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Managing Photos

Velora indexes your photos and uses AI to describe, tag, and search them. When you write an article, you can pick the perfect image from your library — or let Velora suggest one automatically.

How It Works

When a photo is added to Velora, it goes through an analysis pipeline:

  1. Description — AI generates a detailed description of what’s in the image
  2. Alt text — A concise, accessible description for screen readers
  3. Attribution — Extracted from image metadata (EXIF) when available
  4. Embedding — A semantic vector that powers search-by-meaning

Once processed, the photo appears in your library with status Ready and is available for use in articles.

Where Photos Live

Your photos are stored in your CMS. For WordPress sites, photos stay in your WordPress media library — Velora indexes and describes them but doesn’t move them elsewhere. This means photos you add through Velora also appear in your WordPress admin.

Where to Find Photos

Go to Photos in the sidebar. You’ll see your photo library with:

  • A search bar for finding photos by description
  • A status filter to view photos by processing state
  • A grid of your indexed photos with descriptions and attribution

Getting Started with WordPress

If your site uses WordPress and you already have photos in your media library, you can pull them into Velora in one step:

  1. Go to Photos in the sidebar
  2. Click Sync from WordPress
  3. Velora scans your WordPress media library and imports any new photos
  4. Each photo is queued for AI analysis — you’ll see them move from Pending to Ready as processing completes

This typically takes a few seconds per photo. A library of 200 photos will be fully analysed within a few minutes.

Uploading New Photos

From the Photos page, click Upload and select one or more images from your computer. For WordPress sites, uploaded photos are added directly to your WordPress media library and indexed in Velora simultaneously.

Image Metadata

Photos with embedded EXIF metadata (description, artist, copyright) get better results. Velora reads this metadata and uses it to generate more accurate descriptions and proper attribution.

If a photo has no metadata, you’ll be prompted to add context (e.g., “Team photo at the annual conference”) which helps the AI describe it accurately.

Using Photos in Articles

Each article has a Photos tab where you can attach images.

Adding a Photo

  1. Open an article and go to the Photos tab
  2. Choose the Position — where the photo should appear:
    • Hero image (cover) — The main image at the top of the article
    • After paragraph 1, 2, 3… — Inline images within the body
  3. Pick your source:
    • Image Library — Browse or search your existing photos
    • Upload New — Upload directly from your computer

Searching the Library

The image picker includes a search bar that uses semantic search. Type what you’re looking for in natural language:

  • “cyclist on a mountain road”
  • “press conference podium”
  • “aerial view of a stadium”

Results are ranked by relevance to your query, so you’ll always see your full library — just reordered with the best matches first.

Removing a Photo

Each photo on the article shows a delete button. Removing a photo takes it off the article and updates your CMS — it doesn’t delete the photo from your library.

How AI Selects Photos

When Velora generates an article, it can automatically select relevant photos from your library based on the article’s content. The AI considers:

  • How well the photo’s description matches the article topic
  • Whether the photo has been used recently (to avoid repetition)
  • Image quality and suitability for the position (hero vs inline)

You can always override automatic selections from the Photos tab.

Tips

Upload Photos with Metadata

Photos from professional agencies and wire services typically include EXIF metadata with descriptions and credits. These produce the best results since Velora can use the embedded information directly.

Use Descriptive Filenames

If your photos don’t have EXIF metadata, a descriptive filename (e.g., team-celebration-finals-2026.jpg) helps the AI generate better descriptions than IMG_4521.jpg.

Sync Regularly

If you add photos directly through your WordPress admin, click Sync from WordPress periodically to bring new photos into your Velora library.

Build Your Library First

The more photos in your library, the better Velora can match images to articles. Consider importing your full media library before generating your first article with photos.