Programs, Applications, and Utilities useful in creating and maintaining image databases

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Image Database and Cataloging Software

Creating "catalogs" or image databases of your images is a great way to keep track of where all your images are stored. There are numerous applications that can do the task of creating a thumbnail, and automatically gathering information about the file (size, resolution, filename, color space, etc), but only a few work in a cross platform environment.

For one perspective on what to look for see the Catalogs vs Stock Management article by James Cook.

You can download a PDF copy of the Comparative Matrix for Evaluating Image Databases (compatible with Acrobat version 5) to aid in your comparison of some of the programs below. This is a blank worksheet with about 170 criteria to be used when comparing one image database application with another. A modifiable spreadsheet version is available to members of the Controlled Vocabulary Discussion Forum in the File Archives. If you are interested in collaborating on a revised version of this document, please contact me.

ACDSee
Canto Culumus Media Managment software: Mac and Windows solution for media management. Read how Ken Bennett uses Cumulus for managing his archive at Wake Forest University.
Extensis Portfolio: Mac and Windows solution for media management, see Mark Anderson's Portfolio FAQ for over 300 articles on aspects of Portfolio which you won't find in the manual or in Extensis' Knowledge Base. The Portfolio Forums (on PortfolioFAQ) offers Portfolio users an opportunity to share their knowledge and experiences.
Fotostation
Hindsight Software Cross Platform Stock Image Management System.
iView Mediapro: Cross Platform media manager. Check out the Controlled Vocabulary Review. The iView corporate weblog is back in action and has lots of interesting details about how to use iView, and links to users who have developed add-ons and scripts. Check out the iView User's Forum for specific questions. Reviews of the new iView MediaPro 2.5 are available from Imaging Resource, digitalmediadesigner, PCPro, MacUser.UK, and Practical PC.
NSCS (Boyd Norton)
Thumbsplus Windows only media manager

Metadata Annotation Software

The following applications are designed to add embedded metadata to your image files. Metadata is often described as "information about information" though a better description is that it's structured information about resources. Several of the following applications have image editing functions as well as the capability to create web galleries, but their strength is in the speed at which you can add descriptive metadata to a single file, or as part of a batch action.

BreezeBrowser Windows only digital camera file and metadata processor for all Canon formats including RAW files. The pro version can handle most major image file formats (TIFF, JPEG, PNG, JPEG 2000, GIF, BMP, Photoshop PSD and Paint Shop Pro, including RAW conversion for Canon, Nikon, Pentax, Minolta and Olympus cameras) together with EXIF shooting data and IPTC data associated with images. BreezeBrowser Pro also supports the linked viewing of raw+JPEG images from Canon and Nikon cameras allowing the raw and JPEG images to be viewed, renamed, copied and deleted as a pair. As of version 1.5 it is also IPTC Core compatible.
Image Info Toolkit: Mac and Windows compatible, this legacy IPTC utility can read and insert metadata into Jpeg and TIF files singlely or as a batch process. It's unique integrated hierarchical keyword catalog makes adding keywords to your images a simple task. For more information, read the Controlled Vocabulary review of IIT on this site.
Irfanview is free Windows only image viewer, capable of adding legacy IPTC metadata to single images or as part of a batch action. Can also be used to batch rename images as well.
Photo Mechanic (from Camera Bits), Mac and Windows program for both adding metadata and processing digital camera files. Check out the Controlled Vocabulary Review.
PixVue is a free image management application for Windows. It enables the writing of XMP metadata to single image files, by right-clicking on the image in the folder or Windows Explorer view and selecting "annotate."

Online Image Database Software

The following applications are designed to allow online searching of your image files. Some will require advanced computer, HTML or programming skills to install, while others are available as services. The capabilities of each vary considerably, so you will want to invest some time to investigate whether they meet your specific needs.

CopperMine Photo Gallery is an open source (SourceForge) application that has many integrated web picture gallery features. It is a script written in PHP and uses GD or ImageMagick for an image library with a MySQL backend. It can import legacy IPTC embedded images and make them searchable online.
Digital Railroad is an online service provider that can read in image files with legacy IPTC metadata and make them searchable online.
Lightboxphoto is a commercial software application that runs on Linux/Apache, using MySQL and PHP. It is available in three configurations that allow a photographer or image distributor to search, display and sell their work online.
Menalto's Gallery is a free, open source, photo management system that includes automatic thumbnail creation, image resizing, rotation, ordering, captioning, and more.
NetPublish is an add-on to the Extensis Portfolio product which lets you turn your Portfolio catalogs into searchable websites, without extensive knowledge of HTML. Wizard-like interfaces allow you to build sites that include image search, lightboxes, and batch-download capabilities. Note, you will need a web host that has or allows you to install the Portweb extensions, or access to your own server.
PhotoShelter is an online service provider that can read in image files with IPTC Core, or legacy IPTC metadata and make them searchable online.

Image Database Utilities

The following are specialty applications that may be of use to those who are interested in expanding their image databases.

BabelPix™ is a java-based, multi-platform utility that can batch-translate the contents of the IPTC keyword field to foreign languages. It operates under Windows 98/ME/Win2K/XP, Mac OS X (PowerPC and Universal Binary) and Linux platforms.

*DISCLAIMER: The decision to download any of the programs mentioned on this site is up to you; we can not be responsible for the use, functionality, appearance, or management of the actual applications so your mileage may vary, please backup your system and only work on copies of files until you are assured of proper performance. Contact the appropriate authorities with any questions. If you feel that your favorite program is not listed, please send details (including name of program, URL for demo download and why you think it's best) to the .