For a free option, Picasa was recommended as a good fit for this kind of task. It offers fast browsing, full-screen review, tagging, and basic editing, so it can work well for selecting keepers from a large batch.

If speed is the top priority, Photo Mechanic was recommended as an especially fast culling tool. It’s widely used for large shoots because images load very quickly, and you can add metadata tags and then move or organize files afterward. However, it may be outside your budget unless a trial is enough.

Another answer suggested using a lightweight viewer before importing into a full cataloging app, to avoid building previews and library data for photos you’ll reject anyway. That approach can save time when narrowing thousands of shots down to the best ones.

So, based on the answers: try Picasa first if you want a free all-round solution, and consider Photo Mechanic if you need maximum speed for culling.