Photo-sharing websites used to be more common, but the majority of sites have consolidated into a handful of services. Here are the top five free photo-sharing sites, plus one honorable mention helpful for professional photographers.
Picaca Web Albums have been a part of Google's network of services since 2004. The service is linked to all Blogger accounts, which provides a method of photo storage for users of the service.
Picasa Web Albums has a clean, clutter-free interface that makes it easy to add, move or delete photos. It also makes it easy to set photo and album privacy. You can use Picasa Web Albums with or without the desktop Picasa tool. The tool can help you mass upload images from your computer with its automatic scanning abilities.
Flickr has been around since 2004 and is one of the most popular photo-sharing services. It's part of Yahoo's family of services. Users can sign up for free and store up to 200 photos in Flickr's Web albums, making them easy to share. Users who want to upload more photos will have to sign up for Flickr Pro, which provides unlimited photo storage and HD video capabilities. Flickr Pro also lets users license their photos through Getty.
Standard Flickr users are exposed to ads, as this is one of the ways the company monetizes the sites. Flickr Pro users, however, are offered an ad-free navigation experience.
Also Check :
Top 10 Free Image Hosting & Photo Sharing Sites
Top 15+ Image Editing Tools
Top 3 Image Search Engines
Photobucket is right behind Flickr as one of the most popular photo sharing services. Up until a few years ago, Photobucket had a storage limit for its customers. As of 2012, however, Photobucket users can upload as many photos as they want, and up to 500 videos.
Photobucket's social integration makes it easy to share photos and videos on social-networking sites like Facebook, MySpace and Twitter. Users can also easily order prints of their photos without leaving the Photobucket account dashboard. Photobucket is a division of Fox Interactive Media (News Corp.).
ImageShack describes itself as a media hosting company and was founded in 2003. Although it's primarily used by bloggers and webmasters for its embedding capabilities, it's also a place to share a personal photo album. Free users can upload up to 500 files (images or videos) to their ImageShack accounts. Users who want to upload more than 500 files will need to sign up for one of ImageShack's subscription plans, which start at $2 per month.
Shutterfly is primarily known for its photo and product printing services, but the service also gives users the ability to store photos in online albums, making it easy for them to share their pictures with friends and family.
The best part about Shutterfly is that the company doesn't scale down or reduce the quality of uploaded images, which means high-quality photos can be shared and downloaded on the site. Shutterfly's ad-free business model works because many users purchase prints and products.
SmugMug is an image sharing service aimed at professional photographers, allowing images of much higher resolution than most free photo-sharing services. SmugMug does not offer a free account, but it does offer a free 14-day trial. The service also makes it easy for professional photographers to offer prints to their customers while maintaining image privacy.
Top 5 Photo Sharing Sites
Google Picasa Web Albums
Picaca Web Albums have been a part of Google's network of services since 2004. The service is linked to all Blogger accounts, which provides a method of photo storage for users of the service.
Picasa Web Albums has a clean, clutter-free interface that makes it easy to add, move or delete photos. It also makes it easy to set photo and album privacy. You can use Picasa Web Albums with or without the desktop Picasa tool. The tool can help you mass upload images from your computer with its automatic scanning abilities.
Flickr
Flickr has been around since 2004 and is one of the most popular photo-sharing services. It's part of Yahoo's family of services. Users can sign up for free and store up to 200 photos in Flickr's Web albums, making them easy to share. Users who want to upload more photos will have to sign up for Flickr Pro, which provides unlimited photo storage and HD video capabilities. Flickr Pro also lets users license their photos through Getty.
Standard Flickr users are exposed to ads, as this is one of the ways the company monetizes the sites. Flickr Pro users, however, are offered an ad-free navigation experience.
Also Check :
Top 10 Free Image Hosting & Photo Sharing Sites
Top 15+ Image Editing Tools
Top 3 Image Search Engines
Photobucket
Photobucket is right behind Flickr as one of the most popular photo sharing services. Up until a few years ago, Photobucket had a storage limit for its customers. As of 2012, however, Photobucket users can upload as many photos as they want, and up to 500 videos.
Photobucket's social integration makes it easy to share photos and videos on social-networking sites like Facebook, MySpace and Twitter. Users can also easily order prints of their photos without leaving the Photobucket account dashboard. Photobucket is a division of Fox Interactive Media (News Corp.).
ImageShack
ImageShack describes itself as a media hosting company and was founded in 2003. Although it's primarily used by bloggers and webmasters for its embedding capabilities, it's also a place to share a personal photo album. Free users can upload up to 500 files (images or videos) to their ImageShack accounts. Users who want to upload more than 500 files will need to sign up for one of ImageShack's subscription plans, which start at $2 per month.
Shutterfly
Shutterfly is primarily known for its photo and product printing services, but the service also gives users the ability to store photos in online albums, making it easy for them to share their pictures with friends and family.
The best part about Shutterfly is that the company doesn't scale down or reduce the quality of uploaded images, which means high-quality photos can be shared and downloaded on the site. Shutterfly's ad-free business model works because many users purchase prints and products.
Honorable Mention: SmugMug
SmugMug is an image sharing service aimed at professional photographers, allowing images of much higher resolution than most free photo-sharing services. SmugMug does not offer a free account, but it does offer a free 14-day trial. The service also makes it easy for professional photographers to offer prints to their customers while maintaining image privacy.