Choosing photos before retouching: find the right client gallery

To have clients select photos before retouching, choose a gallery that preserves identifiable choices and lets them signal that they have finished. Preview quality, instructions and the number of images presented matter just as much. The aim is a clear order, without having to interpret screenshots or provisional favourites.

Selection is part of your offer

A service including fifteen finished images is not presented like delivery of an entire shoot. Explain from the outset what the client will choose and what you will do after their approval.

You can show prepared previews and reserve the finishing work for selected images. Explain what remains to be done so clients can judge expressions and framing without expecting an undefined transformation.

This clarity also protects the value of your work. The client understands why the price covers a specific set of images, even if you took more photographs.

📷 Good presentation reduces hesitation

The selection gallery should not become a repository for every frame you shot. Remove test images, technical faults and variations that add no useful difference.

Keep enough variety to make the choice meaningful. For a professional portrait, a more approachable expression and a more assertive pose serve different intentions; five almost identical images mainly complicate the decision.

Keep stable references between previews and working files. The chosen photo must remain identifiable when you prepare its retouching, even if the client writes several days after opening the gallery.

Useful features: favourites, comments and confirmation

Favourites gather preferences without copying out a file list. Comments, when available and enabled, can clarify a request relating to an image.

One essential distinction remains: liking a photograph does not necessarily mean selection is complete. Your process needs an explicit signal before retouching begins.

In Pelli, you can set a selection limit and choose whether exceeding it is allowed. The Favourites view then lets clients confirm their choices using the send button. You receive an email containing the list of selected photos.

Comments can also be enabled in the gallery. Explain their purpose: specifying a request for an image, while confirming favourites signals that the choices are ready.

An example: fifteen portraits for a consultant

A consultant wants new images for her website and public speaking. You present 32 previews: close portraits, photographs in context and some compositions with space for a heading.

Her package includes fifteen photos. She chooses seventeen and asks for a particular finishing adjustment on one of them.

You summarise the choices and offer two options: return to fifteen images or confirm the two additional ones under the stated terms. You also clarify what the retouching request covers.

Once agreement is reached, you have an actionable order. You can then confirm the finishing timeline without assuming that the latest favourites already constituted a decision.

✨ Distinguish previews from ready-to-use images

The selection stage and final delivery have different purposes. Clients should immediately recognise which images they can download and use.

In Pelli, you prepare your gallery for selection and then for delivery. Adjust downloads for each stage and let your client know when the final images are ready to use.

In particular, avoid silently replacing previews without informing the client. A delivery message explaining what is ready and how to retrieve it closes the work properly.

Our guide to photo proofing also explains this collaboration's place within a photography service.

Discover Pelli to let clients select and receive their photographs in a space designed for the client relationship.