iPhone EXIF Field Glossary

In EXIF terminology, the date and time associated with original image creation. It has no built-in time-zone offset in this form and may be absent, wrong, or changed, so it does not independently prove when an event occurred.

The date and time when the image data was created or digitized. It is not a universal “last metadata edit” field, and its meaning depends on the file-producing workflow.

A stored latitude. EXIF commonly represents it with degrees, minutes, seconds and an N/S reference; Photo2XL can export decimal degrees. It does not independently prove device position.

A stored longitude. In decimal notation, east is positive and west is negative. Interpret it with the latitude, reference fields, and workflow context.

An altitude value paired with a reference indicating above or below sea level. Accuracy varies and the value should not be used by itself to identify a floor or exact elevation.

A stored direction in degrees, interpreted with GPSImgDirectionRef. It can provide orientation context but does not independently confirm the camera position or scene.

The manufacturer string reported by the file. iPhone Camera files commonly report Apple, but the string is not proof of source.

The device-model string reported in metadata. It can identify a model line but not a unique device, and it does not authenticate the source photo.

A software string written by the file-producing or processing workflow. It can be useful context, but it is not a complete edit history and does not authenticate the file.

The lens-model string reported by the file. It may help describe a camera configuration, but it does not identify a unique device or rule out editing.

Actual focal length in millimeters. Pairs with FocalLengthIn35mmFilm (the 35mm-equivalent) for traditional photography reference.

The reported aperture as an f-number. Interpret it with the lens and file context rather than assuming a value from a device model.

Shutter exposure time in seconds. Auto-mode iPhone Camera adjusts this based on light; faster shutters (1/1000s) for bright scenes, slower (1/30s or longer) for low light.

The reported sensitivity setting. It can help compare exposure choices, but scene brightness cannot be inferred from ISO alone.

A bit-field describing reported flash status and mode. Decode it according to the EXIF specification or the reading tool.

The reported white-balance mode, commonly encoded as Auto or Manual.

The reported exposure compensation in EV. A zero value means no bias was reported in this field.

The width in pixels for the image resource being inspected. Cropping, editing, conversion, and source-resource choice can change it.

The height in pixels for the image resource being inspected. Interpret it together with orientation metadata.

A transform telling compatible readers how stored pixels should be displayed. It is not a reliable statement of how a person held the device.

Color-space metadata used by compatible readers. “Uncalibrated” in this EXIF field does not by itself identify a specific wide-gamut profile; inspect embedded profiles when color accuracy matters.

Nominal resolution metadata used by some print workflows. It does not change the image's pixel dimensions.

The byte size of the resource being measured. It helps compare known files, but size alone cannot determine whether a file is original, edited, or a screenshot.