How to publish Lightroom photos to a self-hosted PicPeak gallery

If you deliver client galleries and run a self-hosted PicPeak server, this is the quickest path from a finished edit in Lightroom Classic to a live gallery your client can open. The Lightroom PicPeak Plugin is free and open source and works on both Windows and macOS.

What you’ll need

• Adobe Lightroom Classic (Windows or macOS)
• A running PicPeak server (v1 API) — PicPeak is a self-hosted, open-source platform for time-limited, password-protected client galleries
• A PicPeak API token with write + admin scopes

1. Download the plugin

Grab the plugin from GitHub:

Download from GitHub

Download or clone the repository and unzip it somewhere permanent — for example your Documents folder. Don’t run it from a temporary or Downloads folder you’ll later clear out, or Lightroom will lose the plugin.

2. Add it in Lightroom Classic

1. Open Lightroom Classic.
2. Go to File → Plug-in Manager.
3. Click Add, browse to the picpeak-plugin.lrplugin/ directory, and select it.
4. Click Done.

The plugin now appears in the Export dialog and in the Publish Services panel.

3. Get a PicPeak API token

In PicPeak, create an API token with write and admin scopes. The write scope lets the plugin upload photos, and admin lets it create and manage gallery events on your behalf.

4. Connect the plugin to PicPeak

You enter your connection details where you’ll actually use the plugin:

1. In the Export or Publish dialog, find the PicPeak Server section.
2. Enter your server URL (e.g. https://picpeak.example.com) and your API token.
3. Click Test Connection to verify.

Credentials are stored in Lightroom preferences and reused across sessions.

5. Deliver your photos

You have two workflows, depending on whether this is a one-time delivery or an evolving gallery.

Export a gallery

1. Select photos in Lightroom, then go to File → Export.
2. Choose PicPeak Exporter as the export destination.
3. Under PicPeak Gallery Event, pick one of:
   • Choose on export — a picker appears at export time
   • Existing event — select from a dropdown of your events
   • Create new event — fill in event details (name, type, date, customer info, password protection, expiry, guest feedback, color theme) inline
4. Configure the rest of your export settings (format, size, etc.) and click Export.

Publish a collection

1. In the Publish Services panel, click Set Up next to PicPeak Publisher (or right-click to add a collection).
2. When creating the collection, choose to create a new PicPeak event or bind to an existing one.
3. Drag photos into the collection and click Publish.

With a publish collection, re-uploads are skipped for photos that were already published, so re-publishing only sends what’s new. After each upload the plugin writes picpeakPhotoId and picpeakEventId back to the photo, so Lightroom always knows what already lives on the server.

A note on deletes and renames

The PicPeak v1 API does not support deleting or renaming events or photos. If you try, the plugin warns you and marks the photos as handled in Lightroom without changing anything on the server. Plan your event names up front, and manage removals from the PicPeak admin interface.

Troubleshooting

• Plugin won’t load / disappears: make sure the folder lives in a permanent location and re-add it in the Plug-in Manager.
• Connection fails: double-check the server URL (including https://) and that your API token has both the write and admin scopes. Use Test Connection to confirm.
• Still stuck? Open an issue on GitHub.

That’s the whole setup. If you also back up to Immich, see the companion Lightroom Immich Plugin.

Frequently asked questions

What is PicPeak?

PicPeak is an open-source, self-hosted photo-sharing platform for delivering time-limited, password-protected client galleries while keeping your data on your own server. The Lightroom PicPeak Plugin uploads photos from Lightroom Classic straight into it.

Does the plugin work on macOS?

Yes, the Lightroom PicPeak Plugin works on both Windows and macOS with Adobe Lightroom Classic.

What API token permissions does the plugin need?

A PicPeak API token with write and admin scopes — write uploads photos, and admin is needed to create and manage events.

Can I create a PicPeak event without leaving Lightroom?

Yes. When exporting or setting up a publish collection you can create a new event inline, with name, type, date, customer info, password protection, expiry, guest feedback and color theme.

Is the Lightroom PicPeak Plugin free?

Yes — it is free and open source under the MIT license. Get it at github.com/PicPeak/plugin-lightroom.