ImageFuel is a fast, native macOS app for browsing, organizing, and cleaning up your photo and video library. Point it at any folder on your Mac and you get a searchable, sortable grid of your media, plus tools for cropping, comparing, stripping hidden metadata, finding duplicates, and bulk renaming. This guide covers every feature.
Getting Started
The library starts empty. ImageFuel does not scan your Mac and does not import or copy files. You choose the folders it should show, and it reads those files directly from disk. Nothing leaves your Mac.
Adding and Organizing Folders
The left sidebar is your folder tree. Add a folder in any of these ways:
- Click the + button at the top of the sidebar and choose a folder.
- Drag a folder from Finder onto the sidebar.
- Drag a folder onto an existing folder row to nest it as a subfolder.
A newly added folder appears as a root item. Click the chevron to expand subfolders. Click a folder name to filter the grid to that folder. Click it again to show everything.
Right-click any folder to create a new subfolder without leaving ImageFuel. Drag selected images from the grid onto a sidebar folder to move them.
Sidebar actions
- Rescan All re-reads every added folder from disk. Use this after adding or removing files outside ImageFuel.
- Clear All Folders removes every folder from the sidebar. Files on disk are not deleted.
- Hover a root folder and click × to remove that folder from the library.
Browsing Your Library
The toolbar above the grid controls what you see:
- Search (magnifying glass, or ⌘F): filter by filename.
- Sort: date added, date modified, name, file size, or file kind, ascending or descending.
- All / Images / Videos: filter by media kind.
- Rescan: refresh the currently loaded folders.
- Find duplicate files: open the duplicate finder.
Supported formats
Images: JPG, PNG, GIF, WEBP, BMP, TIFF, HEIC/HEIF, plus RAW from major camera brands: CR2, CR3 and RAW (Canon), NEF and NRW (Nikon), ARW (Sony), ORF (Olympus), RW2 (Panasonic), RAF (Fujifilm), DNG, PEF (Pentax), SRW (Samsung), 3FR (Hasselblad), MOS (Leaf), and IIQ (Phase One).
Video: MP4, MOV, MKV, WEBM, M4V, 3GP, and (with the vendor codec installed) R3D and N-RAW.
Selection works like the rest of macOS: click to select one item, ⌘-click to add items, ⇧-click (or ⇧← / ⇧→) to extend a range, ⌘A to select everything visible. Selected items enable the toolbar actions: crop, compare, filter, remove metadata, rename, and trash.
Viewing Media in the Lightbox
Open an item with a single or double click, depending on Settings, to enter the full-screen lightbox.
From the lightbox you can:
- Zoom and pan with + / −, the scroll wheel, or pinch. Reset with the 1× button.
- Step through the library with the arrow buttons or arrow keys.
- Jump into Crop or a color filter without leaving the preview.
- Reveal in Finder.
- Switch to Full Screen View.
- Play videos with standard playback controls.
- Move the current item to the trash.
Close the lightbox with Esc, Return, Space, or ⌘W.
Comparing Two Images Side by Side
Select exactly two images and press ⌘\ (or use the compare icon) to open Compare view.
Each pane zooms and pans on its own. Click link (or press L) to lock both panes so they zoom and pan together. Each pane has its own trash button, so you can discard one image from the comparison.
Cropping Images
Select a single image and click the crop icon, or press C from the lightbox.
Drag a corner handle to resize the crop, or drag inside the box to move it. Pixel dimensions update at the bottom as you adjust. Then choose:
- Save as Copy: keep the original and write a new cropped file next to it.
- Overwrite Original: replace the original file.
Applying Color Filters
Color filters are optional. Enable them in Settings → Editing → Color filters. The wand icon then appears in the toolbar and lightbox for filterable images.
Sixteen built-in looks, in two groups:
- Tone and character: B & W, Noir, Sepia, Fade, Chrome, Vivid, Warm, Cool
- Instagram-style: Clarendon, Gingham, Lo-Fi, Valencia, Aden, Earlybird, Reyes, Hudson
With multiple images selected, apply one filter to all of them, or assign a different filter to each. Choose save as copy or overwrite before applying.
Color filters work on standard image formats only. RAW files and SVGs are not supported.
Removing Hidden Metadata (EXIF/GPS)
Photos often store camera model, lens, exposure, and GPS coordinates. Strip that before sharing. Select one or more images and click the metadata icon to open Remove Metadata.
Hover an image in the list to inspect its metadata: camera make and model, lens, focal length, aperture, shutter speed, ISO, date taken, software, copyright, artist, description, keywords, and GPS if present.
Then choose:
- All metadata or Location only
- Overwrite originals or Save as copies
After processing, hover each image again. Cleared fields show a strikethrough.
Bulk Renaming Files
Select files and click the pencil icon to open Rename Files. Build a pattern with tokens and preview every new name before you commit.
| Token | Inserts |
|---|---|
{name} | Original filename without extension |
{n} | Sequence number, with start value and zero-padding |
{date} | Creation date as YYYY-MM-DD |
{year} | Year |
{month} | Month |
{day} | Day |
Example: {date}_vacation_{n} becomes 2026-07-14_vacation_001.jpg, 2026-07-14_vacation_002.jpg, and so on. Use starts at and padding to control the counter. Conflicting names are highlighted before you can proceed.
Finding and Removing Duplicates
Click the duplicate-files icon to scan the library, or just the selected folder.
Two kinds of matches:
- Exact copies: byte-for-byte identical files, found automatically.
- Similar images: visually near-identical photos such as bursts or re-exports. Enable Include similar images.
Each group shows thumbnails and potential space savings. The first item is kept by default. Click other thumbnails to mark or unmark them for deletion, then click Move to Trash.
Deleting Files Safely
Select items and press Delete, ⌘⌫, or the trash icon. By default ImageFuel asks for confirmation and sends files to the system Trash, so nothing is permanently destroyed without a chance to recover it.
In Settings you can turn off the confirmation prompt, or send deleted files to a folder you choose instead of Trash.
Settings Overview
Open Settings with ⌘,.
- Open image on: single-click or double-click for the lightbox.
- Scroll in preview: zoom the image, or go to the next and previous item.
- Color filters: show or hide the filter tool.
- Default sort order: sort used when the app launches.
- Send deleted files to: system Trash, or a custom folder.
- Confirm before moving: toggle the Move to Trash prompt.
- Keyboard shortcuts: full shortcut list.
Keyboard Shortcuts
General
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
⌘O | Add Folder |
⌘R | Rescan All |
⌘F | Search |
⌘A | Select All |
⌘C | Copy Selected Files |
⌘V | Paste Files |
⌘⇧R | Reveal in Finder |
⌘, | Settings |
Grid View
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
← → ↑ ↓ | Navigate items |
⇧← / ⇧→ | Extend selection |
Return / Space | Open in preview |
Esc | Clear selection |
⌫ / ⌦ | Move to Trash |
⌘⌫ | Move to Trash |
Home / End | First / last item |
Page ↑ / ↓ | Scroll by page |
Preview (Lightbox)
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
← → | Previous / next item |
Home / End | First / last item |
+ / − | Zoom in / out |
0 | Reset zoom |
⌘+ / ⌘− | Zoom in / out |
⌘0 | Actual size |
R | Reveal in Finder |
F | Full Screen View |
C | Crop image |
Esc / Return / Space | Close preview |
⌘W | Close preview |
⌫ / ⌦ | Move to Trash |
Compare View
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
L | Link / unlink zoom |
+ / − | Zoom hovered pane |
0 | Reset zoom |
Esc | Close Compare |
⌘\ | Open Compare (2 items selected) |