XMP Files
- Thread starter Dawg Pics
- Start date
The XMP file is the side card file that holds the edit for your RAW image. If you ever want to go back and re-edit any image, you would need to start over if you don't have this file where it can be accessed when the RAW image is opened in Lightroom or Camera RAW.
Did you move the files with your editing software? Your system file browser should be able to do that without creating the XMP file. Curious as to why you are saving them to a folder on the card, I remove my files for the card and store them on the system HDD.
Dawg Pics
Senior Member
@ Needa
When I save the file with the layers, I save it directly from Affinity to a G-drive that I purchase, and when I do that, there isn't an XMP created. All is good.
These XMP files are all on my XQD card that I pulled from the camera. Now, that I am thinking about it, it has always been like that. They are just there, and it isn't caused by me moving around the files into a folder. I am blaming lack of sleep for that misinformation that I gave.
I don't understand the sidecar files, etc. As long as I can delete them, it isn't a big deal, but it is a lot of extra files clogging up my view. So, I 'arrange by file type' when viewing to get them all out of the way.
I have no clue if I am making sense here. Mostly, I just wanted to know if there was any issue with me deleting them. If there is a way to not create them on the card in the first place, that would be great.
In other words, when I put the card in the card reader directly from the camera, for every NEF, I have an XMP right under it. So, every other file on the card when viewing the files is an XMP regardless of what I do. If that is normal, then I'll just continue to deal with it like I have been. If there is a way to stop it, then that would be great. Invisible XMP mode or something. Ha Told ya. Brain fried from lack of sleep.
When I save the file with the layers, I save it directly from Affinity to a G-drive that I purchase, and when I do that, there isn't an XMP created. All is good.
These XMP files are all on my XQD card that I pulled from the camera. Now, that I am thinking about it, it has always been like that. They are just there, and it isn't caused by me moving around the files into a folder. I am blaming lack of sleep for that misinformation that I gave.
I don't understand the sidecar files, etc. As long as I can delete them, it isn't a big deal, but it is a lot of extra files clogging up my view. So, I 'arrange by file type' when viewing to get them all out of the way.I have no clue if I am making sense here. Mostly, I just wanted to know if there was any issue with me deleting them. If there is a way to not create them on the card in the first place, that would be great.
In other words, when I put the card in the card reader directly from the camera, for every NEF, I have an XMP right under it. So, every other file on the card when viewing the files is an XMP regardless of what I do. If that is normal, then I'll just continue to deal with it like I have been. If there is a way to stop it, then that would be great. Invisible XMP mode or something. Ha Told ya. Brain fried from lack of sleep.
The way I do it is to copy the images from the card using the OS to a directory on the HDD, then import them into the program. Doing it this way creates no XMP files on the card. I was wondering if you imported them using Affinity and maybe that is why you have XMP files on the QXD card. Not being familiar with Affinity I can't say if that is correct but the one way that XMP files might be placed on the card.
BackdoorArts
Senior Member
There's no reason you should have XMP files on the card. I'm looking at mine from my D500 now and there are none. If you are opening your image in Affinity directly from you XQD card before moving or saving them to a hard drive then it's Affinity is creating them. The "Develop Persona" module is Affinity's version of Camera Raw, and if you do anything in that module then an XMP file will be created because all raw processing is non-destructive so those edits need to be stored somewhere. When you move to other personas the edited image becomes your background layer, just as in Photoshop, and yes, the applied edits would be stored there, but those edits are effectively permanent in the PSD file you're creating. If you never revisit your images then getting rid of the XMP file is fine. But if you ever came back to an image and realized something required tweaking in that base/background layer then without the XMP file you'd need to redo all those original edits from scratch.
I revisit my old images constantly, usually a couple years after I have worked on them and after learning new techniques or getting better editing tools. I use Lightroom so all the edits that would have been in an XMP file had I used Camera Raw are stored in the catalog (there is an option to have Lightroom create XMP files).
I revisit my old images constantly, usually a couple years after I have worked on them and after learning new techniques or getting better editing tools. I use Lightroom so all the edits that would have been in an XMP file had I used Camera Raw are stored in the catalog (there is an option to have Lightroom create XMP files).
Dawg Pics
Senior Member
@BackdoorArts @Needa
Thank you for helping me out.
I am just viewing the images on my iMac. Is the iMac producing these files due to some conversion it has to do to view the NEF?
OK, I think I see what is happening. If I click on the XMP file it activates the "Photos" on my iMac. There is a thumbnail that I should have mentioned that says, "Exec" for each XMP file. It eventually opened up the "Photos" program and wanted to know if I wanted to import the files. I clicked on INFO for an image and the option to "Open with:" is set to "Preview.app (default)", which is I think is creating the Preview with an 'exec' thumbnail XMP file.
I can make them open in Affinity with a double click, but I kept accidentally opening them while viewing them.
I think I have my answer. Maybe if I had just clicked on the damn file to begin with, I wouldn't have wasted people's time. Sorry about that.
Maybe this information will answer somebody else's questions in the future.
Thank you for helping me out.
I am just viewing the images on my iMac. Is the iMac producing these files due to some conversion it has to do to view the NEF?
OK, I think I see what is happening. If I click on the XMP file it activates the "Photos" on my iMac. There is a thumbnail that I should have mentioned that says, "Exec" for each XMP file. It eventually opened up the "Photos" program and wanted to know if I wanted to import the files. I clicked on INFO for an image and the option to "Open with:" is set to "Preview.app (default)", which is I think is creating the Preview with an 'exec' thumbnail XMP file.
I can make them open in Affinity with a double click, but I kept accidentally opening them while viewing them.
I think I have my answer. Maybe if I had just clicked on the damn file to begin with, I wouldn't have wasted people's time. Sorry about that.
Maybe this information will answer somebody else's questions in the future.
Last edited:
Fred Kingston
Senior Member
yes... NEF files are edited non-destructively... IOW, if you edit a NEF, and save the edit... it doesn't save the change to the NEF file, but writes what is called a "side-car" file with those edits. Those would be the XMP files... When you touch the NEF file again, the system looks to see if there are XMP files with the same file name as the NEF...it subsequently loads the Nef, and then loads the XMP changes...
If you do heavy editing on a NEF file, and subsequently delete the associated XMP files... then you won't have all those edits.
I don't know about you, but if I had images that I had spent time making changes to, I certainly wouldn't be too excited about throwing away all that time by deleting those XMP files...
There are several methods, other than XMP files for saving edits...
If you do heavy editing on a NEF file, and subsequently delete the associated XMP files... then you won't have all those edits.
I don't know about you, but if I had images that I had spent time making changes to, I certainly wouldn't be too excited about throwing away all that time by deleting those XMP files...
There are several methods, other than XMP files for saving edits...
Dawg Pics
Senior Member
Thanks Fred. I save a copy of my layers in case I want to go back, but that takes up a lot of space. So, I'll go back and do some reading on Affinity and XMP files.
I just figured out these particular files are my iMac wanting to import these images into Photo. I am pretty sure anyway. I am going to mess with the settings in Photo to see if those XMP exec files go away.
I just figured out these particular files are my iMac wanting to import these images into Photo. I am pretty sure anyway. I am going to mess with the settings in Photo to see if those XMP exec files go away.