If you have metadata related to a source image file in a standard metadata format like XMP (Extensible Metadata Platform), then Capture One will automatically reload the metadata and merge the .XMP sidecar file with the metadata already created in Capture One.
Capture One can read metadata in the following four formats: Embedded EXIF, Embedded IPTC-IIM, Embedded XMP, and .XMP sidecar file. Note that only the .XMP sidecar files could be updated (modified).
Please note that there would be the same XMP file for the images with the same name but with different extensions. For instance, ImageName001.NEF and ImageName001.jpg will have the same XMP file ImageName001.XMP. Outside of the XMP sidecar workflow, the metadata adjustments are recorded along with the rest of the adjustments in .cos files (when in a Session) or in the database (when in a Catalog) separately for each source image.
XMP sidecar files
To activate or deactivate the Auto Sync Sidecar XMP option, go to Capture One -> Preferences on macOS or Edit -> Preferences on Windows. Click on the Image tab in the Preferences dialog box.
Then choose one of the three options from the Auto Sync Sidecar XMP drop-down menu in the Metadata section.
- Full Sync will update the XMP sidecar files with any metadata changes or will create the XMP sidecar file if it is not present. Any information in the XMP that is not present in Capture One will be loaded. It is a two-way synchronization.
NOTE: Using Full Sync when working with a large collection of new images can hinder performance. In this situation, it's recommended to use the "manual" sync commands such as Image -> Sync Metadata and Image -> Load Metadata in the main menu. This will achieve the same end result but without the background sync process slowing the processes down. - Load will load the information from any XMP sidecar file into the .cos (session) or cocatalogdb (catalog). It will not update the XMP sidecar file with changes from Capture One. It is a one-way sync.
- None will disable the automatic synchronization. Nevertheless, you will be able to synchronize metadata manually. Click on the corresponding image thumbnail in the Browser and select Load Metadata for loading metadata from the XMP sidecar file or Sync Metadata to perform a two-way synchronization (if there is no XMP sidecar file yet, it will be created).
Selecting the metadata set
Prefer Embedded XMP over Embedded IPTC toggles the preference when the two sets of data are present in the source image file; the legacy IPTC fields or XMP fields. You can find more info on the difference in this article: XMP and IPTC.
Prefer Sidecar XMP over Embedded Metadata toggles the preference between metadata information in sidecar XMP files (in either IPTC or XMP scheme) over the XMP information embedded in the source file.
NOTE: Above all, Capture One will never write metadata to source files; all metadata changes are done via proxy file.
<< Add Getty Images metadata fields | Deleting images and variants in general >>
Comments
23 comments
Thanks Lily for the explanation of Metadata above. I am still unsure of exactly how it works.
Prior to C1, I was a long time Lightroom user and had it set to read and update metadata inside each image so that I didn't have sidecar files. I regularly use standard file managers as well as LR and C1 to manage my media collection and don't want to risk losing a sidecar file along the way.
Can you please tell me how to set the options in the 'Image > Metadata' area to ensure that C1 writes any changes to metadata I make via the 'Metadata' tool into the original file and not to a sidecar file?
Thanks.
Hi Peter,
Thank you for your question.
Capture One applies a non-destructive approach towards source RAW files, so it will not change the embedded metadata in the RAW file. Instead, Capture One can directly perform a two-way synchronization with the XMP sidecar files (if there are any) when the Full Sync option is enabled. It means that in case you open the RAW file in another application, the information from the XMP sidecar file will be loaded (including the metadata information and adjustments data from Capture One). Also, all the metadata applied in Capture One will be embedded in the output files when you process or export those.
Thanks Lily for explaining the process to me. :-)
Thanks Lily for the explanation
I have noted the point for the RAW files.
For jpeg files instead, is it possible to write metadata to the jpeg files or is it the same than for raw ?
I mean to write to the « original » jpeg ?
Hi Jan,
Thank you for the comment.
Yes, the non-destructive approach will work for any type of source files meaning that the metadata embedded in the jpeg can't also be modified (and added) as well.
Hi Lily,
if I understand well, in C1 I can synchronize metadata of raw file, because there is sidecar file = non-destructive changes in original picture/file.
But in case of jpg what exactly happens in C1, when I change metadata, for example, rating and colors tag? I have a workflow with raw and jpg files together, sometimes I use jpg with small correction in editor and if I need to use raw, then I edit raw. But the issue is that the metadata doesn't synchronize to jpg original file .... probably because it is the destructive approach, am I right. Do you have any advice how to manage metadata of jpg - to synchronize them?
thank you in advance.
MN
Hi Martin,
Thank you for the question.
It is basically the same for .jpg files as well. The metadata of the jpg file cannot be changed. The non-destructive approach refers to any supported file type that can be imported in Capture One.
If there are any changes in metadata, they will be recorded in the exported image.
hi, is it possible to export the meta data from C1 as XMP file? i prefer to do the annotations in Media Pro.
Hi Phrank,
When you select Image -> Edit With -> Media Pro from the menu, the file from Capture One will be opened in Media Pro and the adjustments made in Capture One will be saved in the .xmp file.
Hi Lily, thanks for the reply. Just checking. Maybe I’m doing something wrong, but it also creates a JPG, TIFF, or PDS files in the same source folder, which was not my intention to have another extra image file next to the original RAW file. I wanted to move with all my libraries from MediaPro, Aperture and Lightroom to C1 anyway, but prefer to still update or sync meta data.
Hi,
Please note that Capture One cannot modify the RAW source files by changing metadata in them.
Another way is to export an image as an original. In the main menu, select File -> Export Images -> Originals and indicate the needed settings in the Export recipe. Then you will find exported original file (copy of the original file) together with the .xmp file.
Then you will be able to open that file in Media Pro.
For future reference, see these articles when you decide to move libraries from MediaPro, Aperture, and Lightroom.
@Lily thanks for the infos. not what i really looked for, but better than nothing;-) Was almost thinking to keep all the XMP files to be able to update any database – MediaPro, Photo Mechanic, LR… Well if C1 improves a "bit" in DAM iI will move over 100%. It's a great RAW processor, please make it a great DAM tool too.
Hello all.
is there a way to generate XMP sidecars without exporting my raw images?
I would like to generate one XMP file for each of my raw files in my collections.
Thank you for the support
Best regards
@Albert
Well that was my question. seems like "no". Only what Lily has recommended. Not happy with this solution either. can't imagine how to deal this way with 100k+ images. After MediaPro / Aperture’s death and Lightroom "rental only model” i don’t trust much any company any more and prefer to have a XMP exit strategy just in case…
I can only agree.
Hi,
@Phrank / @Albert
"is there a way to generate XMP sidecars without exporting my raw images?"
If you you have "Auto Sync sidecar XMP" option in preferences set to "Full Sync", CaptureOne will automatically generate xmp files for your images. Without doing any exports. Note that there is a performance penalty for that (as wrote in the article).
If you prefer to not have "Full Sync" enabled all the time, you should be able to generate XMP files manually for your images: right click on an image and "Sync Metadata". Also no need to export the images.
I hope that is what you're looking for :)
@Tomasz,
thanks for this info. shame on me haven't tried this yet. yes that’s what i was searching for. just a little bit confusing how all the meta data sync works best. was thinking to import all xmp created by aperture, lightroom, capture one, clean up everything in media pro and sync it back to have it all properly after in any catalog or database.
Thank you very much for your support
Much appreciated
Hi Albert,
I sympathise with your difficulties in managing the metadata in a large photo collection and like Phrank am looking for a way to make my collection and metadata truely free from being locked to any software company.
There is a little app that may be of use which will extract metadata to a file in a slew of formats. It is called 'Nifty File Lists' by Frank Reiff and can access a mind boggling list of metadata. Unfortunately it can't write Metadata back to files. The only way I know of doing this is via a Lightroom plugin called LR/Transporter.
Hope this helps.
Cheers
Hi, thanks for the input. In the moment I’m testing the XMP workflow with five programs. C1, Photo Mechanic +, MediaPro and @Aperture and Lightroom give me your meta data as XMP and RIP;-)
@Peter Johnson
Thank you very much for the tip. I will keep it in mind.
Currently I have found that the best approach for what I want is to delete any existing XMP file of my library, do the keywording in C1 and sync metadata. In this way C1 generates a new XMP file by itself without having to export the original files. I just want to have my metadata in an external XMP file that could be read by other software.
Now I need to find a solution for my videoclips that in C1 are not properly managed.
Best regards from Barcelona, Spain
@ Albert
I am in just the same situation as you because probably more than half my 100k photo/clip collection are movies taken on a lot of video cameras since 1991. After many attempts, I think I have finally found a solution that works for me, stores the info I need in a universally readable way AND I am not tied to any particular App or company.
C1 is simply not made to manage a videoclip collection but there is another app called ACDSee which does a good job. If you would like to discuss, I hope I can be of some help.
Please sign in to leave a comment.