I think you can try to load a few of these pictures as soon as app starts.
For instance, in your app.component.ts
constructor(platform: Platform) { this.platform = platform; this.platform.ready().then(() => { load.your.firebase.images }}
Then it will load the images as soon as users start your app so they will not have to wait to see pictures.
This may not be the best solution but it’s worth trying… I solved many problems using this method.