Common
questions, answered.

MetaMagic uses state-of-the-art vision AI to analyse each photo and generate IPTC keywords, a title, and a caption. These are written directly into the Lightroom Classic catalog — no copy & paste, no switching apps. It works on single photos or entire batches. See the complete tutorial for a step-by-step walkthrough.

Yes — this is one of MetaMagic's biggest advantages over simpler tools. The AI doesn't just label your photo with generic terms like "bird" or "flower". It identifies specific species (Great Blue Heron, Ophrys apifera), vehicle models (1967 Ford Mustang), architectural styles, musical instruments, rare plants, insects, and much more. For wildlife, nature, and specialist stock photographers, this means keywords that are actually precise and searchable — not vague labels that bury your photos.

The Lightroom Classic plugin writes metadata directly into your catalog — ideal if Lightroom is your main workflow. The web app works in any browser with no installation: upload photos, generate metadata, and export ready-to-upload CSV files for 12 stock agencies or download JPGs with metadata embedded. Both share the same account and credits — use one or both.

Yes. The Lightroom plugin writes IPTC keywords into your catalog, which agencies read automatically from embedded metadata on upload. The web app also exports ready-to-upload CSV files formatted for 12 agencies including Shutterstock, Adobe Stock, Getty, Alamy, Pond5, Depositphotos, Dreamstime, 123RF and more. See per-agency keyword export for details.

Most free plugins require your own API key or a local GPU, and many produce generic keywords. MetaMagic needs no API key and no setup — register and start. It uses state-of-the-art vision AI for specific, accurate identifications, writes full IPTC (title, caption, keywords, location), offers editorial mode, and exports CSV for 12 stock agencies. It's also the only option with both a Lightroom plugin and a browser web app sharing one account. See the full comparison of AI keyword plugins.

There is no hard limit on batch size. Based on our testing, we recommend processing up to 100 photos at a time for best performance. Each photo typically takes 3–10 seconds depending on your computer and internet connection. Larger batches work fine — they just take proportionally longer.

No. You buy credits directly on the MetaMagic website. There is no need to create or manage any third-party AI account — everything is handled through the plugin.

Yes. MetaMagic works on both macOS and Windows with Lightroom Classic. Installation is identical on both platforms via the Plugin Manager in Lightroom.

MetaMagic supports all RAW and non-RAW formats that Lightroom Classic supports, including: DNG, CR2, CR3, NEF, NRW, ARW, SR2, RAF, ORF, RW2, PEF, MOS, ERF, 3FR, IIQ, JPEG, TIFF, PSD, and PNG.

No. Credits never expire. Buy a pack and use it at your own pace — no pressure.

MetaMagic uses state-of-the-art vision AI — a significantly more capable model than the lightweight classifiers or stripped-down AI used by free alternatives. It understands context, recognizes landmarks, reads mood, and writes natural-language captions. The difference is visible in the quality of the output. Try the 20 free generations and compare on your own photos before deciding.

No subscription. MetaMagic is pay-as-you-go — buy a credit pack when you need it. No monthly charges, no automatic renewals.

Go to the Buy Credits page, enter your Customer Code, and click "Check balance." Your current credit balance will be displayed.

No. Your full RAW files never leave your computer. MetaMagic exports a compressed JPEG preview (max 1000px) which is sent to our AI provider for analysis — then discarded. MetaMagic's own servers never store, log, or retain your images at any point. You can verify this: the plugin deletes the temporary export file immediately after sending.

No. Our AI provider's data usage policy confirms that data sent via the API is not used to train AI models. Any temporary processing logs are automatically deleted within 30 days. Your photos are used solely to generate the metadata response — nothing else.

Only if you enable the GPS context option. When enabled, the latitude/longitude from your photo's EXIF data is sent as part of the prompt to improve keyword accuracy. You can disable this option at any time in the plugin settings if you prefer not to share location data.