Renaming Picture Files

I wonder how many of you, like me, have taken lots of photos of the same subject and then tried to find them months or years later among the thousands of numbered files on your hard drive. One solution is to rename them at the time they are transferred to the computer but that isn't always the most convenient time. You can go through them at a later time and alter them one by one - I'd rather watch paint dry.

A couple of days ago there was a Giveaway of the Day which could do this as a batch process but I found it too complicated for what I wanted so I had a search and found a freeware program for Windows which did the job I wanted very easily. It is called A.F.5 Rename Your Files. It has an uncluttered interface with a good choice of ways of renaming files. You can change part or all of the filename, add the date, sequentially number them, etc.
 
Click on my illustrations to get a larger view


It has a drag and drop facility so all I did was to drag a series of micro photos which just had a numbered filename added by the camera and set the program up to name, number and date the new filename. As the choices are made from the drop down lists near the top of the program window the result is instantly shown so you can see what you are doing. No other changes are made to the file, EXIF information and size are untouched and the files stay in the same folder but with their new file names. If you change your mind just click 'rename' again and the original filename is restored.



I must admit I am really taken with the simplicity of use with this program so I thought I would pass the information on to anyone else who may have been looking for such a program.

A.F.5 Rename Your Files by Alex Fauland may be found HERE.



Once again this morning the hundreds of gulls were seen flying over the village. Brambling are continuing to visit the garden. I guess these winter visitors are re-building their energy levels having flown across the North Sea recently.