Answers for the questions your clients will ask
Ready-to-send answers to the questions clients ask most about galleries, PINs, downloads and invoices, with a short note for you under each one.
A 5 minute read
This page is for when a client asks about their gallery or their invoice and you want to answer straight away, in your own words, without second-guessing how it works. Each section is a question you’ll get asked, with an answer you can copy almost as-is into your reply. The answers speak to your client directly. Where there’s something only you need to know, a short note for you sits underneath. Your client never needs to hear the name of the software behind the gallery, so none of these answers mention it.
”How do I save the photos to my phone?”
Open the gallery link on your phone and tap the photo you want. You can save it straight to your phone, so you don’t need a laptop or a cable. If you want more than one, you can download any single photo, tap the ones you want and save just those, or download the whole gallery as one file. The full-gallery file is built in the background, and you’ll get an email with a link when it’s ready, so you don’t have to wait on the page.
For you: every photo downloads as a JPEG, which any phone can open. Where it saves depends on the phone. An iPhone opens the share sheet and the photos go into the camera roll. Android saves several photos together as a zip in Downloads. How clients download their photos explains favourites and whole-gallery downloads in more detail.
”The gallery is asking for a PIN. Where do I get it?”
The PIN came with the message I sent when I delivered the gallery, so have a look back through that. If you can’t find it, tell me and I’ll send it again. It’s there so only the people you share it with can see the gallery.
For you: a Private gallery always has a six-digit access code, even if you didn’t set your own PIN, so this question comes up most on sensitive work. Resending the delivery message usually fixes it.
”Can I share the gallery with my family?”
Yes, go ahead. Send them the same link, and the PIN too if there is one, and they can look through the gallery. If I’ve turned downloads on, they can save photos as well. It’s your gallery to share.
For you: nobody can guess the link, so the gallery only spreads when someone chooses to share it. You allow downloads gallery by gallery, so whether family can download depends on what you’ve set.
”Can you see which photos I picked?”
No. On your finished gallery, your picks are just for you. Tap the photos you want and the list is kept in your browser, never sent to me. It helps you cut a big gallery down to the ones you want, check them one last time, and save exactly those in one go. Nobody else sees it.
For you: this is the answer for a delivery gallery. On a proofing gallery the symbol is a heart and it works the other way: it sends the client’s picks and notes to you, which is the point of proofing. If you’re in the middle of proofing, use the answer below instead.
During proofing, the answer is different
Tap the heart on every photo you love. If you want to tell me something, leave a note on any photo or on the whole gallery. When you’re done, send them to me, and I’ll know which ones to work on. This stage is meant for exactly that, so heart as many as you like.
”Why do some photos have a watermark?”
Because the gallery is a preview until your order is paid. The watermark is only on the previews, so you can see everything and choose. It comes off as soon as I unlock your downloads, and the photos you save have no watermark.
”How do I pay the invoice?”
Open the link on the invoice and pay from there. PayID or a bank transfer both work, and the money comes straight to me with no one in between.
For you: card payments are available, but only once you’ve connected Stripe and turned card on for that invoice. That’s why the answer above names only the payment methods that always work. Add card when you know it’s on. Do the pricing work first. The card fee comes out of your side, and from 1 October 2026 the RBA ends card surcharging on eftpos, Visa and Mastercard. Build the fee into your prices so it doesn’t eat into the job. The invoicing feature page has the details.
”Can I pay in instalments?”
Yes, if we’ve set up a payment plan on your invoice. The total is split into scheduled instalments, and each one gets its own reminder. You pay them off one at a time. Once the final instalment clears, your gallery opens automatically.
For you: this only applies if you’ve put a plan on the invoice. If you haven’t, use the single-payment answer above. Payment plans covers setting one up.
”How long will my photos stay online?”
The gallery doesn’t switch itself off. There’s no expiry date, so you don’t need to rush to save everything this week. If you want to keep the gallery long term, there’s a keepsake option for that. It renews automatically each year for a small fee, and you can cancel the renewal whenever you like. That’s how you keep the photos for the long term.
For you: never promise a gallery stays online indefinitely, because the keepsake is how the client keeps the photos long term. On Pro you earn a share of every keepsake a client keeps, shown on your billing page. Nothing archives by itself in the meantime.
”I’ve lost the link.”
No trouble, tell me and I’ll resend it. I can send you a fresh copy of the link whenever you need it.
For you: because nobody can guess the link, resending it is nearly always the whole answer. That’s by design.
Frequently asked questions
Quick answers
Should I send this page to my clients?
No, it's written for you. Copy the answers into your own reply and send them in your voice. The gallery your client sees shows your studio's name and nothing else, so there's no reason to send them to a page like this one. Copy what fits, change a word or two, and send.
A client says their download is stuck. What do I tell them?
That the file is still being built. Tellisto builds a whole-gallery ZIP for a big shoot in the background, so they don't have to sit and watch a progress bar. It emails them the link as soon as it's ready. Tell them to check their inbox in a few minutes. If they only want a few photos, single photos and favourites download straight away.
What does a client see on a Private gallery before they enter the code?
A plain screen with your studio's colours and logo, and no images at all. There's no cover and no preview, nothing shows when the link is shared in a group chat, and search engines don't list it. The photos appear once they enter the access code you gave them. See private galleries for how to set one up.
Can a client pay an invoice by card?
Yes, if you've connected Stripe and switched card on for that invoice. It's set per invoice, so you decide job by job. Sort out your pricing before you flip the switch. The processing fee comes out of your side, and from 1 October 2026 the RBA ends card surcharging on eftpos, Visa and Mastercard. Build the fee into your rates and it's already covered. PayID still costs you nothing, so you keep more from anyone who pays that way.
A client says the gallery is asking for a PIN and they don't have it.
The PIN goes out with the delivery message you sent, so ask them to look back through that first. If it's lost, resend it to them. A Private gallery always has a code, so this comes up most often there.
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