Especially in a collaborative production setting, maintaining consistent file nomenclature often proves itself quite valuable. The system I’ve designed and detailed below is based on both my personal system as well as that of TMD Photo. I believe the final product maintains simplicity wherever possible while also encoding the most relevant information for use within our production pipeline. The system is comprised of two distinct parts:
- Video Clips (Raw // Out of Camera)
- Exports & Renders (Exported From NLE)
Video Clips
[YYMMDD]-[Project Code]-[Videographer Surname]-[Camera]-[Index]
Project Code: A 3-4 letter identifier based on the project name. Codes should not repeat, and repeating projects may append up to a 2-digit year and 2-digit month to distinguish project instances.
- AWMR → Arts What’s Michigan Reading
- NEW3 → News Collab #3
- END26 → Opinion Endorsement 2026
- GBD26 → Giving Blueday 2026
Editor Surname: The last name of the videographer uploading the given clip. If there are multiple people with the same last name, consider appending a first initial to the end of this field.
Camera: A short modifier that denotes which camera was used in the filming of the given clip. This is particularly helpful in the case of multicam shoots. Formatted as the model of the camera used. In cases where multiple cameras of the same model are used and clips cannot be distinguished through varied Videographer Surnames, consider appending the last two digits of the camera’s serial number.
- D7500 → Shot on Nikon D7500
- a7iii → Shot on Sony a7iii
- D750068 → Shot on Nikon D7500 w. Serial No. Ending in -68.
Example Usages:
260627-OE26-Krummel-a7iii-0001
Clip 0001 of the clips shot on June 27, 2026 by Evan Krummel for the 2026 Orientation Edition on the Sony a7iii.
Exports & Renders
[YYMMDD]-[Project Code]-[Editor Surname]-[Version][Format]
Project Code: A 3-4 letter identifier based on the project name. Codes should not repeat, and repeating projects may append up to a 2-digit year and 2-digit month to distinguish project instances.
- AWMM → Arts What’s Michigan Reading
- NEW3 → News Collab #3
- END26 → Opinion Endorsement 2026
- GBD26 → Giving Blueday 2026
Editor Surname: The last name of the editor exporting the project. If there are multiple people with the same last name, consider appending a first initial to the end of this field.
Version: A 2-3 character string identifier to allow for efficient version management within a project. The foremost indicates major status changes, while the latter indicates minor changes.
- Xn → The nth render of a clip or single shot that is not relevant to the project itself. I find this is best for use with bloopers, etc.
- Pn → The nth render of a project while it remains underway or in a Preview status.
- Rn → The nth render of a project that awaits or is undergoing revisions.
Format: A single-letter marker to distinguish the video file’s aspect ratio.
- h → Horizontal/Landscape
- s → Square
- v → Vertical/Portrait
Example Usages
260807-OE26-Krummel-R2v.mov
Revision Version 2 of 2026 Orientation Edition, Rendered Aug 7, 2026 by Evan Krummel in a vertical format.
260312-TOAA26-Sharma-P1h.mp4
First pre-revision version of 2026 Taste of Ann Arbor, Rendered March 12, 2026 by Samridhi Sharma in a horizontal format. (Pre-release in this case may imply it’s a partial export of just the first minute, for example)
How to Bulk-Rename Video Clips
Other paid tools, such as PhotoMechanic or NameMangler may be used as available to you, so long as the output format is the same. This is simply the best one-size-fits-most solution that I’m aware of. If you don’t have a Mac available to you, I trust that similar features are available on Windows, or you can transfer your files to an iMac in the Newsroom and ingest from there.
MacOS (Easiest)
- Select files to be renamed. Right click over these files, and choose “Rename…”
- Within the popup window, choose “Format,” “Name and Counter,” and “After Name.” Ensure numbers start at 1, unless you’ve already shot things with the same camera on the same day. Type the format as detailed in the document above, then select “Rename.”
- Continue to upload files to Dropbox normally.