What metadata does an iPhone photo contain?
iPhones write an unusually detailed metadata block, including which of the rear cameras took the shot.
6 min read · Updated
What an iPhone records
A photo from a recent iPhone typically carries around thirty metadata fields. The identifying ones are:
- Make and Model — "Apple" and the exact model, e.g. "iPhone 15 Pro".
- LensModel — which camera module was used, including its physical focal length and aperture, e.g. "iPhone 15 Pro back triple camera 6.765mm f/1.78".
- Software — the iOS version, e.g. "17.2.1".
- DateTimeOriginal, DateTimeDigitized and DateTime, usually with sub-second fields and a time-zone offset.
- The full exposure set: ISO, ExposureTime, FNumber, FocalLength and metering mode.
- GPS coordinates, altitude and a UTC timestamp, when location services are enabled for the camera.
The lens tells you more than you think
Because the LensModel string names the specific module and its focal length, it reveals which camera you used — main, ultra-wide, telephoto or front. Combined with the model name, that is a fairly precise description of the device in your pocket.
It is also internally consistent, which is why a device profile in the editor sets the lens, focal length and aperture together rather than letting you produce a combination no real iPhone would write.
HEIC and lossless metadata rewriting
Recent iPhones save photos as HEIC by default. HEIC stores metadata as items in an ISO-BMFF container, located through a table called iloc, rather than in simple marker segments.
Our engine rebuilds the iloc item table and all byte offsets safely from scratch. Descriptive metadata (EXIF, XMP, GPS) is stripped or edited while preserving every image tile, the thumbnail, and the HDR gain map bit-for-bit without re-encoding.
Alternatively, you can convert HEIC to JPEG, PNG, WebP, or AVIF if you need universal compatibility outside Apple devices.
Videos from an iPhone
iPhone video is a QuickTime MOV, and it stores metadata differently again — in a meta box containing a keys table paired with a values list. That is where make, model, software and an ISO 6709 location string live.
On top of that, the mvhd, tkhd and mdhd headers each record a creation and modification time. These are easy to overlook and are zeroed during a clean.
Live Photos and the second file
A Live Photo is not one file. It is a still image plus a short MOV, stored as a pair and presented as a single item in the library.
That matters when you are cleaning: handling the photo does nothing to the accompanying video, which carries its own creation timestamps and, usually, its own location. If you share a Live Photo as a Live Photo, both travel.
Sharing it as a still — or turning Live off before sending — leaves only the image to worry about. Otherwise, treat the two as separate files and clean both.
What survives a screenshot
A screenshot of a photo carries none of the original EXIF: it is a new image produced by the system, with no camera, no lens, no timestamp from the original shot and no coordinates.
It is not a privacy measure, though. The screenshot still shows whatever the picture showed, and on iOS it records its own creation time and the device that produced it. It removes the metadata problem and keeps the content one.
Questions
Does AirDrop strip metadata?
No. AirDrop transfers the original file, metadata included. That is usually what you want between your own devices, and usually not what you want when sending to someone else.
Why does my iPhone photo show three different dates?
DateTimeOriginal is when the shutter fired, DateTimeDigitized when it was written to storage, and DateTime when the file was last modified. They are normally identical on a photo straight from the camera, and diverge once software touches it.