Bin Presets

A Bin is a named transfer destination. A preset holds up to nine bins, each with its own Copy/Move operation, destination, and optional automatic assignment rule. One preset is active across the Mac app’s tabs. Bins are not currently available on iPad or iPhone.

First Example: Assign, Review, Copy

1. Open a small test folder and choose Tools > Bins > Manage Bin Presets…. Click + to create a preset and give it a name.
2. Set Transfer Timing > Review and Run Later. Click Add Bin, name it Delivery, and change Operation to Copy.
3. Leave Assign Automatically By > Not Assigned for this manual example. Choose Destination > Specified Folder, then Choose… and select a separate, empty destination. Leave Subfolder empty and check Preview.
4. Click Save. The first preset becomes active automatically; otherwise click Make Active. Close the manager and turn on Tools > Bins > Enable Bins.
5. Select a few photos in Grid View and choose Tools > Bins > Assign to Delivery, or press Option + 1 for the first bin. This assigns them without copying yet. A numbered Bin badge appears in the grid or Full View filmstrip.
6. Open Tools > Bins > Review Bin Transfers…, or click the shipping-box toolbar control. Check the preset, whole-tab total, assignments, operation, and any blocked or skipped counts. Click the refresh button after making corrections.
7. Click Run … Transfers when the review is correct. Check progress and Activity Log, then open the destination and verify the files. A badge, assignment, or ready count is not proof of a successful copy.

Destinations and Output

Subfolder can use Template Variables. Fill required Session Variables in the manager and save. Preview helps check the destination but does not prove it is writable. A missing server, folder permission, or variable can block transfers. See source setup and Apple Photos differences.

Bins keep base filenames, use original media, include all media types and existing XMP sidecars for file destinations, and do not remove empty source folders. There is no Bin control for filename renaming, collision policy, resizing, watermarking, or IPTC templates; use Workflows for those choices.

Copying from Apple Photos or a connected camera to a file destination does not add PhotoCuller’s locally stored metadata to the exported files. Do not treat Bins as a substitute for a metadata-aware workflow or Ingest; verify the metadata in delivered files.

Manual Assignments and Slots

• The PhotoCuller keyboard preset uses Option + 1 through 9. These address positions in the active preset, not permanent bin names. Moving bins up/down or deleting one changes slot numbering; custom keymaps may differ.
• In Grid View, a Bin command acts on the selection. In Full View, it acts on the focused photo, not every photo in a comparison. The photo context menu also has Bins actions.
• With Review and Run Later, manual assignment chooses one bin for each item and overrides its automatic match. Assigning a different bin replaces the manual choice; it does not change the rating, label, flag, or favorite.
• Remove Bin Assignment clears only the manual choice. An automatic rule may assign the item again immediately in the review. Numbered Bin badges show assignments, not completed transfers.

With Immediately, the same shortcuts/menu actions start Copy/Move rather than leave a pending assignment. Do not assume a review or separate delete confirmation will appear first.

Automatic Assignment Rules

For each bin, choose Assign Automatically By and one Metadata Value:

• Rating: rejected, unrated, or an exact star rating — five stars is not “four stars and above.”
• Color Label: one label, including no label.
• Flag: flagged or unflagged.
• Favorite: favorited or not favorited.

Each bin has one rule, not a combination of conditions. If several rules match an item, the first matching bin in preset order wins. For example, a rating rule above a flag rule takes priority when both match. The editor prevents assigning the same exact state to multiple bins, but rules from different categories can overlap. Not Assigned turns off that bin’s automatic rule, not its manual command.

With Immediately, automatic transfers follow successful culling edits that change which bin matches. Opening a folder or enabling a preset is not a bulk transfer of all existing matches, and setting the same matching state again does not automatically resend an item. Changing a later rule’s field may still leave the same earlier bin matched.

With Review and Run Later, the review evaluates current metadata across the loaded tab, including items that already matched before you enabled Bins. Rules for unrated, unflagged, or no label can therefore include much more than your recent picks. Manual choices take priority.

Review Scope and Counts

All Items in Current Tab means the whole loaded source, not just selected or visible items. Toolbar filters, search, and collapsed stacks are not a transfer safety boundary. To test a small set, use manual-only bins or load a separate small source.

The review shows per-bin operations and ready, skipped, or blocked counts, plus manual assignments, unmatched items when automatic rules exist, and unavailable metadata when applicable. It may load more metadata, including remote or iCloud files; allow time, network access, and local space. Items whose required metadata reads fail are omitted from that review.

The popover is a summary, not a per-file approval list. Correct assignments, rules, and destinations before running, then refresh. Configuration problems can block one bin while other bins can still run. Counts are estimates; existing filenames or other problems may only be discovered once the transfer starts.

Collisions and Move Safety

Bins always use Skip, with no Overwrite or Append Number picker. An existing destination is preserved, but its filename alone does not prove identical content or a complete backup.

Review workflow Move and deletion behavior before enabling automatic moves. Move can behave differently with other source types. Completed transfers are not undone by cancelling later work, changing a rule, or deleting a preset. Inspect progress, errors, and destination contents before retrying.

Saving, Switching, and Returning Later

Save explicitly saves preset edits. Selecting another preset loads its saved configuration; save before switching or closing the manager. Use Make Active or Tools > Bins > Active Preset to choose the routing preset. Merely selecting a preset for editing does not activate it. Deleting the active preset can activate another saved preset, so check which one is active before continuing.

Saved presets remain on this Mac and are not included in preset iCloud sync. Pending manual assignments stay with the current tab, not with the photo files. Before closing or reloading a source, quitting, or changing the active Bin setup, PhotoCuller offers to review or discard pending assignments, or cancel. Assignments are not restored after a forced quit or crash.

Completed manual assignments are removed as transfers finish. Automatic rules remain active and can match the same items again on a later review; there is no Bin ingest-history check. Clearing a manual choice can also reveal its automatic match. Check the next review rather than assuming a successful copy permanently marks the item as delivered.

See Also

• Grid View
• Full View
• Shortcuts
• Workflows
• Quick Transfer and Rename