CAROUSEL
ROLE
PRODUCT DESIGNER · UI/UX
FOCUS
PHOTO MANAGEMENT · TIMELINE UI/UX
CLIENT
CONCEPT
YEAR
2023
( CONCEPT )
OVERVIEW
A self-initiated concept that replaces folders with time — a new mental model for photo management.
A self-initiated concept that replaces folders with time — a new mental model for photo management.
SOLUTION
A timeline you scrub like a map instead of folders you drill through — navigation built on how memory actually works.
A timeline you scrub like a map instead of folders you drill through — navigation built on how memory actually works.
FOLDERS.
FOLDERS.
FOLDERS.
OVERVIEW
Replacing folders with time
Carousel is a self-initiated concept that started with a frustration most photographers share: a library that grows faster than any system can organise. Thousands of images scattered across Lightroom catalogs, cloud backups, hard drives, and camera rolls — each with its own folder logic, each requiring its own search. The question wasn't "how do we make folders better?" — it was whether folders were the right mental model at all.
Replacing folders with time
Carousel is a self-initiated concept that started with a frustration most photographers share: a library that grows faster than any system can organise. Thousands of images scattered across Lightroom catalogs, cloud backups, hard drives, and camera rolls — each with its own folder logic, each requiring its own search. The question wasn't "how do we make folders better?" — it was whether folders were the right mental model at all.
MISMATCH.MISMATCH.MISMATCH.CHALLENGE
A file system masquerading as a memory system
Folders, albums, and tags are borrowed from file systems, not from how people actually think about their photos. Nobody remembers "that shot is in the Q3 2021 travel folder." They remember roughly when something happened, in what season, around what time in their life. For photographers managing 100,000+ images, that mismatch creates real workflow paralysis — the library becomes a place to store things, not to use them.
A file system masquerading as a memory system
Folders, albums, and tags are borrowed from file systems, not from how people actually think about their photos. Nobody remembers "that shot is in the Q3 2021 travel folder." They remember roughly when something happened, in what season, around what time in their life. For photographers managing 100,000+ images, that mismatch creates real workflow paralysis — the library becomes a place to store things, not to use them.
MEMORY.
MEMORY.
MEMORY.
PROCESS
Replacing the model before redesigning the interface
I started by mapping how photographers actually retrieve images — not how they file them. Interviews pointed consistently to time and context as the dominant memory cues, never folder names. That reframed the whole problem: the interface didn't need better organisation tools, it needed a different organising principle.
Replacing the model before redesigning the interface
I started by mapping how photographers actually retrieve images — not how they file them. Interviews pointed consistently to time and context as the dominant memory cues, never folder names. That reframed the whole problem: the interface didn't need better organisation tools, it needed a different organising principle.
DESIGN DECISIONS
Navigation that matches how memory actually works
The central interaction is a timeline scrubber that moves fluidly between year, month, and day views — zooming a library the way you'd zoom a map, not drilling through folder hierarchies. A single continuous gesture replaces multi-step navigation, leveraging the mental model people already have for their own memories. Density is handled through progressive summarisation: year view shows representative landmark images, and detail reveals itself as you zoom in. The visual language stays out of the way — neutral palette, generous spacing, minimal chrome — so the photos remain the subject.
Navigation that matches how memory actually works
The central interaction is a timeline scrubber that moves fluidly between year, month, and day views — zooming a library the way you'd zoom a map, not drilling through folder hierarchies. A single continuous gesture replaces multi-step navigation, leveraging the mental model people already have for their own memories. Density is handled through progressive summarisation: year view shows representative landmark images, and detail reveals itself as you zoom in. The visual language stays out of the way — neutral palette, generous spacing, minimal chrome — so the photos remain the subject.
IMPACT
Intuitive on first contact, rediscovery as a side effect
Testing pointed to the same response every time: timeline navigation felt immediately intuitive — and users who'd stopped engaging with their libraries found themselves rediscovering images they'd forgotten existed.
Intuitive on first contact, rediscovery as a side effect
Testing pointed to the same response every time: timeline navigation felt immediately intuitive — and users who'd stopped engaging with their libraries found themselves rediscovering images they'd forgotten existed.
FIGMA · PROTOTYPING · DATA VISUALIZATION · UX RESEARCH · INTERACTION DESIGN
FIGMA · PROTOTYPING · DATA VISUALIZATION · UX RESEARCH · INTERACTION DESIGN
