Portfolio Hover Effect

Hi there,
I was wondering if this kind of thing: http://www.platodesign.co.nz/our-work/ might be achievable?
I’m thinking in terms of the image scale effect (perhaps) but mostly in the ability to provide textual context to the image, with the ability to then link to a page or file.
Having a filter/sorting capability would also be really handy, although I guess this kind of functionality is already present (with regards to the breadcrumb trail)?
Thanks in advance,
Jas