Glossary
EXIF
EXIF is the metadata standard cameras use to record how, when and where a photo was taken, stored inside the image file itself.
Updated
Also written: Exchangeable image file format.
An EXIF block is a set of tagged values written by the camera at the moment of capture. It holds exposure settings, the make and model of the body and lens, timestamps, the orientation the camera was held at, and — when location services are enabled — GPS coordinates in a dedicated sub-directory.
It is structured as a series of directories borrowed from the TIFF specification, which is why the same parsing code reads a TIFF file and the EXIF block inside a JPEG. Each directory holds tag numbers paired with values, and one of those tags can point at the next directory, forming a chain.
EXIF is not signed or protected in any way. Every value can be edited or invented with ordinary tools, so it records what the writing software claimed rather than what necessarily happened.
The full explainer covers EXIF, IPTC and XMP together and what each one gives away.
Related terms
- Maker note — The maker note is a proprietary, largely undocumented section of an EXIF block in which a camera manufacturer records whatever it likes.
- GPS IFD — The GPS IFD is the sub-directory of an EXIF block that holds location data, kept separate from the camera and exposure fields.
- IFD — An Image File Directory is the table structure EXIF uses to store tags, inherited from the TIFF specification.