change import date in apple/icloud photos

[autumnst]

hi newb here lol,

i recently imported about 60-70k files to icloud photos on my mac, the metadata is all correct and it displays fine in my full photos library, but since the recents folder is sorted by import date all of these files show up at the bottom and i have to scroll very far back to get to the ~15k photos i had before. i'd like to batch edit the import date of these files on my mac within the photos library (Photos Library.photoslibrary) to match their creation date in their metadata, is this possible with this tool?

if this is possible, my plan is to turn off icloud sync and download all ~200GB of the files to my computer, edit the import dates on my mac photos, delete all files from my icloud library and my phone, and then resync my library so that the changes take effect on my other devices as well.

thanks for your help!

[wywh]

I look at the Imports folder only after an import to check that the number of files imported matches. I have actually not paid any attention to the Recents folder. When importing I select the desired target Album.

I use Photos.app only as a viewer and a means to sync albums to mobile devices. I do not trust it as an archive so I have my main archives in plain folders on two identical HDDs (and also scattered in some close relatives' devices). I have not used iCloud Photos. I edit all metadata outside Photos.app with GraphicConverter 12 and exiftool.

Some snippets from Photos forum, I'd recommend asking about the details there:

https://discussions.apple.com/community/applications-services/photos

"Photos is storing each photo only once, independent of the number of albums where you are seeing the photos. Albums are just referencing the photos in the library. They are like a register with index cards, organizing the photos according to different criteria.

The Recents album is showing you the photos sorted according to the most recent adding to the library. The Imports album is showing the photos sorted according to the import session on that particular device.

The Photos tab is showing the photos sorted according to the capture date, when the photos have been taken. That can differ from the date you import the photos."

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/251046125?answerId=251979620022&sortBy=oldest_first#251979620022

"If it is in the recents folder, then it is also in the library. However the library is sorted by capture date order, and if the capture date is not set (eg if you've imported the image from a scanner - or app that removes the date, or camera with the date set incorrectly) then it won't appear where you expect it to.

To check, right click on the photos in "recents" and then click "show in all photos". That will take you to where the image is in the library."

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/253688327?answerId=256909670022&sortBy=oldest_first#256909670022

Sorting options for the various views in a Photos library:

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/255365536?answerId=259984742022&sortBy=oldest_first#259984742022

See also:

https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-250002750

- Matti

[StarGeek]

I'm not on a Mac so I can't look at what the Photos.app is doing, but "Import date" doesn't sound like something that can be changed on the file, as it sounds like it would be the time stamp that the file was imported into the app.

Test it like this.  Select a file to test and make a copy of it. Import one of the file and take note of the time stamp. Wait a few minutes and import the other.  If the import date is the time you imported the files, then it isn't file metadata, it's a number in the apps database.

Import date shouldn't be something you are sorting on, as there are many other more useful data to sort on. The main use for it would be to find and work on the files you recently added.

[Hubert]

Just to confirm from the opposite end, if you export an image from Photos.app and run

Code Select Expand

exiftool path/to/exported_file.jpeg | grep -i import
Nothing is returned. The file contains no metadata tag of any kind with "import" or "Import" in its name.