RAPID-PHOTO-DOWNLOADER(1)

💖 RAPID-PHOTO-DOWNLOADER 💖

okay bestie, sit down, hydrate, because we're talking about rapid-photo-downloader — the manual page, the whole thing, no skips. this is your girl's guide to pulling pics off your camera without losing your entire mind. 🎀

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🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

rapid-photo-downloader [-h] [--version] [--detailed-version] [-v]
[--debug] [-e] [--photo-renaming {on,off}] [--video-renaming {on,off}]
[-a {on,off}] [-t {on,off}] [--this-computer-location PATH] [--photo-
destination PATH] [--video-destination PATH] [-b {on,off}] [--backup-
auto-detect {on,off}] [--photo-backup-identifier FOLDER] [--video-
backup-identifier FOLDER] [--photo-backup-location PATH] [--video-
backup-location PATH] [--ignore-other-photo-file-types] [--auto-
download-startup {on,off}] [--auto-download-device-insertion {on,off}]
[--thumbnail-cache {on,off}] [--delete-thumbnail-cache] [--forget-
remembered-files] [--reset] [--log-gphoto2] [--camera-info] [--force-
system-theme] [-platform {wayland,xcb}] [path]

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✨ DESCRIPTION ✨

so what does it do, you ask? it downloads, renames and backs up photos and videos from cameras, phones, memory cards and other devices. that's it. that's the whole vibe. 💅

path — this one is optional, but if you do hand it over, it gets parsed to figure out whether it's an automatically detected device or just a path on this computer. and then:

• if the PATH is actually an automatically detected device → automatic detection of devices gets turned on, exactly like the --auto-detect option would do. and downloading from a manually specified path (that's the --this-computer-location situation) gets turned off.
• otherwise → the PATH is treated as a manually specified path, same as --this-computer-location. so downloading from this computer turns on, and downloading from automatically detected devices turns off.

basically it sniffs out what you meant and flips the right switches for you. no cap. 🦋

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🎀 OPTIONS 🎀

• --version — shows the program's version number and dips. ✌️
• --detailed-version — shows the version numbers of the program and all its libraries, then exits. for when you need the full receipts. 📋
• -v, --verbose — displays program information when you run it from the command line. chatty mode: engaged. 💬
• --debug — displays debugging information when you run it from the command line. for when things are giving bug. 🐛
• -e, --extensions — lists the photo and video file extensions the program recognizes, then exits. your cheat sheet for what it'll actually pick up. 🔥
• --photo-renaming {on,off} — turns the renaming of photos on or off.
• --video-renaming {on,off} — turns the renaming of videos on or off.
• -a {on,off}, --auto-detect {on,off} — turns on or off the automatic detection of devices from which to download. let it find your stuff for you. ✨
• -t {on,off}, --this-computer {on,off} — turns on or off downloading from this computer.
• --this-computer-location PATH — the PATH on this computer from which to download.
• --photo-destination PATH — the PATH where photos will be downloaded to. 🏡
• --video-destination PATH — the PATH where videos will be downloaded to.
• -b {on,off}, --backup {on,off} — turns on or off the backing up of photos and videos while downloading. because one copy is not a backup, bestie. 🫶
• --backup-auto-detect {on,off} — turns on or off the automatic detection of backup devices.
• --photo-backup-identifier FOLDER — the FOLDER in which backups are stored on the automatically detected photo backup device. the folder's name is what's used to identify whether or not a device is used for backups. so for each device you want to back photos up to, create a folder on it with this name. yes, that's the whole trick. 👑
• --video-backup-identifier FOLDER — the FOLDER in which backups are stored on the automatically detected video backup device, with the folder's name being used to identify whether or not the device is used for backups. for each device you wish to use for backing up videos to, create a folder on it with this name.
• --photo-backup-location PATH — the PATH where photos will be backed up when automatic detection of backup devices is turned off.
• --video-backup-location PATH — the PATH where videos will be backed up when automatic detection of backup devices is turned off.
• --ignore-other-photo-file-types — ignores photos with the following extensions: TIF, TIFF and MPO. not today, thank you. 🙈
• --auto-download-startup {on,off} — turns on or off starting downloads as soon as the program itself starts. main character energy: it just goes. 🚀
• --auto-download-device-insertion {on,off} — turns on or off starting downloads as soon as a device is inserted.
• --thumbnail-cache {on,off} — turns on or off use of the Rapid Photo Downloader Thumbnail Cache. ⚠️ heads up: turning it off does not delete existing cache contents. it just stops using them.
• --delete-thumbnail-cache — deletes all thumbnails in the Rapid Photo Downloader Thumbnail Cache, and exits. bye bye, little thumbnails. 💀
• --forget-remembered-files — forgets which files have been previously downloaded, and exits. memory? wiped. ✨
• --reset — resets all program settings to their default values, deletes all thumbnails in the Thumbnail cache, forgets which files have been previously downloaded, and exits. the full factory-fresh glow-up. 🌈
• --log-gphoto2 — includes gphoto2 debugging information in log files.
• --camera-info — prints information to the terminal about attached cameras and exits. 📷
• --force-system-theme — uses the system Qt theme instead of the built-in theme. (no period in the original, and honestly? we respect the chaos.)
• -platform {wayland,xcb} — runs this program in wayland or regular X11.

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💬 COMMENTS 💬

couple of environment variable notes, bestie, listen up:

• if the environment variable RPD_SCAN_DEBUG is set to any value, the program's scan operation will output voluminous debug information to stdout. like, a lot. we're talking paragraphs. 🗣️
• if the environment variable RPD_DEVEL_DEFAULTS is set to any value, the program's default preferences will be set to those of a development environment.

report bugs to https://bugs.rapidphotodownloader.com/ — they want to hear it, fr fr. 🐞

copyright 2007-2026 Damon Lynch. license GPLv3+: GNU GPL version 3 or later https://gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html. this is free software: you are free to change and redistribute it. ⚠️ there is NO WARRANTY, to the extent permitted by law.

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🦋 AUTHOR 🦋

Damon Lynch <damonlynch@gmail.com> — icon, legend, wrote the whole thing. 💜

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and that's the page, bestie. rapid-photo-downloader 0.9.37, dated 2026-05-29, manual page RAPID-PHOTO-DOWNLOADER(1). now go forth and download your photos, you absolute star. 🎀✨