Remove IPTC keywords

[Cobblestone-TLT]

Hello again!
Request a method to remove IPTC keywords only from file!

[Mario]

Which kind of IPTC keywords? Legacy (IIM) keywords or IPTC keywords in XMP?

IMatch does not create legacy IPTC data but updates it when it exists.
This is required by the rules and recommendations of the Metadata Working Group.

If you don't want this, remove legacy IPTC data from your files with the ExifTool Command Processor and the "Delete Legacy (IIM) IPTC Data" preset.

IPTC Keywords in XMP are mandatory.

[joe]

I decided to continue this discussion since I am struggling with this exact topic. I am trying to remove all the legacy IPTC. I can't figure out how as IMatch always wants to put it back. Here's an example process I'm using; I can do this with 1 or 10 files; it doesn't matter. I wait until everything is quiet on my computer; all is at steady state.

Say I have 2 files in IMatch that are not showing any writeback is needed.

Using Metadata Analyst, it shows there is legacy IPTC metadata.
Exiftool (from commandline) shows IPTC metadata for Keywords and 5 other tags.

I run the Exiftool Command Processor preset: Delete legacy IPTC (IIM) metadata
Result: "2 files updated"

Both files show writeback is needed; the writeback needed is showing as IPTC::ApplicationRecord\Keywords

Before doing writeback, I also check:
Metadata Analyst - shows no IPTC metadata but showing writeback is needed
I run Exiftool behind the scenes - shows there is no IPTC metadata in the file

All looks good, but when I do the writeback, I'm back where I started with all the same IPTC metadata in both files.

Why does IMatch want to rewrite those keywords all the time? How can I prevent that? Thank you.

[mastodon]

Maybe there is an option in IMatch to write or not to write legacy IPTC metadata automatically.

[Mario]

Both files show writeback is needed; the writeback needed is showing as IPTC::ApplicationRecord\Keywords

Which version of IMatch are you using?

This is to be expected. When IMatch adds keywords to a file and the file has legacy IPTC data (as in your case), it also mirrors the keywords into legacy IPTC data in the database.
The fact that you remove legacy IPTC data in some external software later does not change that.
Now you write back and IMatch will write the pending legacy IPTC keywords in the database.

To make this work, make sure metadata protection is off in Edit > Preferences > Metadata 2.
Then select the file(s) you have removed legacy IPTC data from, press <Shift>+<Ctrl>+<F5> reload metadata. This will wipe all pending metadata from the database, including legacy IPTC keywords. And since the file now has no legacy IPTC data anymore, adding keywords in IMatch will not produce legacy IPTC keywords.

[joe]

Yeah! Thank you so much. It was the "metadata protection" setting I needed to change (and then reload metadata, of course).

[Mario]

Very good.
Don't forget to re-enable protection to prevent changes done to your files by other software from wiping out unwritten metadata changes in your database.