If you have ever downloaded an AI-generated image just to zoom in and check whether the hands look right, this update is for you. The new Asset Inspection Lightbox opens a fullscreen viewer directly from any asset detail page. You get scroll-wheel zoom that follows your cursor, click-drag panning with momentum, and a maximum zoom of 800% for examining fine details like text rendering, eye reflections, and texture coherence.
But inspection is only half the story. The lightbox also includes three comparison modes for reviewing variations, a metadata sidebar for checking generation parameters, spatial annotation support, and a presentation mode for client reviews. All of it ships today.
Part of our AI-Native DAM Architecture
Zoom-to-Cursor, Not Zoom-to-Centre
Most image viewers zoom towards the centre of the viewport, forcing you to pan back to the area you were looking at. The Numonic lightbox zooms to wherever your cursor is pointing. Scroll up, and the region under your mouse gets closer. It sounds small, but it eliminates a constant source of friction during quality review.
The full set of zoom controls:
- Scroll wheel zooms to cursor position
- Pinch-to-zoom on touch devices
- Double-click toggles between fit-to-screen and 100%
- +/- for keyboard zoom, 0 for fit, 1 for 100%
- Shift (hold) activates a 3x circular loupe at your cursor
- Z + drag draws a marquee rectangle to zoom into a specific region
Click-drag pans when zoomed, with momentum and boundary constraints so you never get lost in whitespace. The toolbar auto-hides after two seconds of inactivity and reappears when you move the mouse, keeping the image front and centre.
Three Ways to Compare Variations
Press C to enter comparison mode. A picker shows your gallery and, for Midjourney assets, a version stack tab displaying the full evolution chain with job type badges and prompt previews. Select a second asset, then choose your comparison mode:
- Side by side gives you two viewports with synchronised pan and zoom. Move one, both follow. An unlink toggle lets you control them independently when aspect ratios differ.
- Overlay / onion skin stacks two images with a 0-100% opacity slider. This is the most reliable way to detect hallucinated details introduced during upscaling.
- Split-screen wipe places a draggable vertical handle between the two images. Drag to reveal before and after. The handle has a 48px touch target for reliable mobile use.
Context Without Leaving the Image
Previously, checking an asset's generation parameters meant scrolling the detail page sidebar while losing sight of the image. The lightbox keeps everything in one view:
- Press I to open a collapsible metadata sidebar showing model, prompt, seed, sampler, CFG scale, LoRAs, and workflow data
- Press A to toggle spatial annotation pins. Icons stay 24px; markup scales with the zoom level
- Press P to copy the positive prompt to your clipboard from a slide-up preview panel
Lineage-Aware Navigation
For Midjourney assets, the lightbox now displays a breadcrumb trail showing the full ancestor path with colour-coded job type badges. Press Alt+Up to jump to the parent generation, or Alt+Down to move to the first child. Click any breadcrumb node to navigate directly.
Combined with the version stack in the comparison picker, you can trace an asset's lineage and compare any two points in its evolution without leaving the lightbox.
Presentation Mode and Video Support
Press F for presentation mode. All chrome disappears, leaving just the image on a dark backdrop. Navigate with arrow keys while screen-sharing with clients. Hover near edges to reveal controls when you need them.
Video assets are also supported: the lightbox renders a fullscreen <video> player with native controls. Bracket keys [ / ] navigate between assets in a video context. When you close the lightbox, a shrink-to-source animation returns the view to the originating thumbnail.
Accessibility Built In
The lightbox uses a Radix Dialog primitive with proper focus trapping. ARIA live regions announce the current zoom level and asset position. All interactive elements meet the 44px minimum touch target requirement, and toolbar elements maintain a 4.5:1 contrast ratio against the dark backdrop. The feature opens in under 200ms and maintains 60fps during zoom and pan operations, even with 20+ megapixel images.
Key Takeaways
- 800% zoom with cursor tracking catches AI artefacts in hands, eyes, and text rendering
- Three comparison modes (side by side, overlay, wipe) for reviewing variations and upscales
- Metadata sidebar and prompt peek keep generation context visible while you inspect
- Lineage breadcrumbs with Alt+Up/Down navigation connect inspection to creative evolution
- Presentation mode for distraction-free client reviews
- 16 keyboard shortcuts for a professional, mouse-optional workflow