Motion portfolio pages

Motion presentation turns your public portfolio URL into a cinematic, full-viewport gallery — the kind of polished motion you see on premium photography sites — built into ArtInStack, not pasted in from a separate design embed.

Unlike a generic marketing carousel, motion templates are built around your Portfolio collection: real uploads from Media, the order you set on Media, captions and descriptions from each file, optional paths to Photo detail pages, and aspect ratios that match how you shoot (portrait editorial, wide landscape, square contact sheets, and more).

The same URL applies:

https://your-site.example/portfolio/your-slug

When Motion presentation is on, visitors see your chosen animated template instead of the standard grid, immersive, timeline, or journal layout. Configure templates under Manage portfolio → Motion tab — see Portfolio motion settings. Standard layout controls on Settings → Public page do not apply while motion is active.

Prerequisites

• Public portfolio pages — Public gallery on and a slug set
• Subscription plan that includes Motion presentation
• Enough images for the template you pick (for example, Pipeline rail works best with at least five photos in the collection)

How motion differs from standard layouts

	Standard track	Motion track
Visitor experience	Scroll a grid, browse a stage plus thumb rail, explore a dated timeline, or read a journal of captioned frames	One hero image at a time with choreographed transitions between slides
Best for	Large sets, proofing density, archival browsing	Portfolio highlights, campaign launches, lookbooks, hero-driven storytelling
Dashboard	Settings tab → Public page	Motion tab
Hero banner	Optional cover banner from Public page settings	Same site chrome; motion fills the gallery region below your portfolio header

You can switch back to Standard at any time from the Motion tab without changing the slug or privacy mode.

Motion template families

Templates are grouped by how images move — pick one per collection.

Path carousel

Linear 3D carousels with depth, side previews, and keyboard-friendly navigation. Ideal when you want a classic “featured image plus flanking work” feel.

Template	Character
Axis carousel	Horizontal path — center image sharp, side images rotate slightly in depth
3D carousel	Straight stack — neighbors peek from behind the active slide
Wheel carousel	Curved sweep — images travel along an arc like a rotating gallery wall

Photography fit: wedding highlights, editorial selects, multi-image brand stories where orientation mixes but the center frame should feel like a print on a wall.

Shared hero frame: Axis, 3D carousel, and Wheel use the same active-slide frame size for your chosen aspect ratio and viewport. Switching among them rearranges side previews, depth, and arc — the hero print does not jump larger or smaller.

Wheel perspective	Character
Outside	Convex rim — center slide is largest; neighbors curve away like a gallery wall
Inside	Concave bowl — you look into the ring; outer rim slides are largest and the center sits deeper in the rotunda

On wide landscape viewports, Inside may tighten ring geometry so outer slides stay inside the stage — the hero frame size stays the same.

Arch spotlight

Images sit along a curved arch; the active photograph can stay on the path or detach to center spotlight for a magazine-style feature with room for title and description in a side column beside the frame. Long descriptions scroll inside that column — the gallery height stays tied to the image canvas, not the word count.

Photography fit: fine-art series, exhibition-style sets, and collections where one image at a time should feel intentional — not a fast slideshow.

Pipeline rail

Narrow thumbnail strips compress beside the frame, then the active image expands into the hero as visitors move through the set. Works well for portrait and landscape aspect ratios when you want a continuous “contact sheet becomes print” motion.

Pipeline rail is not intended to show every work equally. It presents one hero image and a visible train of supporting works. Large collections continue through navigation (arrows, stepper, swipe) rather than expanding the train indefinitely.

Stage span	Best for
Tight	Smaller collections — the rail stays inside a contained width; up to 20 pack strips beside the hero
Wide	Larger collections — uses the full gallery content width; up to 40 pack strips beside the hero

Hero expand and pack taper behave the same in both modes; stage span changes the horizontal canvas and how many thumbnails can sit in the visible train at once. Configure Stage span and Rail side on the Motion tab — see Portfolio motion settings.

Photography fit: lookbooks, client delivery highlights, and portfolios with longer captions under each image.

Built for photographers, not generic widgets

Motion templates share behaviors tuned to portfolio workflows:

• Click to focus, then go deeper — first click brings an image forward; a second click (or keyboard confirm) can open your Photo detail page when enabled, with a smooth visual handoff from the active slide.
• Captions and descriptions — title, caption, and longer description text from Media can appear on the stage or beside it, depending on template (see Portfolio motion settings — Metadata placement).
• Aspect ratio control — sets the hero frame for path carousel templates (square, portrait, landscape, wide, or auto). The same ratio keeps the active slide the same size when you switch between Axis, 3D carousel, and Wheel.
• Depth-of-field on previews — side images can soften like out-of-focus neighbors while the hero stays sharp (path carousel templates).
• Video in the set — behavior depends on what is in the collection:
  • Mixed photos and videos — each video shows a poster and play badge on the stage; playback opens in the lightbox when that is your click behavior (videos do not use photo detail pages).
  • Video-only collection — when a clip is the active slide, it plays inline on the stage (muted autoplay with controls); inactive slides stay on poster until focused.
• Accessibility — visitors who prefer reduced motion see a clean static grid fallback instead of animation.
• Commerce and lightbox — Portfolio lightbox settings and photo-page toggles on Settings still govern overlay and PDP behavior when you wire them in motion Click behavior.

What visitors can do

Interaction	Behavior
Arrow controls	Previous and next when enabled
Stepper dots	Jump to a slide; optional progress dwell when autoplay is on
Swipe	Touch drag on phones
Scroll wheel	Horizontal advance on desktop when enabled
Keyboard	Arrow keys, Home, End, Enter on the focused slide
Autoplay	Optional timed advance; pauses on hover, focus, or when the tab is hidden

Implementation steps

1. Confirm Public gallery and slug — Public portfolio pages.
2. Open Portfolio → your collection → Manage portfolio → Motion tab.
3. Turn on Motion presentation.
4. Pick a template family and template, then set Intensity, aspect ratio, and click behavior — details in Portfolio motion settings.
5. Save, then use Preview from the portfolio hub to open the signed preview URL.
6. Test on phone and desktop; enable Photo detail pages if clicks should open full EXIF and print options.

What your visitors see

A branded, full-screen gallery on your domain: cinematic transitions between your real files, optional captions, and navigation that respects their device and motion preferences. Privacy mode (public, unlisted, password) behaves the same as a standard public portfolio.

Verifying your setup

• Plan includes motion; Motion presentation toggle is on.
• Preview and live /portfolio/{slug} show the animated template, not the standard grid.
• Captions or descriptions appear when Metadata display is not hidden.
• Click behavior matches intent (photo page, lightbox, or focus only).
• Video-only collections: active clip plays on the stage; mixed sets: videos open in the lightbox (or show poster until focused).
• Reduced-motion preview (system setting) shows the static fallback.