Opening Batch Rename and Choosing Where Files Go
Start in Bridge by selecting the files you want to rename. Click the first thumbnail, then Shift-click the last to grab a contiguous range, or Cmd-click (Ctrl-click on Windows) to pick individual files. Only the selected files are affected, so it is worth being deliberate here before you open the dialog.
With your files selected, open the tool from Tools, then Batch Rename, or use the keyboard shortcut Cmd+Shift+R (Ctrl+Shift+R on Windows). The Batch Rename dialog opens with three sections stacked top to bottom: Destination Folder, New Filenames, and Options, with a running preview at the bottom.
The Destination Folder section decides what happens to your originals. Rename in same folder leaves the files where they are and simply changes their names in place, which is what most photographers want for a straightforward import. Move to other folder renames the files and relocates them, so the source folder is left empty. Copy to other folder is the safest choice when you are nervous about a rename: it writes freshly named copies into a folder you pick and leaves your originals untouched, which is a useful safety net the first time you try a new naming pattern.
Building the Name From Filename Element Rows
The New Filenames section is where the actual name gets constructed, and it is the part that confuses people at first. Each row is a single element, and Bridge joins the rows left to right to form the final filename. You add or remove rows with the plus and minus buttons on the right side of each row, so a name is really just a stack of elements you assemble in order.
Each row has a dropdown that sets its type. Text lets you type a literal string, such as a client name, a shoot label, or a separator like an underscore or a hyphen. Sequence Number inserts an incrementing counter, and you choose both its starting value and its digit count, so you can force it to render as 001, 002, 003 instead of 1, 2, 3. Sequence Letter does the same with letters (a, b, c). Current Date/time stamps the name with the date or time you pick from its submenu. Metadata pulls a value straight from the file itself, such as the date the photo was created or its exposure setting, which is powerful when you want the name to reflect capture data rather than something you type by hand.
Here is how the stacking works in practice. Say you want a wedding delivery named for the couple and numbered in sequence. You add a Text row and type Wedding_Smith_2026-, then add a Sequence Number row set to three digits starting at 1. Bridge joins them and your files become Wedding_Smith_2026-001, Wedding_Smith_2026-002, and so on, with the original extension preserved. So DSC_0001.NEF becomes Wedding_Smith_2026-001.NEF, and every frame after it follows the same clean, sortable pattern. That single before and after is the whole reason the tool exists: the camera's default name is replaced by something a human, and your file browser's sort order, can actually read.
The Main New Filename Elements
Most real-world names are built from just a handful of these element types. The table below summarizes what each one does so you can pick the right rows without trial and error.
New Filename elements in Adobe Bridge Batch Rename
| Element | What it does | Typical use |
|---|
| Text | Inserts a literal string you type in, plus any separators. | Client name, shoot label, underscores or hyphens between parts. |
| Sequence Number | Adds an incrementing counter with a set start value and digit count. | Numbering frames 001, 002, 003 in a consistent order. |
| Current Date/time | Stamps the name with a date or time you choose from a submenu. | Grouping deliverables by shoot date or export date. |
| Metadata | Pulls a value from the file itself, such as date created or exposure. | Naming by capture data instead of values you type by hand. |
| String Substitution | Finds text inside the existing name and replaces it with new text. | Fixing or swapping part of an already-named batch. |
String Substitution: Find and Replace Inside Names
String Substitution is the element most people overlook, and it solves a specific problem: you already have named files and you only want to change one part of the name. Instead of rebuilding the whole name from scratch, you add a String Substitution row, type the text Bridge should find in the current filenames, and type what it should be replaced with.
A common case is a batch delivered as Client_Draft_001, Client_Draft_002, and so on, where the client has now approved the set and you want Final instead of Draft. You add a String Substitution row, put Draft in the Find field and Final in the Replace With field, and Bridge rewrites only that segment while leaving the rest of each name intact. It works on the existing filename text, so it is your go-to when a batch is almost right and you just need to correct one word across every file.
Check the Live Preview Before You Commit
At the bottom of the dialog, Bridge shows a Preview that pairs the current filename with the new filename for the first file in your selection. This is not decoration, it is your safety check. Every time you add a row, change a digit count, or edit a Text field, the preview updates instantly so you can confirm the result reads the way you intended before anything is written to disk.
Get in the habit of reading that new filename line carefully. Watch for a missing separator that runs two words together, a sequence number with too few digits to sort correctly past 99, or an extension you did not mean to alter. Catching a mistake in the preview costs you two seconds. Catching it after you have renamed 700 files costs you a re-import. When the preview matches what you want, you are ready to apply.
Save Your Setup as a Preset
This is the step Adobe underplays, and it is the one that pays off every shoot after this one. Once you have your rows arranged the way you like them, the Text prefix, the Sequence Number digit count, the destination behavior, look at the top of the dialog for the Preset area and click Save. Give the preset a clear name, something like Wedding Delivery or Client Proofs, and Bridge stores the entire element stack.
Next time you open Batch Rename, you select that preset from the dropdown and every row is rebuilt for you in one click. You adjust only what changes, usually just the client Text and maybe the starting number, and apply. For any recurring naming convention, a studio numbering scheme, a stock-library format, an event workflow, presets turn a fiddly multi-row setup into a repeatable one-click action, which is exactly what you want when this is a job you do weekly rather than once. If you are comparing tools for repeatable renaming jobs, our overview of bulk rename software covers how presets and templates work across different applications.
Applying the Rename
When the preview looks right and, ideally, your preset is saved, click Rename in the top right of the dialog. Bridge processes the whole selection at once and, depending on your Destination Folder choice, renames the files in place, moves them, or writes named copies to your target folder. That is the entire batch renamed in a single action, no file opened by hand.
A Note on Non-Photography Documents
One honest caveat on where Bridge fits. Adobe Bridge is built for photography and design assets, and its elements name files from things you type or from photo metadata like capture date and exposure. That is a great fit for a card of raw images. It is a different job when you need to name non-photography documents such as invoices or contracts by what is actually written inside them, which is where Renamer.ai comes in, since it reads document content using OCR and AI vision rather than relying on you to type each name. That is a separate use case, not a replacement for Bridge, and for a card full of wedding frames the Batch Rename dialog above is exactly the right tool.