EXIF (Exchangeable Image File Format) is metadata that cameras and phones tuck inside photos. You never see it in the picture, but it records what took the photo, when, with which settings and, often, where. It is useful for photographers and investigators, and a privacy risk for anyone sharing pictures online. View and strip it with the EXIF Metadata Remover, or examine a photo in depth with the Image Forensics.
Where EXIF lives in a file
A JPEG is a series of segments, each starting with a marker. EXIF sits in the APP1 segment right after the file's first two bytes (FF D8), introduced by the text Exif and followed by a small TIFF structure holding the tags. The pixel data comes later, so the metadata can be edited or removed without touching the image. PNG, WebP, HEIC and TIFF files carry EXIF too, in their own containers.
Common tags
| Tag number | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 271 | Make |
Camera manufacturer |
| 272 | Model |
Camera model |
| 306 | DateTime |
Last modified date and time |
| 36867 | DateTimeOriginal |
When the photo was taken |
| 274 | Orientation |
How to rotate the image for display |
| 33434 | ExposureTime |
Shutter speed in seconds |
| 33437 | FNumber |
Aperture (f-number) |
| 34855 | ISOSpeedRatings |
ISO sensitivity |
| 37386 | FocalLength |
Lens focal length in mm |
| 305 | Software |
Program that last saved the file |
| 34853 | GPSInfo |
Pointer to the location block |
Tags are grouped into directories called IFDs (image file directories). Camera settings live in the main and Exif IFDs, while location data lives in a separate GPS IFD.
Orientation
Cameras usually store pixels as the sensor captured them and use the Orientation tag to say how a viewer should rotate the picture. That is why a photo can look fine on your phone and sideways in a program that ignores the tag.
| Value | Meaning |
|---|---|
1 |
Normal |
3 |
Rotate 180° |
6 |
Rotate 90° clockwise to display |
8 |
Rotate 270° clockwise (90° anticlockwise) to display |
GPS coordinates
Location is stored as degrees, minutes and seconds with a hemisphere letter. A real photo record might hold latitude 48° 51' 29.6" N and longitude 2° 17' 40.2" E. To get decimal degrees, add minutes divided by 60 and seconds divided by 3600:
- Latitude: 48 + 51/60 + 29.6/3600 = 48.858222
- Longitude: 2 + 17/60 + 40.2/3600 = 2.294500
South and West become negative numbers. Paste the decimal pair into a map and you land at the Eiffel Tower in Paris, accurate to a few metres.
Why it matters
- Privacy. A photo of your home or your child's school can reveal where you live. Many social networks strip EXIF on upload, but email, messaging apps, forums and file sharing often do not.
- Investigation. Metadata can show which device took a picture, whether software edited it and whether the stated date is plausible. It can also be edited or faked, so treat it as a lead, not proof.
- Photography. Aperture, shutter speed and ISO tell you how a good shot was made.
Removing EXIF
Re-saving a picture does not always remove it. Use a tool that rewrites the file without the metadata segments, then check the result. The EXIF Metadata Remover does this in your browser, so the photo is never uploaded. Turn off geotagging in your camera app if you never want it recorded.