Structuring image database, suggestion for tags/ categories for metadata?

[geirtbr]

Im about to do some work and make an imagedatabase searchable. Its from an organisation, and its from different settings and events over a span of years. Different photographers.

Wondering about suggestions for categories in relation to such an image database. I know this is smart to plan this a littleon beforehand, so that the application is consistent. Also know its not wise to overdo and add too many categories.

If anyone knows useful readings about this, im also interested in tips! This should be classic information-science material.

 

[Graham06]

My from the hip thought is to make the decision deferrable. The right categories are determined by the special properties of your collection. Allow images to be tagged without constraint but allow some sort of relabeling that will be applied later. Maybe a one-off event

Perhaps the relabeling is to put the Freeform labels themselves into categories and have hierarchical tags. You can only do that one you have some tags

Ai tagging and people recognition is an idea

 

[koraks]

You're asking for information architecture but the requirements are unknown. So get that straight first. What's the database for? What kind of processes (IT and organizational) run on top of it?

What you need to store depends on what you want to use.

 

[Ian Grant]

Back in the mid 1990s I used a Microsoft Office database called PhotoCat, it was shareware. I was writing databases at work and made the author some suggestions for improvements, He made it Freeware, realising users needed to customise it for their own use

In my case the database essentially catalogued my negative, description, project, film, exposure, developer, etc, it cross-referenced to equipment, printing, selection for exhibition.

Then Microsoft changed the Visual Basic in the next version of Office, so some functions needed re-writing. I exported the tables as spreadsheets, and have never finished recompiling in Libre Office Base, although the spreadsheets are imported.

I'd suggest playing with a Spreadsheet to star with to categorise the Fields you require.

Ian