Metadata & orientation

imgsqz makes two deliberate choices about image metadata: it strips it by default, and it bakes in the correct orientation. Here’s what that means and how to change it.

Metadata is stripped by default

By default, EXIF and ICC metadata are removed from the output. This:

Shrinks files — EXIF blocks can be tens of kilobytes.
Protects privacy — strips GPS coordinates, camera serial numbers, timestamps and other embedded data before you publish.

imgsqz photo.jpg            # metadata stripped

Keep metadata with `--no-strip-metadata`

When you need to preserve EXIF/ICC — color-managed print workflows, photo archives, attribution — opt back in:

imgsqz photo.jpg -f webp --no-strip-metadata

This keeps the source’s metadata (EXIF, ICC color profile) in the output.

Orientation is always corrected

Cameras and phones often store an image sideways plus an EXIF orientation tag that says “rotate me on display.” imgsqz auto-rotates every image to its upright position before doing anything else, then writes the pixels already upright.

That means:

Output always looks correct, even in viewers that ignore EXIF orientation.
--width / --height refer to the visually upright image, so “width” is what you see.
Because the rotation is baked into the pixels, stripping the orientation tag (the default) can’t un-rotate your image.

# A phone photo stored sideways comes out upright, 1080px wide
imgsqz IMG_2207.jpg --width 1080 -f webp

Quick reference

You want…	Flag
Smallest files, no embedded data (default)	(none)
Preserve EXIF / ICC color profile	`--no-strip-metadata`
Correct rotation	automatic, always on

Next: Replacing files in place.