How to manage client photos

The **Photos** tab under **Clients** gives your agency a card gallery of your clients and a photo page for each one. From that page you upload photos, capture new ones with a connected camera, and remove photos you no longer need.

### Overview

The photo gallery lists your clients as cards, each showing the client's name, one photo, and how many photos are on file. Clicking a card opens that client's photo page, which combines a drag and drop upload area, a camera capture panel, and a carousel with a thumbnail strip and a fullscreen viewer.

- Browse every client in a card gallery with photo counts
- Search the gallery by client name
- Upload one or more image files by dragging them in or browsing your device
- Capture a photo directly from a camera connected to your computer or device
- Review photos in a carousel or fullscreen, and delete the ones you do not need
- Add photos from the **Photos** card on a client profile

Staff who confirm client identity at hearings, check-ins, and supervision appointments get the most out of this feature, since a captured photo is on file the moment you save it.

### Prerequisites

Before you begin, make sure you have:

- A signed in eCourtDate account that shows **Clients** in the top navigation bar
- The **Photos** tab visible in the **Clients** tab strip (the tab is hidden when your account has that navigation turned off)
- Client records already created ([learn how to manage clients](/how-to-manage-clients))
- Image files on your device, since the upload areas accept image files only
- A working camera and browser permission to use it, if you plan to capture photos in the app

### How-To Steps

#### Browse the Client Photo Gallery

1. Click **Clients** in the top navigation bar.
2. Click the **Photos** tab.
3. Review the card for each client. A card shows the client's name, the first photo on file, and the photo count, or a person icon when the client has no photos yet.
4. Check the client total shown under the **Photos** heading to see how many clients the gallery covers.
5. Click **Load more** at the bottom of the page to add the next batch of clients to the gallery.

The gallery lists your most recently updated clients first.

#### Search the Gallery for a Client

1. Go to **Clients** > **Photos**.
2. Enter the client's name in the search field at the top of the page, which reads **Search clients by name...**.
3. Press **Enter** to run the search.
4. Clear the field to restore the full gallery. Emptying the search box reloads every client without a second action.

#### Upload Photos for a Client

1. Click a client's card in the gallery to open their photo page.
2. Drag one or more image files onto the drop zone marked **Drag & drop photos here**.
3. Click **Upload Photos** instead if you would rather pick files from your device.
4. Select the image files you want. The picker accepts more than one file at a time, and anything that is not an image is skipped.
5. Watch the progress bar under the drop zone as each file uploads.
6. Confirm the **Photo uploaded** message appears and the photo joins the carousel.

#### Capture a Photo with Your Device Camera

1. Open the client's photo page from the gallery.
2. Click **Camera** in the drop zone.
3. Allow camera access when your browser asks for it.
4. Select a different camera from the list beside the **Camera** heading if your device has more than one.
5. Click **Capture** to freeze the current frame.
6. Click **Retake** to discard the frame and try again.
7. Click **Save** to upload the captured photo to the client.
8. Click **Close** to turn the camera off when you finish.

#### Review a Client's Photos

1. Open the client's photo page.
2. Click a thumbnail in the strip under the main photo to jump to that photo.
3. Click the left and right chevrons beside the main photo to step through the collection. The counter above the photo reads as the current position, for example 2 of 7.
4. Click **Fullscreen**, or click the main photo, to open the fullscreen viewer.
5. Press the left and right arrow keys to move between photos in fullscreen.
6. Press **Escape** to close the fullscreen viewer.

Scroll below the carousel to see the client's **Date of Birth**, **Gender**, **Language**, and **Race** when those fields are filled in on the client record.

#### Delete a Photo

1. Open the client's photo page.
2. Move to the photo you want to remove using the thumbnails or the chevrons.
3. Click **Delete** above the photo.
4. Confirm the **Photo deleted** message appears. The photo leaves the carousel right away, and there is no confirmation prompt to undo it.

#### Upload Photos from a Client Profile

1. Click **Clients** in the top navigation bar.
2. Enter the client's name in the **Search Clients** card and click **Search**.
3. Click the edit button at the start of the client's row to open their profile.
4. Click the photo or the person icon beside the client's name to upload a single photo without scrolling.
5. Scroll to the **Photos** card for the full set of controls.
6. Click **Upload Photos** on that card and select one or more image files.
7. Click a photo in the grid to open the full size image in a new browser tab.
8. Click the trash button on a photo in the grid to delete that one photo.

The red trash button at the top of the **Photos** card deletes every photo on the client record at once and shows a **Photos reset** message. There is no confirmation prompt, so use it only when you intend to clear the whole collection.

### What to Expect

Each file uploads to eCourtDate storage on its own and reports progress as a percentage, then the photo page reloads the client's photos so the new image appears in the carousel. A camera capture is saved as a JPEG image named after the moment you captured it. Gallery cards and the **Photos** card on a client profile pick up new and deleted photos the next time you load those pages, so refresh the gallery if you uploaded from a profile. Deletions take effect immediately and cannot be undone from the interface.

### Best Practices

- **Capture at the counter.** Use **Camera** > **Capture** > **Save** during check-in so the photo is on file before the client leaves.
- **Check the frame before saving.** Use **Retake** rather than saving a blurred or badly lit capture, since removing a bad photo later is a separate step.
- **Keep collections short.** Delete outdated photos so the carousel and the gallery card show the image your team actually needs.
- **Use the fullscreen viewer for identification.** Open **Fullscreen** and use the arrow keys to compare photos quickly before a hearing rather than opening each image in a new tab.
- **Treat the red trash button as a last resort.** It clears every photo on the client record with no prompt.

### Frequently Asked Questions

**Q: What kinds of files can I upload as client photos?**

A: Image files only. The file pickers filter to images, and any file dropped on the photo page that is not an image is skipped.

**Q: Can I upload more than one photo at a time?**

A: Yes. Both the drop zone on the photo page and **Upload Photos** on the client profile accept multiple files, and each file uploads in turn with its own **Photo uploaded** message.

**Q: Does deleting a photo ask me to confirm?**

A: No. **Delete** on the photo page removes the photo immediately, and the red trash button on the client profile **Photos** card clears the whole collection without a prompt.

**Q: Can clients add their own photos?**

A: Yes, when your agency enables photos on a portal. Go to **Admin** > **Portals**, open the portal, select the **Photos** tab, and check **Enable Photos**. Clients sign in to the portal to use it.

**Q: What does the EXIF Details button do?**

A: Nothing yet. It sits beside **Delete** and **Fullscreen** but is disabled with a "Coming soon" tooltip.

**Q: Why does the gallery show clients who have no photos?**

A: The gallery lists your clients rather than only the photographed ones. A client with no photos shows a person icon, and you can open the card to add the first photo.

### Troubleshooting

**Issue:** The camera does not start.

**Symptoms:** Clicking **Camera** shows an "Unable to access camera" message and the camera panel closes.

**Solution:**

1. Allow camera access for eCourtDate in your browser's site permissions.
2. Close any other application that is currently holding the camera.
3. Click **Camera** again and select the correct device from the list beside the **Camera** heading if your machine has more than one.
4. Upload an image file with **Upload Photos** instead if no camera is available.

**Issue:** A dropped file never appears in the carousel.

**Symptoms:** You drag a file onto the drop zone, no progress bar appears, and no **Photo uploaded** message is shown.

**Solution:**

1. Confirm the file is an image. Documents and other non image files are ignored on drop.
2. Save the file in a common image format and drag it in again.
3. Use **Upload Photos** to browse for the file, since the picker only offers image files.
4. Upload the file as a document instead if it is not an image ([learn how to upload and manage client documents](/how-to-upload-and-manage-client-documents)).

**Issue:** A photo you uploaded from a client profile is missing from the gallery.

**Symptoms:** The **Photos** card on the profile shows the photo, but the gallery card still shows the old photo or an empty count.

**Solution:**

1. Reload the **Clients** > **Photos** page, since the gallery reads photo counts when it loads.
2. Click the client's card to open the photo page and confirm the photo is there.
3. Click the refresh button on the profile **Photos** card to reload that client's photos.

> **Important:** If you continue to experience issues after following these troubleshooting steps, sign in to eCourtDate and create a ticket by clicking the ticket button in the bottom right corner of the screen.

### Related Articles

- [How to Manage Clients](/how-to-manage-clients)
- [How to upload and manage client documents](/how-to-upload-and-manage-client-documents)
- [How to Create Web Portals](/how-to-create-web-portals)
- [Roles and Permissions](/roles-and-permissions)