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Self-hosted photo system

A private photo archive that helps you find, choose, edit, and share the work.

photoArchive is open-source, local-first software for photographers who want Google Photos-style memory, Lightroom-style control, and a workflow that learns taste without handing originals to a cloud.

Explore the productDevelopment logGitHub
Library
photoArchive desktop library grid with folders, thumbnails, filters, and ranking context.
The working library surface: local folders, a fast grid, and archive context in one place.
Develop
photoArchive Develop workspace with a large preview, adjustment panels, history, and editing controls.
Develop is a real non-destructive editing room, not a decorative adjustment panel.
photoArchive mobile library timeline in an installable phone-sized interface.
The phone library is a real access surface for the same self-hosted archive.

Your archive stays yours.

Originals remain local and authoritative. Generated previews, captions, embeddings, and indexes can be rebuilt instead of becoming the fragile source of truth.

Finding beats filing.

Search combines metadata, local vision embeddings, and VLM captions, so a half-remembered scene can be enough to get back to the frame.

Taste becomes data.

Refine captures preference through quick choices, turning review into ranking signals that make future culling and selection faster.

Workflow

Import to share, without breaking the chain of custody.

  1. 01

    Import

    Point photoArchive at real folders; originals stay where they belong.

  2. 02

    Find

    Search by words, scene, date, camera, folder, or remembered context.

  3. 03

    Refine

    Use visual choices to turn taste into ranking and quality evidence.

  4. 04

    Develop

    Edit non-destructively with presets, history, proofing, and XMP workflows.

  5. 05

    Share

    Publish selected work without exposing or moving the source archive.

Feature chapters

Four working surfaces, one archive.

Organize & find

A private archive that feels searchable instead of buried.

photoArchive gives a large folder-based library the speed and memory of a modern photo app. It keeps folder context visible, lets search engines work together, and makes review surfaces feel connected instead of scattered.

  • Metadata, vision embeddings, and VLM captions combine into three search engines.
  • Folder, date, camera, and remembered-scene searches can meet in the same workflow.
  • Local previews and indexes keep the working archive responsive without moving originals.
Organize & find
photoArchive desktop library grid with folders, thumbnails, filters, and ranking context.
The working library surface: local folders, a fast grid, and archive context in one place.

Decide

Selection becomes a fast conversation with the work.

Refine is built around the question photographers actually ask: which frame is stronger? The system turns those lightweight choices into ranking signals, uncertainty, and quality coverage across the working archive.

  • The author’s working archive currently contains 2.4M ranking signals.
  • Elo-style choices reduce brittle star-rating chores.
  • Culling evidence helps surface what is ready and what still needs attention.
Decide
photoArchive Refine mosaic showing multiple candidate photos for visual ranking.
Refine turns quick visual choices into ranking evidence without star-rating every frame.

Develop

Develop is a serious editing room.

The editor now supports a real non-destructive workflow: film UI, reference compare, lens and calibration detail, soft proofing, XMP write-back, saved views, timeline, presets, and history are part of the shipped Dev7 era.

  • 73 presets are available in the current working system.
  • Dev7 shipped with 611 passed, 1 skipped, and 6 subtests verified.
  • XMP import/export and write-back keep edits connected to photographer workflows.
Develop
photoArchive Develop workspace with a large preview, adjustment panels, history, and editing controls.
Develop is a real non-destructive editing room, not a decorative adjustment panel.

Anywhere & share

The archive works away from the desk.

The mobile/PWA surface makes the same self-hosted archive useful on a phone, while sharing and publishing flows keep selected output separate from the local source of truth.

  • Installable PWA access supports private, self-hosted browsing.
  • Proofing and publishing are built around selected previews, not source-folder leaks.
  • Local-first storage keeps originals authoritative while previews and indexes remain rebuildable.
photoArchive mobile library timeline in an installable phone-sized interface.
The phone library is a real access surface for the same self-hosted archive.

Local-first trust

The boring parts are deliberately boring.

Originals remain the source of truth. Indexes, previews, captions, embeddings, and caches are product state that can be rebuilt. That keeps the archive portable, recoverable, and understandable.

138,573

Active photos

In the author’s working archive; not a universal performance promise.

2.4M

Ranking signals

Preference data in the author’s working archive.

3

Search engines

Metadata, vision embeddings, and VLM captions.

73

Presets

Lightroom-style presets in the current system.

Availability

Open-source, self-hosted, and in active development.

photoArchive is software in active use and development. Onboarding, portable storage paths, optional AI packs, the Quick Guide, and recovery UX are shipped. Windows public distribution is still being finished: a real installer exists, but it is not yet public-release-ready.

GitHubDevelopment log