How Moments handles your photos
Your photographs are the whole point. So we keep them whole.
This page explains what happens after you upload a photo to Moments: how the original is stored, how we make pages load quickly, what happens to metadata, and how you can take your photos with you.
We keep your originals
When you upload a photo, we store the original file you uploaded.
We do not re-compress it, resize it, or replace it with an optimised version.
The original is the source of truth. Everything shown on the web is created from that original, and the original is always what you can export.
HEIC photos, the format iPhones and some cameras use, are a small exception. Browsers cannot display HEIC, so when you upload one we keep the untouched HEIC file for your export and create a full-resolution JPEG for the web.
Fast pages, without throwing away the original
Full-resolution photos are often large. Loading the original file everywhere would make pages slow, especially on phones or slower connections.
So Moments serves lighter display versions on the web.
These are made for viewing only:
- Modern formats. We serve AVIF where your browser supports it, with WebP and JPEG fallbacks.
- Sized to the screen. A small image in a feed does not download the full-resolution file. It is resized to roughly what that view needs.
- Higher quality where it matters. Feed images are optimised for speed. The full-screen view is served at a higher quality so detail, tones, and gradients hold up better. And when you zoom in, Moments loads the full file itself, every pixel, in its original colour profile.
These display versions are temporary and can be regenerated. Your original is never touched.
Camera details and metadata
Many photos contain technical details inside the file, such as camera, lens, focal length, aperture, shutter speed, ISO, and date.
Moments can read these details so they can be shown alongside your photo when useful.
Some files may also contain location metadata. We treat that carefully. The public image files served by Moments do not include embedded metadata, so photos shown on the web do not carry those details with them. When a photo has location data, any map link we show points to the general area, not the exact spot.
Where your photos live
Original photos are stored in object storage hosted in Europe.
They are delivered through a global CDN, so your journal can load quickly for people in different places without changing or replacing your original files.
You can always take them with you
Your photos and your data are yours.
You can export your photos at full resolution from your settings, along with your Moments data.
No lock-in. No degraded copies. No trapped memories.
What we do not do
We do not sell your photos.
We do not sell your data.
We do not use your photos to train AI models.
We do not run ads against your work.
Moments is supported by the people who use it, not by extracting value from their photos.
Still improving
Image quality matters here.
If you have a camera, format, colour profile, or edge case where Moments does not do your photographs justice, please let us know. We want the web version of your journal to feel as close to the original as possible.