Sort by the date the photo was taken

[SoCu]

Hi, I'm not sure if you've already commented on this in a previous post, but I haven't been able to find it to respond there.

I'm wondering if anyone can explain how to configure the settings so that photos are sorted by the date and time they were taken.

When I sort the photos in Windows Explorer by the date they were taken on the camera, the order is different from what appears in XnView. I’m trying out several of the options in the settings.



And I’m just making a bigger mess of it, because I’m changing the date values in the files to see if I can get them to sort the same way they do in Windows Explorer. The order I want is based on the date and time the photo was taken on the camera.

How can I achieve this?

Thanks.

[jkm]

I'm wondering if anyone can explain how to configure the settings so that photos are sorted by the date and time they were taken.

If you are a native Spanish speaker, then it would seem the Spanish translation in the app is not as good as it should be. Perhaps a better translation might be "Fecha de toma"? What is the option that you're using in Windows Explorer labeled as in Spanish? Since you posted in English, I can't be sure how you think "Date Taken" should be expressed in Spanish.

Date Taken is the 5th option on the menu, which shows in your screenshot as "Fecha de captura EXIF". If you change the app language to English (temporarily) you will see that menu option becomes "EXIF Date Taken"

Generally in the digital photography industry "Date Taken" and "Date Captured" mean the same thing and are used interchangeably. So "Capture Date" or "Date of Capture" in Spanish should be an adequate translation, if not customary.

And I’m just making a bigger mess of it, because I’m changing the date values in the files to see ...

Don't do that. You should leave the EXIF information the camera set unmodified, unless you know for certain that the date on your camera was set wrong.

Hopefully this helps...

[SoCu]

Hi jmk, yes, I speak Spanish, and the program is in Spanish. Based on what you said about changing the text to “Date taken” or “Capture date,” I think it would be much easier to understand and wouldn’t leave any room for doubt.

I posted in English because I see that the entire forum is in English, except for a section in French. If I write in Spanish, it’s very likely that the developers won’t understand my question, and I’ll get fewer responses.

In Windows Explorer, I just click on the date column, and it sorts them by date and time, displaying them in the order the photos were taken.

In XnView, I suppose it would be the modification date, but I don’t think that’s quite right, the photo hasn’t been modified. That date would apply if I opened the photo in an editing program, edited it, and saved it again; only then would it be the modification date.

[jkm]

Hi jmk, yes, I speak Spanish, and the program is in Spanish. Based on what you said about changing the text to “Date taken” or “Capture date,”

But this is a question of translation. If you don't post the exact words that you want to see, in the native language, how do we know what you want to see? Here, you've again said "Date Taken" or "Capture Date" in English, so that tells us nothing.

So again: how do you think "Date Taken" should be written in Spanish? Say it in Spanish. If you're running your post through a translator, paste the Spanish words in directly.

In Windows Explorer, I just click on the date column, and it sorts them by date and time, displaying them in the order the photos were taken.

That will often work, but Windows Explorer has a specific column for Date Taken. Right Click on the column header in Explorer to get the dialog to add new columns, and you should see a specific column for date taken. Tell us what it's called in Spanish. The XnViewMP app should probably match Windows' translation.


Anyway, I assume your sorting problem is now resolved. You didn't say one way or the other.

[SoCu]

-> Fecha de la toma

Earlier, I mentioned the two terms “date taken” and “capture date.” I thought a photo was either “taken” or “captured”, I thought they meant the same thing.

In the Windows file explorer, when I sort them by the “date” column, the other two have different dates and times, I don’t know why, and that’s what’s confusing me.
The photos were taken on the same day, one after the other, as you can see from the time, but in the other two columns, they show different dates and times.

[jkm]

Yes, taken and captured usually mean the same thing. But you’re showing none of those columns in your new screenshot, and you didn’t follow my recommendation from before. Captured is not the same as Created or Creation.

The problem is that you don’t understand metadata, or what Explorer is showing you.

Creation Date and Modification Date refer exclusively to the file that is sitting on your computer. They have nothing to do with the Exif metadata your camera recorded. Those are timestamps generated by your computer’s filesystem.

The “Date” column in Windows is special, and tries to show you the most relevant date.

I told you before how to add the Date Taken column in Explorer. Go in there and look at all the different date-related columns you can add. Maybe you should try adding the column as I suggested. If you looked at that, things might be more clear to you.

I suggest you do a google search to find a Spanish-language article that explains all the different date-related fields and what they mean, and how dates work in Windows Explorer.

FYI, Pierre will change the “date taken” translation as we discussed above, so you should see that in the next release.

[SoCu]

Thanks for the translation.

I'm not sure if this is the column you want to see in the Windows browser “Capture Dates”, but it shows the same date as the “Date” column.



I’m trying to change, or rather, add, the capture date to some files, but I can’t seem to do it. I don’t know if XnView can change the capture date for MP4 videos and PNG files. Those PNG files are extracted from the video, and none of them show the capture date.

[jkm]

Thanks... So it would seem Windows uses the term "Date Captured" in Spanish instead of "Date Taken". In English it uses "Date Taken".

I understand you to mean "Fecha de la toma" is the more accurate translation, but "Fecha de captura" is what agrees with Windows.

So you have it a bit backwards: It is "Fecha" that agrees with "Fecha de captura", not the other way around. Windows will change what you see in the Date (Fecha) column based on the type of file. For image files with Exif, it will try to use "Date Taken"/"Fecha de captura" if the field is available. In other words, "Fecha de captura" has precedence for image files.

XnViewMP does not do much with Video metadata I'm afraid You will have to add the capture/taken date to the images once you have extracted the files. You can use either Metadata->Edit Exif or Metadata->Add/Replace Metadata to do that. You can act on multiple files at once.

If you want an application that works perfectly with Video metadata, you will have to find another app. Exiftool can do it from the command line.


More importantly, regarding the translation:

Which do you think is less confusing for a native Spanish speaker?
-For the XnViewMP translation to be more correct (Fecha de la toma) OR
-For the XnViewMP translation to agree with what users see in Windows Explorer (Fecha de captura)

It's one or the other; it can't be both.

[SoCu]

I think it might be more accurate to say: Fecha de captura

I tried adding the missing date to the MP4 and PNG files using “Attribute Changer,” but I couldn't add it either.

[xnview]

so "Fecha de la toma" or "Fecha de captura"

[SoCu]

"Fecha de captura"

[jkm]

So again: how do you think "Date Taken" should be written in Spanish? Say it in Spanish.

-> Fecha de la toma

so "Fecha de la toma" or "Fecha de captura"

"Fecha de captura"

Ok, well that seems to be the opposite of what you thought before. The app already does say "Fecha de captura" and you were confused and didn't understand it. That's how this this thread started.

So would you mind explaining what you want, and why, so there will be no more misunderstanding?

[SoCu]

The translator is giving me some confusing results; sometimes I want to point it out, because it doesn’t seem to understand what I’m saying.

I mentioned that “Capture Time” and “Capture Date” could mean the same thing.

When you asked again, I said that… I think it would be more accurate to say: “Capture Date”

When Pierre asked again, I just wrote “Capture Date”

So, if that’s okay with you, I’d like “Capture Date.”

And why? Well, I understand that what a camera does is capture the image, so I think the correct translation would be “Capture Date.”

I didn’t want to go on too long or give explanations, but let’s see if it’s clear now; if not, I’ll have to switch translators, hehe.

[jkm]

So, if that’s okay with you, I’d like “Capture Date.”

Ok then.

And why? Well, I understand that what a camera does is capture the image, so I think the correct translation would be “Capture Date.”

I didn’t want to go on too long or give explanations, but let’s see if it’s clear now; if not, I’ll have to switch translators, hehe.

You will have to switch translators. Because as I said, the app ALREADY says "Capture Date", which is why you were confused, which is why this entire thread exists. So now you're asking for what you had at the beginning.

Look at your first post: you ask how to sort by Date Taken, and "Fecha de captura" is right there in your screenshot, and you did not understand. Why you reversed yourself is not clear, but it doesn't matter any more.

So it's clear the app should be left as it is, and there was no point to any of this.

Good luck to you in the future...

[SoCu]

When I view the list, the “Capture Date” option appears, but the values in the properties change. What is the difference between the creation date and time and the recording date and time? They show different times, and I'm not sure if these two options also refer to the “Capture Date,” because I understand that if they are the same date, they should have the same time.



And since you can't change the date and time of the videos, is that because of a problem with XnView, or is it that you can't change the metadata of the videos?