Moving Metadata from Hidden Sony field to the UserComment

[jaethomps]

Can you help me with the code for moving metadata info from the hidden Sony field to the usercomment so that I can make this change to an entire folder of images at once?

Thank you so much!

[StarGeek]

What do you mean by "hidden Sony field"?

Use the command in FAQ #3 to get a list of all tags in the file and look for the name of the tag you want to copy. Then you would run a command like this, replacing "TAG" with the name of the tag you found
exiftool "-UserComment<TAG" /path/to/files/

This command creates backup files.  Add -Overwrite_Original to suppress the creation of backup files.  Add -r to recurse into subdirectories.

[jaethomps]

I am using a tool called, Entagged, to write a specific password into each image's metadata so that I can easily upload different images into separate galleries. Having the passwords in each image will tell the software which gallery to upload the image to. The program that I am using to upload can't find the password in the metadata. I was told from Entagged that, "Sony writes the data to a hidden EXIF field, which most exif readers can't see..." and that I would have to "use exiftool and read the hidden exif field with the -u parameter like this:   exiftool -u -n -Sony_0x2043 ~/Downloads/DSC05209.JPG"

I typed the code in that was given to me above and it responded with the correct password.

% exiftool -u -n -Sony_0x2043 /Volumes/T7/Winhawks\ Boys\ Tennis\ 25/ALL\ IMAGES/JTP06754.JPG
Sony 0x2043                     : zyyqaudx

I don't know what part of the metadata that it found the password. I am trying to figure out the next step in the process for moving that password from where ever it currently is to the usercomment section - preferably as a one-step click for all files and all of their own individual passwords.

I am new to all of this and most of it is going over my head. Feel free to talk to me like I am 5. haha! Thanks! I really appreciate your help!

[StarGeek]

Try replacing "TAG" in my example command with Sony_0x2043 and add the -u (-unknown) option. Also see my previous comment about backup files and recursing. Replace /path/to/files/ with any number of individual file paths and directory paths.

exiftool -u "-UserComment<Sony_0x2043" /path/to/files/

I was told from Entagged that, "Sony writes the data to a hidden EXIF field, which most exif readers can't see..."

It's not that it can't be seen, it's that most programs will ignore it because it is unknown. Security through obscurity. The password will be totally visible if the file is looked at with a hex editor.

I don't know what part of the metadata that it found the password.

It is in a group that is called MakerNotes. MakerNotes are proprietary tags that are unique to each camera manufacturer. They are usually embedded in the EXIF data, but are not actual EXIF data.

[jaethomps]

That worked!! Thank you so much for all of the info!!