.com/feedback/macosx.html is the place for feature requests and feedback

To batch change the titles of selected photos to the same title you could try a simple Apple Script and run it with Automator.

Create an Automator action, that prompts you for the new title and executes an Apple Script to change the titles to the name you entered:

I put a copy of the finished workflow into my Dropbox, if you want to try it: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/r6kf61oiktntt3q/AADJtXaEuB38OZY0H0PWEIPfa?dl=0

The Apple Script:

on run {input, parameters}

-- batch chnage the title to the input

tell application "Photos"

activate

set imageSel to (get selection)

if imageSel is {} then

error "Please select some images."

else

repeat with im in imageSel

tell im

set the name to input

end tell

end repeat

end if

end tell

return input

end run

Launch Automator,

• create a new service,
• drag a "Ask for Text" action into the workflow.
• drag a "Run Apple Script" action into the workflow.

Copy and paste the text above into the "Run Apple Script" action to replace the default text in the action.

Save this workflow with a suitable name. It will be installed in the services.

• Now quit Photos, if it is running and launch Photos again and select a few test images.
• Open the "Photos" Menu > Services".
• The service should be shown in the menu - I saved my version as "BatchChangeTitles".
• Select the service to let it run.
• You will be prompted to enter a new title for the selected photos.
• When you click the selected photos again, the titles should change.

.

How would you modify the script to put a sequential number at the end, i.e. - 001, - 002, etc.?

And to get the file name and use it?

Like this:

I'd add a variable "counter" that will be incremented for each new file. then append this counter to the filename (the "&" operator appends strings and converts numbers to strings)

tell application "Photos"

activate

set imageSel to (get selection) -- get a list of selected images

set counter to 1

set currentfilename to ""

if imageSel is {} then

error "Please select an image."

else

repeat with im in imageSel

set title to the name of im

if not (exists (title)) then

set currentfilename to the filename of im as text -- retrieve the filename of image "Im"

set newname to currentfilename & "." & counter

set counter to counter + 1 -- increment the counter

set the name of im to newname -- write the newname to the title field

end if

end repeat

end if

return currentfilename -- return the filename of the last image

end tell

The spellchecker is continually corrupting the code😟 I hope, I found all "corrections"

léonie:

I get this error when running the script:

error "The variable newsman is not defined." number -2753 from "newsman"

What is newsman

Yes, that spellchecker can do make some awful messes at times.

I put a link to the original source in my Dropbox:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/a0qj8znhoan0pn1/filename2titlewithnumber.scpt?dl=0

😁 the newsman was not the worst! The spellchecker changed all variable names and changed the name "im" to "I'm"

That took care of the error and adds the file name to the Title field. If there's already a title showing it will not replace it.

Thanks so much.

It didn't for me either so I had Automator or Applescript create an application which I put in the Scripts folder that is accessible from the menu bar.

Works as advertised this way.

Did you check, if it installed in your user library in the Services folder?

~/Library/Services/BatchChangeTitles.workflow

Once installed, restart Photos. You may need to restart the system as well.

Does the service run, when you launch it from Automator?

Check the header in Automator.

Works as advertised this way.

I see you have already a nice collection!

Perhaps I should make a Photos version of my Aperture script, that sets the time of all selected selected photos to the same date, and increments it by a fixed step for each photo, like iPhotos batch change time does. I use that script mainly for scanned slides.

In the fragment, that you posted the first line "on run {input, parameters}" is missing, so the variable "input" in the last line "return input" is undefined.

What are you trying to do?

That looks now like a mixture of the first script I posted, to change the title to string, that is read from a user input,

and the second script, that I posted in answer to old Toad's question about setting the title to the filename.

Which of the two batch changes do you want to do?