Lens Information in EXIF data

Class A · 01-07-2019, 01:12 AM - **6 Likes**

Dear Pentax,

could you please include all lens-related information in the standard EXIF fields, instead of just the maker notes, so that we no longer have to run commands like the following

exiftool -tagsFromFile @ '-MakerNotes:LensType>EXIF:LensMake' filename.dng

in order have software like Capture One or sites like Flickr to show all the lens information?

**sbh** · 03-30-2019, 04:55 PM - **1 Like**

Agree. Using Capture one and flickr, there is no lens information. It would be iseful if it was there to work with.

stevebrot · 04-01-2019, 04:07 PM

Originally posted by Class A

Dear Pentax,

could you please include all lens-related information in the standard EXIF fields, instead of just the maker notes, so that we no longer have to run commands like the following

exiftool -tagsFromFile @ '-MakerNotes:LensType>EXIF:LensMake' filename.dng

in order have software like Capture One or sites like Flickr to show all the lens information?

Of course, we should also remember that even the information in the MakerNotes is in the form of a numeric code. The actual maker and model names are supplied by the software reading the EXIF, with some variation between tools.

Steve

steephill · 04-02-2019, 06:44 AM

Pentax Tags

stevebrot · 04-02-2019, 08:36 AM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by steephill

Pentax Tags

ExifTool is unique in publishing their interpretation of the Pentax MakerNotes* to allow a key of sorts into the data stored there and the ExifTool developers' best guesses as to what they represent. Amazingly, the lens list is kept up-to-date and even includes recent non-AF product with KAF2-style mounts offered by Irix.

Implementation of this thread's product suggestion would require the camera body to have a lookup table similar to that packaged into ExifTool to write friendly names into the standard EXIF. It should be noted that manufacturer support for the LensInfo and LensType tags is mixed. For example, Nikon does as Pentax, while Canon fills those fields. Whether Canon supports 3rd-party lenses is unknown, at least to me.

Steve

* MakerNotes is a free-form space with no standard mappings of location or purposes.

RobG · 06-25-2019, 08:38 PM

It would be great if more software was able to identify the lens from the EXIF data. I use Paintshop Pro and a number of other programs. Few are able to get the lens data.

It would also be nice if Pentax cameras could recognise the focal lengths from the Sigma 8-16 lens.

**ramseybuckeye** · 07-21-2019, 05:24 PM

Which additional lens information are you lacking? I use Lightroom and post to Flickr and see the lens name, focal length, and aperture in Lightroom and on Flickr. When I was still using Lightroom 4 some of the newer lenses were not identified. I'm now using Lightroom Classic CC (Standalone) and Lightroom CC, both show up to my newest lens the 55-300 PLM. Viewbug does not show the lens name. I've got an older version of Paintshop Pro on my old PC, I haven't put it on this Mac yet because I rarely used it since it is so slow.

RobG · 07-21-2019, 05:37 PM

Originally posted by ramseybuckeye

Which additional lens information are you lacking? I use Lightroom and post to Flickr and see the lens name, focal length, and aperture in Lightroom and on Flickr. When I was still using Lightroom 4 some of the newer lenses were not identified. I'm now using Lightroom Classic CC (Standalone) and Lightroom CC, both show up to my newest lens the 55-300 PLM. Viewbug does not show the lens name. I've got an older version of Paintshop Pro on my old PC, I haven't put it on this Mac yet because I rarely used it since it is so slow.

Hi, were you asking me? In the case of the Sigma lens, the K3 stops reporting the focal length below a certain value. As far as I know, the lens name doesn't appear in an image edited with Paintshop Pro (apparently I have version 21 according to the EXIF data). I just checked a photo which I resized with the freeware Irfanview, and the lens name is preserved in the EXIF data. Another photo edited with PSP doesn't show the lens name anymore. Pentax seem to use a "Maker Note" tag called "Lens Type" to record the name of the lens. I suspect that PSP may be dropping all the tags in this category, so having it in the "standard" tags would help.

**ramseybuckeye** · 07-21-2019, 06:23 PM

Originally posted by RobG

Hi, were you asking me? In the case of the Sigma lens, the K3 stops reporting the focal length below a certain value. As far as I know, the lens name doesn't appear in an image edited with Paintshop Pro (apparently I have version 21 according to the EXIF data). I just checked a photo which I resized with the freeware Irfanview, and the lens name is preserved in the EXIF data. Another photo edited with PSP doesn't show the lens name anymore. Pentax seem to use a "Maker Note" tag called "Lens Type" to record the name of the lens. I suspect that PSP may be dropping all the tags in this category, so having it in the "standard" tags would help.

Not just you in particular Rob, just a general question in the thread. You would think that there would be industry standards on lens reporting tags. Obviously tags are there, but different manufacturers and software developers pick and choose what to use.

**Larrymc** · 07-21-2019, 06:35 PM

Originally posted by Class A

Dear Pentax,

could you please include all lens-related information in the standard EXIF fields, instead of just the maker notes, so that we no longer have to run commands like the following

exiftool -tagsFromFile @ '-MakerNotes:LensType>EXIF:LensMake' filename.dng

in order have software like Capture One or sites like Flickr to show all the lens information?

Have you tried EXIFToolGui to accomplish what you want to do? I do it for everything I post to Flickr nowadays. You can also write a batch file to change the lens information written to Maker Notes. I process with DXO PhotoLab 2.3 and I have to change the Maker Notes Lens data to use DXO's lens corrections for my Sigma 18-200 contemporary and don't have problems wit the process.

**Larrymc** · 07-21-2019, 06:52 PM

Originally posted by RobG

Hi, were you asking me? In the case of the Sigma lens, the K3 stops reporting the focal length below a certain value. As far as I know, the lens name doesn't appear in an image edited with Paintshop Pro (apparently I have version 21 according to the EXIF data). I just checked a photo which I resized with the freeware Irfanview, and the lens name is preserved in the EXIF data. Another photo edited with PSP doesn't show the lens name anymore. Pentax seem to use a "Maker Note" tag called "Lens Type" to record the name of the lens. I suspect that PSP may be dropping all the tags in this category, so having it in the "standard" tags would help.

You can write the information from Maker Notes Lens Type with EXIFToolGui to the EXIF LensModel field very quickly and easily I do it all the time. You can batch write multiple lens at the same time.

stevebrot · 07-21-2019, 08:24 PM

Originally posted by RobG

In the case of the Sigma lens, the K3 stops reporting the focal length below a certain value.

The K-3 reports the number returned by the lens.

Steve

RobG · 07-21-2019, 08:39 PM

Originally posted by Larrymc

You can write the information from Maker Notes Lens Type with EXIFToolGui to the EXIF LensModel field very quickly and easily I do it all the time. You can batch write multiple lens at the same time.

OK, but if Pentax put it in the correct field, nobody would need to do this.

Originally posted by stevebrot

The K-3 reports the number returned by the lens.

Meaning that the lens doesn't report the widest setting?

stevebrot · 07-21-2019, 09:16 PM

Originally posted by RobG

OK, but if Pentax put it in the correct field, nobody would need to do this.

Only a numeric code as returned by the lens is written to the makernotes. The camera does not have lookup tables for the lens names and the number means nothing outside of makernotes. This makes sense considering that at best, only contemporary model Pentax models might be included with no 3rd-party lenses. If a tool displays a lens name, it is because it has lookup tables (often from ExifTool) for the numeric code.

A list of known name : number pairs --> https://sno.phy.queensu.ca/~phil/exiftool/TagNames/Pentax.html#LensType

Originally posted by RobG

Meaning that the lens doesn't report the widest setting?

What displays in the rear LCD? The same is written to the EXIF as reported by the lens. If the lens does not report its widest setting, there may be an issue with the lens.

Steve

RobG · 07-21-2019, 10:11 PM

Originally posted by stevebrot

What displays in the rear LCD? The same is written to the EXIF as reported by the lens. If the lens does not report its widest setting, there may be an issue with the lens.

Hi Steve, as far as I know, it's a known problem. It's mentioned in at least one of the reviews:

Sigma 8-16mm F4.5-5.6 DC HSM Lens Reviews - Sigma Lenses - Pentax Lens Review Database

Right at the moment I'm not at home, so I can't test it. I think the lens doesn't return any EXIF data at all if the zoom is at its widest setting (mentioned in the review). I'm pretty sure I purged all the Sigma 8-16 photos I had on Flickr when I cancelled my Pro account.

01-07-2019, 01:12 AM - 6 Likes	#1
Class A Pentaxian Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Wellington, New Zealand Posts: 11,251	Lens Information in EXIF data Dear Pentax, could you please include all lens-related information in the standard EXIF fields, instead of just the maker notes, so that we no longer have to run commands like the following exiftool -tagsFromFile @ '-MakerNotes:LensType>EXIF:LensMake' filename.dng in order have software like Capture One or sites like Flickr to show all the lens information?

04-01-2019, 04:07 PM	#3
stevebrot Otis Memorial Pentaxian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Vancouver (USA) Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 42,007	Originally posted by Class A Dear Pentax, could you please include all lens-related information in the standard EXIF fields, instead of just the maker notes, so that we no longer have to run commands like the following exiftool -tagsFromFile @ '-MakerNotes:LensType>EXIF:LensMake' filename.dng in order have software like Capture One or sites like Flickr to show all the lens information? Of course, we should also remember that even the information in the MakerNotes is in the form of a numeric code. The actual maker and model names are supplied by the software reading the EXIF, with some variation between tools. Steve

04-02-2019, 08:36 AM - 1 Like	#5
stevebrot Otis Memorial Pentaxian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Vancouver (USA) Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 42,007	Originally posted by steephill Pentax Tags ExifTool is unique in publishing their interpretation of the Pentax MakerNotes* to allow a key of sorts into the data stored there and the ExifTool developers' best guesses as to what they represent. Amazingly, the lens list is kept up-to-date and even includes recent non-AF product with KAF2-style mounts offered by Irix. Implementation of this thread's product suggestion would require the camera body to have a lookup table similar to that packaged into ExifTool to write friendly names into the standard EXIF. It should be noted that manufacturer support for the LensInfo and LensType tags is mixed. For example, Nikon does as Pentax, while Canon fills those fields. Whether Canon supports 3rd-party lenses is unknown, at least to me. Steve * MakerNotes is a free-form space with no standard mappings of location or purposes. Last edited by stevebrot; 04-02-2019 at 09:09 AM.

07-21-2019, 06:35 PM	#10
Larrymc Site Supporter Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Mississippi, USA Posts: 5,252	Originally posted by Class A Dear Pentax, could you please include all lens-related information in the standard EXIF fields, instead of just the maker notes, so that we no longer have to run commands like the following exiftool -tagsFromFile @ '-MakerNotes:LensType>EXIF:LensMake' filename.dng in order have software like Capture One or sites like Flickr to show all the lens information? Have you tried EXIFToolGui to accomplish what you want to do? I do it for everything I post to Flickr nowadays. You can also write a batch file to change the lens information written to Maker Notes. I process with DXO PhotoLab 2.3 and I have to change the Maker Notes Lens data to use DXO's lens corrections for my Sigma 18-200 contemporary and don't have problems wit the process.

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03-30-2019, 04:55 PM - 1 Like	#2
sbh Site Supporter Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Black Forest, Germany Photos: Gallery Posts: 849	Agree. Using Capture one and flickr, there is no lens information. It would be iseful if it was there to work with.

04-02-2019, 06:44 AM	#4
steephill Pentaxian Join Date: Nov 2018 Photos: Gallery Posts: 586	Pentax Tags

06-25-2019, 08:38 PM	#6
RobG Otis Memorial Pentaxian Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Canberra Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 8,891	It would be great if more software was able to identify the lens from the EXIF data. I use Paintshop Pro and a number of other programs. Few are able to get the lens data. It would also be nice if Pentax cameras could recognise the focal lengths from the Sigma 8-16 lens.

07-21-2019, 05:24 PM	#7
ramseybuckeye Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Hampstead, NC Photos: Gallery Posts: 17,292	Which additional lens information are you lacking? I use Lightroom and post to Flickr and see the lens name, focal length, and aperture in Lightroom and on Flickr. When I was still using Lightroom 4 some of the newer lenses were not identified. I'm now using Lightroom Classic CC (Standalone) and Lightroom CC, both show up to my newest lens the 55-300 PLM. Viewbug does not show the lens name. I've got an older version of Paintshop Pro on my old PC, I haven't put it on this Mac yet because I rarely used it since it is so slow.

07-21-2019, 05:37 PM	#8
RobG Otis Memorial Pentaxian Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Canberra Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 8,891	Originally posted by ramseybuckeye Which additional lens information are you lacking? I use Lightroom and post to Flickr and see the lens name, focal length, and aperture in Lightroom and on Flickr. When I was still using Lightroom 4 some of the newer lenses were not identified. I'm now using Lightroom Classic CC (Standalone) and Lightroom CC, both show up to my newest lens the 55-300 PLM. Viewbug does not show the lens name. I've got an older version of Paintshop Pro on my old PC, I haven't put it on this Mac yet because I rarely used it since it is so slow. Hi, were you asking me? In the case of the Sigma lens, the K3 stops reporting the focal length below a certain value. As far as I know, the lens name doesn't appear in an image edited with Paintshop Pro (apparently I have version 21 according to the EXIF data). I just checked a photo which I resized with the freeware Irfanview, and the lens name is preserved in the EXIF data. Another photo edited with PSP doesn't show the lens name anymore. Pentax seem to use a "Maker Note" tag called "Lens Type" to record the name of the lens. I suspect that PSP may be dropping all the tags in this category, so having it in the "standard" tags would help.

07-21-2019, 06:23 PM	#9
ramseybuckeye Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Hampstead, NC Photos: Gallery Posts: 17,292	Originally posted by RobG Hi, were you asking me? In the case of the Sigma lens, the K3 stops reporting the focal length below a certain value. As far as I know, the lens name doesn't appear in an image edited with Paintshop Pro (apparently I have version 21 according to the EXIF data). I just checked a photo which I resized with the freeware Irfanview, and the lens name is preserved in the EXIF data. Another photo edited with PSP doesn't show the lens name anymore. Pentax seem to use a "Maker Note" tag called "Lens Type" to record the name of the lens. I suspect that PSP may be dropping all the tags in this category, so having it in the "standard" tags would help. Not just you in particular Rob, just a general question in the thread. You would think that there would be industry standards on lens reporting tags. Obviously tags are there, but different manufacturers and software developers pick and choose what to use.

07-21-2019, 06:52 PM	#11
Larrymc Site Supporter Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Mississippi, USA Posts: 5,252	Originally posted by RobG Hi, were you asking me? In the case of the Sigma lens, the K3 stops reporting the focal length below a certain value. As far as I know, the lens name doesn't appear in an image edited with Paintshop Pro (apparently I have version 21 according to the EXIF data). I just checked a photo which I resized with the freeware Irfanview, and the lens name is preserved in the EXIF data. Another photo edited with PSP doesn't show the lens name anymore. Pentax seem to use a "Maker Note" tag called "Lens Type" to record the name of the lens. I suspect that PSP may be dropping all the tags in this category, so having it in the "standard" tags would help. You can write the information from Maker Notes Lens Type with EXIFToolGui to the EXIF LensModel field very quickly and easily I do it all the time. You can batch write multiple lens at the same time.

07-21-2019, 08:24 PM	#12
stevebrot Otis Memorial Pentaxian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Vancouver (USA) Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 42,007	Originally posted by RobG In the case of the Sigma lens, the K3 stops reporting the focal length below a certain value. The K-3 reports the number returned by the lens. Steve

07-21-2019, 08:39 PM	#13
RobG Otis Memorial Pentaxian Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Canberra Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 8,891	Originally posted by Larrymc You can write the information from Maker Notes Lens Type with EXIFToolGui to the EXIF LensModel field very quickly and easily I do it all the time. You can batch write multiple lens at the same time. OK, but if Pentax put it in the correct field, nobody would need to do this. Originally posted by stevebrot The K-3 reports the number returned by the lens. Meaning that the lens doesn't report the widest setting?

07-21-2019, 09:16 PM	#14
stevebrot Otis Memorial Pentaxian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Vancouver (USA) Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 42,007	Originally posted by RobG OK, but if Pentax put it in the correct field, nobody would need to do this. Only a numeric code as returned by the lens is written to the makernotes. The camera does not have lookup tables for the lens names and the number means nothing outside of makernotes. This makes sense considering that at best, only contemporary model Pentax models might be included with no 3rd-party lenses. If a tool displays a lens name, it is because it has lookup tables (often from ExifTool) for the numeric code. A list of known name : number pairs --> https://sno.phy.queensu.ca/~phil/exiftool/TagNames/Pentax.html#LensType Originally posted by RobG Meaning that the lens doesn't report the widest setting? What displays in the rear LCD? The same is written to the EXIF as reported by the lens. If the lens does not report its widest setting, there may be an issue with the lens. Steve

07-21-2019, 10:11 PM	#15
RobG Otis Memorial Pentaxian Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Canberra Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 8,891	Originally posted by stevebrot What displays in the rear LCD? The same is written to the EXIF as reported by the lens. If the lens does not report its widest setting, there may be an issue with the lens. Hi Steve, as far as I know, it's a known problem. It's mentioned in at least one of the reviews: Sigma 8-16mm F4.5-5.6 DC HSM Lens Reviews - Sigma Lenses - Pentax Lens Review Database Right at the moment I'm not at home, so I can't test it. I think the lens doesn't return any EXIF data at all if the zoom is at its widest setting (mentioned in the review). I'm pretty sure I purged all the Sigma 8-16 photos I had on Flickr when I cancelled my Pro account.