Phone Media File Renamer

A Python script that renames media files (photos and videos) based on their "Date taken" metadata from EXIF data and video metadata.

Features

• Renames photos to format: yyyy-mm-dd - Phone Photos (N).ext
• Renames videos to format: yyyy-mm-dd - Phone Videos (N).ext
• Uses actual "Date taken" from EXIF metadata (photos) and video metadata (videos)
• Groups files by date with sequential numbering
• Supports dry-run mode to preview changes
• Recursive processing: Process all subdirectories
• Falls back to file creation date if metadata is missing
• Image formats: JPG, PNG, TIFF, BMP
• Video formats: MOV, MP4, AVI, MKV, M4V, 3GP, WMV

Installation

1. Install Python dependencies:

pip install -r requirements.txt

2. (Optional) Install FFmpeg for video metadata extraction:

   • Windows: winget install --id=Gyan.FFmpeg
   • macOS: brew install ffmpeg
   • Linux: sudo apt install ffmpeg (Ubuntu/Debian) or equivalent

   Note: Without FFmpeg, video files will still be renamed using file creation dates

Usage

Basic usage (rename files in current directory):

python photo_renamer.py

Specify a directory:

python photo_renamer.py /path/to/media
python photo_renamer.py TestPhotos

Dry run (preview changes without renaming):

python photo_renamer.py --dry-run
python photo_renamer.py TestPhotos --dry-run

Recursive processing (process all subdirectories):

python photo_renamer.py /path/to/media --recursive
python photo_renamer.py TestPhotos --recursive --dry-run

Help:

python photo_renamer.py --help

Example Output

The program will rename files like:

Photos:

• IMG_1234.jpg → 2023-01-15 - Phone Photos (1).jpg
• IMG_1235.jpg → 2023-01-15 - Phone Photos (2).jpg
• IMG_1236.jpg → 2023-01-16 - Phone Photos (1).jpg

Videos:

• IMG_1237.mov → 2023-01-15 - Phone Videos (3).mov
• VID_1238.mp4 → 2023-01-15 - Phone Videos (4).mp4

Files taken on the same day are numbered sequentially in chronological order, with photos and videos sharing the same numbering sequence.

Recursive Mode

When using --recursive, the program processes each subdirectory separately:

Media/
├── 2023/
│   ├── IMG_001.jpg → 2023-01-15 - Phone Photos (1).jpg
│   ├── VID_001.mov → 2023-01-15 - Phone Videos (2).mov
│   └── IMG_002.jpg → 2023-01-15 - Phone Photos (3).jpg
└── 2024/
    ├── IMG_003.jpg → 2024-02-10 - Phone Photos (1).jpg
    └── VID_002.mp4 → 2024-02-10 - Phone Videos (2).mp4

Safety Features

• Dry run mode: Always test with --dry-run first
• Duplicate protection: Won't overwrite existing files
• Error handling: Continues processing if individual files fail
• Metadata fallback: Uses file creation date if metadata is missing
• FFmpeg optional: Works without FFmpeg (uses file dates for videos)

Video Metadata Support

The program extracts "creation time" from video metadata using FFmpeg's ffprobe. Supported metadata fields:

• creation_time (most common)
• date
• creation_date
• com.apple.quicktime.creationdate (QuickTime)

Without FFmpeg installed, videos will be renamed using file creation dates, which may be less accurate than the original recording date.

Dependencies

This project relies on several open source libraries and packages:

Required Python Packages

• Pillow (>=10.0.0) - Python Imaging Library for JPEG, PNG, TIFF, and BMP image processing and EXIF metadata extraction
  • License: Historical Permission Notice and Disclaimer (HPND)
  • Used for: Reading EXIF metadata from standard image formats

Optional Python Packages

• pillow-heif - HEIF/HEIC image format support for Pillow

  • License: BSD-3-Clause
  • Used for: Reading EXIF metadata from HEIC/HEIF files (Apple photos)
  • Install: pip install pillow-heif

• ExifRead - Pure Python library for extracting EXIF metadata

  • License: BSD-3-Clause
  • Used for: Reading EXIF metadata from DNG (Digital Negative) RAW files
  • Install: pip install ExifRead

External Tools

• FFmpeg - Multimedia framework for video processing
  • License: GNU Lesser General Public License (LGPL) version 2.1+
  • Used for: Extracting creation time metadata from video files
  • Install: winget install --id=Gyan.FFmpeg (Windows)

Built-in Python Libraries

• argparse - Command-line argument parsing
• os - Operating system interface
• sys - System-specific parameters and functions
• json - JSON encoder and decoder
• subprocess - Subprocess management
• pathlib - Object-oriented filesystem paths
• datetime - Date and time handling
• collections - Specialized container datatypes

All external dependencies are optional and the script will gracefully degrade functionality when they are not available, falling back to file system timestamps for date information.