Delivery by client type
Virtual Photo Reveal Session: Run the Slideshow From the Client Gallery
The client link already has a full-screen slideshow that moves to the next photo on a timer. Here is how to run a remote reveal from it, and where it stops.
Updated 16 September 2026
A reveal session is the moment a client sees their photos for the first time with you present.
That moment can also happen remotely, over a video call.
The question is what to show on the call.
On clientgallery.io, the answer can be the gallery link itself.
Every client gallery can show a Slideshow button that plays the photos full screen, one after another, on a timer.
This guide covers how that slideshow behaves, how to structure a remote reveal around it, and what it does not do.
The most important limit comes first: there is no order form, no product menu and no cart in the gallery.
If your reveal is where you sell wall art and albums, keep your in-person sales tool for that part.
How the gallery slideshow behaves
The Slideshow button sits above the photos on the client page.
It appears only when the gallery holds more than one photo.
The studio can switch it off per gallery, alongside the share button and the intro line.
Pressing it opens a full-screen view on a black background with no buttons, captions or file names on it.
Each photo is shown whole, not cropped to fill the screen.
The slideshow advances on its own and loops back to the start after the last photo.
It starts from the beginning each time the button is pressed.
A tap, a click or the Escape key closes it and returns to the gallery.
A video in the gallery appears in the slideshow as its still poster frame, not as a playing clip.
The page carries your studio name and logo, with no platform branding, so the screen a client sees is yours.
| Slideshow detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Time per photo | 4.5 seconds |
| After the last photo | Loops to the first |
| Minimum photos for the button to show | 2 |
| On-screen controls while playing | None |
| How to exit | Tap, click or Escape |
| Timer adjustable by the studio | No |
The timer is fixed, so plan the reveal around it rather than the other way round.
How long a reveal takes at 4.5 seconds a photo
The number of photos decides how long one pass of the slideshow lasts.
A short, tight set keeps the room emotional.
A long set turns the reveal into a screensaver.
| Photos in the gallery | One full pass |
|---|---|
| 20 | 1 min 30 s |
| 40 | 3 min |
| 60 | 4 min 30 s |
| 100 | 7 min 30 s |
| 200 | 15 min |
Figures are the photo count multiplied by 4.5 seconds.
For a portrait, family or boudoir reveal, a pass of three to five minutes is a comfortable target.
If the full session is larger, cull harder for the reveal gallery and keep the rest for later.
A gallery can hold up to 1,000 photos, but that is a ceiling, not a reveal length.
Two ways to run it on a video call
There are two setups, and each has a trade-off.
You share your screen. You open the gallery on your computer, start any video call tool with screen sharing, and press Slideshow.
You control the moment and the client does not need to find anything.
The client sees your screen through the call, so picture quality depends on the call, not on the gallery.
The client opens the link on their own screen. You send the gallery link and password just before the call, and ask them to press Slideshow when you say so.
The photos then load directly on their television, laptop or tablet at the gallery’s own quality.
You lose a little control, because you cannot see exactly where they are.
A practical mix: share your screen for the slideshow, then have the client open the link themselves for the choosing part.
Whichever you choose, rehearse once with a friend on a different device before the real session.
A remote reveal, step by step
- Cull the session to the set you want the client to feel, not every keeper.
- Create the gallery and set a password if the images are private.
- Write a short welcome note; it shows under the gallery title.
- Decide on picks, comments and colour labels; comments and labels are off until you switch them on.
- Decide whether downloads should be on during the reveal (see the section below).
- Play the slideshow once yourself to check the order and the length.
- On the call, set the scene for a minute, then press Slideshow and stay quiet for one full pass.
- Close the slideshow with a tap and talk through the favourites in the gallery.
- Walk the client through marking picks, then let them finish in their own time.
The studio page shows whether a gallery has been opened, which tells you if the client looked before the call.
If you want the first look to happen on the call, send the link at the start of the session, not the day before.
From watching to choosing
The slideshow is for watching only.
Picks are made in the full-screen photo view, which the client opens by tapping any photo in the gallery.
There are two levels: a star, and a love for the strongest favourites.
In that view, one tap on the photo stars it and a double tap loves it; there are also star and heart buttons.
Everyone with the link shares one set of picks for the gallery.
A partner choosing on another device sees the other person’s changes after reloading the page, not live.
When the client presses “Send my picks”, they type a name and an email, and the picks lock.
You get an email with the loved and starred counts, an entry in your activity feed, and an iPhone push if you have picks notifications on in the app.
If the client wants to change their mind, you can reopen picking from the studio side; their earlier picks stay in place, and they are not notified, so tell them yourself.
If you switched comments on, the client can leave a note or a drawing on a photo; notes are signed with the client name set on the gallery.
Downloads during a reveal
You may not want the client downloading proofs while a sale is still open.
The gallery’s download switch hides the “Download all photos” button and the download button on each photo.
It does not hide a full-resolution ZIP, if you have uploaded one to that gallery.
It also does not remove the social crop buttons, which appear after picks are sent.
So for a reveal where nothing should leave the gallery yet, switch downloads off and do not upload a full-resolution ZIP until the job is settled.
You can attach an invoice PDF and paste your own payment link, and the client sees a button for each.
Nothing unlocks automatically when the client pays; you switch downloads back on yourself.
What the gallery does not do at a reveal
clientgallery.io is a proofing and delivery gallery, not a sales room.
| Reveal need | In the gallery |
|---|---|
| Full-screen slideshow on a timer | Yes |
| Client picks with two levels | Yes |
| Notes and drawings on photos | Yes, when switched on |
| Studio name and logo, no platform branding | Yes |
| Music or custom transitions | No |
| Adjustable slideshow speed | No |
| Order form, product menu or cart | No |
| Wall-art previews on a room photo | No |
| Print store or lab fulfilment | No |
If most of your income comes from the products you sell at the reveal, the gallery should not be your sales tool.
Keep the in-person sales software or print platform you already use for the ordering part of the session.
The gallery still works well beside it for the emotional first look, the picks and the final delivery.
If you sell digital collections at a fixed price, the gallery can carry the whole reveal: slideshow, picks, invoice, payment link, then downloads switched on.
Which studios this fits
It fits studios that sell a session fee plus a set of digital images and want a warm first look without a studio visit.
It fits boudoir studios that want a private, password-protected reveal under their own name.
It fits studios with clients in other cities, where an in-person reveal is not realistic.
It does not fit a studio whose reveal is built around an order form and product pricing on screen.
The price is one plan at $10 a month or $100 a year, and the first gallery is free.
Sources
This page states no external figures.
Every product detail above, including the 4.5-second timer, the 1,000-photo gallery limit and the plan price, was checked against the clientgallery.io client page and studio code on 16 September 2026.
The reveal durations in the table are arithmetic from that timer.
Frequently asked
Can I run a virtual reveal session from a clientgallery.io gallery?
Yes. The client link has a Slideshow button that plays the photos full screen on a timer. You can share your screen on a video call, or have the client open the link on their own device.
How fast does the slideshow move?
Each photo stays on screen for 4.5 seconds, then the next one appears. The slideshow loops after the last photo. The timer cannot be changed.
Can the client pick favourites during the slideshow?
No. The slideshow is for watching. The client closes it with a tap, opens a photo in the full-screen view, and stars or loves it there.
Is there an order form or print menu for selling products at the reveal?
No. There is no order form, cart or print store. A studio that sells wall art or albums at the reveal should keep its in-person sales tool for the ordering part.
Can I stop the client downloading photos before they pay?
The download switch hides the download-all button and the per-photo download button. It does not hide a full-resolution ZIP you have uploaded, so upload that only when the job is settled. Payment does not unlock anything automatically.
Does the slideshow play music?
No. The slideshow shows photos only. If you want music, play it on your side of the call.
Can I turn the slideshow button off?
Yes. The slideshow is a per-gallery switch. The button also only appears when a gallery has more than one photo.
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