Welcome to Pic-Time!
This is Part 2 of a 3 part series where we introduce you to Pic-Time as you get your account up and running. In this tutorial, we will go through the steps of how to create a new client gallery.
If you haven’t already, read through Part 1 to set up your account and store settings. After this article, you can follow up with Part 3 to further customize your Pic-Time account.
Before creating a new client gallery, download the Pic-Time Uploader. The Uploader App allows you to upload your photos quickly in the background of your computer. Learn about more Uploader features here.
~ 1 Min: Create New Gallery
1. To begin creating a client gallery, select + New Client Gallery from the Main Dashboard.
2. If you have set up a Gallery Template you can select it from the pop-up, or select Skip Template to create a gallery without a template.
~ 1 Min: Name & Cover
3. In the Name & Cover tab, add the Gallery Name and Gallery Date. You can also edit the gallery URL, change the gallery language, and choose a gallery cover design and color.
~ 5 Min: Photos
4. Go to the Photos tab of the gallery. When creating a New Scene, you have the option to upload photos, create a Slideshow, design a Blog Post, or embed a video.
If you’ve set it up in your Gallery Template, the scene structure and names will be auto-populated based on your Gallery Template.
5. To start uploading your photos, begin by naming the scene and then click the + Upload Photos button.
6. Select the images or drop the files/folders you would like to upload to the scene. If you organize your images in different folders on your computer, you can drag and drop the folders themselves and they will be automatically separated into scenes.
7. If you’d like to add a new scene, select + Add Scene and upload images, add a slideshow, or add a video.
Pro Tip: click on the three dots underneath each scene name to hide it from certain user types, such as a scene for only wedding vendors.
8. You can easily sort the gallery images by selecting the Sort dropdown menu. You can also set your Default sorting in your Settings.
9. Tags from the gallery and your editing software are shown in the Filter dropdown menu, which allows you to filter and organize images based on different parameters. For example, if you’ve rated your “highlights” images as 5 stars when working on your images in Lightroom, you can filter for images with 5 stars, select them all, and set them as Highlights. Learn more about organizing images with filters here.
Pro Tip: extra additions you can add to the gallery include: scene description text, hidden scenes, and slideshows for social media.
~ 5 Min: Gallery Setup
10. In the Gallery Setup tab, select the occasion to make filtering and organizing galleries easier.
11. If you want to limit user access and require specific security options for projects like boudoir or newborn galleries, you can set the Security Policy to sensitive.
Otherwise, you can use the normal security policy, mark the gallery as private, and don’t show on your Portfolio until you have a few galleries uploaded.
12. Edit the gallery download permissions by selecting the More Settings button under Downloads. This is where you will set up free downloads, a specific number of downloads, or allow downloads for only certain user types. Learn more about download permissions here.
13. You can change the watermark settings (if your watermark settings are ‘grayed out’, it means you haven’t uploaded your watermark yet) and gallery style option.
14. Leave the Default Email Package, and we will go over customizing the emails in Part 3.
Check the Enable flexible layout grid to allow you as the photographer and Main Clients to enlarge landscape photos in the gallery grid for a better viewing experience.
15. Leave your Online Store enabled and select your preferred price list. This way clients can easily purchase their memories onto the beautiful products in your shop.
~ 1 Min: Automations & Discounts
16. For now we can skip this page, and we will address the Automations in the Advanced Guide. Or if you want to start trying out the Marketing Automations right away, we recommend enabling the Early Bird discount and the Abandoned Cart discount, and sticking with the defaults we suggest. Learn more here.
~ 3 Min: Share
17. After completing the gallery setup, go to the Share tab and start sharing the gallery with different users. Add your Main Client’s Name and Email Address and click Send to Client. Then you can type a message to your client and invite them to the gallery.
Pro Tip: save your client invite email templates for different types of photo sessions.
~ 2 Min: Workflow
18. After sharing the gallery, visit the Workflow tab if you want to send or download gallery images, and view what photos others have favorited or downloaded.
19. The Workflow tab is also where you can request a client selection so that clients can organize their images for you. For example, use the Client Selections for photo retouching or album photo selection.
~ 1 Min: Dashboard
20. Visit the Dashboard tab for a quick summary of gallery actions. Select View all activity for an extensive and more detailed view. Learn more about monitoring user activity here.
21. Select Preview Gallery to preview as the photographer.
22. In the Preview Gallery: Enlarge images that you want to showcase, create your own favorites list to customize the shop image tiles, and place your own orders in the shop.
Follow up with our Advanced (Quick Start) Guide to further customize your Pic-Time account.