MemoryLaneSuper-fast large photo library organizer
Rediscover the memories
sitting on your drives.
Built by photographers, MemoryLane turns your local photos and videos into a fast, memorable, living library.
Who it is for
A different memory every time you arrive.
Example performance
An example from a real, indexed library on local storage. Load time varies with the computer, storage, and whether generated previews are already cached.
More than a folder browser
The tools to rediscover,
explore, and experience.
Start with simple browsing. Follow any subject below for the details, or keep scrolling through the whole archive.
- RediscoveryBring forgotten photographs back through a changing home page, this-day memories, and unexpected journeys through the archive.Learn more →
- OrganizationBrowse large photography hoards, add tags and favorites, and clean up with a deliberate review process.Learn more →
- For photographersWork with RAW files, EXIF reports, precise photographic filters, and a history of the cameras and lenses behind the archive.Learn more →
- Video and Live PhotosKeep stills and motion in the same library, play supported originals, and review older formats before converting them.Learn more →
- Optional local AIAdd natural-language search, visually similar photographs, and People when those ways of exploring become useful.Learn more →
- Local storageLeave originals in their existing folders and keep generated previews and library information on storage you control.Learn more →
- How it worksInstall MemoryLane, choose the folders you already use, and begin browsing while the local library is built.Learn more →
- PrivacyUnderstand what stays local, when MemoryLane uses the internet, and which parts of your library are worth backing up.Learn more →
Rediscovery
Let old memories
surface again.
Most photographs in a large archive disappear into folders after the day they were taken. MemoryLane brings them back through a changing home page, this-day memories, random journeys, and quick ways to wander through years of family life and photographic work.
A different photograph whenever you arrive.
The same date across the years.
- Rename the home page for a family archive such as John's Albums.
- Take a fullscreen Surprise Me trip without choosing a folder first.
- Move through folders, dates, favorites, tags, locations, people, cameras, and lenses.
Organization
Built for large
photography hoards.
Keep the folder structure you already trust. MemoryLane adds fast browsing and curation across many folders and drives while the original photographs stay where they are.
- Folders: add several folders or drives, exclude what does not belong, rescan one source, and schedule regular checks.
- Favorites and tags: browse imported keywords and add personal tags without rewriting the originals.
- Viewer: zoom with the mouse wheel, pan, enter fullscreen, inspect metadata, and play Live Photos or video.
- Locations: explore geotagged photographs on an offline map with year and source filters.
- Apple Photos: on macOS, browse the catalog through an optional read-only connection and open items back in Photos.
Cleanup moves the selected original with its RAW, Live Photo, and XMP companions into visible, reversible trash folders. Permanent deletion remains a separate confirmed action.
For photographers
Every tag your camera
wrote, actually usable.
Camera, lens, aperture, shutter speed, ISO, focal length, keywords, GPS, and more become ways to understand years of work. ExifTool reads standard and manufacturer-specific metadata from thousands of camera models. RAW files receive correctly oriented previews, and matching RAW and JPEG versions appear as one photograph while both originals remain intact.
- RAW+JPEG pairingMatching RAW and JPEG files appear as one photograph while both originals remain intact. The pair stays linked while browsing and during cleanup.
- Stacks for bursts and related framesCollapse a burst into one useful entry, choose its cover, split selected frames, or build a stack by hand. Manual changes are left alone by automatic regrouping.
Supported RAW formats
- Canon CR2 / CR3 / CRAW
- Nikon NEF / NRW
- Sony ARW / SR2
- Fujifilm RAF
- Olympus / OM System ORF
- Panasonic / Lumix RW2
- Pentax PEF
- Samsung SRW
- Sigma X3F
- Kodak DCR / KDC
- Hasselblad 3FR
- Adobe DNG
Video and Live Photos
Keep stills and motion
in the same story.
Video appears beside photographs with a poster frame, duration, and playback. Apple Live Photos stay paired as one item, so the still and its moment of motion do not get separated.
Poster frames, duration, and native playback.
Still and motion kept together.
- Filter photographs, videos, or everything together.
- Find older formats that a browser cannot play and choose whether to create a compatible copy.
- Nothing is converted automatically, and an original is only archived after you review the result.
Optional local features
More ways to explore,
only when you want them.
The core library works without the optional AI download. Add it from Settings when these ways of exploring would help you experience the archive again.
- Search in everyday languageDescribe what you remember, such as a child riding a bicycle, a beach at sunset, or a red car, and search for matching photographs without adding every tag by hand.
- Find visually similar photographsStart from one photograph and uncover related frames from other folders, dates, or cameras. It can also help bring alternate versions and overlooked sequences back together.
- Browse the people in your archiveGroup faces, add names, merge or correct groups, browse a person through the years, hide unwanted results, and remove face information whenever you choose.
- Keep optional features optionalInstall, update, disable, or remove the additional components from Settings. Analysis runs on your computer, continues in the background, and shows its progress without blocking ordinary browsing.
Local storage
Your originals stay
in your folders.
MemoryLane does not import photographs into a private vault. It keeps a local library beside the folders and drives you already use, with generated thumbnails and previews that make browsing fast.
- Generated files can be rebuiltThumbnails, previews, extracted metadata, and search indexes can be recreated by scanning the originals again.
- Your curation is worth backing upFavorites, personal tags, manual stacks, cleanup decisions, and named people live in the library database. Back it up if that work matters to you.
- Choose where generated data livesSee how much space it uses and move it to another SSD or hard drive without relocating the photographs.
- One standalone systemThere is no required service account or subscription. Add larger optional components only when they are useful.
How it works
From folders to a library
in three simple steps.
- 01Install MemoryLaneOpen the small desktop app, create the administrator login for your installation, and continue in your normal web browser.
- 02Choose your photo foldersAdd one or several folders or drives. Originals remain in place while MemoryLane builds its local index and previews.
- 03Start exploringBrowse as indexing continues. Add optional features later from Settings, and schedule rescans when the archive changes.
Privacy
Your photographs are not
uploaded for analysis.
MemoryLane runs on your computer. Browsing, indexing, reports, and optional analysis use local files and local services. Your photo and video files are not uploaded to operate those features.
- MemoryLane uses the internet for application updates, optional component downloads, and selected gear reference information.
- Cleanup marking only hides an item. Moving files, archiving an older video, and permanent deletion are separate actions that require your choice.
- The Apple Photos connection is read-only and sends you back to Photos for changes managed by that library.
Ready when you are.
Bring your memories back into view and give your photo archive new life.
Windows installer for 64-bit PCs. Mac installer for Apple silicon. Linux users can build and run MemoryLane from the source repository.