# mattwilson1024/google-photos-exif

A tool to populate missing `DateTimeOriginal` EXIF metadata in Google Photos takeout, using Google's JSON metadata.

Repository: https://github.com/mattwilson1024/google-photos-exif
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/google-photos-exif
Language: TypeScript
License: MIT
License Family: permissive
Topics: google-photos, google-takeout, exif, exiftool, tools, utility, hacktoberfest
Last push: 2024-05-06T00:49:51+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 32/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 0, release rhythm 35, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 2189, "days_push": 850, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: no_releases
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 1095, forks 156 (observed 2026-08-28T04:03:34.113546+00:00)

## What it is
A TypeScript CLI tool that fixes missing DateTimeOriginal EXIF metadata in Google Photos Takeout exports by reading the photoTakenTime from Google's JSON sidecar files. It also sets meaningful file modification dates and copies media into an output directory.

## Use cases
- fix missing exif dates on google takeout photos
- populate datetimeoriginal from google photos  metadata
- organize takeout photos into date folders by taken time
- repair photo timestamps after exporting from google photos
- batch fix exif metadata in downloaded google photos archive

## When to choose
- you exported your Google Photos library via Google Takeout and photos have missing or wrong timestamps
- you want to sort photos into date-based folder structures using accurate taken times
- you need a scriptable, local tool to rewrite EXIF metadata in bulk

## When to avoid
- your photos already have correct EXIF DateTimeOriginal data
- you need a GUI photo manager rather than a command-line utility
- you work with media not sourced from Google Photos Takeout exports

## Facets
- artifact type: cli-tool
- maturity: active
- function: cli, file-system, developer-tools
- domain: files, photography, media
- platform: cross-platform, cli
- tags: google-photos, google-takeout, exif, exiftool, photo-metadata, typescript, automation, nodejs

## Member repositories
- mattwilson1024/google-photos-exif (main) score 32

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:03:34.113546+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T06:47:16.371669+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/mattwilson1024/google-photos-exif (fetched 2026-08-28T04:03:34.113546+00:00, sha 3bd0c4f16e8f)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.