Batch file rename
Rename image sets in the browser
Build the recipe once, check every new filename against the old one, catch collisions before they happen, and download the whole set as a zip. Nothing is uploaded.
Preview (0 files)
Add files to see every new name before you commit to it.
How the recipe works
A recipe is an ordered list of rules applied to every filename in turn, and the order matters: each rule works on the result of the one before it. Strip the camera prefix, add the shoot slug, renumber from one, force lowercase — in that sequence you get hartley-kitchen-001.jpg out of DSC_4471.JPG.
The preview shows every old name against its new one and updates as you type, which is the part that makes bulk renaming safe. The failure mode of a bad rule is not one wrong file, it is four hundred.
Pad your sequence numbers
Pad to at least two digits, three if the set could pass a hundred. Anything that sorts alphabetically — your file browser, most upload forms, every portal — puts 10 directly after 1:
| Unpadded | Padded to 3 |
|---|---|
| shoot-1.jpg | shoot-001.jpg |
| shoot-10.jpg | shoot-002.jpg |
| shoot-11.jpg | shoot-003.jpg |
| shoot-2.jpg | shoot-010.jpg |
The left column is what a client sees when they open the folder, and it is why frame 2 ends up at the bottom of the contact sheet.
Nothing is uploaded
Files are read from your machine, renamed in the browser, and written back out as a zip. None of it is transmitted, which matters when the files belong to a client and you have not read the clause about third-party processing. It also means there is no size limit beyond what your own machine can hold.
Conventions worth stealing
| Job | Pattern | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Wedding | {couple}-{part}-{nnn} | shah-reception-014.jpg |
| Property | {address}-{room}-{nn} | 12-hartley-rd-kitchen-04.jpg |
| Editorial | {publication}-{slug}-{nnn} | observer-hydrogen-007.jpg |
| Archive | {yyyy-mm-dd}-{slug}-{nnn} | 2026-04-18-lisbon-031.jpg |
Three rules behind all of them: lowercase, hyphens rather than spaces or underscores, and the most significant thing first so alphabetical order is also useful order. There is more on this in how the batch renamer works.
Rename first, then drop the folder into the contact sheet maker and turn filenames on. That is the whole reason to bother: the labels under each frame become something a client can quote back at you.
Common questions
- Can I batch rename files without installing software?
- Yes. This renamer runs entirely in the browser: files are read from your machine, renamed locally, and downloaded as a zip. Nothing is uploaded, so it is safe to use on client files.
- How do I rename hundreds of photos at once?
- Add the folder, build a recipe from find-and-replace, prefix, sequence, and case rules, check the preview of every new filename, then download the renamed set. The rules apply to the whole set at once regardless of how many files it holds.
- What happens if two files end up with the same name?
- The clash is flagged in the preview and nothing is written until it is resolved. The usual cause is stripping too much from the original names; adding a sequence rule at the end removes the collision.
