Trust Test
for photos
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Does your photo earn the “Trust Test Guaranteed” label?
• Fully meeting all 9 requirements below = qualifying for the TTG label.
• Not fully meeting all 9 requirements below = not qualifying as TTG.
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P1. The use of visible light
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In order for a photograph to meet P1, no one can add to the image area anything other than what was recorded during the relevant exposure(s) using the portion of the light spectrum that is visible to humans.
This “visible-light-only” requirement always disqualifies:
A. The addition of any AI-generated content, no matter how small, at any time; AND
B. The depiction as a primary subject of the photograph any x-ray images, infrared images, sonograms, CT scans, MRIs, and anything else that would not qualify as visible-light-generated imaging; AND
C. The overlaying of any words, logos, graphics, captions, labels, symbols, names, the term “TTG,” or anything else on the image area of the photo.
FAQ on P1
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P2. one undoctored record
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A. Before taking a photo, it is worth noting that these camera settings involve “doctoring” and the result is always disqualified from TTG:
non-optical bokeh (“Portrait” mode), post-exposure perspective correction, social-media filters, lighting effects, beauty modes (skin smoothing, toning, face/jawline reshaping, etc), selfie-stick removal, and any other special effects.
B. Then, after the light from the scene hits the recording surface,
except for the effects of TTG’s Allowable Changes, NOTHING within the photograph — no matter how small or trivial — can be added, deleted, replaced, resized, moved, modified, reshaped, aigmented, or blurred (except for optically produced blur), not for any reason.
FAQ on P2
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P3. one view
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With a single-exposure photograph,
. . . meeting P3’s “one view” requirement is automatic when a single exposure is made with a single focal length (panning is allowed).
When multiple exposures are combined, in order to meet P3’s “one view” requirement:
1. All elements of the photograph must be recorded on one device using one lens that is set at a single focal length (this disqualifies both zooming during the exposure and focal-length blending).
2. Neither the camera nor the lens can be re-aimed, re-positioned, or moved during the recording of multiple exposures (multiple successive “views” cannot be stitched into one image, not even for smartphone panorama creation).
3. The combined result of the multiple exposures must be focus maximized and optically plausible.
FAQ on P3
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P4. one scene
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A “scene” refers to the arrangement of everything visible in the frame at any point in time. Each time that arrangement changes, it is considered a new “scene.”
Meeting P4’s “one scene” requirement is automatic when the subject and lighting undergo no change or movement during the exposure.
When the subject undergoes change or movement during the exposure, panning and motion blur are allowed—
— but to meet P4’s “one scene” requirement, the sasibe and satode principles both apply and the photo cannot show any ghost objects or stroboscopic-motion effects.
FAQ on P4
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P5. one moment,
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There are two common definitions of a “moment,” so there are two ways of meeting P5:
1. When it’s a single-exposure photo:
Meeting P5 is automatic with any uninterrupted exposure of any length if the scene has no change or movement in it during the exposure.
However, if the scene has any change or movement in it, the sasibe standard in P4 (above) may limit the maximum exposure length.
Note that sweep “panoramas” — instant combinations of multiple exposures, popular with smartphones — are disqualified by P3.
2. When combining multiple exposures:
In any situation that there is control over the combining of exposures, all exposures being combined to make the photograph must be started within the same single second, with no pictorial information added from exposures that did not begin during that one second.
Multiple-exposure TTG photographs are best made of motionless scenes, because as per P4 (above) the sasibe and satode principles both apply and the photo cannot show any ghost objects or stroboscopic-motion effects.
FAQ on P5
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P6. one fixed image
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In order to meet P6, the image being held up to the Trust Test must be a single, fixed, “still” photograph that looks the same to all viewers, capable of being printed such that the result could be viewed without electricity, without a device, at any angle, and in any light.
Note that no photograph ever has to BE printed to qualify as TTG.
Videos, movies, .gifs, “Live” or “Motion” photos (i.e., very short videos), etc. cannot meet P6, but individual frames of these motion-picture formats can meet P6 and be eligible to qualify as TTG.
FAQ on P6
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P7. without misrepresentation
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No photograph can qualify for TTG that misrepresents the appearance of the scene depicted. Thus if a photograph is to meet P7:
The photo cannot misrepresent the appearance of the scene as the camera lens saw it during the exposure(s), as judged by respected international news agencies’ information-reportage standards.
(Those standards are the arbiter for all of TTG’s Allowable Changes.)
FAQ on P7
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P8. without deception
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No photograph can qualify for TTG that deceives the viewer about the circumstances or context in which the photograph was made.
To meet P8, through the photograph and its presentation the photographer must make viewers aware of the circumstances and context of the making of the photograph—
— to the same degree that respected international news agencies would make viewers aware if the photo were used in an information-reportage context.
When a separate “viewer alert” is needed to avoid deception regarding inapparent circumstances or context, use of the “TTG-IC” label is the minimum acceptable alert (additional explanation, if warranted, can be provided elsewhere and noted with a * after the TTG-IC).
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To prevent deception via re-photographing non-TTG-qualified images, photographs that feature as a primary subject “any non-TTG-qualified image that looks like a TTG-qualified photo” can never meet P8 no matter how thoroughly they are labeled and explained.
FAQ on P8
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P9. a source viewers don’t mistrust.
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In order for the photograph to meet P9, it must be accompanied by the name of its creator, because by attaching the TTG label they are personally guaranteeing that the image fully meets the eight requirements above.
Viewers are told not to trust the TTG label if they are not confident that a specific person is staking his or her reputation on the Trust Test Guarantee.
FAQ on P9
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Where did the Trust Test come from?
The Trust Test for photos is built on three worldwide pillars, all of which have been established and respected for years:
1. the 9 characteristics that are shared by the most-widely trusted photographs in the world;
2. the standards of the largest news organizations in the free world;
3. the shared traits of more than 3 billion smartphones around the world.
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• It is rare to find photographs in trusted news settings that do not fully meet all 9 requirements as spelled out in the Trust Test.
• It is very easy to make photographs that fully meet all 9 requirements as spelled out in the Trust Test.
• The Trust Test can serve as a universal standard useable by anyone, anywhere (even when the TTG label is not being used).
The 9 things that the TTG label guarantees
It is very easy to make photos that meet all 9 requirements.
to create
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and
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Where can I see lots of
excellent photographs that
would meet all 9 requirements?