IMatch
IMatch is an image management tool to view, edit and organize a digital image collection. It is popular among photographers because it supports all major digital camera RAW formats, handles Exif, IPTC and XMP data and allows you to manage large collections containing (the vendor says) "hundreds of thousands of images."
IMatch can display XMP data next to each thumbnail, while its built-in IPTC editor is regarded as one of the best available. With it, you can categorize your images by project, client, location, theme, equipment, date/time. Its comprehensive filtering facilities help you find the images you seek. The vendor's licensing policy enables a photographer to run the software on both desktop and laptop computers and replicate the database from one to another."
Comment
Developed in Germany, IMatch is a professional image management tool at a home user price. It comes with a tutorial and there are over 450 pages of online help, should you need them.
On the IMatch User Forum you can find thousands of messages explaining all aspects of the program. The phototools Wiki (wiki.photoolsweb.com) carries a Scripting Tutorial and script attachments written by users to accomplish over 400 specific tasks such as "Export to ACDSee," "Auto-Crop Image," "Rename Canon Panorama Files," "Flickr Upload," and "Copy file name into IPTC record."
The vendor offers a 30-day evaluation copy.
Tech info
- OS: Windows 2000 onward
- Price level: Approx. $65
Mario M. Westphal
Both photools.com and the IMatch software family are a personal project of Mario M. Westphal. He says he is "working hard to create and support the best image management system on the market."
From the same vendor:
- IMatch for Amateur Photographers
- IMatch for Photo Professionals
- (the above are essentially a single product)
- IMatch Quick Reference Chart
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