The DeadlineFTP gallery is your central workspace for viewing, editing, and delivering images. It's divided into three main areas:
- Top toolbar - Settings and configuration options
- Control bar - Click mode, selection mode, photographer filter, and sort/filter options
- Image grid - Thumbnails with visual status indicators, paginated at 100 images per page
The gallery works on both desktop and mobile devices. On mobile, access the gallery through your phone's browser. Features like selection mode and editing work with touch gestures.
DeadlineFTP automatically detects when you're accessing the gallery from a mobile device and serves an optimized mobile interface. Simply navigate to your gallery URL on your phone or tablet and you'll get the mobile experience automatically.
Mobile-Optimized Features
- Touch-friendly interface - Larger tap targets and swipe gestures
- Grid layout options - Toggle between 1-column and 2-column grid views
- Long-press selection - Long-press any thumbnail to enter selection mode
- Swipe navigation - Swipe left/right in slideshow mode to browse images
- Mobile metadata editing - Edit captions and metadata with the on-screen keyboard
- Quick Text support - Same keyboard shortcuts work on mobile
Installing as a Progressive Web App (PWA)
For the best mobile experience, install DeadlineFTP as a Progressive Web App. This adds an icon to your home screen and provides a native app-like experience without downloading from an app store.
iPhone / iPad (Safari)
1. Open the gallery in Safari
2. Tap the Share button (square with arrow)
3. Scroll down and tap "Add to Home Screen"
4. Tap "Add" to confirm
Android (Chrome)
1. Open the gallery in Chrome
2. Tap the three-dot menu
3. Tap "Add to Home screen" or "Install app"
4. Tap "Add" to confirm
When installed as a PWA, the gallery launches in full-screen mode without browser controls, works offline for cached content, and provides faster loading times. It's the recommended way to use DeadlineFTP on mobile devices.
Mobile Menu
The mobile gallery uses a hamburger menu to access settings and options. Tap the menu icon in the top-right to access:
- Photographer filter - Filter images by uploader
- Sort and filter options - Same filters as desktop (edited, pushed, FTP sent, has audio)
- Grid columns - Toggle between 1 and 2 column layouts
- Quick Text - Load Quick Text rules for captioning
- XMP Template - View/edit default metadata values
The top toolbar provides access to settings and configuration. Here's what each button does:
Share Gallery
Generate a shareable link to the gallery for clients or collaborators. Set expiration times and access controls.
FTP Info
View your organization's FTP server details including hostname, port, and login credentials. Use these settings to configure your camera for direct uploads.
XMP Template
Configure default metadata values that are automatically applied to uploads. See the XMP Templates Guide for details on variables and field ordering.
Quick Text
Load and manage Quick Text expansion rules for faster captioning. See the Quick Text Guide for file format and usage.
FTP Accounts
Configure external FTP destinations (like wire services or publications) where you can send edited images. Add multiple destinations and test connections before use.
Click Mode
Choose what happens when you click a thumbnail:
- Slideshow - Opens the image in a lightbox for full-size viewing
- Edit - Opens the metadata editor directly
Select Mode
Toggle selection mode to select multiple images for bulk operations. When active:
- Click thumbnails to select/deselect them
- Selected images show a blue border and checkbox
- Non-selected images appear slightly faded
On mobile, long-press any thumbnail to enter selection mode. Tap additional images to add them to your selection.
Selection Toolbar
When selection mode is active, a toolbar appears with these options:
- Select All / Deselect All - Select or deselect all visible images at once
- Delete Selected - Permanently delete all selected images (with confirmation)
- Exit Selection Mode - Clear selection and return to normal viewing
Photographer Filter
Filter the gallery to show images from a specific photographer. The dropdown lists all FTP users who have uploaded images to your organization. Select "All Photographers" to see everyone's uploads.
Delete All Files
When a specific photographer is selected, you can delete all of their files at once. This is useful for clearing test uploads or removing an entire shoot. A confirmation dialog prevents accidental deletion.
The Sort/Filter menu lets you control which images appear and in what order.
Filter Options
Toggle these filters to show only images matching specific criteria. Multiple filters can be active at once:
- Show Edited Only - Images with modified metadata
- Show Pushed Only - Images pushed to DeadlineFTP Connect subscribers
- Show FTP Sent Only - Images sent to external FTP destinations
- Show Has Audio Only - Images with linked audio files
Sort Options
Choose how images are ordered in the grid:
- Newest First - Most recently uploaded at the top (default)
- Oldest First - Oldest uploads at the top
- Edited First - Edited images at the top, then unedited
- FTP Sent First - Images sent to FTP at the top
- Name (A-Z) - Alphabetical by filename
- Name (Z-A) - Reverse alphabetical
Use "Edited First" sorting combined with the edited-only filter to quickly review all captioned images before sending to a wire service.
The gallery displays 100 images per page to maintain fast performance even with large uploads. A pagination bar at the bottom of the grid shows:
- Current page number and total pages
- Previous and Next buttons to navigate between pages
Filters and sort options apply to the entire image set, then pagination divides the results into pages.
When in selection mode, selections persist as you navigate between pages. You can select images on page 1, navigate to page 2, select more images, and then perform bulk operations on all selected images.
Thumbnails display colored borders and icons to show file status at a glance. Here's what each indicator means:
Border Colors
| Border | Meaning |
|---|---|
|
|
Selected - File is currently selected in selection mode |
|
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Audio - Transcription Pending - Audio file linked; transcription pending or in progress |
|
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Transcription Complete - Audio transcription finished and applied to caption |
|
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No Border - No linked audio and not selected. Edited files have no border either — they're flagged with a coral filename and a pencil icon instead. |
Only one border shows at a time, in this priority: Selected (blue) > Audio pending (orange) > Transcription complete (green). Editing status is not a border — edited files are indicated by a coral filename and a pencil icon (see below).
Status Icons
| Icon | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Edited (cyan pencil) - Metadata has been modified (caption, headline, etc.) | |
| FTP Sent (green arrow) - Sent to an external FTP server (wire service, publication, etc.) | |
| Pushed to Subscribers (blue arrow) - Pushed to all connected DeadlineFTP Connect users | |
| Voice tag - pending (orange speaker) - Linked audio file, transcription pending or in progress. Click it to play the memo. | |
| Voice tag - transcribed (green check) - Transcription complete. Click it to play the memo. |
Filename Colors
Edited files display their filename in coral text below the thumbnail — together with the cyan pencil icon, this is how editing status is shown (there is no "edited" border).
DeadlineFTP supports voice captioning through automatic audio transcription. It works with the voice memo your camera records and attaches to a frame — no external recorder and no naming files by hand. Here's how it works:
- Record a voice memo on the camera - Using your camera's voice-memo button, describe the frame (or call out names and jersey numbers) right after you shoot. The camera attaches the memo to that photo (WAV).
- Shoot and transmit - When the camera sends the image over FTP, the attached voice memo is transmitted with it, sharing the same base filename (e.g.,
IMG_1234.wavtravels withIMG_1234.jpg). There's no separate upload or manual file naming. - Automatic matching - DeadlineFTP links the audio to its image by base filename and begins transcription.
- Caption applied - Transcribed text is automatically added to the image's caption field.
- Auto-push - Transcribed images are automatically pushed to all connected DeadlineFTP Connect subscribers.
In-camera voice memos are supported on pro bodies from Sony, Canon, and Nikon — see the camera setup guides for enabling voice memo and FTP transfer on your model.
When audio transcription completes, the file is automatically pushed to subscribers without manual intervention. This is designed for fast-paced workflows where voice-captioned images need to reach editors immediately.
Visual Status During Transcription
- Orange border + orange speaker icon - Audio linked, transcription pending or in progress
- Green border + green check icon - Transcription complete and applied to the caption
Click an image (in Edit mode) or click the Edit button in slideshow mode to open the metadata editor. The edit window provides:
- Full-size image preview - See the image while editing metadata
- XMP metadata fields - Edit caption, headline, credit, and other fields configured by your organization
- Quick Text support - Type trigger codes to expand into full text (see Quick Text Guide)
- Copy/Paste XMP - Copy all metadata to paste onto other images
- Push to Subscribers - Send the image to connected DeadlineFTP Connect users
- Send to FTP - Export to configured external FTP destinations
Use arrow keys to navigate between images. Press Escape to close the modal. Tab moves between metadata fields.
The gallery supports star ratings and color labels on images — the same standard XMP rating and label used across the industry. Use them to cull a fast-moving take: rate your keepers, flag the picks with a color, and separate the frames worth captioning from the rest.
- Rate images — Apply a star rating to mark quality or priority as you review the take.
- Color-label images — Tag frames with a color to group picks, selects, or work-in-progress.
- Sort and filter — Use ratings and labels to bring your best frames to the top and set aside the rest.
Ratings and labels are written to the image's standard XMP rating and label fields, so they travel with the file. When the image is delivered or downloaded, other tools — Photo Mechanic, Lightroom, and similar — read the same rating and label you set in the gallery.
| Indicator | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Blue border | File is selected (selection mode) |
| Orange border | Has linked audio, transcription pending or in progress |
| Green border | Audio transcription completed |
| Coral filename | File has been edited (no border is used for edits) |
| Cyan pencil | File has been edited (metadata changed) |
| Green arrow | Sent to external FTP server |
| Blue arrow | Pushed to subscribers |
| Orange speaker | Linked audio file, transcription pending |
| Green check | Linked audio file, transcription complete |