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Bulk Download of photos from an AirTable?

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David_Laufer
6 - Interface Innovator
6 - Interface Innovator

Is there a way to do a mass download of photos from my airtable? The Bulk Upload worked well, now I need to do the reverse! Thanks, All

40 Replies 40

Yes. I’ve done this, but I had to write script using the API. What’s the target location of the photos? Perhaps a Google Drive?

This could also be done using Integromat if you want to save the files to Google Drive, Dropbox, etc.

Hi Bill thanks for the quick response - the target file is currently on Dropbox.

As I look at the airtable, I see that the photos are not all named with their subject, so I need to rename each photo with its name and year (both fields are in the AirTable) and then sort them by year. so if the year were the first part of the new filename, they would self-sort.

Is this within the powers of the programmer’s dark arts, or do I need to have someone do it by hand?

Quick tip about replying to a thread via email: remove your signature. I have a hunch that’s why the post is flagged for review.

To the point of your post, the renaming of the files could also be handled by the same Integromat scenario that saves them to Dropbox. If you want to go this route and would like some help setting it up, let me know.

David_Laufer
6 - Interface Innovator
6 - Interface Innovator

Justin- My Bad, thanks for the heads up. Is there a way to delete the signature from the post?

I think this can be done with a Zapier process as @Justin_Barrett has suggested. And I think the use of adjacent fields for file names is also doable.

Best to exhaust this approach first before writing API code.

Sal_Ohcin
6 - Interface Innovator
6 - Interface Innovator

Check out:

App Store for Airtable - miniExtensions

Tools that empower Airtable users to process unlimited records in bulk with scheduling and automation features. An alternative to Zapier and Integromat.


Awesome extension. only $5. well worth it.
It works even when there are multiple photos within a field
Can download all images in bulk and even set the filename based on any other field. (or do as I did and create a formula field that links multiple columns) and use that as the new name.
If you want to maintain the original name, then you can do that as well. simply don’t fill out that optional “filename” field.
If you have 2 images with the same name, fear not… the extension will automatically add a digit to the next image so it creates a unique name and doesn’t overwrite the original one.

Pete
7 - App Architect
7 - App Architect

Hey David,

Echoing other folks on this thread – Airtable doesn’t currently support bulk download of attachments.

Still, you can set up a Zapier integration that moves all files in an attachment field to Google Drive, where it’s easy to bulk-download files. As a note, Zapier has some limits around how many tasks you can run per month, depending on what pricing plan you use (they have both free and paid plans). Moving attachments via the zap setup suggested below will result in 1 task per attachment exported, so I’d recommend keeping that in mind as you consider whether or not this is the right solution for you. If you decide to use this zap, first create a new grid view on the table with the attachments you’d like to export. Name this view “Exports.” In this view, create a new checkbox field and check off just a single record that has an attachment. Then, configure a filter in this view that only shows records where the checkbox field is checked. Likewise, only the one checked record should be visible. 71ab72844d406b67a2a9592ed5a0c2a25f64eb9b.gif
Next, create a new Zap in Zapier. (If you’re new to Zapier, I’d recommend taking a look at this guide.) Set a new record entering the export view as the trigger for the zap. For the Trigger Step, select the following:

  • Trigger App: Airtable

  • Airtable Trigger: New record in view

  • Account: Here you’ll need to provide your API key (from Airtable.com/account) to grant Zapier access to your Airtable Account.

  • Set up Options: Select the Export View

68c1d9b35d81a97c539091c369f8b8bd14708632.png
Test this step and click Continue. For the next (action) step, set up the following:

  • Action App: Google Drive

  • Google Drive Action: Upload a file

  • Choose Account: Select your Google Drive account.

  • Set up template: It’s possible to precisely specify where the files are uploaded to in Google Drive. It’s most important to set File to {Name of attachment field} URL. In this case, since the attachment field is named Attachments, it’s “Attachments URL”

e25468e418f28f592e3a376066a03fa57ed65c2d.png
If you like, the File Name can be pulled from the table’s primary field. 656f6e7692c1c37516e8aed62dd75eb47d8db2cf.png
After testing, save the Zap and turn it on. The file(s) in the attachment field in Export View should now be in your Google Drive. If it is, check the checkbox field for all the records with attachments that you’d like to export to Google Drive. As these records enter the Export View, Zapier will send their attachments to Google Drive. Depending on your Zapier plan, it may take as long as fifteen minutes for this to happen. Finally, navigate to the “Recent” section in your Google Drive. Select many files at once by shift-clicking. With the files selected, you can download them all at once. 12eefff3a57e158914ab48514eec5cb46ddc4060.gif

Hope this is a bit helpful.

Josh_Doyle
5 - Automation Enthusiast
5 - Automation Enthusiast

@Pete Thank you for these thorough walk-thru of how to build the bulk download zap. I’m having trouble getting Zap to send ALL of the attached images from a record. Right now I’m only seeing the first image in my google drive. So that means the Zap is working (sort of). Any suggestions of what I might be missing?