Use case
Churches and nonprofits: find it in seconds.
Years of events, shot by many volunteers and saved everywhere. When someone asks for that photo from last Easter, find it while they wait.
In short: Media teams at churches and nonprofits can add their photo and video folders to Sift, name the people they’re asked for most, and search by description or name. Search runs on the team’s computer, so people’s photos aren’t uploaded to be searched.
No editor needed. Sift works on its own as a desktop app on Mac and Windows: search, preview, build Selects and share footage by link without opening an editor. The editor panels are optional.
The problem.
Volunteers come and go, and each one saves things differently. The archive grows into tens of thousands of files that only one person knows their way around. Then someone needs a photo for a newsletter by this afternoon.
When you don’t need it.
If your team needs one shared library with permissions for many staff, Sift isn’t there yet. Today it suits one media person or a small team sharing by link.
A workflow that fits.
- Add your archive
Add the folders or drives where photos and video are kept.
- Name who you’re asked for
Name staff and regular faces once, and check the matches.
- Search in plain words
“Baptism in the sanctuary”, “kids laughing at camp”, or a person’s name.
- Send what they need
Share a link people view in any browser and download from, with no account.
What helps most.
Plain words replace knowing the folder structure.
One search covers both, including spoken words in video.
Find repeated files and see how much room they use.
Files stay on your computer unless you share them by link.
Questions
Does it work with photos kept in Google Drive?
Folders synced to your computer work today when the files are on the computer. Sift skips online-only files unless you turn on Read cloud-only files in Settings. A direct Google Drive connection is in Google’s review.
Can our whole team share one library?
Not yet. Each Sift license covers one computer. You can share any set of photos or footage by link.
What about photos of children?
Sift’s face grouping runs on your computer and isn’t uploaded. Follow your organization’s own consent rules before naming people or sharing a link.
What does it cost?
$99 a year for one computer, Mac or Windows. Free for 3 days or 25 searches. No card.
Keep reading.
Try it on your own footage.
Free for 3 days or 25 searches. No card. Then $99 a year for one computer, Mac or Windows. Everything in Sift, including the optional editor panels and one free link to share footage.