Organizing with Stacks

Stacks group related photos so you can make faster decisions with less grid clutter.

Great for:

• Burst sequences
• Exposure brackets
• Similar pose variations

Stack Behavior

• Collapsed stack shows a representative top item.
• Expanded stack shows all members.
• Ratings, flags, and labels remain per-item (not stack-global).

Manual Stacking

1. Select two or more items.
2. Press Cmd + G (Create Stack).
3. Press E to toggle expansion.

To unstack:

• Press Cmd + Shift + G on selected stack item(s).

Auto-Stack

Auto-stack groups by capture-time gaps.

Global Auto-Stack (toolbar)

1. Click Auto Stack in toolbar.
2. Set time gap + minimum stack size.
3. Review preview counts.
4. Apply.

Selection Auto-Stack

1. Select range/set.
2. Right-click -> Auto Stack.
3. Set parameters and apply.

Reordering Stack Members

When a stack is expanded, drag items within it to reorder. The item in the first position becomes the top of stack.

The top item is what the Top of Stack Only workflow filter selects for export. For example, if you auto-stacked a burst of 10 shots and the sharpest frame is the third one, drag it to the top position — then a workflow set to “Top of Stack Only” will export that frame and skip the rest.

Group by Stack Mode

Use toolbar Group -> Stack to view each stack as its own section.

In stack-grouped mode:

• Unstacked items are hidden — photos not in any stack disappear from view entirely
• All toolbar filters are disabled — flag, rating, color label, and stat filters cannot be applied while in this mode
• Stack management (expand, collapse, reorder, unstack) remains available via context menu

Switch back to normal grouping to re-enable filters.

Workflow Interaction

The workflow’s Stack Items filter chooses which photos to deliver from each stack:

• Top of Stack Only
• Top 2 / Top 3 / Top 5
• All Items

Returning Later

Your stacks are saved and appear again when you reopen the source.

See Also

• Grouping and Similar Scenes
• Workflows
• Getting Started