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Is metadata even covered by copyright?

Generally not. I guess you could insert a poem into an EXIF field, which would be covered by copyright. But the data inserted by cameras is straight facts, not artistic expression. Thus it isn't covered by copyright.

I don't think it can be that simple. The photo is just a list of facts about the light incident to a small region of spacetime.

Photos are full of creative decisions of the photographer (framing, timing, etc) so we consider them a work of art. But if a painter draws a bridge the thing that copyright protects is the painting, not the info which bridge it was out when it was painted.

You could make a compelling case that CCTV footage is just information without artistic input. That argument has a Wikipedia section discussing it:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Threshold_of_originality#Pre...

I generally agree that Metadata does not fall under copyright, with these aspects. But it is more nuanced.. the Geotag, for instance: It was the photographers choice to move to this location, as it was the photoraphers choice to trigger the shutter at exactly that date_taken_time, as it was his/her decision to upload at specificly that upload_time. All of these aspects reflect individual choices, and individual choices are a reflection of our identity and creativity (ask Susan Sontag).

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