Help & guides
How to run your studio on Tellisto
Short guides to running your studio on Tellisto. If you’re new, start at the top. If you’re not, go straight to whatever has you stuck. If your question isn’t answered here, email me and I’ll add the answer.
Getting started
From a fresh account to your first delivered gallery.
Confirm your email, verify your business, set your studio name and colour, and publish a first gallery so you see exactly what a client sees.
Publish a client gallery and send the linkUpload the photos from a shoot, group them into sections, and send your client a gallery link that carries your studio's branding, not Tellisto's.
Upload a property, send one branded link, same day Capture enquiries from your bio, website and DMsAdd an enquiry link to your Instagram bio and a form to your website, and log DMs in seconds. Every enquiry arrives in the same Leads inbox.
How a job moves from enquiry to deliveryHow a job moves through Tellisto from enquiry to booking, gallery and invoice, with the client's details carried over so you never retype them.
Repeat rounds for one company stay on a single client record Add your branding and connect your own domainSet your studio name and colour, find the studio address Tellisto gave you at sign-up, and connect a domain you already own for your client galleries.
Galleries & delivery
Proofing, downloads, privacy, and editing after you deliver.
The five facts a gallery delivery email needs, a short template you can adapt, and why you can leave out the usual expiry warning.
Photo proofing: run a round clients finishHow client proofing works in Tellisto, from hearts and notes to the client sending their picks, and how it differs from picking photos on a final gallery.
Client galleries: view, favourite and downloadWhat your client sees when they open a gallery: how private favourites work, the three ways to download, and what Tellisto strips from every file.
Agents pull full-res and the whole-set ZIP themselves, no re-sendsThe whole set as one ZIP, full-resolution, no account to create Private galleries for boudoir and newborn workMark a boudoir, newborn or family gallery Private and nothing shows until it's unlocked: no cover, no link preview, no search listing. On every plan.
Nothing shows until it's unlocked, and location data is stripped Edit a gallery after you've delivered itEdit a delivered gallery in a private draft your client can't see. Push the changes live when you're ready, and roll back if you change your mind.
Gallery branding, layouts and your own domainHow white-label galleries work in Tellisto: the three layout presets, sets and covers, your own domain on Pro, and how colour profiles are handled.
Bookings & money
Quotes, contracts, invoices, payment plans and your calendar.
Send a quote straight from the lead, take a deposit, and know the exact point a photography booking is confirmed rather than just verbally promised.
Photography contracts: send and e-sign onlineSend a contract from Tellisto and your client signs online on your own domain. This page also lists the clauses a photography contract needs.
The wedding checklist includes a contract task that ticks itself off once signed Send invoices with GST worked out and get paidAdd your ABN or NZBN and your payment details, then send an invoice that works out GST for you. Mark it paid once the money reaches your account.
GST-correct B2B tax invoices with the details an accounts team needs Payment plans: let clients pay over timePut a schedule of instalments on any invoice. Each one gets its own reminder, and the gallery opens automatically when the final payment clears.
The deposit-then-balance wedding split, with a reminder per instalment Book a shoot and get the contract signedTurn an enquiry that said yes into a booking, send a contract with the client's details already filled in, and see the moment they sign it.
Calendar sync, checklists and shoot tasksSync your bookings to Google or Apple Calendar, give each shoot type its own checklist, and move a whole run of tasks at once when a shoot is rescheduled.
Open a session and let clients book onlineSet up a session, share one link, and let clients pick their own time. Each time they take becomes a booking, and the deposit invoice goes out by email.
Switching to Tellisto
Moving across from another tool without breaking anything.
How to switch to Tellisto from another gallery or studio tool: move active work first, keep old links working, and let the founder help move the rest.
Tell clients you've moved gallery platformsWhich clients need to know you've moved galleries, what to tell them and when to send the new link, with a short note you can adapt.
Moving from Studio Ninja: export, then switchExport your clients, leads, jobs and payment history from Studio Ninja before you cancel, then set up the jobs you have on now in Tellisto.
Switching from HoneyBook: export your data firstExport your contacts, financial reports and signed contracts from HoneyBook before you cancel, then set up the jobs you have on now in Tellisto.
Moving from Dubsado: export your data and switchExport your contacts, projects, invoices and payment history from Dubsado before you cancel, then set up the jobs you have on now in Tellisto.
Moving from 17hats: export your data and switchExport your contacts and sales history from 17hats while your subscription is active, save the projects you need, then set up your work in Tellisto.
Moving from Táve (VSCO Workspace) to TellistoExport your contacts, jobs, quotes and contracts from Táve (now VSCO Workspace) before you cancel, then set up the jobs you have on now in Tellisto.
Moving from Pixieset: export your data and switchDownload the galleries your clients still open, plus your contacts and payment history, from Pixieset. Then set up your current work in Tellisto.
Moving from ShootProof to Tellisto, step by stepDownload your galleries, request your contacts and save your invoice records from ShootProof before you cancel. Then set up your current work in Tellisto.
Moving from Pic-Time: export your data and switchDownload your photos, visitor lists and order history from Pic-Time before a plan change shrinks your storage, then set up your live galleries in Tellisto.
Moving from spreadsheets to TellistoNo software to export from, just a spreadsheet, a notes app and your inbox? List the clients and shoots you have on now, then add them to Tellisto.
Getting more from Tellisto
The habits and features that pay off once you're settled in.
Tellisto galleries don't expire on their own. With the Client Vault, clients pay to keep their photos, and Pro studios earn a share of each keepsake.
Galleries stay live, and couples can keep their own copyA gallery families can keep safe as the kids grow Automated emails: what Tellisto sends for youWhich emails Tellisto sends without you, including the enquiry auto-reply and your own reminders, and how to make each one read like your studio.
Every send goes out in your studio's nameThe gallery delivery email is switched on from your first session Answers for the questions your clients will askReady-to-send answers to the questions clients ask most about galleries, PINs, downloads and invoices, with a short note for you under each one.
Ready to try it?
The workflow in these guides runs on the free plan: white-label galleries, the full back-office, automated emails and zero commission. Your own domain and the Vault rev-share are on Pro. The free plan gives you 20 GB and two live galleries at a time, with no card and no trial period.