Every photographer has a system for getting client selections back. Some of those systems work. Most of them involve a spreadsheet, a WhatsApp thread, or a shared Google Drive folder with a name like "FAVORITES - FINAL - USE THESE."
If you shoot five portraits a year, that's fine. But if you're running 20, 30, 40+ projects a year, the cracks show fast. Clients send filenames in random formats. They pick photos from the wrong folder. They text you "I like the third one from the left in the second row" and expect you to know what that means.
This guide walks through the main ways photographers handle client selections today, from the simplest to the most automated. Every method has a place. The right one depends on how many shoots you do, how tech-savvy your clients are, and how much time you want to spend on admin instead of editing.
The Manual Methods
These are the approaches most photographers start with. They cost nothing and they work for small volumes.
USB drives and in-person selection
The old school approach. You sit with the client, go through the photos together on a laptop, and flag the ones they want. Or you hand them a USB with low-res proofs and they bring it back with a list.
This works well for portrait sessions and smaller shoots where the personal touch matters. Some photographers charge for in-person selection sessions as a premium add-on.
Where it breaks down: anything high volume. A wedding with 800 proofing photos is not something you want to sit through with a couple on a Tuesday evening. It also limits your client base geographically. You can't do in-person selection with a destination wedding couple who lives three states away.
Shared folders (Google Drive, Dropbox, WeTransfer)
Upload the proofs to a shared folder. Tell the client to write down the filenames of their favorites. They send you the list over email or text.
Photographers use this because it's free and every client already has a Google account. No new software for anyone to learn.
The problems are predictable. Clients don't know how to find filenames on their phone. They screenshot the photos instead and send you a blurry grid with "these ones please." Some clients rename the files. Others download them all and reorganize them into folders you can't trace back to your catalog. And if you have multiple rounds of selection, you're managing versions through email threads.
Email and messaging (WhatsApp, iMessage, DMs)
The most common method for casual shoots. The client just texts you which ones they want.
This ranges from "I love numbers 4, 7, 12, 15, and 23" (workable) to "I want the one where I'm looking to the left near the tree" (not workable). For 10 photos it's fine. For 100+ it turns into a puzzle where you're cross-referencing message timestamps with filename lists.
There's also no selection limit. Clients who are supposed to pick 50 photos will text you 120 filenames across four separate messages over two weeks.
Spreadsheets
Some photographers export a list of filenames and send the client a spreadsheet. The client marks an "X" next to the ones they want and sends it back.
This actually works surprisingly well if your clients are organized. The spreadsheet gives you a clear record, and you can add columns for notes or star ratings. Some photographers automate the matching step with Lightroom's text filter or a bulk metadata search.
Where it fails: client experience. Asking someone to scroll through 500 filenames in a spreadsheet and mark their wedding favorites is not exactly a premium experience. It feels like homework. And about half of clients will accidentally sort the spreadsheet, shift rows, or overwrite formulas.
The Gallery Method
This is where most working photographers land once they outgrow the manual approaches. You upload proofs to a web gallery, send the client a link, and they browse and select on any device.
How it works
You export low-res JPEGs from your catalog, upload them to a proofing platform, set a selection limit (pick your best 80 out of 500), and share a private link. The client opens it on their phone, taps the photos they like, and submits. You get a notification with the list of selected filenames.
Popular platforms
The major players are Pixieset, Pic-Time, ShootProof, and CloudSpot. Adobe also offers Lightroom Web galleries, though the selection experience is clunky. Clients need an Adobe ID to use it, and the "heart" system requires opening each photo individually.
These platforms give your clients a polished experience. Mobile-friendly galleries, password protection, and built-in selection counters that show progress ("23 of 80 selected"). It feels professional. Clients enjoy the process instead of dreading it.
The gap
Here's the thing nobody talks about in the marketing pages for these platforms: once the client submits their selections, you still have to get those choices back into your editing software.
Most platforms give you a CSV file or a list of filenames. You download that, open your Lightroom catalog, and start matching. For some photographers this means manually searching each filename one by one. Others paste them into Lightroom's text filter in batches. Some write custom scripts.
It's not the end of the world, but it's 20 to 45 minutes of admin per project that adds up fast if you're doing this every week. And it's exactly the kind of repetitive work that makes you wonder why the software can't just handle it.
The Sync Method
This is the newest approach, and it's built to close the gap that gallery platforms leave open.
How it works
You upload proofs to a client gallery just like the gallery method. The client browses, taps favorites, submits. But instead of getting a CSV that you manually match, you open a plugin in your editing software, click sync, and the client's selections appear in your catalog automatically. Color labels, star ratings, keywords. One click.
Gallerina and GallerinaSync
This is what we built Gallerina to do. My co-founder is a photographer who got tired of the spreadsheet dance after every shoot. We wanted the client proofing experience of a modern gallery platform with one addition: a Lightroom Classic plugin that pulls selections directly into your local catalog.
The workflow looks like this. You create a project in Gallerina, upload your proofing photos, and send your client a private link. They select their favorites on any device. When they submit, you open the GallerinaSync plugin inside Lightroom Classic, select the project, and click Sync Now. Their selections show up as green color labels on your photos. You can also sync star ratings and client notes as captions.
The entire round trip from "client submitted" to "I'm editing the selects" takes about 10 seconds.
For Capture One users, Gallerina also offers XMP export so you can bring selections into your workflow without needing the Lightroom plugin.
When this matters
If you shoot 5 events a year, the manual matching step is annoying but manageable. You're spending maybe an hour total per year on it.
If you're shooting 30 or 40 projects a year, that admin time compounds. At 30 minutes per project, that's 15 to 20 hours a year spent on matching filenames instead of editing or booking new clients. It's also the kind of work that's easy to procrastinate on, which is why client turnaround times quietly inflate.
The sync approach matters most for high-volume wedding and event photographers who are doing this every single week.
Which Method is Right for You?
There's no single right answer. It depends on how many photos you're delivering and how much time you want to spend on admin.
If you're delivering 20 photos per project — headshots, mini sessions, product shoots — a shared folder and a text message is simple and free. The client can literally say "I want photos 3, 7, and 12" and you're done in two minutes. Don't overcomplicate it.
If you're delivering 50 to 100 photos per project, a web gallery gives your clients an easier way to browse and pick. Pixieset and Pic-Time both have free tiers and they'll get the job done. You'll still need to match selections back to your catalog manually, but it's manageable if you don't mind the extra step.
If you're delivering 100, 300, 500+ photos per project — weddings, multi-day events, large portrait sessions — the matching step stops being a minor annoyance and starts eating real hours. That's where Gallerina fits. Your clients get a clean, professional gallery to browse and select from on any device, and you get their choices synced directly into your Lightroom catalog with one click. No spreadsheets, no filename hunting. The free tier includes client proofing and the Lightroom plugin, so you can try it without committing to anything.
The best approach is the one that removes enough friction that you actually deliver on time, every time. Everything else is just a tool.