Daylight first: what VQS v1.0 measures, and what v2 adds.

VQS v1.0 measures daytime real estate shoots: a fixed set of objective checks per image, scored 0 to 100, with certification governed by the lowest image and set-level gates. Twilight and dusk shoots are out of scope in v1.0 and arrive with VQS v2. Every score states the version it was measured under, and changes to the standard are versioned, never silent.

Why daylight first

A standard is only worth publishing if it holds. VQS v1.0 runs every measured check on every image, and most of those checks are defined against daylight. Checks such as white_balance_windows, window_clipped and window_dark expect the scene outside a window to be brighter than the room. grass_saturation and greens_saturation expect lawns lit by the sun. At dusk those assumptions invert. Interiors glow, windows go dark, and colour behaves differently.

Scoring twilight frames against daytime rules would produce numbers that look objective and are not. So v1.0 scopes to daytime shoots and measures them with a deterministic runner: same image, same score, byte-identical. That is the trade. A narrow standard that holds, before a broad one that guesses. The plain-English guide to how the checks work is at VQS explained.

What VQS v1.0 measures

A certification run is 12 to 20 original JPEGs from a daytime shoot. Every image is scored 0 to 100. Each check and each image carries a status: PASS at 90 or above, FLAG from 70 to 89, FAIL at 69 and below. The measured checks per image include:

• exposure_bright, exposure_dark, shadows_crushed
• white_balance, white_balance_tint, white_balance_windows, colour_cast
• contrast, saturation_under, grass_saturation, greens_saturation, wood_saturation
• geometry_vertical, geometry_horizontal
• noise, window_clipped, window_dark, window_artifacts
• ghosting_artifacts, ai_texture_blacks, camera_reflection, cables_visible

The checks sit across six categories: EXP (exposure), WBL (white balance), COL (colour), GEO (geometry), ART (artifacts) and SEM (semantic checks), plus set consistency.

The SET score is governed by the lowest image, because a listing is only as good as its worst photo. Set-level gates apply on top. A set can FAIL despite a high composite: all 19 images PASS, the mean is 98, the lowest is 93, but two soft frames trip the focus gate. The set fails and no badge is issued. Every certificate opens the full annotated report, every image and every measured value. There is a sample report on the site, and you can run a shoot through the demo to see your own numbers.

Certification is automatic and tiered. Platinum at 100, Certified from 90 to 99, Provisional from 70 to 89, no mark below 70. A failing set never certifies, regardless of composite.

What versioning means for a measurement standard

A score you cannot pin to a version is an opinion. VQS scores state their version. When the standard changes, the change is versioned, never silent. Nothing shifts underneath a certificate you have already earned.

The runner is deterministic. The same image produces the same score, byte-identical, under the same version. That is what makes a version meaningful: v1.0 is a fixed set of checks and thresholds, not a moving target. Version history lives on the releases page, and every certificate on the public verification register shows its tier, composite, covered files and dates. Reports are permanent parts of the certification record.

Twilight and dusk arrive in v2

There is no objective twilight standard inside VQS today, and that is deliberate. Twilight and dusk real estate photography will be scored under VQS v2. Until v2 ships, dusk shoots are out of scope: submit daytime sets under v1.0.

The versioning rule applies to v2 the same way it applies to everything else. When twilight support arrives, it arrives as a published, versioned release, documented on the releases page. Scores measured under v2 will say so. Scores measured under v1.0 will keep saying v1.0.

How re-measurement under a new version works

A certificate records what was measured, when, and under which version. That record does not change when a new version releases. What changes is what your next run is measured against.

Certification is time-bound. A mark expires 12 months after the last certified run. On the subscription (US$9.99 a month, one measurement run included each month), the mark stays live while you are subscribed, with a recertification run required at least every 12 months. A single run is US$129, with the badge valid for 12 months.

Re-measurement means fresh work. Every image is fingerprinted with SHA-256, and duplicates within a set or against earlier runs are removed automatically. You cannot resubmit last year's files under a new version; the runner will strip them. A recertification under v2 is a fresh set, measured under v2, sitting on the register alongside your earlier v1.0 record.

The badge itself is a live widget, one line of HTML. Anyone can click through to the register and see exactly what is covered. If a mark expires or is suspended or revoked, it says so visibly wherever it is embedded. That is what keeps the mark worth embedding.

Where to start

If you shoot daytime listings now, v1.0 covers you now. Start at Standard Vision Lab, run a recent daytime set through the demo, and read the sample report against your own work. When v2 lands, your twilight work gets the same treatment: measured, not opined.