How do I activate the Similarity Search feature on my PhotoDeck website?

To enable the feature, you must first ensure your images are indexed for similarity search by using the dedicated assistant.

Can I combine similarity search with other search filters, like face recognition?

Yes, similarity search can be combined with other filters, such as face recognition. When combined, the face recognition search is performed first to find images of a specific person, and then the similarity search acts as a filter on those results to find the most visually or conceptually similar subset of images featuring that person.

Is there an easy way to check if I have accidentally uploaded the same photo multiple times?

Yes, the Similarity Search assistant is highly effective for identifying duplicates or near-duplicates. In your PhotoDeck admin space, you can run a similarity search on any image to quickly find identical or very similar copies across your entire library, helping you keep your collection clean and organized.

Similar images: search and carousel

What is this for?

Similarity search is a powerful engagement tool that keeps your clients exploring your media library. Instead of relying on keywords or basic color/shape matching, PhotoDeck’s similarity search uses artificial intelligence to find images based on their semantic meaning, the actual concept or content of the scene.

This means your clients can discover images they might have missed with traditional keyword searches, significantly increasing the engagement and depth of exploration within your collection.

Boost client discovery

By making it easy for users to jump from one relevant image to the next, you encourage them to spend more time on your site and discover more valuable content. You can present related images in two highly effective ways:

The “Similar Images” button: Allows clients to click on any image and instantly run a search for related content. This is perfect for clients who found one image they like and need variations or alternatives.
The similar images carousel: Displays a visually appealing grid of related content directly underneath the enlarged view of an image. This encourages passive discovery and helps clients find a relevant alternative immediately before leaving the page.

Find relevant images beyond keywords

This AI-driven search goes beyond simple metadata matching. It can link images that look visually dissimilar but convey a similar theme or concept. This is essential for:

Stock Photographers: A client looking at a photo tagged “person walking in city” might also be shown an image tagged “commute, urban life” even if the visuals are very different (e.g., one is a close-up, the other is a wide shot).
Corporate and documentary libraries: You can connect images from the same project or subject that might not share the exact same objects or keywords, ensuring a client sees the full content.

Maintain full control and confidentiality

You can fine-tune the confidence level of the search results to control whether the system prioritizes accuracy (fewer but highly relevant matches) or coverage (more matches, potentially including less relevant results). Additionally, the search respects your site’s privacy settings: the results will only include public and private galleries that the current user has access to.

Identify duplicates

As an added benefit, the similarity search function in your admin space is a powerful way to quickly identify duplicates or near-duplicates across your entire library, streamlining your content management.

Similarity search is a powerful tool that helps your clients and users find images, and is very effective at increasing their engagement and encouraging them to discover your collectiom more deeply.

It makes it easy to find related images based on their content and semantic meaning: instead of just comparing colors and shapes, it uses artificial intelligence to identify the actual scene content and is able to link images that are visually dissimilar, but that carry a similar concept.

Only images that have been analyzed/indexed for similarity search are searchable.

The Similar images button

This button is displayed for images that have been analyzed for similarity search. It is activated/de-activated via the Similarity search option under My website / Setup / Website search.

The button can also be added or removed in the gallery display style settings in both the index (thumbnails) and the detail (enlarged images) views, allowing to hide or show them from certain galleries only. In the image detail view, the button can be displayed either overlaid on the image, or with the other buttons.

The Similar images button is available both on your website and in your admin space.

In your admin space, when an image has been analyzed for similarity search (“indexed”), a button will appear to search for similar images.

The most relevant matches are shown first.

The similarity search is also an effective way to find duplicates or near-duplicates for any given image in your admininistration space.

The Similar images carousel

Similar Images carousel shown under an image

The Similar images carousel displays related images directly on an image’s detailed view.

This element is included by default in the E-shop and Stock photography gallery display styles. It can also be added to other styles via the gallery display styles customization.

How to include images in the similarity search engine

For similarity search to work, the images must first be analyzed to make them searchable. The Similarity Search assistant analyzes the content in images and adds them to your account’s search index:

Select one or more images, and click on AI Assistants.
If you haven’t done so yet, add a Similarity search analysis (BETA) assistant.
You can then submit the image(s) to the assistant in a single click.

Activate the Automatically perform on newly imported files option in the assistant’s settings to automatically analyze future uploaded files.

In your admin space, you can also use the search feature to find images that were or were not analysed for similarity search.

Newly indexed images may not immediately appear on your website

To keep your website fast, the search results and the galleries are cached. Search results can take 15 minutes to be updated for the same query, and images may take a few hours to be visible in the Similar images carousel in galleries they are themselves not present in.

The search results in your admin space are not cached, and they are therefore immediately up-to-date.

Similarity search confidence level

You can adjust the confidence level that determines when two images are considered similar, in order either to ensure more accuracy in results (which might miss some images) or to make sure more similar images are found (which might include less relevant images). This setting is found under My website / Setup / Website search.

Similarity search and private galleries

Like for keyword search and face recognition, the similarity search includes all galleries, public or private, the current user has access to.

In public galleries, the carousel only includes images from other publicly searchable galleries. In private galleries, the carousel includes images in publicly searchable galleries and in other private sub-galleries under the same protection scope (i.e. protected by the same gallery).

Similarity search and videos

Similarity search also works with videos, by analyzing their cover image.

Combining face recognition and similarity search

Faceclick and Similarity search can be combined to find similar images of a given person. Face recognition search is always performed first, and Similarity search then filters the results and produces a subset of the Faceclick search.

FAQ

How do I activate the Similarity Search feature on my PhotoDeck website?
To enable the feature, you must first ensure your images are indexed for similarity search by using the dedicated assistant.
Can I combine similarity search with other search filters, like face recognition?
Yes, similarity search can be combined with other filters, such as face recognition. When combined, the face recognition search is performed first to find images of a specific person, and then the similarity search acts as a filter on those results to find the most visually or conceptually similar subset of images featuring that person.
Is there an easy way to check if I have accidentally uploaded the same photo multiple times?
Yes, the Similarity Search assistant is highly effective for identifying duplicates or near-duplicates. In your PhotoDeck admin space, you can run a similarity search on any image to quickly find identical or very similar copies across your entire library, helping you keep your collection clean and organized.