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Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.shootbin.com/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

Shootbin uses a small set of core concepts that appear throughout the product and its documentation. Understanding how they relate to each other makes it easier to navigate the UI, read the guides, and work with the API.

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Project

A project is the top-level container for a single client engagement or shoot. Everything in Shootbin — albums, photos, members, contracts, payments, and deliveries — belongs to a project. You create a project for each client or shoot session. Projects can be active (visible to members) or archived (hidden from clients but retained for your records). The number of active and archived projects you can maintain depends on your plan.

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Album

An album is a named group of photos within a project. Use albums to organize a shoot by look, location, date, or any other grouping that makes sense for the engagement. A project can contain one or more albums. On the Free plan, each project is limited to 2 albums. Pro and Agency plans have no album limit per project.

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Photo

A photo is an individual image inside an album. Each photo has:
  • An approval state (unapproved, approved, or rejected)
  • A current revision (the live image shown for proofing)
  • A revision history (previous versions, preserved after each upload)
  • Annotations (pinned comments attached to specific areas of the image)
  • An optional rating
Photos are stored with originals kept private. Shootbin generates optimized web variants for display, and optionally applies a watermark text to those variants during proofing.

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Revision

A revision is a new version of a photo that replaces the current one. When you upload a revision, Shootbin archives the previous live image as a historical revision and makes the new file the current version. Uploading a revision:
  • Resets the photo’s approval state to unapproved
  • Removes live annotations from the new current photo
  • Preserves all previous revisions in history so you can compare versions or restore an older one
Revisions are useful when a client requests a change — you upload the retouched file as a revision and the client reviews it in the same review cycle.

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Annotation

An annotation is a positioned comment pinned to a specific area of a photo. Approvers create annotations by clicking directly on the image. The pin stays fixed to that location regardless of how the image is displayed. Annotations can have threaded replies. Once the feedback has been addressed, you can mark an annotation as resolved. Resolved annotations are visually distinguished from open ones, and you can resolve all annotations on a photo at once.
Uploading a new revision clears live annotations from the current photo. Annotations on older revisions remain in the revision history.

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Roles

Every member of a project has exactly one role. Roles determine what actions a member can perform.

Owner

The photographer who created the project. Has full access: upload photos, manage albums, invite members, send for review, configure contracts and payments, and deliver. There is one owner per project.

Approver

A client or collaborator who reviews the gallery. Can view all albums and photos, leave annotations, and approve or reject photos. Cannot upload photos or change project settings.

Guest

A read-only viewer. Can browse albums and photos but cannot annotate, approve, or reject. Use this role for stakeholders who need visibility without contributing to the review.

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Delivery

A delivery is the final package of approved or selected photos sent to a client. When a project’s review is complete, the owner generates a delivery. Shootbin packages the approved photos and provides the client with a secure download link. Delivery can be gated behind payment: if you configure a payment requirement on the project, the client must complete payment before the download is unlocked.

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Review round

A review round is one complete cycle of the photographer sending the project for review and the client responding. A single project can go through multiple review rounds — for example, if the client requests revisions and you upload new versions for a second pass. Each round starts when you click Send for review and ends when the client sends the project back. Pro and Agency plans can optionally set a maximum number of review rounds per project to control revision scope.
You can revoke a review that is in progress (before the client sends it back) if you need to make changes to the gallery before the client sees it.

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How the concepts connect

Project
└── Album (one or more)
    └── Photo (one or more)
        ├── Revision (current + history)
        └── Annotation (pinned comments)

Project members
├── Owner (photographer)
├── Approver (client, can annotate + approve)
└── Guest (read-only)

Review lifecycle
Send for review → Client annotates and approves → Send back → Owner revises → repeat
                                                              ↓ (when done)
                                                          Delivery