KIM Keywording 3.6 is a maintenance update, which is recommended for installation by all users.

Bug fixes

• A bug has been fixed where IPTC data could not be saved back to the files under MacOSX High Sierra.
• Various small bug fixes and improvements.

KIM Keywording is a multilingual keywording softwae for photographers and photo agencies. We have a special topic page, focussed on Keywording.

Change camp

So you are busy preparing your photos and you want to design the keywording so that as many people as possible can find your photos. Then nothing is better than changing camp once. Go from being an image provider to an image user. Become a picture seeker.

Imagine that you are looking for a photo of an egg. A picture of an egg is required for a new campaign, which – according to the default – should have certain characteristics. Now there are thousands upon thousands of pictures of eggs on the net (e.g. here ). Not all are suitable for the campaign, however. A differentiation is therefore required, which is achieved by adding further features. Because the yellow of the egg is not always the yellow of the egg.

Anyone who slips into the skin of the picture seeker will often find new search terms and perspectives. Perhaps it is important to explicitly state the number of eggs, the color of the eggs, the environment (kitchen, nest, egg carton), the type (ostrich, quail, snake egg). Should it be a studio shot or should it be photographed in the wild? Which expression should be conveyed and who should the image address? All of these questions lead to possible new keywords.

Ask colleagues and friends

Keywording is complex because people use language and words differently. Put yourself in the shoes of the viewfinder already brings a lot. Next, you could invite other people to do your job – just as a test. Take a picture or two and ask friends, colleagues and acquaintances to describe each picture using around 10 search terms. You will probably see that very different terms are used. Our understanding of language was shaped individually. This diversity is the real challenge for good keywording. It is a question of a good differentiation between the terms used and an appropriate number of synonyms.

There is this famous story in which you ask six different people to describe the same room. There are six completely different descriptions. If you describe pictures, you ideally imagine different people and try to capture the optimal words for different perspectives.

Know the image users

If image databases are provided for clearly defined user groups or for very specific topics, it is essential to have a good understanding of both the user group and the topic used. The same images can make very different statements depending on the context of use – and therefore require adapted keywords. In companies it is often the case that their own marketing language or their own thematic focus is explained with certain words, abbreviations or concepts. So if you work for a specific topic or a specific clientele, it is wise to take into account the very own language that is spoken there.

In addition to technical terms, it can be, for example, certain abbreviations, areas of application (marketing, archive), events (Meeting Day 2014) or purposes (campaign 2017, winter 2018, etc.). For all these special terms, it is always very helpful if the keyworder either comes from the company itself (and therefore knows the terms and concepts by heart) or is briefed in detail by the company. At most, cooperation is also a good option.

Keywording should lead to results

Language is alive like people are alive. There can be no exact 100% valid and all-encompassing keywording, especially since the way the images are viewed and interpreted changes over time. At best, an approximation of optimal results can be achieved. It therefore takes the courage to leave gaps as well as the foresight for later purposes. When keywording you should think results-oriented: Which terms lead to good search results? That should be the real guide.

The actual goal of keywording is to make the images findable for the image user. All keywording serves this purpose. If the image user finds what he is looking for, then the purpose is fulfilled. If he doesn’t find the picture, then the keyworder has overlooked something important. The interaction between keyworders and image users is therefore particularly helpful. It is worth getting regular feedback from users. Only the successful image search determines the quality of the keywording. If possible, it is worth analyzing the search queries on the website. Which words are used? Are several search terms entered to narrow down a search? Are there search terms for which no hits were found? If that’s the case, why is that? With questions of this kind one learns to better assess the search behavior and the efficiency of the assigned keywords.

Some websites allow the analysis of search queries. If, for example, an image does exist in your image database but does not appear in searches, then there is a problem with keywording. An image is not found because relevant search terms are missing. If you recognize this, then you can Optimize keywording . Such an analysis allows conclusions to be drawn about user behavior and user needs without having spoken directly to those affected.

In the light of these considerations, it makes sense to set up your own Keywording strategy that activates an evaluation at critical points, after which the keywording results can be adjusted.

Picture credits: All pictures come from the picture offer of Italic picture agency .