Solved: Re: No GPS data added to photos when transferred - Page 2 - Samsung Community

stevef70 · ‎10-10-2022

Hi, I recently bought an A13 and I am delighted with it, but there is one small issue.

GPS location is not being added to the exif data. Pre-empting all those who want to ask, I'll confirm that :

Location service is on and working in google maps, OSMand, and other apps
Camera has permission to access location
Camera settings adjusted to add location data to pix

Curiously - and confirming that GPS is working - when viewing the images in the gallery on the phone, I can see a map with a pointer at the location where I took the pic. So the phone knows where it was taken, but when I transfer the pix to my laptop and examine the exif data, all GPS fields are empty.

So what else could it be? I think I've covered everything but I'm happy to be corrected if someone has an answer.

jj28 · ‎11-26-2022

Same issue with my A22. If I switch back to JPG format GPS data is added as expected

stevef70 · ‎11-26-2022

If you switch 'back' to JPG? What format were you using before that?

stevef70 · ‎11-26-2022

A couple of comments here mention the idea that the GPS data exists but is stripped when pix are transferred. I don't believe this is the case. For a start, that would require a special background program to be running which would have to identify events when pix are being transferred and modify them on the fly. It's not impossible, but it would add demand on the system and slow down transfers by a significant amount.

Secondly, I can browse my phone from my computer and examine the EXIF data in situ. It's all there, except for GPS data. So it's not that it's being stripped from the pix, it is not being added in the first place.

aj347 · ‎11-28-2022

Interesting point Steve.

Option 1/ Take picture, a jpg file is created along with another file. Open picture on phone and the phone pulls in the GPS data by linking the two files.

Q/ Where is this other file stored? I could go with this idea because other cameras create small thumb nail files when displaying multiple images.

Option 2/ Take picture, jpg file created with all camera settings including GPS.

Q/ If image stored on removable SD card then if I remove the SD card all the data should be there with the picture? And the phone wouldn't have any control over the file!

Could there be hidden file kept on internal memory, very possible!

But why not allow the user to do what ever they want. Or have a warning of the information being available.

aj347 · ‎12-01-2022

Problem solved!

The pictures that I have from a trip I took recently have all the location data attached. Had a conversation with a friend and he suggested to try a program call XnView. After removing my SD card from my A51 poped it into my pc, copied the files over to my backup drive I was able to see all the exif data including the GPS with sea level and all.

What a relief, so it seems to be the software that used to view the images that was the problem.

stevef70 · ‎12-01-2022

Thanks to @aj347's last comment, I've realised that I've been wrong on a couple of points in this discussion.

I normally use an app installed on both my phone and my computer which allows me to very easily transfer files from one to another using a 'share' option when files are selected in the phone gallery, but I tried aj347's suggestion of removing the SD card and putting it in the computer - and sure enough, all the GPS data is there.

So the data is being written to the pix, but is stripped sometime during transfer. But by which - the phone or the app???

Using that same app I can browse the SD card from my computer while it is still in the phone, and transfer files just as in any other file manager such as Explorer. Transferring them that way preserves the GPS data. It's not as convenient as the old way, but it is a far better solution than turning the phone off, removing the card, etc etc etc.

Thanks to all for your input.

Tobycat1962 · ‎02-05-2024

But what if you don't have a removable SD card in your phone? I have a Samsung S23+. The location is in the properties of the photo on the phone. However, if I connect the phone to my laptop and view properties of the photo "on the phone", the gps location isn't displayed. I can't even find a category where it would be located. I use Windows Explorer when I transfer the photos from my phone to the external hard drive, but then all the gps information is gone.

Is Samsung stripping the gps location during the transfer process? I don't understand how to transfer it to my hard drive and keep the gps metatags.

suiluispi · ‎08-09-2023

Finally, after reading multiple posts I tried a different thing, and it worked:

1. Giving Location permissions to the camera and gallery apps.

2. Copy the images from the "file manager app" instead from the "gallery app" to your desired folder. In my case, I copied it into a Google folder.

3. Later, I checked (using Python) if the geolocation was provided and yes, it is there.

I tried several ways but this was the only way I could export the exif + geolocation.

suiluispi · ‎08-09-2023

Finally, after reading multiple posts I tried a different thing, and it worked:

1. Giving Location permissions to the camera and gallery apps.

2. Copy the images from the "file manager app" instead from the "gallery app" to your desired folder. In my case, I copied it into a Google folder.

3. Later, I checked (using Python) if the geolocation was provided and yes, it is there.

I tried several ways but this was the only way I could export the exif + geolocation.

stevef70 · ‎08-16-2023

"Copy the images from the "file manager app" instead from the "gallery app" to your desired folder. In my case, I copied it into a Google folder."

Nice work suiluispi! That works for me too 👍

Original topic:

No GPS data added to photos when transferred