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Search result limits

Why can I only see 2,000 results in Backstage Archive?

A: For performance reasons, the Archive initially loads up to 2,000 results.
To access more, scroll to the bottom and click Load more results.

If you need a different results limit, please contact us at support@picturemaxx.com We can tailor this setting to your needs.

Why can’t I see all of my media items when browsing the webshop pages?

A: To keep the webshop fast and responsive, a limited number of media items (around 10,000) appear by default when browsing pages.

If you need to browse all of your media items, contact support@picturemaxx.com to enable extended view for your site. Once this is set up, additional pages load automatically when you click on the last visible page,

Understanding searchable metadata fields

How can I tell which of my metadata fields are searchable?

A: To see which of your metadata fields are currently searchable:

  1. Go to Media Processing > Archive
  2. Enable Advanced Search.
  3. Open the All Searchable Fields tab to see a list of all currently indexed fields.
    • Our engineering team can adjust this list. Simply send us the fields to add/remove from your index.

When I search the “Search Term(s)” field, which fields are searched?

A: The Search Term(s) field searches all searchable fields.
Go to Media Processing > Archive, enable Advanced Search, and open the All Searchable Fields tab to view all currently indexed fields.

Can I make a metadata field searchable in Backstage only and not on my website?

A: Yes. Please contact us at support@picturemaxx.com so we can enable this configuration for you.

Search by Date

What is the difference between searching by “Creation Date” and “Archive Date”?

A: Searching by “Creation Date” checks the Creation Date metadata in your files. This date denotes when the media file was originally created (e.g., when a photo was taken).
Searching by “Archive Date” checks the date a file was published to your picturemaxx Backstage Archive.

Can I search by modified date?

A: Backstage doesn’t support searching directly by modified date. However you can still identify recently modified images by following these steps:

  1. Run an initial search using any available filter (e.g., by keyword or Archive Date).
  2. Switch the search results display to View > Tabular, then right‑click the header row and unhide the Date Last Changed field from the table’s context menu.
  3. Sort the results by Date Last Changed field to see the most recently modified images first.
  4. Click the History button below the table to view a list of all modifications made to the selected file.

Search by Media Numbers

How can I search my Archive for multiple Media Numbers?

A: Enter multiple numbers separated by spaces,commas, or lines in the Media Numbers field and click Search.
You can also search by a range of numbers.

Can I search by a Media Number range AND keywords?

A: No. Media Number search and keyword search cannot be combined. The Media Number search bypasses metadata search, so any keywords will be ignored.

Special search methods (exact phrases, Boolean, stemming, blank (empty) search

Which fields support exact-phrase searches (searches "in quotes")?

A: Searching without quotes (e.g., big mountain) returns files containing both words anywhere in their metadata.
Searching with quotes (e.g., “big mountain”) returns only files that contain that exact phrase.
Only specific fields support exact phrase matching:

  • Picture Title [pm_by_line_title]
  • Headline [pm_headline]
  • Source [pm_source]
  • Copyright Notice  [pm_copyright_notice]
  • Caption [pm_caption]
  • Keywords [pm_keywords]

Can I use Boolean operators?

A: Yes. In the Search Term(s) field you can use:

  • AND
  • OR
  • AND NOT

If no operator is used, the search defaults to AND.

Does the search engine recognize plurals or stem results?

A: If the stemming feature is activated, the system returns different word forms. Example: searching act returns act, acts, acting, etc.
Stemmed matches are not ranked differently from exact matches.
You can also use the Synonyms feature (Media Management > Classifications > Synonyms).

A: You run a blank (empty) search by leaving all search fields empty and clicking a search button. You can do this in both the Archive and the Lightbox area.

The action button clearly defines where you’re searching:

  • Archive Search returns published media files from your own archive.
  • Lightbox Search returns results from the Lightbox, including publicly accessible media and partner content (if available).

Use Advanced Search correctly

I'm trying to run an Advanced Search and get zero results (multiple words in one field). Why?

A: Each word must be added as its own row.
Rows are combined using the selected Logic operator.

In Advanced Search, why doesn’t the Logic menu offer “OR”?

A: The first line is always “ANDed” with the search terms you’ve entered in the general search area.
“OR” appears in the second line, where it can be applied to what’s entered in the first.

When setting up a table filter, why would I need brackets?

A: Brackets are useful when your filter combines AND and OR conditions.
Brackets group rules together (like parentheses in a math equation) so those conditions are checked first. Make sure each group has matching opening and closing brackets. If the order of conditions doesn’t matter, brackets aren’t required.

Tip: The bottom panel of the Filter dialog shows the full filter expression as text. Click the green arrow to refresh and review the complete filter logic.

Troubleshooting searches with special characters

Why don’t I get results for metadata that contains periods?

A: The search index treats periods (dots) as skip characters. They’re ignored and turned into spaces.
Example: My images contain George H.W. Bush, but searching for George H.W. Bush returns no results. So “H.W.” is indexed as H W, and searching with the period (dot) won’t match.

Try searching without punctuation: George H W Bush

If the full name appears in Keywords, an exact‑phrase search will work: "George H.W. Bush"

Skip characters are ( ) [ ] * / ! ? . , : ; - + = @ ^ | &

They are used because punctuation is typically not meant to affect search results.

Why don’t I get results for metadata that contains single quotes?

A: Single quotes (apostrophes) are not treated as skip characters in your search index.
Example: My images say ‘Liver Birds’, but searching Liver Birds returns nothing. That means the apostrophe becomes part of the word, so ‘Liver and Birds’ don’t match a search for Liver Birds.

To get results, search using double quotes, which is the standard: "Liver Birds"

If needed, we can configure the system so searches with or without apostrophes return the same results. Let us know if you’d like this change applied.

Note: Just in case you're copying and pasting – you should use straight quotes ("") instead of curly ones (“”).

I am doing a wildcard search and not getting all expected results.

A: For performance reasons, newly published images are only included in the wildcard index during a nightly update.
So wildcard searches (with *) fully work for those images starting the following day.

Troubleshooting unexpected or missing search results

I’m trying to run an Advanced Search with multiple words in one field and get zero results.

A: In Advanced Search, entering multiple words in a single field can return zero results because each word must be added as its own row.
The rows are then combined using the selected Logic operator (AND / OR).

Why can’t I find media files from my Opengate API partner in Archive search results?

A: Opengate partner images are not stored in your local Archive.
They are delivered dynamically via API during search requests, so they won’t appear in Archive search results. These files are also marked with a prefix, which corresponds to the Channel/Partner options in the search dropdown.

To search for images with these prefixes, use a Lightbox search in Media Management > Lightboxes.

You can also find Opengate media in the following areas of picturemaxx Backstage:

  • Media Management > Collections > Offers
  • Financial Documents (Price Quotes, Orders, Invoices, etc.)

When I run “Search by Series”, why aren’t all my series showing up?

A: Selecting Search by Series returns only the primary media for each series (Media Management > Collections > Series).
If a series isn’t appearing, it means it currently has no primary media assigned.

To fix this, select a file in the series and choose Edit Media > Mark as Primary. A series can have more than one primary file.
If you prefer this to happen automatically, you can enable the following setting: Template for new Collections > Mark First Media File as Primary Automatically.

How can I find images that are missing their Author Code?

A: To find images that don’t have an Author Code filled in, you can do this by running the “No Author” search:

  1. Go to Media Processing > Archive.
  2. In the Author/Partner dropdown, select No Author.
  3. Click Search to display all files that don’t have an Author Code.

I searched for “No Author”, but some files without an author aren’t showing up.

A: This happens when the original author assigned to those files was deleted in the Purchasing area.
The files still carry an internal code, so they no longer match a search for “No Author.” To locate these files, try searching by the original author’s name instead.

If I have metadata in multiple languages, will all languages be searched?

A: By default, the system uses a single search index, so only one language is included.
If you need multilingual search support, we can install a multilingual index for you.

Can I print a selection of search results as a PDF?

A: Yes. To print search results as a PDF:

  1. Select the images you want to print.
  2. From the upper menu, select Edit > Print.
  3. Choose a print layout and click Print.

Search limitations

Can I search across all folders?

A: No. It’s not currently possible to search across all Media Processing folders at once. You can only search within a single folder.

Files in Media Processing folders are not yet indexed by the system’s search engine. So when you search inside a folder, it performs only a free‑text search of the metadata available in that specific folder, not a full indexed search.

Our long-term goal is to build a separate search index just for the Media Processing area, so that you could search across folders and have more search possibilities like the ones in the Archive.

When I search in a Media Processing folder, I’m getting partial matches (e.g., searching for “man” also returns files with “woman”). How can I get exact matches?

A: Searches in Media Processing folders are free‑text searches, not full indexed searches.

Files in these folders are not yet indexed by the system’s search engine. So the search behaves differently and returns any metadata containing the entered text, even as part of a larger word.
Because of this, partial matches (like “man” inside “woman”) are expected behavior.

Our long-term goal is to build a separate search index just for the Media Processing area, so that you could search across folders and have more search possibilities like the ones in the Archive.