# Gem Score Guide

What the score means — and which threshold to set

## What is a Gem Score?

Each photo is scored from 1 to 10 by an AI trained on millions of aesthetic ratings from real photographers and photography communities. It looks at the same things an editor would: quality of light, composition, colour, and technical sharpness.

One important thing to understand: it scores visual appeal, not personal meaning. A technically stunning landscape and a heartfelt but blurry family snapshot will score very differently — even if the second one matters far more to you. Think of Gem Score as a first pass to surface shots worth editing, not a replacement for your own judgement.

## Score Bands

★★★8.5 – 10

### Exceptional

Everything clicked at once — light, composition, moment, and sharpness. A portrait where the background melts away and the eyes are alive; a landscape that stops you scrolling. Fewer than 1 in 100 photos reaches this band. If you're seeing a lot of 9s and 10s, you had a very good day.

★★7.5 – 8.5

### Excellent

Clearly stands out from the rest of the shoot. Great light or a strong composition, technically clean. The kind of shot you'd post or hand to a client without hesitation. Usually 2–6% of a typical catalog. Common from a golden-hour burst or a well-timed portrait session.

★6.5 – 7.5

### Good Default

Solid and visually appealing — worth keeping and editing, but easy to miss when you're reviewing hundreds of frames at once. This is the sweet spot: enough quality to be genuinely interesting, common enough to be useful. Typically 10–25% of photos score here or above.

–5.5 – 6.5

### Above Average

Technically fine but nothing special. The third-best frame from a burst, a correctly exposed snapshot with a flat background, a reference shot. Not something you'd reach for first, but not obviously bad either.

–1 – 5.5

### Average or Below

Soft focus, flat or harsh light, cluttered frames, heavy camera shake. Most duplicates, safety shots, and test exposures live here. A sharp, well-lit photo with decent composition shouldn't fall into this range.

## Which Threshold Should I Set?

Threshold | Use this when… | Expect roughly
--- | --- | ---
≥ 8.0 | You want only the very best — a tight portfolio shortlist or a client delivery | <3% of photos
≥ 7.5 | You're curating a gallery or social feed and want a small, high-quality selection | ~5–8%
≥ 7.0 | You want confident picks with minimal follow-up culling | ~8–15%
≥ 6.5 Default | General first pass — find all the keepers without missing anything worth editing | ~15–25%
≥ 6.0 | You'd rather find too many and cull manually afterwards | ~25–40%
≥ 5.5 | Maximum recall — useful for poorly-lit shoots where you suspect good frames are hiding | ~40–60%

Tip: Start at the default (6.5) for a first pass. If you're seeing too many unremarkable shots in the results, move the slider up. If good photos seem to be missing, move it down. Your Gem Scores are saved permanently in the catalog, so you can build Smart Collections at any threshold later — no need to re-scan.