Uploading Photos & Videos

Learn how to upload, organize, and tag photos and videos from your computer or mobile device.

Consistent photo and video documentation creates a visual history of your horses and operation. Whether you’re capturing training progress, documenting health issues, or sharing updates with clients, proper upload and organization makes media accessible and useful.

Before You Begin

Prepare your files for upload:

Check File Types:

Photos: JPG, PNG, HEIC, WEBP
Videos: MP4, MOV, AVI, WebM

Verify File Sizes:

Photos: Up to 100MB each
Videos: Up to 500MB each
Compress large files if needed

Organize on Your Device:

Group related photos together
Name files descriptively if possible
Have horse names ready for tagging

Mobile Upload Tip: The mobile app is fastest for photos taken in the barn. Upload directly from your camera or photo gallery.

Uploading from Computer

Navigate to Media Page

From your dashboard, click “Media” in the main navigation menu. The Media page shows your entire photo and video library.

Click “Upload Media”

In the top right corner, click the ”+ Upload Media” button to open the upload interface.

Select Upload Method

Drag and Drop

Drag and Drop Method

Open your file explorer or finder
Select photos/videos you want to upload
Drag them into the upload area
Files appear in the upload queue
Continue to tagging step

Benefits:

Fastest for multiple files
Visual confirmation of selections
Works with folders (uploads all contents)

Tag Your Media

Before uploading, add organizational information:

Link to Horses (Recommended)

Click the “Tag Horses” field
Start typing a horse’s barn name
Select horse from dropdown
Add multiple horses if they appear in the media
Repeat for each file

Why Tag Horses? Tagging makes photos appear in horse profiles, enables horse-specific filtering, and powers automatic client sharing.

Add Event Type (Recommended)

Select the event or context:

Training session
Show or competition
Veterinary visit
Farrier appointment
Turnout and paddock
Grooming and care
Facility photo
Special occasion
Health documentation
Custom event

Set Event Date (Optional)

If the photo/video is from a different day than today:

Click the date field
Select the actual date the media was captured
Useful for bulk uploads of older media

Add Description (Optional)

Add context or notes about the media:

What’s happening in the photo
Why it’s significant
What to look for
Related information

Add Custom Tags (Optional)

Add custom tags for flexible organization:

Season: “winter 2024”, “spring”
Location: “arena”, “trail”, “paddock 3”
Activity: “jumping”, “dressage”, “liberty work”
Purpose: “progress check”, “vet review”, “client update”

Upload Your Files

Click “Upload” to begin uploading all queued files.

During Upload:

Progress bar shows overall completion
Each file shows individual upload status
Don’t close the browser window
You can continue working in other tabs

After Upload:

Thumbnails generate automatically
Media appears in your library immediately
Tagged horses show the media in their profiles
Search index updates for findability

Verify Upload Success

After upload completes:

Check the media library for your new files
Verify horse tags are correct
Test filtering by date and event
Confirm thumbnails generated properly

Upload Interruptions: If upload is interrupted (network loss, browser close), restart the process. Partial uploads may not be saved.

Uploading from Mobile App

The mobile app provides the fastest way to upload photos from the barn:

Open EquineOps Mobile App

Launch the EquineOps app on your phone or tablet.

Navigate to Media

Tap the “Media” icon in the bottom navigation or select “Media” from the menu.

Start Upload

Tap the ”+” button or “Upload Photo” button in the top right.

Choose Photo Source

Take Photo Now

Take Photo Now

Select “Take Photo”
Camera interface opens
Frame your shot
Tap shutter button to capture
Review photo
Tap “Use Photo” or retake if needed
Continue to tagging step

Benefits:

Immediate capture and upload
No need to organize photos later
Date/location metadata automatic
Fastest workflow for barn documentation

Tag on Mobile

Mobile tagging is simplified for speed:

Quick Horse Tag:

Tap “Tag Horse”
Start typing horse name
Tap horse from list
Add more horses if needed

Quick Event Tag:

Tap “Event Type”
Select from common events
Events are optimized for mobile tapping

Optional Details:

Description field available but not required
Date defaults to today
Custom tags available if needed

Mobile Speed Priority: Mobile interface prioritizes speed over detail. Add quick tags in the barn, add detailed information later from desktop if needed.

Upload from Mobile

Tap “Upload” to begin upload.

Mobile Upload Notes:

Upload continues in background
You can leave the app during upload
Progress notification shows status
Multiple uploads queue automatically

Offline Behavior:

Photos queue for upload when offline
Upload automatically when connection returns
Notification confirms successful upload

Confirm Mobile Upload

After upload:

Confirmation notification appears
Photos appear in media library
Synced to desktop immediately
Tagged horses updated

Mobile Upload Best Practices

When to Shoot

Daily Documentation:

During grooming routines
Before and after riding
Turnout and social time
Feeding time behaviors

Health Documentation:

Injuries or swelling
Unusual behaviors
Movement concerns
Before vet calls

Progress Tracking:

Weekly training videos
Monthly conformation photos
Seasonal coat/condition changes

Mobile Photo Quality

Good Lighting:

Use natural light when possible
Avoid direct overhead sun (harsh shadows)
Overcast days provide even lighting
Early morning or late afternoon best

Steady Shots:

Hold phone with both hands
Brace against stable object if possible
Use burst mode for moving horses
Take multiple shots, upload best one

Good Composition:

Horse fills frame appropriately
Background uncluttered when possible
Capture relevant details
Both wide and close-up shots useful

Immediate Tagging

Tag photos immediately after capture:

You remember context clearly
Correct horse identification
Accurate event categorization
Reduces backlog of untagged media

Tagging Later: If you can’t tag immediately, upload and tag later from desktop. Untagged photos are searchable by date.

Bulk Upload Tips

Uploading many photos at once requires strategy:

Organize Before Upload

On Your Computer:

Create folders by date or event
Review and delete duplicates
Select only the best shots
Name folders descriptively

Batch Tagging Strategy

Same Tags for Multiple Files:

Select all files for one horse
Upload together
Apply same tags to all
Repeat for next batch

Event-Based Batching:

Group by event (show, vet visit, etc.)
Upload entire event together
Apply event tag to all
Add individual horse tags after

Large Volume Upload

For 50+ Files:

Upload in batches of 20-30
Complete tagging between batches
Verify each batch before next
Take breaks to avoid tagging fatigue

For 100+ Files: Consider uploading over multiple sessions:

Upload highest priority first
Tag as you go
Don’t rush and create tagging errors

Quality Over Speed: Accurate tagging is more important than fast upload. Poorly tagged media is hard to find later.

Supported File Formats

Photo Formats

JPG/JPEG

JPG/JPEG Format

Most common photo format.

Characteristics:

Universal compatibility
Good compression
Small file sizes
Slight quality loss (usually imperceptible)

Best For:

General horse photos
Client sharing (universal playback)
Mobile uploads
Daily documentation

Video Formats

MP4

MP4 Format

Most common video format.

Characteristics:

Universal playback
Good compression
Reasonable file sizes
Widely supported

Best For:

Training videos
Client sharing
General documentation
Mobile recording

Thumbnail Generation

The system automatically creates thumbnails for all uploaded media:

Photo Thumbnails:

Generated within seconds of upload
Optimized for fast loading
Multiple sizes for different views
Original quality preserved

Video Thumbnails:

Extracted from first frame
Shows video play indicator
Click thumbnail to play video
Original video unchanged

Thumbnail Uses:

Gallery grid view
Search results preview
Horse profile media sections
Client portal display

Automatic Process: Thumbnail generation is completely automatic. You don’t need to do anything.

Common Questions

What if my file is too large?

For Photos:

Use image compression software
Export at lower quality from photo editor
Most phone photos are under limit

For Videos:

Trim video length if possible
Use video compression software
Export at lower resolution (720p instead of 4K)
Split long videos into segments

Can I edit photos before uploading?

Yes! Edit photos with any software before upload:

Crop to focus on subject
Adjust brightness/contrast
Remove unwanted backgrounds
Add text or annotations if desired

What if I forget to tag a photo?

No problem! Add tags anytime:

Find photo in media library
Click to view details
Click “Edit”
Add missing tags
Save changes

Can I upload videos from my computer?

Yes! Desktop upload supports videos. Same process as photos, just ensure file size is under 500MB.

Do photos include GPS location data?

Mobile photos may include location metadata if your phone allows it. This data is stored securely and not visible to clients.

Can I upload the same photo twice?

Yes, but it creates a duplicate. Delete one if you accidentally upload twice.

Next Steps

Now that you know how to upload media, you might want to:

Need Help?

Questions about uploading media? Contact our support team for assistance.