It’s spent 2.5 years in development but today an all-new version of Rapid Photo Downloader was made available to download.
Talking of length, it’s been nearly 7 years since I last featured this app on this site, so I’ll totally understand if you don’t recall much about it!
Designed and built by a photographer, Rapid Photo Downloader allows you to import photos and videos from a connected camera or smartphone quickly and, it says, reliably.
The app works with most modern digital cameras, DSLRs, smartphones, as well as SD cards. You can also configure the app to scan USB thumb drives and folders for images.
Some often assume from the name that this is an internet download manager for images — it’s not.
Rapid Photo Downloader Features
Several features make tool an indispensable aid in a photographer’s digital toolbox.
For one, it generates meaningful file names for photos.
Most cameras don’t delineate between wedding photos, selfies, or anything else. But by leveraging the timestamp or sequential file name most cameras do use you can use this app to rename the generated file names to something that matches the time/scenario they were snapped:
Using folders and rules you can also, for example, download RAW images into one folder, JPEG images into another, and videos to somewhere else entirely.
Rapid Photo Downloader works with all major Linux desktops. It’s able to generate thumbnails for RAW and TIFF files, allowing you to visually scan files in file managers such as Nautilus, Nemo, etc.
Lots of backup options are available within the app so that you can create multiple (safe) copies of images downloaded from your camera and on to your Ubuntu device.
You can also automate tasks, like downloading/importing photos as soon as you attach a device, deleting images once they’ve been downloaded/imported, and more.
More information on how to install and run this app can be found on the official Rapid Photo Downloader website.
It’s easy to install Rapid Photo Download in Ubuntu using the official PPA, or there’s a Python install script to install the app on older versions of Ubuntu. It’d be nice if a snap app, Flatpak, or AppImage appeared as some may overlook this useful app because it’s a hassle to install.
Refer to the comprehensive online manual for full more information on the app, its features, and capabilities.