# Lumethic

> Photo verification platform that checks a photograph against its original camera RAW file and reports a graded, evidence-backed result with stated limits. Writes content credentials in the C2PA open standard format, attested by Lumethic, aligned with the vision and goals of the Content Authenticity Initiative (CAI).

The complete knowledge base (all articles, full text) is available in a single file at https://www.lumethic.com/llms-full.txt.

Lumethic helps photographers show that an export is consistent with the RAW file their camera recorded, and helps buyers, editors and courts read that evidence. We address the digital trust crisis caused by AI-generated images and sophisticated manipulation by providing forensic-level verification that only the original photographer can generate (since only they have the RAW file).

Key verification process: Users upload their camera RAW file and corresponding JPEG. Our system uses structural similarity, perceptual hashing, histogram comparison, metadata analysis, sensor-noise checks and recapture detection, and reports a categorical result (verified, provisional, provenance only, unrated or flagged) with each check's outcome and value. It does not output a probability or a trust score; a verified result covers the capture, not whether the scene was real. Processing takes 2-5 minutes. RAW files are used for the verification only and are never shown, sold or used for training; retention is set out in the privacy policy.

Primary use cases include photography contests (avoiding AI accusations), freelance client work (20-30% higher rates reported), copyright protection (DMCA evidence), legal proceedings (court admissibility), insurance appraisal and adjustment photos taken by the insurer's own appraisers (not screening of claimant-submitted JPEGs), and news organization verification.

Pricing: Freemium with 5 free verifications, Basic ($3.95/month, 50 verifications), Professional ($49.95/month, 1000 verifications + API), Enterprise (custom volumes).

## Documentation

- [Request a checked original](https://www.lumethic.com/en/request-original): Send a link; the person holding the photograph uploads the camera original and the delivered image without an account, and the record lands in the requester's account. What the record establishes, what it does not, and what it costs
- [Delivering AB 723 Originals: A Guide for Listing Photographers and Agents](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/ab-723-delivering-original-photos): What California's AB 723 and the MLS rules require of the original listing photo, which frame of a bracket counts, how to deliver originals with a checked link and QR code, and how to bill it
- [AI Listing Photo Disclosure Rules in 2026](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/ai-listing-photo-disclosure-rules): California's disclosure, link and original-in-the-listing duties, Wisconsin's 2027 disclosure rule, New York's two bills, the EU AI Act for European listings, and what a checked original adds
- [How to Spot AI-Edited Listing Photos](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/spot-ai-edited-listing-photos): The common tells of AI-edited real estate photos, what to ask the agent for, and why a missing original is a reason to ask rather than a verdict
- [Image Forensics Chain of Custody: 6 Steps to Court-Admissible Photos](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/forensic-photography-legal-cases-chain-of-custody-guide): The six-step chain of custody for photo evidence, FRE 901 authentication, minimum documentation standards, and how C2PA provenance replaces manual logs
- [Every Camera That Supports C2PA Content Credentials](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/cameras-with-c2pa-content-credentials): Which Leica, Nikon, Sony, Canon and Google Pixel models sign photos with C2PA at capture, kept current
- [How to Prove Your Photo Is Real, Not AI-Generated](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/prove-photo-not-ai): RAW evidence, C2PA content credentials, and verify-then-sign for photographers accused of using AI
- [How to Tell If a Photo Is AI-Generated or Real](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/how-to-tell-if-photo-is-ai-generated): The practical checks that still work, why visual detection is weakening, and what actually proves origin
- [Why AI Detectors Flag Real Photos as AI](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/the-false-positive-problem): The technical causes of false positives in AI image detectors and why provenance is the fix
- [Photography Contest AI Policies Database](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/contest-ai-policies-database): AI and authenticity policies across major photography contests, with verbatim rule quotes
- [OpenAI SynthID Check: How to Test a ChatGPT Image for the Watermark](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/synthid-adoption-2026): Every ChatGPT and OpenAI API image carries Google's SynthID watermark since May 2026; where SynthID can actually be checked (Google's and OpenAI's own tools — Lumethic does not detect it) and how SynthID differs from the C2PA manifest, which Lumethic does read
- [Detecting Recaptured Images](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/detecting-recaptured-images): How screen recaptures and photographed prints are detected, and what they mean for verification
- [EU Rules for AI Images: AI Act, DSA and EMFA](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/eu-ai-regulation-compliance): The three EU laws governing AI-generated and authentic images, and how they interlock
- [What Is C2PA? Content Credentials Explained](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/what-is-c2pa): What a C2PA manifest contains (assertions, claim, signature, ingredients), what signing at capture means, why a missing manifest or the CR icon is not an AI verdict, who signs in 2026 (cameras, phones, generators, platforms), how to read a record, and where the standard stops
- [Content Authenticity Guide](https://www.lumethic.com/en/content-authenticity): How Lumethic uses the C2PA open standard for content authenticity, aligned with CAI's vision
- [How Lumethic Works](https://www.lumethic.com/en/why-lumethic): Detailed explanation of the verification process and technology (FAQ included on the homepage)
- [Pricing](https://www.lumethic.com/en/pricing): Current plans, free tier, and verification volumes
- [Choosing a Content Authenticity Platform](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/choosing-content-authenticity-platform): Capability-by-capability comparison of C2PA provenance, PRNU sensor matching, RAW verification, hardware attestation, and AI detection, with the use case each fits
- [EU AI Act and C2PA](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/eu-ai-act-c2pa-mandate): What Article 50 requires, whether C2PA is mandated, timeline and penalties
- [Is AI Denoise Allowed in Photo Contests?](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/ai-denoise-photo-contest-rules): What contest rules permit for AI noise reduction, sharpening, and upscaling, and where the line to generative editing runs
- [Canon's Authenticity Imaging System](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/canon-authenticity-imaging-system): Canon's C2PA service for news organizations, how its certificates and timestamps work, and what photographers outside newsrooms can do
- [Content Credentials on Social Platforms](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/content-credentials-social-media-platforms): Which platforms strip, read, or display C2PA metadata, from Instagram to LinkedIn, and what survives upload
- [Which AI Generators Mark Their Output](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/ai-generators-c2pa-watermarks): DALL-E, Firefly, Gemini, Midjourney, Stable Diffusion, Flux, and Grok compared on C2PA manifests and invisible watermarks
- [Which Phones Sign Photos with Content Credentials](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/smartphones-c2pa-content-credentials): Pixel 10 signs by default, Samsung marks only AI edits, iPhone has no native C2PA; the phone provenance picture and how to close the iPhone gap
- [Apple Reference Image: What the iPhone 18 Pro Can and Cannot Prove](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/apple-reference-image-explained): Apple's opt-in Reference mode signs sensor data on the 18 Pro Main camera and keeps a reference image for visual comparison; not C2PA, viewable only in Apple's apps, EU capture off at launch; what it establishes, its limits, and the routes for every other iPhone
- [The CR Icon Does Not Mean an Image Is AI](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/content-credentials-icon-not-ai): The Content Credentials icon marks a provenance record, often on authentic photos; how to read the panel and what the icon's absence means
- [Content Credentials Label Added on LinkedIn](https://www.lumethic.com/en/articles/linkedin-content-credentials-label): What LinkedIn's Content Credentials label means (a signed C2PA record, not an AI verdict), what puts it on an uploaded image, how to inspect the record, and how to post with or without it

## Free Tools

- [Verify a Photo](https://www.lumethic.com/en/verify): Anonymous verification, no account needed. Full mode compares a camera RAW file against its exported photo; the free quick check screens a single image (JPEG, PNG, WebP, HEIC/HEIF, AVIF or GIF) for provenance and manipulation traces, no RAW file required
- [AI Photo Checker](https://www.lumethic.com/en/tools/ai-photo-checker): Check an image's C2PA Content Credentials for AI-generation markers instantly in the browser, then optionally run the deeper server-side forensic quick check
- [C2PA Camera Check](https://www.lumethic.com/en/tools/c2pa-camera-check): Look up whether a camera model signs images with content credentials
- [Content Credentials Inspector](https://www.lumethic.com/en/tools/c2pa-inspector): Inspect the full C2PA manifest of any image

## Photo Contest Directory

Per-contest authenticity policy data for major photography contests (current editions): each page documents the contest's AI policy with verbatim rule quotes, RAW-file requirements, C2PA/Content Credentials acceptance, deadlines, and entry fees. The full digest with every contest's policy quotes is included in llms-full.txt.

- [All Contests](https://www.lumethic.com/en/contests): The full directory with deadlines and policy badges
- [Contests that ban AI images](https://www.lumethic.com/en/contests/policy/no-ai): Contests whose rules prohibit AI-generated imagery
- [Contests requiring RAW files](https://www.lumethic.com/en/contests/policy/raw-required): Contests that demand original RAW files for entry or shortlisting
- [Contests accepting Content Credentials](https://www.lumethic.com/en/contests/policy/c2pa-accepted): Contests that mention or accept C2PA
- [Upcoming deadlines](https://www.lumethic.com/en/contests/deadlines): Contest deadlines in chronological order
- [Free-entry contests](https://www.lumethic.com/en/contests/free): Contests without an entry fee

## For Users

- [For Photographers](https://www.lumethic.com/en/for-photographers): Prove authenticity, protect work, build client trust
- [For Photo Buyers](https://www.lumethic.com/en/verify-photos): Understand verification reports, detect fraud, ensure credibility
- [Sample Verification Report](https://www.lumethic.com/en/verify/sample): See what a complete verification looks like

## Technical

- [API Documentation](https://www.lumethic.com/en/api): REST API for automated verification workflows
- [MCP Server for AI Agents](https://www.lumethic.com/en/mcp): Lumethic exposes a remote Model Context Protocol (MCP) server so AI agents can verify photo authenticity directly. Streamable HTTP endpoint at https://api.lumethic.com/mcp. Authenticate with a Lumethic API key via `Authorization: Bearer lk_…` or `X-API-Key: lk_…`, or connect through the OAuth sign-in flow; a free account works (there is no keyless access). Tools include verify_photo (upload a RAW file plus its JPEG export), create_verification_upload (pre-signed URLs for large RAW files), get_verification (poll by id until completed), list_verifications, get_account_usage and share_verification. Errors return machine-readable codes (QUOTA_EXCEEDED, INVALID_CREDENTIALS, RATE_LIMIT_EXCEEDED).
- [Lightroom Plugin](https://www.lumethic.com/en/plugin-lightroom): Adobe Lightroom export workflow integration