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Material grain and surface finish

CurrentLast checked Surface and finishShoes

Whether the upper material carries a consistent grain and finish across both shoes, read under lighting that does not flatter it.

The reading sequence

3 steps, starting at surface and finish and running to read the finish at the panel edge. Evidence on this point is read at E1, and no step on this point ends the assessment on its own.

Step 1

Ask for the same panel under two lighting conditions

Get one panel photographed under direct light and once in indirect daylight, so texture can be separated from glare.

Evidence: E1 — two photos of the same panel, one direct light and one indirect, per shoe

Pass
  • Both lighting conditions are supplied for the same panel on both shoes.
  • The panel fills a comparable part of the frame in all four photos.
Query
  • Only one lighting condition is supplied, leaving glare and texture indistinguishable.
Return
  • Only full-shoe wide shots are supplied, where grain cannot be read.
  • The photos are heavily filtered or colour-adjusted beyond recognition.
Step 2

Compare grain direction across the panel

Decide whether the grain runs in one direction, which is what a single hide looks like, or changes direction across a seam.

Evidence: E1 — the indirect-light photo from step 1, examined across a seam line

Pass
  • Grain direction is consistent on both sides of every seam on the panel.
  • Pore size looks the same in the centre and near the edge of the panel.
Query
  • A slight change of grain direction at one seam on one shoe.
Return
  • Grain direction reverses across a seam, which means two offcuts were joined.
  • Pore size varies by more than about a third across one panel.
Step 3

Read the finish at the panel edge

See whether the surface finish survives to the edge, or stops short and leaves a raw band.

Evidence: E1 — a macro photo of the panel edge where it meets a seam or the sole

Pass
  • The finish runs to the edge on both shoes.
  • No raw or fuzzy band is visible between the finish and the seam.
Query
  • A band under 1 mm at one edge that is covered when the shoe is worn.
Return
  • A raw band wider than 2 mm runs along a visible part of the upper.
  • The finish has cracked or flaked along a fold line.

Why the thresholds sit where they do

Surface material is the easiest thing to make look right in a photograph and the hardest to correct afterwards, which puts it in the surface group but keeps it above purely cosmetic questions. The two-lighting requirement exists because direct light produces highlights that read as grain to one viewer and as glare to another, and because the difference between the two photos is itself information: a panel whose texture changes character between them is usually a coated synthetic rather than a grained material. Grain direction is checked across a seam rather than across a shoe because a single hide can only run one way, so a reversal is evidence of a joined panel rather than of natural variation.

Common misreads

2 pairs recorded for this point. Each runs in both directions: 1 finding that looks worse than it is, and 1 that looks better.

Check this point against what you were sent

Insufficient evidence

Nothing decided on material grain and finish yet: 0 of 3 steps have been read.

0 of 3 steps judged

One row per step. Evidence levels: E1 seller photos before dispatch, E2 your photos after arrival, E3 platform public information, E4 third-party reference only. This covers one judging point; the sequence as a whole is scored on the photo scorecard.
StepReadingEvidenceStop met
1. Ask for the same panel under two lighting conditionsneeds E1—
2. Compare grain direction across the panelneeds E1—
3. Read the finish at the panel edgeneeds E1—
Score the whole category

Sources and checks

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