Gallery & Album View

When you share images through GolemDrive, recipients see them in a gallery layout with thumbnails, a lightbox viewer, and keyboard navigation. No extra setup is needed on your part — if you share images, the gallery appears automatically.

Create a gallery share

Any share link that contains mostly images automatically displays as a gallery. Here is how to create one:

1. Select the images you want to share in your dashboard. You can:
   • Select multiple images and click Share as Collection to create a curated album.
   • Right-click a folder that contains images and choose Share to share the entire folder.
   • Select a single image and click Share for a single-image share.
2. Copy the link and send it to your recipients.
3. When recipients open the link, they see the images in a gallery grid automatically.

You do not need to choose “gallery mode” or configure anything. GolemDrive detects that the shared content is images and shows the gallery layout.

How the gallery grid looks

The gallery displays your images as thumbnails arranged in a responsive grid that adapts to the recipient’s screen:

• Phone (small screen): 2 columns. Easy to scroll with one hand.
• Tablet (medium screen): 3 columns. A good balance of overview and detail.
• Desktop (large screen): 4 columns. Great for scanning through a large set of photos.

As the recipient scrolls down, more images load automatically, 20 at a time. Even large albums with dozens or hundreds of photos feel smooth and fast.

Use the lightbox viewer

The lightbox opens a full-size view of any photo, filling the screen.

1. Click on any thumbnail in the gallery grid.
2. The photo opens in lightbox view — a full-screen overlay.
3. Navigate between photos:
   • Press the left arrow key to go to the previous photo.
   • Press the right arrow key to go to the next photo.
   • Click the on-screen arrows on the left and right sides of the image. This also works on touch screens.
4. Close the lightbox:
   • Press the Escape key.
   • Click outside the photo (on the dark background).

Switch between view modes

The share page includes a view mode switcher in the top-right area. Recipients can choose how they want to browse the shared content:

Gallery view (photo grid)

• Displays images as thumbnails in a responsive grid.
• Best for visual browsing of photos and images.
• Click any thumbnail to open it in the lightbox.

List view (file list)

• Displays files as a traditional list with file name, size, type, and date.
• Best for quickly finding a specific file by name or sorting by different columns.
• Click column headers to sort.

Folder view (tree view)

• Displays the folder structure with a tree sidebar on the left and a file list on the right.
• Only available when the shared content is a folder.
• Best for navigating organized folder structures.

How to switch:

1. Open a share link in your browser.
2. Look for the view mode buttons in the top-right area of the page.
3. Click the view mode you prefer: Gallery, List, or Folder.
4. The page switches to that layout immediately.

GolemDrive remembers the recipient’s choice in their browser. The next time they open any share link, it defaults to their last-used view mode.

How auto-detection works

GolemDrive automatically selects the best view mode based on what is being shared:

Shared content	Default view mode
Mostly images (photos, screenshots, graphics)	Gallery view
A folder with subfolders	Folder (tree) view
A mix of different file types	List view

Recipients can always switch to a different view mode manually, regardless of the default.

Tips for sharing great photo albums

• Use a collection to hand-pick specific photos from different folders into one curated album. Select the photos, click Share as Collection, give it a title like “Vacation 2025” or “Product Photos.”
• Share a folder of photos to keep the original organization. Recipients can browse subfolders and see everything in context.
• Add a password if the photos are private. Recipients enter the password once and then browse the gallery freely.
• Set an expiry for event photos, wedding albums, or anything that does not need to be available permanently.
• Add a title and message to your collection to give recipients context about what they are looking at.