Apple Photos and many other asset managers store your files inside one large library or database. PIXLpath works differently. Your files remain exactly where they are on your drives, while the catalogs you create store preview thumbnails and metadata for your assets.

You can think of a catalog as a very powerful spreadsheet for your photos. It references the files on your drives and stores information about them, without moving or duplicating the originals.

If you are more than just an occasional photographer, keeping all of your assets in a single database can quickly become large and difficult to manage. It can also make moving between different apps more complicated. PIXLpath lets you keep your files organized on your drives while still providing fast browsing and search.

Like Finder, PIXLpath lets you view and navigate files stored on your drives. Where PIXLpath pulls ahead is with powerful tools designed specifically for working with photos and other creative files, including fast thumbnail browsing, ratings, labels, EXIF viewing, sorting, and search.

Unlike Finder, PIXLpath creates independent catalogs that store preview thumbnails and metadata. This allows you to browse thumbnails and organize your files even when the drives containing the original files are disconnected.

No. PIXLpath creates reference catalogs. Your original files remain exactly where they are on your drives. The catalog stores preview thumbnails and metadata while referencing the original files on disk.

PIXLpath does not require any specific folder structure. Many photographers organize their files by year, project, or shoot. For example, you might have folders such as:

• 2026
  • 2026_01_14_Italy
    • 2026_01_14_Italy_001.JPG
    • 2026_01_14_Italy_002.JPG
  • 2026_02_18_Spain
    • 2026_02_18_Spain_001.JPG
    • 2026_02_18_Spain_002.JPG
  • 2026_03_19_Wedding_Connor
    • 2026_03_19_Wedding_Connor_001.JPG
    • 2026_03_19_Wedding_Connor_002.JPG

PIXLpath simply references files where they already exist, so you are free to organize your folders in whatever way works best for your workflow.

If the drive containing your files is disconnected, the catalog still opens normally and preview thumbnails remain visible. When the drive is reconnected, the original files become available again. Preview sizes are customizable, so you can store larger previews if you want your catalog to remain useful while offline for browsing, rating, labeling, and organizing your photos.

If Apple can open it, PIXLpath supports it. PIXLpath taps into Apple's highly optimized image decoding tools built into macOS and iOS, so support for new RAW formats arrives automatically as Apple adds them.

Catalogs are saved as .pixlpath documents, similar to Pages or Numbers documents. You can save them anywhere on your system, including external drives or iCloud Drive.

Yes. Catalogs can be shared using AirDrop or iCloud Drive. Simply open the catalog on another device running PIXLpath.

Creating a catalog does not modify your original files. PIXLpath references files where they already exist on your drives. Some utilities in the app allow you to rename or transfer files, but these actions only occur when you explicitly choose to perform them.

While PIXLpath can catalog very large collections, it is designed around cataloging individual shoots and projects rather than entire drives.

Yes. Multiple catalogs can reference the same files on disk without duplicating the originals. This allows you to organize the same files for different projects. For example, if you are a portrait photographer, the same photos might appear in a client delivery catalog, a portfolio catalog, or another project, each with its own ratings, labels, and selections.

PIXLpath lets you choose where your catalogs are saved so you can decide how they are managed and shared, rather than requiring a subscription to a cloud service or imposing storage limits. For example, if you place a catalog in iCloud Drive it will sync across your devices just like any other document. This flexibility also allows you to keep catalogs local for an offline-only workflow if you prefer.

If PIXLpath automatically required iCloud sync, there would be a few meaningful disadvantages:

• ○ If your iCloud Drive ran out of space, you could no longer create new catalogs until you freed up storage.
• ○ If you lost access to your iCloud account, you could lose access to your catalogs.
• ○ You would have less flexibility over where your catalogs are stored, backed up, and shared.

By leaving storage up to you, PIXLpath works more like a traditional document-based app: save catalogs locally, in iCloud Drive, on an external drive, or wherever fits your workflow best.

PIXLpath relies on files living in fixed locations on disk for its core functionality. Apple Photos stores and manages files in a proprietary way inside a library package, and that internal structure can change between macOS releases. As a result, many of PIXLpath's core features, such as renaming and moving files, would not work and would likely lead to confusion. Because of that, Apple Photos libraries are not something PIXLpath can reliably support.

Deleting a catalog only removes the catalog document. Your original files remain untouched on disk.

Nothing happens to your original files. PIXLpath catalogs simply reference files where they already exist on your drives, so your photos remain organized in normal folders that can be opened by any other software. Your catalog is just a document containing preview thumbnails and metadata, and your original files remain completely independent of the app.

Licenses are linked to your Apple account. One purchase gives you access to PIXLpath on all supported devices signed in with that account, including Mac, iPhone, iPad, and Vision Pro.

PIXLpath also supports Apple's Family Sharing feature for iCloud Plus subscribers. At the time of writing, Apple allows sharing of purchases with up to five family members.

All licenses are managed directly by Apple and developers are not able to view or change them.

No. PIXLpath is a one-time purchase.

See my blog post:
One Mac,
One Developer,
100,000 Lines of Code

Free updates have been provided since the app launched in 2023 across multiple releases of iOS and macOS. At some point there may be a version 2 as a new purchase, since a one-time purchase cannot support continued development indefinitely. When that happens, the current version would eventually stop receiving updates, but would continue to work as it does on current versions of macOS and iOS. Compatibility with future operating system releases may require upgrading.

All App Store transactions are handled by Apple. At the time of writing, Apple offers a 14-day return window for App Store purchases. Instructions can be found here.

I'm Chris, the developer of PIXLpath. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out. I personally read and respond to messages.