A subdomain (e.g. gallery.patriciajohnsonphoto.com) allows you to create a dedicated web address for your galleries, while staying consistent with the rest of your online presence.

If you want a seamless branded experience for your clients, connecting a subdomain to Client Gallery is a smart choice. This guide will walk you through setting up a subdomain (e.g. gallery.patriciajohnsonphoto.com). The process will not interfere with your root domain (e.g. patriciajohnsonphoto.com) if it is already pointed somewhere else, like your main photography website.

Note: If you want to connect a custom domain to your Pixieset Website, see this guide instead.

On this page:

• Before you start
• Step One: Log into your domain provider’s dashboard
• Step Two: Add the CNAME Record
• Step Three: Connect to Client Gallery
• Troubleshooting

Before you start

• An upgraded Client Gallery or Suite subscription is required to set up a subdomain to your Client Gallery.
• Ensure you have a third-party domain with full access to its DNS settings. If you do not own a domain, you will need to purchase one first from a domain provider like GoDaddy before you can complete the steps in this guide.
• Your domain must remain hosted by a third-party domain provider in order to stay connected to Client Gallery. This is because you are connecting a subdomain to Pixieset, not transferring your domain.

Step One: Log into your domain provider’s dashboard

Log into your domain provider’s dashboard and locate your DNS records. This section is typically called DNS Settings, but it may also be called DNS Manager, Zone File Settings, Domain Manager, or similar.

Important: When following the guide, do not modify any existing MX records. MX records manage your email address and removing them will interrupt your email service.

Step Two: Add the CNAME Record

In your DNS settings, add a new CNAME record with the following properties as shown below. You can replace “gallery” with any subdomain you want to use for your gallery links. For example, if you use “proof”, the link will follow the format “proof.patriciajohnsonphotos.com/collectionname”.

Type	Host (or Alias)	Points to (or Data/Value)	TTL
CNAME	gallery	domain.pixieset.com	1 hour (or the minimum time allowed)

Important: Paste “domain.pixieset.com” exactly as-is into your new CNAME record. Do not replace it with your username or your personal domain details.

Step Three: Connect to Client Gallery

Once your new record is set up, you are ready to connect your subdomain to your Client Gallery collections:

1. In your Client Gallery Dashboard, go to Settings > Branding.

2. Under Custom Domain, click +Add custom domain.

3. Enter your subdomain name and click Next to verify and save.

   

   That’s it! If you see your subdomain appear afterwards, then the connection was successful. Our system will start generating a security certificate for your subdomain and no further action is required on your end.

Troubleshooting

• I can’t update my DNS records.
• I updated my DNS records, but it's not working.
• My galleries are showing as "Not Secure" or are missing the security certificate.
• I want to use my root domain instead of a subdomain.

I can’t update my DNS records.

If you can’t modify your DNS records, it typically means that the records are being used for domain forwarding (or a redirect). Check your domain provider’s for a dedicated section called “Forwarding”, “Redirects”, or similar. You will need to delete any forwards or redirects that are set up there.

If there are no forwards or redirects, confirm that your domain is being actively hosted. Some domain providers may “park” your domain if it hasn’t been used so you will need to reactivate it. If you cannot activate the domain yourself, your domain provider’s support team will be able to assist directly.

I updated my DNS records, but it's not working

Provided your domain is actively hosted by your domain provider, any DNS changes can take up to 48 hours to propagate across the entire internet. If you're confident that you have set up the records outlined in the above guide correctly, you may need to simply wait for the DNS changes to propagate.

Keep in mind that you will also need to create your DNS records with the domain provider that is hosting your domain. This may not be the same provider that you purchased the domain from. For example, if you have purchased your domain from GoDaddy but you use Bluehost for hosting, you will need to create the DNS records in Bluehost’s dashboard.

My galleries are showing as "Not Secure" or are missing the security certificate.

This is expected if you very recently connected your subdomain, as SSL security certificates may take some time to generate. We recommend allowing 24 hours for this to complete but it should be much faster.

If your certificate does not generate successfully, review your domain’s DNS records to make sure there aren’t any CAA records saved with your domain host. CAA records can prevent the system from generating a security certificate successfully, so you would want to delete those.

You can always contact support@pixieset.com if your certificate is not in place after a full day.

I want to use my root domain instead of a subdomain.

If you prefer to use just your root domain (e.g. patriciajohnsonphoto.com) instead of a subdomain (e.g. gallery.patriciajohnsonphoto.com) for your galleries’ links, you can achieve this by setting up one CNAME record for “www” and two A records for “@”.

Instead of following Step #2 in the guide above, set up these three records instead. We recommend pasting the values to ensure the records are entered correctly. Do not replace “www” or “domain.pixieset.com” with your username or your personal domain details.

Type	Host (or Alias)	Points to (or Data/Value)	TTL
CNAME	www	domain.pixieset.com	1 hour (or the minimum time allowed)
A	@	104.16.185.173	1 hour (or the minimum time allowed)
A	@	104.16.186.173	1 hour (or the minimum time allowed)

Tip: If you can’t enter “@” when setting up your A records, try leaving the field blank or entering your domain name.