What is a .XMP file?
An .XMP file is a type of file called an Extensible Metadata Platform File. It is mainly used by Adobe software like Photoshop and Bridge to store extra information about photo files, especially those in raw camera formats like .CR2 or .NEF. When you edit a photo in these programs, the changes you make (like adjustments to brightness, contrast, or color settings) are saved in an XMP file. This file is created automatically and is usually found in the same folder as the original photo file.
The information in an XMP file includes things like the photo's title, the creator's name, keywords for searching, and specific editing details such as exposure levels, crop angles, and more. This helps keep track of how the image was altered and allows the changes to be applied again later or on another device with the same software.
You can open XMP files with several programs: - Adobe Bridge 2023 - Adobe Photoshop 2023 - Adobe Prelude CC 2019 - Microsoft Photos (included with some operating systems) - Adobe XMP Toolkit - Any basic text editor (like Notepad or TextEdit) Although XMP files are saved in a simple text format, they are not meant to be opened directly very often. Instead, they work in the background, linked to the main image file they describe. If you open an XMP file in a text editor, you can see all the metadata in plain text, but it's more common to manage this data directly through photo editing software.
If you prefer not to have separate XMP files, you can save your images in the .DNG format. This format includes the metadata directly within the image file itself, so no separate XMP file is needed.
It's important to remember that if you delete an XMP file, you will lose all the edits associated with the corresponding raw image file, as the XMP file holds all the adjustment information.
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