The addition of data to images in order to “enrich” their information content can be traced back to microphotography practices dating from the twentieth century. Estelle Blaschke focuses on the image-retrieval methods developed to cope with vast quantities of reproductions stored on film, and in particular the encoding of film for optical devices and automated retrieval systems. While these methods were subject to numerous technical limitations and were rarely more than prototypes, they offer an insight into today’s shift towards the importance of data and data management in digital photography. The general hypothesis of the article is that methods of making images more informative are ultimately driven by a capitalist rationale of exploitation for specific, often utilitarian purposes.