If I'd have to choose I'd take a kinda-good off the shelf solution over a "Linux tools hacked together" solution any day.
Especially because I don't want to maintain something important like a photo collection forever. Having other people in the family being able to use it by just installing some mobile app off the app store is also a big plus.
Of course, so would I. But I haven't found any kinda-good off the shelf solution. They're all sorta bad in their own way. Plex and Jellyfin constantly frustrate me with the bizarre unfixable issues I encounter.
Especially because I don't want to maintain something important like a photo collection forever. Having other people in the family being able to use it by just installing some mobile app off the app store is also a big plus.