Photos & Images
A collection isn't complete without photos! Mini Vault allows you to upload multiple high-resolution images for every item in your catalog — and even guides you through capturing the perfect set.
Free accounts can upload up to 3 images per item. Upgrade to Premium for 8 images, or Pro for 10 images per item. Compare plans →
1. Uploading photos
You can upload photos directly from your computer to any item.
- Navigate to an item's detail page.
- In the "Images" section, you can either:
- Click Choose Photo to open your file browser.
- Drag and drop a photo file directly onto the upload area.
- A progress bar will appear while your image uploads. Once finished, it will instantly appear in the gallery!
Note: The maximum file size is 10MB per image. Accepted formats include JPG, PNG, and WebP.
2. Taking photos with your camera
If you are using Mini Vault on a mobile phone or tablet, you can take a picture and upload it directly without saving it to your camera roll first.
- Navigate to an item's detail page on your mobile device.
- Tap the Take Photo button (which appears next to "Choose Photo").
- Your device's camera will open. Take the picture.
- Confirm the photo, and it will automatically upload to the item!
3. Guided Photo Capture
The 📸 Guided Capture wizard walks you through photographing your miniature step by step — no photography expertise needed! It ensures you capture every important angle for insurance-grade documentation.
Starting a Guided Capture
- Navigate to an item's detail page.
- In the "Images" section, click the 📸 Guided Capture button.
- A full-screen wizard will open with your first photography instruction.
The step-by-step flow
The wizard guides you through a series of photography steps. For each step:
- Step Intro — Read the photography prompt (e.g., "Front overview on neutral background") and tips for the best shot. Premium and Pro users also see an AI-generated example photo showing exactly what the ideal shot looks like.
- Camera View — Your device's back camera opens with the instruction overlaid on the viewfinder. Tap the shutter button to capture.
- Photo Review — See a preview of your shot with instant quality feedback:
- Validation badges show pass ✅ or warning ⚠️ for resolution, sharpness, lighting, and contrast.
- Coaching tips offer friendly suggestions if something could be improved (e.g., "Natural window light works best").
- Validation is advisory only — you can always accept and move on, even with warnings.
- Choose Accept & Continue to keep the photo and move to the next step, or Retake to try again.
On desktop without a camera, the wizard falls back to a file picker so you can still use pre-taken photos.
Completion screen & Documentation Score
After going through all steps, the wizard shows a summary:
- Photo grid — All your captured photos arranged in step order, with skipped steps shown as placeholders.
- Documentation Score — A quality rating from CaptureKit based on how many steps you completed successfully:
- ⭐ Started (0–1 steps) → ⭐⭐ Getting There → ⭐⭐⭐ Good → ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Great → ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Archival Quality
- Score recommendations (Premium & Pro) — Specific tips like "2 more shots → Archival Quality" to help you improve.
Click Save to Item to upload all photos at once, or Discard All to exit without saving.
Exiting the wizard
- Press Escape or tap the close button at any time.
- If you've already captured photos, a confirmation dialog will ask before discarding your work.
- Skipping steps is allowed — just tap Skip on steps marked as skippable.
4. Understanding Guided Capture tiers
The depth of guidance you receive depends on your subscription tier:
| Tier | Steps | Flow type | Special features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | 3 steps | General flow only | Basic guidance, text-only tips |
| Premium | 5–6 steps | Category-specific (Furniture, Figures, etc.) | AI example images, score recommendations |
| Pro | 5–6 steps | Category-specific + adaptive | Personalized step order based on your habits |
- Free users always receive a 3-step general flow covering the essentials: overview, detail, and condition.
- Premium users get the full flow matched to the item's category. For example, a furniture item gets joints, functional parts, and artistic shots in addition to the basics.
- Pro users get the same category-specific flow, but after 3 or more sessions, the wizard learns your photography patterns and reorders steps to prioritize the ones you typically complete — putting frequently-skipped steps at the end.
The item's Category field (set when cataloging) determines which flow the wizard uses. If no category is set, the general flow is used.
5. Re-documenting an existing item
Already have photos but want to upgrade your documentation? The 📸 Improve Documentation feature lets you re-capture an item without losing your existing photos until you're ready.
- Navigate to an item that already has photos.
- Click the 📸 Improve Documentation button (visible below the image gallery).
- A confirmation will remind you: "Your current photos will be preserved until you accept the new set."
- Complete the guided capture wizard as usual.
- On the completion screen, you'll see a Before vs. After comparison showing your existing photo count vs. the new documentation score.
- Click Replace & Save to swap your old photos with the new set, or Discard All to keep your existing photos unchanged.
When you click Replace & Save, all existing photos for the item are permanently replaced with the new set. This cannot be undone.
6. Viewing the image gallery
The image gallery shows all photos attached to an item. The first image listed is the Primary Image (marked with a badge), which is the one displayed on the collection grid.
To view an image in full screen, just click on it! This opens the Lightbox.
7. Using the Lightbox viewer
The Lightbox is an immersive way to examine the details of your miniatures.
- Click any image in a gallery to open the Lightbox.
- Use the Left and Right arrows on your screen (or your keyboard's arrow keys) to cycle through all images.
- Click the
Xin the top right or pressEscapeto close the Lightbox.
Pinch-to-zoom on mobile
When viewing an image in the Lightbox on a phone or tablet, you can pinch outward with two fingers to zoom in on tiny details, just like in your phone's native photo app!
8. Editing image details (Alt Text & Captions)
You can add a caption and descriptive "Alt Text" to any image. Alt text makes your images accessible to screen readers and improves searchability.
- Find the image in the gallery.
- Click the Edit button (pencil icon) directly on the image card.
- Enter your descriptive Alt Text (up to 500 characters).
- Enter an optional Caption (up to 1000 characters).
- Click Save Changes.
9. Reordering images
Want to change the order your images appear in the gallery?
- Find the image you want to move.
- Click and hold the drag handle (the grid icon ⠿) on the right side of the image card.
- Drag the image up or down to its new position.
- Release your mouse. The order is saved automatically!
10. Setting a primary image
The primary image is the "face" of your miniature. It's what shows up in the grid views and search results.
- Find the image you want to feature.
- If it's not already primary, click the Set Primary button on the image card.
- The image will instantly receive the "PRIMARY" badge, and your collection grids will update to use it.
Alternatively, you can edit the image and check the Set as primary image box.
11. Deleting an image
- Find the image you want to remove.
- Click the Delete button (trash can) on the image card.
- Validate the confirmation dialog.
- The image is permanently deleted to free up your storage space.