How to recover the original image number from the camera?

Butts wrote in post #18805102
Get EXIFTOOL command line here: https://www.dropbox.co​m …6peu1jl/exiftoo​l.exe?dl=0

Place it in a directory on your machine.

Open a command prompt, and CD to the directory you placed the file.

Then execute this command against one of your pictures:
exiftool -FileNumber location_of_your_pictu​re_and_name

example:

exiftool -FileNumber D:\$$$photos\mypictire​s\DS3_testme.CR2

returns: File Number : 100-0903

As great a tool as ExifTool is, I have a suspicion the OP is a bit intimidated by the above.

John from PA wrote in post #18805142
As great a tool as ExifTool is, I have a suspicion the OP is a bit intimidated by the above.

John, and yes I understand that. Sometimes its just the unknown about something different.
I tried to make it as simple as I can.

Hopefully the OP has solved his issue.

OP, I readily understand how programs may offer the ability to import photos from the camera to PC and simultaneously assign new file times to the imported photos.
But ordinarily, importing images does not alter the files originally written in the camera at the time of capture.

1. So one ought to be able to still review the images on the camera LCD and also see the file names associated by the camera with each photo. Have you tried this?
   
2. Also, if the original files (with original names) are still in the camera's memory and viewable on the camera LCD, you ought to also be able to take that memory card, put it into a reader, plug that reader into a PC, and review all of the files names in an ordinary list of (original) filenames within a 'folder'.
   

joeseph wrote in post #18804359
Do you still have the images on the card in the camera?
if so then the timestamp on the important images might help co-relate to the re-named images on your P.C. if the exif timestamp is still intact.

No, I automatically deleted them upon transfer and they were renamed to my specifications.

Archibald wrote in post #18804480
Check out https://exifinfo.org/.

That worked, thank you! I just uploaded several photos and was able to figure out the original numbers... like magic!
What I ended doing was emailing each participant their entire batch of headshots with file numbers watermarked and asked them to choose one, probably a better idea in the end than having them pick out their favorite from my camera's little viewfinder at the photoshoot.

John from PA wrote in post #18804511
I'm not optimistic that much can be done here but some things that might prove very helpful would be to understand how these images got the new name. Something like your example "Headshot_123" is something you have had to supply, probably part of the workflow of PP. Any idea where that might have come from?

Yes, I always rename my images so they're more easily recognizable to me than just a number. This is the first time in 10 years that it's been an issue.

Butts wrote in post #18805102
Get EXIFTOOL command line here: https://www.dropbox.co​m …6peu1jl/exiftoo​l.exe?dl=0

Place it in a directory on your machine.

Open a command prompt, and CD to the directory you placed the file.

Then execute this command against one of your pictures:
exiftool -FileNumber location_of_your_pictu​re_and_name

example:

exiftool -FileNumber D:\$$$photos\mypictire​s\DS3_testme.CR2

returns: File Number : 100-0903

Lol, still greek to me. I'll ask my programmer son to show me how to set it up though... seems like a very useful tool.

Thank you all for your insightful and helpful feedback and tips. Problems is solved and I'm one step wiser for the wear

Thanks for the update, and good to hear that the issue has been resolved.

forbiggs wrote in post #18806380
... Yes, I always rename my images so they're more easily recognizable to me than just a number. This is the first time in 10 years that it's been an issue.

I also rename my files to something more meaningful than (say) 'IMG_0993.CR2', but I append the descriptive info, because I find the original numbering to be useful for finding stuff later. So the file might become 'IMG_0993 White-faced Ibis at Frank Lake.CR2'.

Good that everything worked out for the OP.

But just to mention, the 7D has the ability to set up a custom named folder on the camera storage media. Something like this might have at least narrowed down where to look for the images. This is discussed at https://photography-on-the.net …/showthread.php​?t=1379273.