# How to batch add GPS coordinates into Exif in LR Catalog



## Yusuf (Sep 20, 2011)

I would like help on how to batch add GPS coordinates to a group of photos shot at the same location with my  Canon 5DM2. The GPS coordinates can be derived and read from a stand alone external Garmin GPS instrument. The GPS field simply isnt visible in the metadata panel as shown below, so I cant enter it into the  EXIF panel.




But for pictures shot with a P&S like my Casio Exilim, which has an inbuilt in-camera GPS instrument, the GPS coordinates are automatically created in EXIF and are automatically displayed in a special window like below



My question is, how do I put this GPS coordinate into the Exif  metadata of the  first picture which was shot at the same location? Anf  is there an automated batch process technique to do it automatically for several hundred photos shot at the same location?

Thanks for any help in this frustrating situation.


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## LouieSherwin (Sep 20, 2011)

Hi Yusuf,

Welcome to the forum. 

I have been using Jeffery Friedl's GPS-Support plugin to Lightroom. It has lots of options including adding GPS from a tracklog, searching Google Earth and copying the GPS location from GE into your selected images. Very powerful and very useful. 


-louie


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## Yusuf (Sep 20, 2011)

Thanks louie. I'll download and try it out.


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## b_gossweiler (Sep 20, 2011)

I also use Jeffrey’s “GPS-Support” Geoencoding Plugin, and I'm happy with it. It has one minor drawback though:

The GPS data in LR is not written into the proper EXIF tags, but into plugin owned database columns, the so called "GPS shadow data". It has the ability to write this data back into the XMP files though, so you can reread it back into the EXIF tags in LR. When you export an image, the shadow data is injected into the EXIF tags of the exported image, if you choose to do so.

Beat


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## Yusuf (Sep 21, 2011)

Had a cursory look at  Jeffrey’s “GPS-Support” Geoencoding Plugin. Isn't  quite what I want. What I would like is for the  (empty) GPS window like  in my  second illustration in my first post to automatically appear by default for ALL files when I import pictures.Then I  need a macro that would simply batch add a GPS coordinate obtained from an external GPS device like a Garmin, into this window for all files shot at the same location. Clicking on the GPS coordinates will then automatically open Google Earth showing the location.
As I mentioned, I have a Casio Exilim P&S which automatically encodes the GPS co-ordinates of every picture taken by it. When files from this  P&S are imported into LR, these GPS co-ordinates automatically appear in the metadata panel.  Jeffrey’s “GPS-Support” Geoencoding Plugin talks about using a GPS log recorded every set interval, and GPS co-ordinate are estimated based on matching the file timestamp to the nearest co-ords in the  GPS Log, but I dont use that method of geotaggling. I'd rather read a GPS co-ord from a stand alone  GPS device and add that later during file importing into LR.
I've experimented with using the Jobo GPS unit attached to the light-shoe of my DSLR, but the Jobo tends to  fall off and I even lost it once  because of that, although thankfully I found it again. The Jobo (shown below) is also not a good solution as it also relies on  an external log.  
I wish major DSLR makers will build in a GPS unit inside their DSLR bodies. And I wish LR will have a capability to simply batch enter a GPS co-ordinate obtained from an external GPS device.


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## LouieSherwin (Sep 21, 2011)

Hi Yusuf,

Unfortunately the Lightroom API does not allow plugins to update the exif gps data nor does can you directly update the GPS data from the metadata panel.  I think from the developers point of view I can understand their position since doing so would break one of the cardinal rules in Lightroom of never touching the proprietary RAW files and as a result they have decided to not to enable writing to any file format.

This is why Jeffery's plugin uses the shadow data and he supplies a custom "Geoencoding..." metadata preset where you can easily see both the "Real 'Exif' GPS Data" and the shadow data added by the plugin. If you want to create your own custom metadata preset that has a different selection of data then you can use another jf plugin "jf Metadata Presets" 

In practice I have found that working with the shadow data not to be a problem especially since I have my own custom metadata preset with all the information I need to see. As Beat pointed out you have the ability on export inject the shadow data into the exported image so when uploading to Flickr or other GPS knowledgable site the correct information is there. 

I think batch updating is quite easy from the "Static Location" tab especially when using Google Earth and the center cross hair that you can install to your GE setup. Simply select some images that you want to have the same location, navigate to the location that you want using the cross hair. Then click the "Import Location from Google Earth" to get the precise coordinates of the cross hair and finally click the "Geoencode Image" button at the bottom. All the selected images will get encoded with the same GPS location information.

If you also configure and enable "Add map url to shadow data" you get a clickable field in your metadata panel that will take you to the map coordinates. 

If you want to have the shadow GPS exported just enable the "Shadow GPS Injector" in your export dialog. 

Another nice feature of the plugin is the reverse Geoencoding where it will use the imbedded real or shadow coordinates and look up and update your IPTC location fields. This can save a lot of typing. 

-louie


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## LouieSherwin (Sep 21, 2011)

Yusuf,

Just one more thing. I have set up a keyboard shortcut in Lightroom to take me directly the "Geoencoding Support" dialog box. I don't know how to setup keyboard shortcuts on Windows but I know it can be done.  This makes it really easy to select my target images in LR and then type "Ctl-G" to go directly to geocoding. I am lucky since I am on a Mac and I can make use of the Ctl for additional shortcuts that don't conflict with the built in shortcuts. On a  Windows you would have to use some other sequence.

-louie


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## Yusuf (Sep 21, 2011)

Thanks Louie. I'll take another look at Jeffrey's site and will try to understand a bit more of his plugins. GPS chips are so ubiquitous these days that I'm a little surprised that  the major DSLR manufacturers have not seen it fit to build in a GPS capability into their top of the range DSLRs. Instead we see  a host of  sub $500  P&S having quite sophisticated built in GPS capabilities. I guess pending the time that the camera manufacturers wake up, we'll all have to struggle with work arounds and inefficient plugins simply to enter GPS coordinates into the EXIF of our image files. Take a look at the Casio Exilim EX-H20G. Its a neat little P&S with, IMHO, the most advanced hybrid GPS built into its tiny casing. It uses motion sensors to estimate  a photo's location even when  GPS reception is lost such as when the camera is taken into an underground car park. I do extensive travel photography and use the little Casio to shoot marker photos  geo encoded with  GPS coordinates.


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