Body Metadata

Set Nikon body metadata directly, or write profile-saved ASK templates during capture

Body Metadata is on Settings > Body. It controls metadata fields that are stored in the connected Nikon body.

Note: Body Metadata is not currently available when using Nikon Remote SDK v2. Use Legacy SDK mode for Artist Name, Copyright, User Comment, and metadata ASK templates.

The visible controls are organized as:

  • A Copyright card with Artist Name and Copyright text.
  • A User Comment card.

Some Nikon bodies show User Comment as Image Comment in the camera menu. The app uses User Comment because that is the Nikon Remote SDK capability name.

Metadata support varies by body, firmware, and current camera state. It can also vary by Nikon SDK mode. For example, a body can have metadata menu items on its LCD while the active SDK mode does not expose those fields to the app. In Legacy SDK mode, the fields stay visible so you can prepare token templates before connecting, but the connected Nikon module decides what can be read or written at runtime. In Nikon Remote SDK v2 mode, Body Metadata controls may be hidden when tested v2 support is not available. Saved metadata templates are preserved so switching back to Legacy SDK mode can restore the configured templates.

Literal mode

A metadata field is in literal mode when the text does not contain an @ASK or @SCASK token. Literal text belongs to the camera body. It is read from the body when the app connects, and pressing Set writes the current literal value to the body when the connected module reports that the field is settable.

Use literal mode when the same value should remain in the camera menu, such as a studio Artist Name or a fixed copyright notice.

The Copyright card has one Set button for both Artist Name and Copyright. In literal mode, pressing Set validates both fields and writes both body values when the connected module reports that the fields are settable.

Literal body metadata is not saved in app profiles. If you switch profiles, the app does not store or restore the camera-owned literal value as profile data.

Token mode

A metadata field is in token mode only when it contains an @ASK or @SCASK token. Path counters, timestamps, run timestamps, extension tokens, and body filename tokens are not resolved for Body Metadata. If you type one of those Path tokens in a metadata field, the app warns that it will not be used as a metadata placeholder.

In token mode, Set is hidden because the text is a template, not an immediate body write. Token templates are profile data. Save the profile when you want the template to load again later.

Tokenized capture metadata writes are implemented as transient body metadata. Immediately before capture, the app resolves token templates from the capture storage snapshot and writes the resolved value to the body. Normal still capture and Pulse or workflow capture use the same capture-time metadata behavior. After the still file is saved, the app clears any tokenized body metadata fields it wrote for that capture as best effort.

The Copyright card has one Attach or Ignore switch for the Nikon copyright metadata block. That block includes Artist Name and Copyright text on confirmed bodies such as the Z50 and D800. When either Artist Name or Copyright is tokenized, the resolved values are written before capture only when the Copyright card is set to Attach. When the Copyright card is set to Ignore, the templates can still create ASK fields and remain saved in the profile, but the copyright metadata block is not written to the body for capture.

In Nikon body-menu terms, Copyright is a metadata block. Artist identifies the creator, and Copyright contains the copyright notice. For example, use Artist Name for Russ and Copyright for (c) 2026, instead of putting the whole notice into the Copyright field.

User Comment has its own Attach or Ignore switch. When User Comment is tokenized, the resolved value is written before capture only when User Comment is set to Attach. When User Comment is set to Ignore, the token template can still create ASK fields and remain saved in the profile, but User Comment is not written to the body for capture.

ASK and SCASK metadata templates

You can include @ASK and @SCASK tokens in metadata templates. Those tokens create ASK fields the same way they do in Path templates. ASK tokens must use the full descriptor form with both # delimiters. For example, @ASK1#1:School# is valid, but @ASK1 is not a metadata placeholder. Literal text around a malformed ASK-like token does not make it valid. For example, A@ASK1 is still malformed because the full descriptor is missing.

Examples:

  • @ASK1#Client#
  • @SCASK1#*1:Item#
  • Job @ASK1#1:Job# - Item @SCASK1#*2:Item#

Examples that are not metadata placeholders:

  • A@GCT3
  • @YYYY
  • @BFN
  • A@ASK1

Use ASK for typed values. Use SCASK for values that are commonly supplied by a serial barcode scanner. SCASK fields can still be typed manually.

ASK and SCASK values can be sensitive because they may contain client names, specimen ids, student ids, order numbers, evidence identifiers, or barcode payloads. The app's ASK logging is privacy-aware and does not log entered ASK values or scanner payloads.

ASK and SCASK metadata cleanup can only be best effort if the camera powers off, disconnects, or becomes unavailable before cleanup completes. The app avoids logging entered ASK or SCASK values and avoids logging resolved metadata payloads.

For the full token syntax, field order, required fields, placeholders, scanner-capable fields, and submit behavior, open the ASK help page.

Profile persistence

The profile boundary is simple:

  • Literal metadata values are camera-owned body data and are not saved in profiles.
  • ASK metadata templates are app/profile data and are saved with the profile.
  • The Path template is separate profile data on the Path page.
  • ASK values entered during capture are runtime data, not profile settings.

This keeps profiles from accidentally overwriting literal body metadata, while still allowing reusable ASK metadata templates for capture workflows.

ASCII and length limits

Nikon body metadata strings are ASCII-only. Do not use Unicode text such as accented letters, Mandarin characters, emoji, or typographic punctuation.

The Nikon module PDFs are consistent about the byte limits where each metadata field is present:

  • Artist Name: 36 ASCII bytes.
  • Copyright: 54 ASCII bytes.
  • User Comment: 36 ASCII bytes.

Because these fields are ASCII-only, one allowed character is one byte.

The PDFs are not perfectly consistent about the exact printable ASCII set. Some modules describe an ASCII 90-character set, while newer wording often describes ASCII 95. To avoid avoidable camera rejections, the app validates literal Set values with the conservative ASCII 90 set.

Allowed literal characters are:

  • Space.
  • Digits 0 through 9.
  • English letters A through Z and a through z.
  • Punctuation: ! " # $ % & ' ( ) * + , - . / : ; < = > ? @ [ ] _ { }

Printable ASCII characters outside that conservative set are not accepted for literal Set. This includes backslash, caret, backtick, vertical bar, and tilde.

If a literal value is too long or contains unsupported characters, the app shows the warning in the matching metadata card and does not send the value to the camera.

ASK template TextBoxes can be longer than the final camera value because the template may contain token syntax. When tokenized capture writes run, the resolved value must still fit the same ASCII and length rules before it can be written to the body. If a resolved token value is too long or contains unsupported characters, capture is rejected before the transient value is written to the body. The status line shows a field-specific rejection message, such as Artist Name, Copyright, or User Comment metadata being too long.

Runtime authority

The connected Nikon module is the authority for metadata support. The app does not rely on hard-coded body support tables for the live Set buttons. Legacy Nikon SDK mode and Nikon Remote SDK v2 mode can report different metadata support for the same camera. If the current SDK mode does not expose Artist Name, Copyright, User Comment, or their attach switches, the app cannot read, write, or apply capture-time ASK metadata for those fields in that connection. When v2 mode does not expose these fields on tested bodies, ControlMyNikon hides the Body Metadata controls and shows a v2 availability note instead.

When a body is connected, the app asks the Nikon module which capabilities are present and whether they are currently settable. The result controls each field's Set button and card message.

A field can be in one of these practical states:

  • Disconnected or unknown: the field remains editable, but literal Set is unavailable.
  • Capability missing: the connected body does not report that metadata capability.
  • Present but not settable now: the body reports the capability, but the current camera state does not allow writing it.
  • Settable: literal mode can write the value with Set.

If a capability is missing or not settable, the app shows a quiet field-specific message instead of hiding the field.

When metadata is not settable

A metadata field can be present on a body but not writable in the current camera state. The exact reason is controlled by the camera and Nikon module.

Common reasons listed in Nikon module documentation include:

  • Movie recording.
  • Spot White Balance mode.
  • Live View on some older bodies.
  • Mirror-up state on some bodies.
  • Camera busy states.

The app does not guess the exact reason unless the runtime SDK path exposes it. If a field is not settable, stop movie recording or other active camera work, wait for the body to become idle, or reconnect if the camera state appears stale.

Field notes

Artist Name and Copyright share one Copyright metadata card. The card has one Attach or Ignore switch and one Set button for the Nikon copyright metadata block. Runtime validation on the Z50 and D800 shows Artist Name depends on the camera's Copyright Attach state to appear in the captured file metadata. If tokenized Artist Name is written to the body but does not appear in the saved image, set the Copyright card to Attach and test again. This reflects the camera's Copyright screen model: the attach state belongs to the copyright metadata block, not only to the Copyright text field.

User Comment has an Attach or Ignore switch beside the text field. On some camera menus this appears as Image Comment. ASK-tokenized User Comment values are written before capture only when this switch is set to Attach.

The Attach or Ignore switches depend on runtime capability state. If the connected module reports that the matching attach capability is missing or not settable, the switch is unavailable.

Related setup

Use ASK when metadata templates need typed or scanned values. Use Path when destination folders and filenames need counters, dates, body filenames, or other Path tokens. Use Profiles to save and reload ASK metadata templates. Use Body settings for connection, live view startup, body lock, communication timing, and exposure meter options.