Require file details
at upload.
New assets arrive without the client or the photographer, and someone has to chase the details afterwards.
By the end, every new upload asks for the fields you made required, and the values are on each new asset as soon as it’s ready.
Before you start
- The permission to manage custom metadata fields and options.
- A teammate who uploads assets to the workspace.
Watch the walkthrough
Here's how to make sure teammates fill in file details when they upload.
As the workspace owner, open Settings, then Metadata. There are no custom fields yet, so choose Add field.
Name it Client. The type decides what people can enter: text, a number, a date, or a list. A client is one pick from a list, so choose Single Select.
Tick Required field, and create it. The Required badge means a new upload can't start without it.
A list needs options. Hover the field, and add the first client: Lumen Bay.
Then Harbor and Pine. As new clients come in, add them here.
Add one more field, Photographer. Text is the default type, which fits a name. Make it required too.
Both fields are now required on every new upload.
Jordan is on the Upload page and chooses two photos. The panel on the right now asks for Client and Photographer. Until both are filled in, the upload button stays locked.
Pick the client from the list, and type the photographer's name. Two of two are complete, and the button unlocks.
Start the upload. The values apply to every file in this batch.
When the files are ready, each one shows Metadata applied.
Open an asset.
Under Custom Metadata, Client and Photographer are already filled in.
Now an asset that was uploaded before these fields existed.
Client and Photographer are empty here. Required fields apply to new uploads. Assets already in the library aren't filled in for you.
In short: set required fields once in Settings, and every upload asks for them. Assets already in the library stay as they are.
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Ask for the details once, at upload.
Alex Morgan at Northstar Creative wants every new asset to say which client it’s for and who shot it. Alex adds two required fields, Client and Photographer. When Jordan Reyes uploads two photos, the upload can’t start until both are filled in, and the values land on every new asset.
Open Settings in your workspace to follow along. To add metadata fields, you need the permission to manage custom metadata fields and options.
- 01
Open Settings › Metadata
Open Settings, then Metadata. With no custom fields yet, choose Add field.
- 02
Name the field and pick its type
Give the field a name, for example “Client”. The type decides what people can enter: Text, Number, Date, Single Select (one pick from a list) or Multi Select (several picks). A client is one pick from a list, so choose Single Select.
- 03
Make it required
Tick Required field, and create the field. The Required badge means a new upload can’t start without it.
- 04
Add the list options
A list needs options. Hover the field, choose Add first option, and add the first client, for example Lumen Bay. Then add the next one, Harbor & Pine. As new clients come in, add them here.
- 05
Add a second field
Add one more field, for example “Photographer”. Text is the default type, which fits a name. Tick Required field for it too. Both fields are now required on every new upload.
- 06
The upload waits for the details
When a teammate chooses files on the Upload page, the panel on the right asks for every required field. The button reads, for example, Upload 2 files, and it stays locked while required fields are missing.
- 07
Fill in the fields
Pick the client from the list and type the photographer’s name. The panel shows “2 of 2 required fields completed”, and the button unlocks.
- 08
Upload
Start the upload. The values apply to every file in the batch. Under Upload results, each one shows Metadata applied once it’s ready.
- 09
The values are on the asset
Choose Open asset. Under Custom Metadata, Client and Photographer are already filled in.
- 10
Older assets stay as they are
Open an asset that was uploaded before these fields existed. Client and Photographer are empty here. Required fields apply to new uploads only; assets already in the library aren’t filled in for you. To find those assets and fill them in yourself, see Find assets with missing required metadata.
In short: set required fields once in Settings, and every upload asks for them. Assets already in the library stay as they are.
Check the result
- Settings › Metadata lists your fields with the Required badge.
- Your list field has its options.
- On the Upload page, the upload button stays locked until every required field is filled in.
- Each uploaded file shows Metadata applied, and the asset shows the values under Custom Metadata.
If it didn’t work
The upload button is locked.
A required field is still empty. The panel counts them, for example “1 of 2 required fields completed”. Fill in the rest, and the button unlocks.
My older assets don’t have the new fields filled in.
Required fields apply to new uploads only. Assets already in the library aren’t filled in for you.
Can different files in one upload get different values?
No. The values you enter apply to every file in the batch. Upload files that need other values in a separate batch.