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Original date on edited photo

How do i have the “photo’s original date taken” remain on an edited photo as the default?


I know can go into each photo individually to change this, but I would like it to always be set to have the original date taken as a default so i don’t have to go in manually to change.

Posted on May 30, 2023 8:12 AM

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Posted on Jun 1, 2023 11:30 AM

As others have said, the Finder shows the date the file was created, which makes sense. Nonetheless, the picture still contains the capture date in its metadata, and other photo programs will display that date. If you load the picture into Preview, for instance, you'll see the capture date.


But if you want the capture date to be used by Finder, you can use a 3rd party app to change the file date. I use GraphicConverter ($40) to batch copy the capture date to the file date for entire folders of images.

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Jun 1, 2023 11:30 AM in response to Emflats

As others have said, the Finder shows the date the file was created, which makes sense. Nonetheless, the picture still contains the capture date in its metadata, and other photo programs will display that date. If you load the picture into Preview, for instance, you'll see the capture date.


But if you want the capture date to be used by Finder, you can use a 3rd party app to change the file date. I use GraphicConverter ($40) to batch copy the capture date to the file date for entire folders of images.

May 31, 2023 7:47 AM in response to léonie

Thanks for your response. I included an example of what I am referring to...The original photo has the date taken, then the two edited versions have the date the photo was edited. I would like to have the date taken on the edited version. I believe I can go in manually and change the date, but I would rather have the save date on the edited version stay as the date taken. I'm trying to sort the edited photos...but it takes the date edited instead. Anyway around this? I have my watermark versions of photos in one album and I'm trying to sort them...they get sorted by edited date so they are all mixed up.


Thanks for any responses.


May 30, 2023 9:46 AM in response to Emflats

Are you referring to the file date as seen by the Finder? It will always be different from date the image was taken whenever the file is moved to a new volume thus creating a new file.


If you want to see the image creation date (EXIF) with the Finder you'll need to use the columnar view in Finder:



The EXIF Image Created Date is embedded in the file and stays with the image even if the file is duplicated. It requires an app that can read EXIF fields in an image or the column view sin the Finder.`


May 30, 2023 11:08 AM in response to Emflats

When you edit a photo in Photos, Photos will always show you the date the photo has been taken an the capture date. Just look at the Info of a photo after editing it. In Photos a photo is a pair of the unmodified original and the edited version, stacked as one photo. And the original capture date will be preserved and you can always see it in Photos.


May 31, 2023 10:41 AM in response to Emflats

So you are asking about the file creation date shown on the file in the Finder, not the capture date you are seeing in Photos. The edited versions are new images and Photos has to create new files for them, when it renders the edited version of the image. If you want the file creation date to mirror the the date, when the photo has been taken, you have to modify the file creation date yourself. Old Toad has shown you, how you can see the capture date in the Finder in Column View.



Original date on edited photo

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