AI First Pass helps you find your best photos faster. It compares each photo with the others in the same Scene and gives it an assessment, so you can see at a glance which photos are worth a closer look. You always choose the final keepers.
How do I see a photo's First Pass assessment?
Each photo's First Pass assessment shows as a colored hexagon in the bottom-right corner of its thumbnail. In the filmstrip, a colored bar along the left edge of each thumbnail shows which Scene the photo belongs to.
Hover over the hexagon or the Scene bar to see the photo's category, its rank in the Scene and a short explanation. A rank like 1 of 4 in scene compares those four photos, not your whole project.
What do the five First Pass categories mean?
This table shows each First Pass category, its default color and what it means for your review:
Category | Default color | What it means |
Best in scene | Dark blue | Likely the best photo in the Scene. Start your review here. |
Above average | Light blue | No major issues found. A strong alternative to compare. |
Average | Gray | No major issues found, but there are probably better options in the Scene. |
Below average | Pink | Some issues found. Check the alternatives. |
Undesirable | Red | Significant issues found. Review the flagged issues before deciding. |
A low First Pass assessment never rejects or deletes a photo. Intentional blur, closed eyes or a unique moment can still make a photo the one you want.
Some photographers work from the top two categories for a fast cull. Others filter out Undesirable photos first, then work through the rest at their own pace.
How do I filter by First Pass assessment?
Open the AI First Pass dropdown in the filter bar.
Check the categories you want to see, and uncheck the ones you want to hide.
The count next to each category shows how many photos have that assessment in your current view.
Filtering only changes what you see. It doesn't remove photos or save your selection. Clear your filters every so often to check the photos you've hidden.
How do I make First Pass stricter or more relaxed?
Go to Preferences → Assessments → AI First Pass settings and choose:
Ruthless: more critical, so more photos land in the lower categories. Good for a quick cull, but double-check key moments yourself.
Balanced (default): an even spread across the categories.
Cautious: gives more photos the benefit of the doubt, so more stay in the blue and gray categories. Good if you'd rather review more photos yourself.
These settings change how strict First Pass is. They don't set a target number or percentage of photos to keep.
How do I sort photos by Scene rank?
Scene rank is the default sort order. To change it, use the sort dropdown in the top left of the toolbar:
Scene rank: groups photos by Scene, with the best in each Scene first.
Capture time: orders photos by when they were taken.
Capture time (reverse): newest first.
Filename: orders photos alphabetically by file name.
Scene rank and Capture time show by default. Filename and Capture time (reverse) are turned on from the three-dot Sort Options button.
First Pass assessments show with every sort order.
Does First Pass work on photos without faces?
First Pass works on photos without faces on a Mac running macOS 14 or later. It ranks them by how sharp they are compared with the rest of their Scene. This is different from the face-based focus score.
No First Pass assessment decides whether a photo is artistically good.
How do I save my choices after First Pass?
First Pass assessments aren't ratings. To save your choices, rate your photos with stars, color labels or tags. Learn about ratings.
To rate in bulk, use Photo → Auto-rate via First Pass… once processing finishes.
Important: Auto-rate is optional and can overwrite existing ratings, so check its settings before you apply them.
Which plans include First Pass filters and Scenes?
First Pass filters and Scenes are part of Advanced AI Culling, on Standard, Premium and Ultra plans. Lite doesn't include them. Compare plans.