Okay, photog friends. This post has been in my “Drafts” section for MONTHS now and I think it’s time I dive into Gallery Delivery Systems.

During my 3.5 years as a wedding photographer I have used pretty much every mainstream gallery delivery system or method there is.

Pass, Pass Plus, Pixieset, Google Drive Delivery, Flash Drive Delivery, Shootproof being pushed on Six Figure Photography (that didn’t last long), dropbox, Pic-Time, some program with Cloud in the name, and straight up email.

Clearly, I’ve spent more time on some than others but here’s a little on what I’ve learned.

Pass didn’t work out because I was paying about $30/gallery. In 2016/early 2017 that got REALLY expensive, really fast.

I switched to Pixieset. Gorgeous layout. At the time, Pixie was known for having the most beautiful image presentation. However, I never had enough room for my images. I was having to upgrade my plan every month. I hated limited space and losing the benefit of my clients being able to access their images for long periods of time.

Pass Plus was launched and due to the large amount of galleries I had paid for and uploaded to Pass Classic, I was invited to peruse the beta testing of the new system. It was pretty, and they aloud for unlimited storage (finally), but it ultimately didn’t match the way my mind flowed through work. I really don’t know how else to explain it.

During this beta testing with Pass Plus (full version not available), I started seeing advertisements for Pic-Time. I figured I would play with that one until the full complete version of Pass Plus was up and running.

Come to find out, Pass Plus is “Powered by Pic-Time”. Why not cut out the middle man?

I loved that Pic-Time made downloading images EASY in both High and Web Resolution format (some but not all systems offer this). In our digital world, anything that made sharing better representations of my work/their memories (ie, not uploading a high resolution image to social media) easier was a win.

I loved the beautiful, yet slightly more modern display than Pixie. I’d call Pixie more “Classic Beauty” and Pic-Time more “Modern Pretty”.

The IPS (In Person Sales/Print Focused) platform, ShootProof, I found confusing to navigate. There is definitely a learning curve there. I don’t want to bash it at all because I honestly didn’t give it much of a chance. If you’re looking at doing more IPS, it might be the best option out there, I’m not sure. However, it’s not very pretty from the photographers back office. The flow of work is definitely something you’ll have to figure out for yourself.

Using systems like flash drives, Google Drive, and DropBox, for client image delivery is like videography without any music.

The lack of presentation is doing your images a serious disservice. Sure, the custom drive may look pretty in your hands. (I love using it as a back up/luxury storage for my highest paying couples.) However, the experience of pulling up and viewing the images on their computer will not give them all the feels the same way as pixie, pass, or pic-time. This is most important when they are viewing their images for the first time and sharing with friends and family.

If you are straight up emailing your images as an attachment there is a 99% chance they are formatted incorrectly for just about anything useful. Just a heads up. Also, a gallery delivery system won’t fix that. That’s a serious issue you should probably talk to someone about…

Why I’ve chosen to stay with Pic-Time so long now:

Spring 2018, I found my new favorite luxury Album Company. (Another blog post for another day). I fell head over heals and started rearranging my brand to be able to support the higher prices that I knew were worth every penny for museum/heirloom quality albums and prints. (Check out my blogpost “What is Giclèe?” for more on that.)

Just 2-3 months after I decided to work with this new company, they partnered with Pic-Time to allow clients to purchase their products directly from their galleries!

Many systems allow for print sales, but Pic-Time offers my FAVORITE professional print shop(s). I seriously did a happy dance in my office when I got the news and had to call Clynn at work. ALL SJP couples from the year prior and moving forward would have access to purchase these amazing products independently!!!

If you are a prior SJP Couple/Client and would like to view the new print shop with your images, LET ME KNOW!!!

hello@jaclynnwilkinson.com

Anywho, that’s my not so eloquent spiel on Gallery Delivery Systems!

Here is a blog post more formally written by Peta Pixel that goes over even more systems: Battle Of The Client Galleries

I hope this helped!

Sincerely, Jaclynn