How It Works

How automatic jersey number detection works

Upload your game photos. Fieldframe finds every person in the frame, reads their jersey number, and matches it to your team roster, all before you've finished your coffee.

01
From photo to tagged gallery

Every photo you upload goes through the same simple process. Fieldframe looks for people in the frame, reads any visible jersey number, and checks it against your linked roster. If the number matches a player, their name gets attached to the photo automatically. If there's no roster linked yet, the number alone is enough to make the photo searchable.

This happens in the background as soon as you upload, whether you're dragging files into the browser or publishing straight from Lightroom Classic.

02
One tag comes automatically. Others take one extra step.

When a photo has more than one player in frame, Fieldframe reads and tags the clearest number automatically. If you want the other players in that same photo tagged too, you can add them yourself, the detection isn't pre-filled for anyone but the first match.

This is a deliberate trade-off, not a limitation we're hiding. Most game photos have one clear subject, and reading every person in a crowded frame costs more without adding much value for the shots that matter most. If you shoot a lot of group or scrimmage photos where several players deserve credit, expect to spend a little extra time tagging the rest by hand.

03
Real photos aren't always cooperative

Game photos are shot fast, and numbers don't always sit still for the camera. A few things make a number harder to read automatically:

  • Motion blur. Fast breaks, sprints, and swings can blur the fabric enough that edges soften.
  • Angle. A player turned sideways or moving away from the camera may not show their number at all in that frame.
  • Overlap. Numbers can be partially blocked by another player, a ball, or an official standing in front.
  • Low light or shadow. Indoor gyms and evening games sometimes leave numbers underexposed or washed out.

None of this is unique to Fieldframe. It's the same reason a person scrolling through the same photos by hand sometimes can't tell either. The difference is what happens next.

04
Turning a number into a name

A detected number on its own is useful, you can already search a gallery by number. Link a team roster, though, and Fieldframe goes a step further: it matches the number to the player it belongs to and fills in their name automatically, no manual typing required.

If a number comes back that isn't on the linked roster (an opposing player, for example, or a mis-read digit), Fieldframe won't guess. It flags the photo for review instead of attaching the wrong name to it.

05
Nothing gets silently dropped

Not every photo will have a clean, confident match, and that's expected. When a number is unclear, missing, or doesn't match anyone on the roster, the photo goes into a review queue instead of getting tagged incorrectly or skipped entirely.

From there, a quick pass with keyboard shortcuts (arrow keys to move between photos, one key to tag, one key to mark no number) usually clears a full event in a few minutes. The goal isn't to hit 100% automatically. It's to make sure the photos that need a human look actually get one, instead of getting buried or mistagged.

06
A gallery people can actually search

Once photos are processed, they land in a gallery that athletes, parents, and coaches can search by jersey number or player name, no account required. Starter and Pro plans also embed the player's name, jersey number, and event details directly into each photo's file, so the credit and context travel with the image even after it's downloaded.

Yes, Fieldframe uses computer vision and image recognition to read jersey numbers and detect players automatically. We just don't lean on "AI-powered" as a marketing phrase. We'd rather describe plainly what the software actually does: it reads numbers, matches them to your roster, and flags anything it's not confident about for you to check.

See it on your own photos

See the full workflow