Metadata, Export, Backups

Introduction

Filterstorm is a powerful piece of software meant to make tagging and sending images as quick as possible. While most functions are meant to be easily discoverable by the user, some functions which can speed up use are not immediately apparent.

Table of Contents

  1. Star Ratings
  2. IPTC Setup
  3. Saving & Editing IPTC Sets
  4. Applying IPTC Sets
  5. Exporting/Importing IPTC Sets
  6. Export Setup (Flickr, FTP, Dropbox, etc.)
  7. Flickr Notes
  8. Exporting Images

Star Ratings

On iPad to add a star rating, simply tap on the star icon on the toolbar and slide the slider to the desired number of stars. On iPhone, tap the info button, then tap the IPTC button, and the star rating slider will be atop the IPTC screen.

IPTC Setup

When you first start up Filterstorm, the IPTC section of the metadata tab doesn't display any fields. Filterstorm supports many IPTC tags which can be enabled by tapping the IPTC settings button, which will bring up a popover as shown below. The fields you select will appear below the filename field, allowing you to have quick access to only the fields you use regularly.

Saving & Editing IPTC Sets

In the metadata tab under IPTC (iPad), or under info->IPTC (iPhone), is the IPTC set button which will bring up a popover containing sets of saved IPTC information; by default an empty list. Tapping the plus button will add a new set to the list and bring up a sheet containing all the supported IPTC fields. Once filled out, you can later edit the information by going to the IPTC set popover and tapping and holding on the item you want to edit in the list, and delete them by scrolling down to the end of the sheet to find the delete button. Only the fields you fill out will be applied to images. If the image you apply the set to has a caption, for example, and the set has no caption inserted, the original caption of the image will be preserved.

Applying IPTC Sets

Applying IPTC sets works just like applying automations. Tapping the IPTC Sets button brings up the popover containing your saved IPTC sets. Tapping any of the items in the list will apply the metadata from that set onto your current image.

Exporting/Importing IPTC Sets

IPTC sets can be emailed by going to the IPTC Set popover, tapping and holding on the set you want to email until the IPTC Set sheet comes up then tapping the e-mail button at the top of the sheet. If you are emailed .fsiptcset file, you can open it by tapping and holding it, then selecting to open in FS3 or FSPro.

Export Setup (Flickr, FTP, Dropbox, etc.)

Export destinations are all setup in similar ways. In the export tab (iPad), or Export screen (iPhone), tapping the "+" icon at the end of the Destinations list will add a new destination and bring up its options. If you want to see these options for any of the existing items in the Destination list, tapping and holding the item in the list will bring it up.

After entering a name and type for the export destination, you can choose which files to send. By default, "Final Version (Large)" is selected. This means that it will take the images you have selected, find the final versions associated with them, and reprocess the images at the maximum size possible. This can take a significant amount of time when dealing with larger images, so you can choose at time of export to limit the maximum size in order to speed up processing.

The "Original Image" option will send exactly that, the file as it was brought into Filterstorm without modification. If you want to send the RAW file from your camera, this option will do that. IPTC data will NOT be applied to this image.

The "Final Version (Working)" option will send what's called the "Working Version". This is the file, usually a little below 2 megapixels, that you see when editing an image. Filterstorm uses these tinier versions internally to keep image editing quick. As such, they don't usually need to be reprocessed and can be saved very quickly.

The "Automation" option will send the .fsautomation associated with the Final Version. It is hoped that one day you will be able to send the original version and .fsautomation files, and then reprocess the image at the maximum possible quality setting on your desktop Mac. For now, these .fsautomation files can be brought back into Filterstorm through email, for example.

Tapping the configure destination options will bring up different options depending on the type of delivery point. For email, you can set a default list of email addresses to send to. For FTP, it has the server address, username/password, and default folder. Flickr and Dropbox both have login options.

Flickr Notes

You can use IPTC information in the metadata tab/pane to set the title, description, keywords, and more on Flickr. Please note that flickr export does not yet support sets.

Exporting Images

To export images, go to the 'export' tab (iPad) or tap the bottom icon in the main menu to bring up the export screen (iPhone), and tap on the destinations in the list you wish to check them. At this point, tapping the "Send Photos" button will begin processing and transferring all the selected photos to all the selected destinations.

The "Delivery Settings" button will bring up a popover giving you options to scale all the images you're sending to fit into a certain pixel-sized box. You can also set the maximum size here. If you don't need extremely high resolution output, you can speed up the processing time by lowering the maximum size. You can also choose the JPEG quality, higher means larger file sizes, smaller means worse quality. Somewhere around 80% is usually a good compromise between the two. Finally you can set the option to confirm these settings each time before export.