The upload fails before searching
Check the service’s supported formats and file-size limit. Facehunch accepts JPG, PNG and WebP up to 10 MB, and validates the file itself. A document renamed to .jpg is still not a JPEG. A HEIC file may need exporting before it can be uploaded.
Download cloud-only images to your device. If the file is damaged, try opening and exporting it with your normal photo editor. Work on a copy so you retain the original. If the image contains more than one person, choose a single consented portrait for a face-oriented test.
The search stays in progress
An upload and a completed search are separate events. A provider can accept your file while the search is waiting in a queue. Facehunch shows progress received from FaceCheck rather than a made-up estimate; the provider queue can take several minutes.
Do not keep opening new searches while one is pending. That can add requests without improving the result. If the app reports a timeout or rate limit, wait and retry once. Note the error message instead of assuming your photograph caused it.
The search completes with no results
No result means no result was returned from that index with that input. It does not mean the image is new, genuine, private or safe. The source might be inaccessible, newly published, removed or absent from the engine’s coverage.
Use a copy-oriented engine if you need reused photographs, and a general visual engine for objects. A different search type may help more than repeatedly uploading the same file. See the comparison of search methods.
The results look unrelated
Similarity can come from composition or facial resemblance rather than a shared source or identity. Facehunch’s example API uses FaceCheck’s restricted test mode, where unrelated results are expected. The main workspace search is separate, but visual similarity there also needs independent source review. The provider’s test documentation explicitly describes that limitation.
The source page no longer works
The index and the live web can disagree. A thumbnail may remain after the page changes or disappears. Record the result as unverified rather than silently treating the cached preview as current evidence. If the question matters, find another accessible source before drawing a conclusion.
Separate upload failure from an empty search
An upload error happens before a usable search completes. Check the supported format, size and connection, then retry once with a permitted copy. An empty result after a completed search is a coverage question. Preserve that distinction in your notes.
For a simple diagnostic, compare the untouched image with one careful crop that removes unrelated borders. Keep enough of the subject and background to preserve useful visual information. Record which version you used and avoid repeated retries that produce no new evidence. A working search with no results is not proof that an image has never appeared elsewhere.
Written by Facehunch with AI assistance and checked against the cited sources. Our editorial policy.