Build a file renaming utility for photo albums

Here’s a file renaming utility for photo albums built in Python. It renames photos in a selected folder based on the date taken (from EXIF metadata) or last modified time, and allows for a custom naming pattern.

python
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import os
import re
import time
from datetime import datetime
from pathlib import Path
from PIL import Image
from PIL.ExifTags import TAGS

def get_exif_date_taken(img_path):
    try:
        image = Image.open(img_path)
        exif_data = image._getexif()
        if not exif_data:
            return None
        for tag_id, value in exif_data.items():
            tag = TAGS.get(tag_id, tag_id)
            if tag == 'DateTimeOriginal':
                return datetime.strptime(value, '%Y:%m:%d %H:%M:%S')
    except Exception:
        return None
    return None

def rename_photos_in_directory(directory, name_pattern="Photo", use_exif=True):
    directory = Path(directory)
    if not directory.exists() or not directory.is_dir():
        print("Invalid directory.")
        return

    image_extensions = ['.jpg', '.jpeg', '.png', '.heic', '.webp']
    photos = [f for f in directory.iterdir() if f.suffix.lower() in image_extensions]

    counter = 1
    for photo in sorted(photos):
        date_taken = get_exif_date_taken(photo) if use_exif else None
        if not date_taken:
            date_taken = datetime.fromtimestamp(photo.stat().st_mtime)

        timestamp_str = date_taken.strftime('%Y%m%d_%H%M%S')
        new_filename = f"{name_pattern}_{timestamp_str}_{counter:03d}{photo.suffix.lower()}"
        new_filepath = directory / new_filename

        while new_filepath.exists():
            counter += 1
            new_filename = f"{name_pattern}_{timestamp_str}_{counter:03d}{photo.suffix.lower()}"
            new_filepath = directory / new_filename

        os.rename(photo, new_filepath)
        print(f"Renamed: {photo.name} -> {new_filename}")
        counter += 1

if __name__ == "__main__":
    import argparse

    parser = argparse.ArgumentParser(description="Rename photo files in a directory by date taken.")
    parser.add_argument("directory", help="Path to the folder containing photos")
    parser.add_argument("--pattern", default="Photo", help="Base name pattern for renamed files")
    parser.add_argument("--no-exif", action="store_true", help="Do not use EXIF data, use file modified time instead")

    args = parser.parse_args()
    rename_photos_in_directory(args.directory, name_pattern=args.pattern, use_exif=not args.no_exif)

Features:

• Automatically uses EXIF date taken if available (or file modification time otherwise).

• Customizable naming pattern (--pattern).

• Supports popular image formats.

• Handles file name collisions by adding a counter.

Would you like a version with a GUI or drag-and-drop support?