These photography templates are designed and maintained in-house by uiCookies, built to put your images first. Each is free to download, comes with a live demo, and ships as plain HTML, CSS, and JavaScript — no signup and no build tools.
All three run on Bootstrap 5 with vanilla JavaScript, including a built-in lightbox so visitors can open your photos full-screen. Drop in your own gallery images, adjust the layout, and you have a portfolio site that gets out of the way of the work.
The templates
Mosaic
Mosaic is a pure image-gallery template: a true CSS-columns masonry grid of varied-height frames with instant category filtering, a load-more reveal, and a custom keyboard-friendly lightbox (arrows, escape, focus trap).
The near-black gallery canvas with a single restrained brass accent keeps the chrome out of the way so the images always lead. One page, Bootstrap 5, no jQuery.
Explorer
Explorer is a full-bleed, image-led photography template with project galleries and a built-in lightbox. Large hero imagery and generous spacing let each photo carry the page, which suits travel, landscape, and editorial photographers.
Galleries open in a clean custom lightbox with keyboard navigation, and sections reveal as you scroll using an IntersectionObserver rather than a heavy animation library.
Aside
Aside keeps a fixed side navigation in view while a grid of thumbnails fills the rest of the screen, so browsing feels like flicking through a contact sheet. It is a good fit for studios and visual portfolios with a lot of work to show.
The gallery grid is responsive and pairs with a lightbox for full-size viewing, and the layout stays minimal so nothing competes with the images.
Aperture
Aperture is an image-first photography portfolio with a full-bleed hero, a masonry gallery that opens in a hand-built lightbox, and honest package pricing. Restrained chrome keeps the focus on the work, and every interaction is plain vanilla JavaScript.
Compare at a glance
| Template | Best for | Layout | Standout feature |
|---|---|---|---|
| Explorer | Travel / editorial photography | Full-bleed, scrolling | Custom lightbox galleries |
| Aside | Studio / visual portfolio | Fixed side nav + grid | Contact-sheet thumbnail grid |
| Aperture | Photographer portfolio | Full-bleed + masonry | Hand-built lightbox |
How to choose
Pick Explorer if you want each project to fill the screen and lead visitors through a scrolling story; pick Aside if you would rather show a dense grid of work with a persistent menu to jump around. Both handle a large number of images well.
Whichever you choose, compress your photos before publishing — large image files are the main thing that slows a gallery site down. The templates lazy-load images out of the box, but well-sized files keep the experience fast on mobile connections.
Frequently asked questions
Do these photography templates include a lightbox?
Yes. Both Explorer and Aside include a built-in lightbox, so visitors can click a thumbnail to view the full-size photo with keyboard and touch navigation. No extra plugin is required.
Will lots of high-resolution photos slow my site down?
Large image files are the biggest factor. The templates lazy-load images so off-screen photos are not fetched until needed, but you should still export web-sized, compressed versions of your photos for the best performance.
Are the galleries mobile responsive?
Yes. Both templates are built on Bootstrap 5, so the galleries and navigation adapt to phones and tablets automatically.
Can I use them for a paid client project?
Yes. The templates are free for personal and commercial use, so you can build client portfolios and photography sites with them at no cost.
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