diff --git a/web/packages/media/types/file.ts b/web/packages/media/types/file.ts
index b6314b7cdd..f41a34219e 100644
--- a/web/packages/media/types/file.ts
+++ b/web/packages/media/types/file.ts
@@ -57,7 +57,13 @@ export interface Metadata {
      * See: [Note: File name for local EnteFile objects]
      */
     title: string;
-    creationTime: number;
+    /**
+     * The time when this file was created.
+     *
+     * For photos (and images in general), this is the time when the photo was
+     * taken, or when the screenshot was captured.
+     */
+    creationTime: number | undefined;
     modificationTime: number;
     latitude: number;
     longitude: number;
diff --git a/web/packages/new/photos/services/exif.ts b/web/packages/new/photos/services/exif.ts
index 848d780d21..67b9d44fd3 100644
--- a/web/packages/new/photos/services/exif.ts
+++ b/web/packages/new/photos/services/exif.ts
@@ -41,8 +41,21 @@ interface ParsedMetadata {
  *
  * The library we use is https://github.com/mattiasw/ExifReader.
  */
-// eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-empty-function
-export const extractExif = () => {};
+export const extractMetadata = async (file: File) => {
+    const tags = await ExifReader.load(await file.arrayBuffer(), {
+        async: true,
+        expanded: true,
+    });
+
+    const location = parseLocation(tags);
+    const creationDate = parseCreationDate(tags);
+    const dimensions = parseDimensions(tags);
+
+    const metadata: ParsedMetadata = dimensions ?? {};
+    if (creationDate) metadata.creationTime = creationDate.getTime() * 1000;
+    if (location) metadata.location = location;
+    return metadata;
+};
 
 /**
  * Parse a single "best" creation date for an image from the metadata embedded
@@ -472,14 +485,13 @@ export const indexExif = async (enteFile: EnteFile, blob: Blob) => {
 };
 
 const backfill = (enteFile: EnteFile, tags: ExifReader.ExpandedTags) => {
-    // const date =
-    // TODO:Exif: Testing
-    const location = parseLocation(tags);
     const creationDate = parseCreationDate(tags);
-    const dimensions = parseDimensions(tags);
-    const metadata: ParsedMetadata = dimensions ?? {};
-    if (creationDate) metadata.creationTime = creationDate.getTime() * 1000;
-    if (location) metadata.location = location;
-    console.log(enteFile, metadata);
-    return metadata;
+    if (!creationDate) return;
+
+    const creationTime = creationDate.getTime() * 1000;
+
+    if (enteFile.metadata.creationTime == creationTime) return;
+
+    // TODO: Exif: backfill
+    console.log(enteFile, creationTime);
 };
diff --git a/web/packages/new/photos/services/files.ts b/web/packages/new/photos/services/files.ts
index 6a0ad4faa1..9d29a5e160 100644
--- a/web/packages/new/photos/services/files.ts
+++ b/web/packages/new/photos/services/files.ts
@@ -68,7 +68,9 @@ const sortTrashFiles = (files: EnteFile[]) => {
                     b.metadata.modificationTime - a.metadata.modificationTime
                 );
             }
-            return b.metadata.creationTime - a.metadata.creationTime;
+            return (
+                (b.metadata.creationTime ?? 0) - (a.metadata.creationTime ?? 0)
+            );
         }
         return (a.deleteBy ?? 0) - (b.deleteBy ?? 0);
     });