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Overview

Visual Portfolio supports three primary content sources for building galleries and portfolios. Each source type has its own configuration options and use cases.
Content sources are defined in the content_source control at classes/class-admin.php:1309

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Content Source Types

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Post-Based Content

Display WordPress posts, pages, custom post types, or portfolio items. Configuration: 
// Located in: classes/class-admin.php:1313
'post-based' => array(
    'value' => 'post-based',
    'title' => esc_html__( 'Posts', 'visual-portfolio' ),
    'icon'  => '<svg>...</svg>',
)
Post Source Options:
Select from available WordPress post types:
'posts_source' => 'post',      // Standard posts
'posts_source' => 'page',      // Pages
'posts_source' => 'portfolio', // Portfolio items
'posts_source' => 'product',   // WooCommerce products
Query Controls: 
// Taxonomy filters
'posts_taxonomies_' . $taxonomy => array(term_ids),

// Author filter
'posts_author' => array(author_ids),

// Keyword search
'posts_keyword' => 'search term',

// Exclude posts
'posts_excluded_ids' => array(post_ids),

'posts_order_by' => 'date',     // date, title, rand, menu_order
'posts_order_direction' => 'DESC', // DESC or ASC

// Avoid duplicates across multiple portfolios
'posts_avoid_duplicate' => false,

// Post meta query
'posts_meta_query' => array(
    array(
        'key' => 'featured',
        'value' => 'yes',
    ),
),

// Date query
'posts_date_query' => array(
    'after' => '2023-01-01',
),

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Images Content

Display a custom gallery from WordPress Media Library images. Configuration: 
// Located in: classes/class-admin.php:1319
'images' => array(
    'value' => 'images',
    'title' => esc_html__( 'Images', 'visual-portfolio' ),
    'icon'  => '<svg>...</svg>',
)
Image Options: 
// Select images from media library
'images' => array(
    array(
        'id'          => 123,
        'url'         => 'https://example.com/image.jpg',
        'title'       => 'Image Title',
        'description' => 'Image Description',
        'caption'     => 'Image Caption',
        'alt'         => 'Alt Text',
    ),
),
Images source is ideal for creating standalone galleries without requiring post content.
Image Attributes:
  • id - WordPress attachment ID
  • url - Full image URL
  • title - Image title from media library
  • description - Full image description
  • caption - Short caption text
  • alt - Alternative text for accessibility
  • focal_point - Custom focal point (Pro feature)

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Social Stream Content

Display content from social media platforms (Pro feature). Configuration: 
// Located in: classes/class-admin.php:1325
'social-stream' => array(
    'value' => 'social-stream',
    'title' => esc_html__( 'Social', 'visual-portfolio' ),
    'icon'  => '<svg>...</svg>',
)
Social Stream is a premium feature available in Visual Portfolio Pro. See the Pro documentation for details.

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Implementation Details

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Content Source Registration

// Located in: classes/class-admin.php:1305
Visual_Portfolio_Controls::register(
    array(
        'category'     => 'content-source',
        'type'         => 'icons_selector',
        'name'         => 'content_source',
        'setup_wizard' => true,
        'default'      => '',
        'options'      => array(
            'post-based'     => array(/* ... */),
            'images'         => array(/* ... */),
            'social-stream'  => array(/* ... */),
        ),
    )
);

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Query Building

The Visual_Portfolio_Get class handles query building: 
// Located in: classes/class-get-portfolio.php
class Visual_Portfolio_Get {
    /**
     * Get portfolio query based on options
     */
    public static function get_options( $atts = array() ) {
        $id       = isset( $atts['id'] ) ? $atts['id'] : false;
        $block_id = isset( $atts['block_id'] ) ? $atts['block_id'] : false;
        
        // Get registered controls and their values
        $registered = Visual_Portfolio_Controls::get_registered_array();
        
        // Build result array with attribute values
        foreach ( $registered as $item ) {
            if ( isset( $atts[ $item['name'] ] ) ) {
                $result[ $item['name'] ] = $atts[ $item['name'] ];
            } else {
                $result[ $item['name'] ] = Visual_Portfolio_Controls::get_registered_value(
                    $item['name'], 
                    $block_id ? false : $id 
                );
            }
        }
        
        return $result;
    }
}

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Archive Mapping

Visual Portfolio can automatically replace WordPress archive pages with portfolio layouts: 
// Located in: classes/class-archive-mapping.php
$is_archive_query = 
    'post-based' === $options['content_source'] &&
    'current_query' === $options['posts_source'];
Archive Page Setup:
1

Enable Portfolio Post Type

Enable the Portfolio post type in Settings > General
'register_portfolio_post_type' => 'on',
2

Select Archive Page

Choose a page to serve as your portfolio archive
'portfolio_archive_page' => 42, // Page ID
3

Configure Items Per Page

Set pagination for archive:
'archive_page_items_per_page' => 6,

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Extending Content Sources

Developers can add custom content sources: 
add_filter( 'vpf_extend_posts_source', function( $sources ) {
    $sources['my_custom_source'] = array(
        'value' => 'my_custom_source',
        'title' => __( 'My Custom Source', 'text-domain' ),
        'icon'  => '<svg>...</svg>',
    );
    return $sources;
});

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Content Source Filters

Key filter hooks for content sources: 
// Extend available post sources
apply_filters( 'vpf_extend_posts_source', array() );

// Filter portfolio options
apply_filters( 'vpf_get_options', $result, $atts );

// Filter taxonomy availability for filters
apply_filters( 'vpf_allow_taxonomy_for_filter', $allow, $taxonomy );

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Related AJAX Endpoints

Content source controls use these REST endpoints: 
// Find available post types
class Visual_Portfolio_Admin {
    public function find_post_types_options() {
        // Returns: array of post type options
    }
    
    public function find_posts_select_control( $attributes, $control ) {
        // Returns: array of posts for selection
    }
    
    public function find_taxonomies_select_control( $attributes, $control ) {
        // Returns: array of taxonomy terms
    }
}

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Performance Considerations

Large queries can impact performance. Consider:
  • Using pagination for post-based content
  • Limiting items per page
  • Enabling caching mechanisms
  • Avoiding complex custom queries when possible

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See Also

Portfolio Post Type

Learn about the custom Portfolio post type

Layouts

Choose the right layout for your content

REST API

Query content via REST API

Filters Reference

View all available filter hooks

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