Getting Started
Logging In
Open StudioFlow in your browser and enter your email address and password. You stay signed in for up to 7 days between visits — each visit resets the clock, so regular use keeps you signed in indefinitely — or until you log out or clear your browser data. Once you have set up a passkey you can also tap Sign in with a passkey and use your fingerprint, your face, or your device PIN instead — see Settings → Signing in with a passkey.
If your account is linked to more than one studio — for example you freelance for multiple photographers — you will see a studio picker after signing in. Choose the studio you want to open. You can switch studios at any time from the menu under your name without signing out again.
StudioFlow is available in seven languages — English, Swiss German, Swiss French, Swiss Italian, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese and Hungarian (Magyar). Hungarian is the newest: parts of the app may still appear in English while its translation is completed. It picks your language automatically from your browser, and you can change it any time in Settings → Application Preferences → Language.
Your initial account is created by the studio owner or an admin. You cannot self-register — all team members are added through the Team page.
The Dashboard
After login you land on the Dashboard, which gives you a live snapshot of studio activity.
The dashboard shows:
| Widget | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Upcoming Shoots | Next scheduled shoot(s) with countdown and location |
| Pending Invoices | Invoices that are sent or overdue, with the overdue count |
| Recent Projects | Latest projects by creation or update date |
| Upcoming Events | Calendar entries in the next few days |
| Active Projects | Every project that isn't Closed or Cancelled |
| Total Clients | Client count |
| My Tasks | Your open and in-progress tasks, ordered by due date |
| New inquiries need your attention | Pending booking requests and new inquiries waiting to be picked up |
| Needs Attention | Things at risk of slipping — overdue invoices, unaccepted contracts, stalled deliveries — see Needs Attention |
| Recent activity | What you and the team have done, and Deleted Items for the last 30 days |
Everyone gets the Dashboard, whatever their access level. The widgets are what differ, and each one shows itself to the people who could open the page behind it anyway:
- Pending Invoices — Owners, Admins and Bookkeepers, the only levels with money to chase. A Crew member never meets an invoice figure here.
- Total Clients — Owners, Admins and Crew, except a Crew member scoped to only their projects. A Bookkeeper has no Clients page, so the tile doesn't appear.
- Upcoming Shoots and Upcoming Events — Owners, Admins and Crew. A Bookkeeper has neither the Calendar nor the Shoots page, so neither tile appears.
- Needs Attention, My Tasks, Active Projects / Recent Projects — everyone. These are your work, and something addressed to you should always reach you.
The studio's revenue, VAT and expenses are not on the Dashboard at all; they live on the Finance page.
The layout itself is fixed — widgets can't be reordered or hidden.
Navigation
Desktop (sidebar)
On desktop you see a persistent left sidebar, grouped into Operations, Documents, and Admin. Which links you see depends on your role.
Operations
| Link | What it contains | Who sees it |
|---|---|---|
| Dashboard | Studio snapshot and quick actions | Everyone |
| Needs Attention | What's addressed to you and slipping — see Needs Attention | Everyone |
| Inquiries | New enquiries and booking requests waiting to be picked up | Owner, Admin |
| Emails | The shared studio inbox — turn a client email into a project or a task | Owner, Admin, Crew |
| Projects | Every project, as a board or a list | Everyone |
| Galleries | Client-facing photo galleries | Owner, Admin, Crew |
| My Projects | Just the projects you're assigned to | Crew |
| My Galleries | Just the galleries you're assigned to | Crew |
| Calendar | Shoots and appointments | Owner, Admin, Crew |
| Shoots | Shoot planning and detail | Owner, Admin, Crew |
| Automations | Automatic follow-ups and reminders | Owner, Admin, Crew |
| Tasks | The studio's task board | Owner, Admin, Bookkeeper |
| My Tasks | The same board, showing only your work | Crew |
| Chat | Team chat | Everyone |
Documents
| Link | What it contains | Who sees it |
|---|---|---|
| Clients | The client directory | Owner, Admin, Crew (not a Crew member scoped to only their projects) |
| Offers | Every offer across every project | Owner, Admin |
| Contracts | Every contract | Owner, Admin |
| Invoices | Every invoice | Owner, Admin, Bookkeeper |
| Questionnaires | Questionnaire templates and responses | Owner, Admin |
Admin
| Link | What it contains | Who sees it |
|---|---|---|
| Finance | Income, expenses, VAT and reports | Whoever sees finances: Owners, Bookkeepers, and an Admin with that switch on |
| Team | Staff and contractors | Everyone |
| Settings | Your preferences, and — for Owners and Admins — the studio's setup | Everyone |
| Help | This guide, inside the app | Everyone |
Mobile (menu drawer)
On mobile, tap the menu icon in the top bar to open the full navigation list in a slide-out drawer — the same links as the desktop sidebar, filtered to what your role can see.
"My work" views
Crew get three extra filtered views in addition to the full pages, not instead of them. They answer the question you ask most — what am I on? — without the noise of everything else in the studio.
| View | What it shows |
|---|---|
| My Projects | Every project you're assigned to, sorted by recency |
| My Tasks | Your open and in-progress tasks across all projects, ordered by due date |
| My Galleries | Galleries you're assigned to — through the project's team, through the gallery's own Artist or Editor field, or through a task linked to it |
Every Crew member gets all three, whatever craft they're tagged with. Being tagged Editor rather than Photographer changes who StudioFlow offers you when someone staffs a shoot — it never changes which pages you can open.
Alongside them, a Crew member also has the full Projects, Galleries and Tasks pages. The one thing that narrows those is the only their projects switch on their access: with it on, every one of those pages shows just the jobs they've been put on.
Turning a Client Email Into a Project
Client enquiries land on Emails, your shared studio inbox. Open one on the New tab and choose Create new project — StudioFlow pre-fills the client's name and email, with the email's subject and snippet folded into the notes. Review, pick the service type, and save. The email is then linked to the new project and leaves the New tab. See Inbox for the full triage workflow.
The founding studios programme
StudioFlow runs a small founding studios programme — ten seats, for studios willing to shape the product while it's still soft enough to change. It isn't an early-bird discount with a countdown; it's a working relationship.
What a founding studio gets
- 25% off for as long as they subscribe, or the Studio plan at CHF 216 for the first year — their pick.
- A direct line to the founder on WhatsApp, not a support queue.
- Free client-list migration: send your export, we import your clients for you.
- Help setting up your real data whenever you ask.
What we ask in return
- A 20-minute feedback call once a month for three months. Blunt beats polite.
- A short testimonial once you've actually used it — anonymised or with your initials, never under your name unless you separately say so.
How to join. Write one line about your studio to info@studioflow.ch, or send a
WhatsApp message. Answer the same day, a call the same week. No form, no waitlist.
The page at /founding says how many seats are left, and says so plainly when
they're gone.
The 30-day trial needs no card either way — try it first, then decide whether a founding seat is worth it.
Browser Back Button
Many dialogs and slide-over panels respond to the browser's back button. Where that's wired up, press back to close an open dialog — the page you were on stays in place.