Photos And Keywords
As the years pass, images accumulate by the thousands. Finding them again can be a real ordeal unless you assign keywords to them.
We have all been there. Finding images becomes a nightmare when hard disks exceed a few thousand photos. The names of folders and files are insufficient to provide precise information for each image, even if cameras incorporate EXIF metadata: date, time of shooting, equipment (camera body, lens), exposure (aperture, speed, ISO), etc. This data can make it easier to find images, but only depending on the equipment used. This data can make it easier to search for images, but only concerning the material used. Customized information must be added for all other types of information.
EXIF metadata is limited to the shooting data of the equipment used. Hence, there is a need to supplement it with other information.
Captions And Keywords
The caption field (also called description in IPTC) is the first step in personalizing information. Professional photographers who distribute their images through agencies summarize the event, the circumstances, the names of the people depicted in the picture, and so on. Then come the keywords. They also have an intelligence function. The task is daunting at first, but the efficiency of keyword searching is a good stimulus. Here are a few tips on how to get organized in Lightroom, bearing in mind that we could devote a hundred pages to the subject. Keyword management in other applications is similar.
In the IPTC Description field, the photograph is captioned.
In the Library module, on the right-hand panel, a keyword input field lets you write down the words that describe an image one by one, separating them with a comma. Words can be concrete (ball, red), thematic (game), or symbolic (joy).
5 W
In journalism, the five Ws method (abbreviation of Who, What, Where, When, Why) asks who did what, where, when, and why. It can be used to define keywords. Unless the image has been digitized, the “when” question is answered by the date recorded in the Exif. In this case, it is integrated into the IPTC field of the image creation date or the field provided by a plug-in such as Negative Lab Pro (negativelabpro.com).
“When” can refer to an event, such as the Tour de France 2024 stage in Troyes. Therefore, Tour de France will become a keyword. Troyes is located in the Aube department in the Grand Est region of France. City, area, and country are also integrated as keywords. It answers the question, “Where.”
Keywords are added to facilitate image searches. They follow the 5 W principle.
Keywords and parent keywords
Saved keywords can be found in the Keyword list window. The list is used to find images that include keywords. You can also use the keyword list to create parent keywords. Each item can become the parent of a word, and so on. By subdividing keywords, a lexical tree is organized by theme. Right-click on the item to add a new keyword using a “tag.” The tag integrates the new keyword. A synonym can be assigned to it. Synonyms can automatically generate a translation (London, London; Florence, Firenze) or similar words. Export is unchecked for words used only in the keyword list tree.
By entering Camera and Leica in the search field, the keyword list selects images with these keywords. This search allows you to focus on just the keywords of interest to create a parent keyword.
Handling Homonyms
Sometimes, two different places have the same name. The German town of Wetzlar, the birthplace of Leica, is in the state of Hesse. Hesse is also the name of a village in Moselle. How do we tell them apart? Keywords can be hierarchized into parent words. If we write in the keyword input field Wetzlar < Hesse < Germany < Europe < Continents and countries and Hesse < Moselle < Lorraine < Grand Est < France < Europe < Continents and countries, this avoids confusion of locations and the keywords are organized by heading to avoid an endless list of keywords.
Words can be entered hierarchically with the < sign if logically integrated. The city where Leica is headquartered is entered as follows: Wetzlar < Hesse < Germany < Europe < Continents and Countries to organize the keyword list.
Keyword Tree Data Structure
You can do the same with personal names. For example, “Edgar Morin < Sociologie < Sciences humaines et sociales”. If the subject is animals, you could proceed in the same way, with, for example, Pottock < Pony < Horse < Equid < Domestic mammal < Animal. With this type of hierarchy, you must select the first word in the list, and the entire top tree is automatically added to the image keywords—a real time-saver.
The tree data structure results from the organization of keywords by parent keywords.
Thesaurus
If you do not like typing in keywords, download hierarchical word lists in thesaurus txt format from:
- https://www.photo-keywords.com/specialist-list-download.php,
- https://www.lightroomqueen.com/links/keyword-lists-controlled-vocabularies,
- https://lightroom-keyword-list-project.blogspot.com/,
- www.photoetmac.com,
- www.blog.aube-nature.com,
- or www.mariejulien.com/?q=lightroom
- or GitHub.
They are installed in the Library module. From the Metadata menu bar, select Import keywords.
A thesaurus is an ordered list of standardized terms. They are generally organized by theme: animals, geographical locations, etc. They make it easy to index and classify photos.
Discover the photography courses at Spéos
Spéos offers various training courses ranging from simple one-week photography workshops (initiation and advanced level) to 3-year courses. The long courses to become professional photographers allow you not only to master all the photographic techniques and its vocabulary (blurs, hyperfocus, sharpness zone, depth of field, backlighting, focal length, shutter release, autofocus, wide-angle, rule of thirds, etc.), but also all the stages of shooting and image processing.
Visiting the school allows you to discover the premises, the studios and the equipment, and is undoubtedly the best way to familiarize yourself with your future way of working. This is why, in addition to the open days, Spéos offers throughout the year personalized visits by appointment to come and discover the school with a member of the team.
Text and photos: Philippe Bachelier, teacher of Printing techniques at Spéos
