Terminology Key: Words You’ll See in the App

The Related Faces platform uses specific terms to describe photos, people, and matches. Here’s a quick reference to help you make sense of it all, especially if you’re just getting started.

📸 Photos & Uploads

Photo

An image you upload to the system. Each photo can contain one or more faces.

Photo Name

A short label or title you give to a photo. Helps organize your collection and makes matches easier to understand.

Photo Note

An optional description or annotation to provide extra context, like who took the photo, when it was taken, or guesses about who’s in it.

Photo Box

A folder for organizing your uploaded photos. Every photo goes into a box. The “General” box is the default.

👤 People & Profiles

Person

A profile in your collection, assigned to one or more faces. May be named (e.g., “Sarah Bennett”) or described (e.g., “Unknown Woman in Blue Hat”).

Face

An individual face detected within a photo. Faces are linked to a person when tagged or assigned.

Profile Photo

The default image shown for a person, automatically set to the first face assigned to their profile.

General Descriptor

A description you use when you don’t know a person’s name (e.g., “Boy with cap, school photo”).

Photo Album

A group of people organized together, usually by family line, event, or research theme.

🔍 Matching & Pairing

Pairing

A possible match between two faces. The system suggests pairings based on facial recognition and displays them for review.

Resemblance Score

A percentage showing how visually similar two faces are. Higher scores indicate a stronger resemblance.

Match

A confirmed pairing, two faces you’ve told the system belong to the same person.

Uncertain

Used when you’re not ready to confirm or decline a pairing yet.

Declined

Marks a pairing as incorrect so it won’t be shown again.

Face Mismatch Alert

A warning shown on the Pairings page when a high-scoring suggestion appears to involve two different individuals based on data (like biological sex).

🛠️ Other System Terms

Dashboard

Your landing page after logging in. Shows useful tips and easy access to tools.

My People / My Photos

The pages where you manage your uploaded people and photos, respectively.

Library of Congress (LoC)

A public historical photo collection integrated into Related Faces. Matches to LoC images are shown separately.

Chat

A private messaging tool that lets you talk with other users after a confirmed match.