Sharing photos in no longer a big deal. Whether you’re an Internet addict or just own a computer, you shouldn’t have any problem sharing your digital photos and even your old films with the world. It gets slightly more complicated when you don’t want to share them with the world, but only with a limited amount of people.
Let’s say you want to share photos of your kids with your family, but not with the Web at large, or you’re not into posting your trip photos for all your Facebook friends to see. What do you do then? Well, there are several good services out there that let you do just that. Even Facebook is no left behind, with its own set of options for private sharing. If you’re sitting on a pile of photos you’d like to keep relatively private, but not so private that no one ever gets to see them, continue reading to find the best option for your needs.
Dropbox
It doesn’t get any easier than this. Not long ago, Dropbox added a feature which lets you easily create a shareable link for any folder in your Dropbox account. In order to do this, you’d need a Dropbox account, which is completely free and comes with 2GB of storage. After creating an account and downloading the app (available for all major platforms), simply upload your photos to a new folder in Dropbox. Once they’re all there, all you have to do is right click the folder, find the Dropbox menu and choose “Get link”. If you’re on a mobile device, you’ll find a link icon when viewing the folder within the Dropbox app.
You can now share this link with family and friends, and only those who have this specific link will be able to view the album. The albums interface is very easy to use, and your family will also be able to download photos to their own computer. This feature works with any kind of file, so you can also share videos, presentations and more.
Facebook’s popularity makes this of the most available options on this list, although it’s not the best one if you really care about privacy. If you want to use Facebook to share your photos privately, you can choose exactly who will be able to see any album you upload. After uploading new photos, look at the bottom right corner for this button, which will either say “Friends”, “Friends of Friends” or “Everyone”, depending on your privacy settings.
Click it, and from the menu that opens, choose “Custom”. You can now enter specific names of people you want to share this album with, or specific people you want to hide this album from. You can follow the same procedure for videos. Keep in mind, however, that Facebook is full of shades of grey. Although only these people will be able to see your album, if any of them chooses to share a photo, there’s not much you can do about it. The photos may also become visible to others if your friends Like them or comment on them, so use with caution.
Wee Web
Wee Web is a free service that lets you create your own private social network for your family or close friends. It was made with private sharing in mind, and is geared mainly at families who want to stay updated with photos of the kids (or cats, if you don’t have any kids yet). Using Wee Web is completely free, and you can upload as many photos as you’d like, and even some videos.
To start, create an account with Wee Web. Because it’s made for sharing photos of kids, it will ask you fill in the child’s (or children’s) name and date of birth, and you can also add different family members. For each kid, you can upload photos and videos, share stories, and receive comments. All the family members you add receive automatic notifications every time you add a new photo, video or update. It’s a great way for families who are far from each other to not lose touch of kids growing up, while keeping all the photos and videos within the family. If you want unlimited video upload and access to full-quality image, you can get Wee Web Pro for $29.95 a year.
Sharypic
If you don’t have kids yet, but still want a dedicated service for sharing photos privately, Sharypic offers an original and slick solution. Although you can share any photos you’d like, Sharypic is meant for collaborative sharing of events, such as parties, trips, etc. It’s also great for simply sharing photo albums from your trips or other adventures with family and close friends, and you can do this using the free account.
After creating an event with Shareypic, you’ll get the chance to upload photos from your computer, or through many other sources such as Picasa, email and even your iPhone. Don’t forget to set your event as private, so that only people you invite can access the album. After uploading your photos, you can invite your family and friends to view the album, and they, in turn, can like photos, download them, and also share them on social networks, unless you ask them nicely not to.
Sharepyic has a really beautiful interface, and some useful features such as adding another contributor to the event or embedding the album on your website, if you wish. If you want to use Sharypic for big events, such as weddings, you can buy an event with up to 60 contributors for one-time payments ranging from $9 to $99.
Which Is Right For You?
The abundance of services out there to share photos means you can easily find one that’s exactly right for you. If you’re already using Dropbox to store photos and videos, private sharing is just a click away. If Facebook is easiest for you, and you don’t mind the slight risk, you can share privately in seconds. If you’re sharing photos of your kids and privacy is really important to you, Wee Web is the thing to go for, and if you’re just looking for a slick and convenient interface to share photos of your adventures, you should definitely go with Sharypic.
Didn’t find the right option for you? You might find it in Ryan’s Top 4 Sites To Share Private Home Movies With Family & Friends Top 4 Sites To Share Private Home Movies With Family & Friends Top 4 Sites To Share Private Home Movies With Family & Friends Read More .
How do you share photos with your family? What are the best options out there? Let us know in the comments.
picshareparty.com allows you to easily collect pictures of your family and events into an online gallery by text message. No hashtag hassle or app download. Just texting. Super simple!
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Thanks for this article. I will also like to mention that it can always be hard when you find yourself in school and starting out to initiate a long credit score. There are many scholars who are merely trying to pull through and have a lengthy or beneficial credit history can be a difficult thing to have.
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So I have parents that do not want to "download" anything on their computer. What is the best way to share photos with them? Trying to do it via email takes way too long and there has to be a better way for them to access photos without having to download some program, set up an account...etc. They are older and I am just trying to keep it very simple for them.
ANY suggestions would be great!!
I just had a look at a new private photo sharing app sherish.com and felt it is too good, any one else tried it out?
hey Nieck, i used it few days back.. its good .but they don't have any android app and it becomes difficult because i have android phone and most of my clicks are on pone but then i can do it using browser . but the application is good tough . it organises all photo perfectly ,can even import from facebook and other social media sites ...overall its very very good ...with an android app .. it will be perfect app for photo Management
noooo
Thanks!!
I like the idea of sharing a dropbox folder with a FB friend but I wouldn't do it due to FB's stupid ads thingies..
Not bad. What about PIcasa?
As I explained in one of the comments above, I found the new Google+ interface confusing and not very trustworthy with non-Google users, or even not very tech savvy users, so I didn't include it. It's still an option, of course.
No Bitcasa mention? Awesome unlimited cloud service with many features!
http://l.bitcasa.com/fWivujxT
Thanks!
FACEBOOK
I value privacy too much and wouldn't trust or touch Facebook with a bargepole.
WEE WEB
My kids are now adults
SHARYPIC
Events occur once in a blue moon
GOOGLE DRIVE
Never connected from the first day of numerous installations. Google support doesn't exist other than redirecting to a forum to find hundreds of others with the same problem but no solution. Even if it did work recipients must have a Google account which is not always practical or desired.
DROPBOX
Have got dropbox but despite following all instructions cannot 'get a link'
PICASA
Tried in the past but it insists upon dis-organising all of my photo's when Faststone has already organised them to my requirements and satisfaction.
All I require as a retiree residing overseas is a means to privately post photo's online somewhere to keep in touch and up to date with family and friends back home without the need for them to install anything but able to simply view with a link. Is that task too simple for today's technology?
I think your best bet is Dropbox. If you have the latest version of the client installed, you should see the option to get a public link. What version of Dropbox are you using?
I abandoned Dropbox a while back but may take another look plus some others new to me mentioned here. Thanks
DropBox has become my default method for sharing what I want to share, and they make it so easy! Thank you for another couple of choices, but Facebook is the last one I would use for sharing!
I use Google drive to share pictures. It can be a bit slow to upload the pics but the price is right--FREE.
You really shouldn't have left a few things out of this article. Like who claims they own what when you post anything on their site. Most of the cloud methods/sites don't claim your postings as theirs to do with, I guess that just hasn't evolved yet. But places like G+ do with their all in one ToA's.
Also, no mention that there are any other cloud places that allow 'private collaboration' when in fact, everyone of them (with the exception of G+) do in some way, shape or form. AND The Box is currently, in my humble opinion as I am not as expert as you guys are, the best deal with 5 gig of storage/collaboration free. And they have tons of free aps available for doing just about anything, including photo editing that most could possible want.
Again, I find your daily articles to contain things of interest and this is another one with good information. However, when you indicate that these are the only four choices by by omitting that there are lots of others, you maybe leading some of your readership astray. But for other readers, not having many choices is exactly what they want/need.
MT C
Thanks for the feedback. I agree with most of what you said, and in no way did I mean to indicate that these four options are the ONLY options out there. The title says "4 ways to share..". It's not "The only 4 ways in the world to share...".
These are 4 ways I like and think are good. Wanting to know about other options is the reason I asked for other recommendations in the comments, and got some very good ones.
Thanks for mentioning Box, great option too!
I still just email all my photos, which is easier for me.
There is also Cozi (www.cozi.com)....there is also a family organizer, calendar, locator and much more! We've been using it for years and it's worked great!
Nice, thanks!
FYI for those who are more paran... *ahem* security conscious, Dropbox also carries some risk as they still have decrypted access to your files. There was a little fiasco over a year ago and they amended their ToS to accurately reflect this.
I'm not that concerned about others seeing my photos, but then again most of what I have is pictures of my kids and grandkids!
Why didnt you mention yahoo groups for photo sharing
which is far more controllable than facebook
and has been around for a very long time
http://groups.yahoo.com/mygroups
Why didnt you mention yahoo groups for photo sharing
which is far more controllable than facebook
http://groups.yahoo.com/mygroups
Well, because I haven't used Yahoo in about 12 years. :) Nice to know about this one, thanks!
My current favorite is Picassa (http://picasa.google.com/)
Don't you find it annoying that it's now switched to the Google+ interface. I stopped using it since they made this switch.
Thanks i hate it when someone see what i posted only for my family
I can't believe you left out http://www.liveshare.com by cooliris! That by far is the best way to collaboratively share images with your family! Create albums for free and share then with anyone by email! Its fantastic!
Web Based, Android, iphone etc! All apps!
Good one! I've seen it before, but didn't look at it for this post. Thank you!
What about Google+? I'm just starting to try it out, but it seems fairly nice for creating small groups and sharing photo albums. Do you know of any shortcomings with that system, before I completely commit to it?
Yes. A biggie! Read the ToA and you will find that Google claims all rights to anything you post. They can do as they wish, meaning make a killing off the photos of your cute kid without consideration to you or your family's welfare. Which may lead to your real name and eventually to some smurkhead getting your address and bothering your family and your kid or worse. Not a good idea in my book, but seems a lot of folks just don't care about their privacy any more. And Google certainly doesn't! Nor FB or any other site that doesn't give you exclusive rights to your own material. Be sure to read the ToA and ask yourself questions about what you are reading, the answers can surprise you.
MT C
Hi Jason,
What MTC says below is technically true, also for Facebook. The reason i didn't include Google+, though, is because I don't like its interface, and I've had problems with it with people who don't have a Google+ account.
Picasa Web used to be my go-to solution for sharing pictures with my family, it was very easy for them and for me since I use Picasa anyway. And then they went and changed the whole thing to Google+. Now the interface is confusing for the less tech-savvy people in my family, and doesn't even work for some of them for no apparent reason.
By all means, you are welcome to try it, and it does offer a nice solution, but it didn't work for me, so it didn't make this list.
Thanks for the replies, Yaara and MTC. Here's my thinking, if anyone's interested:
Regarding privacy/security- most online photo storage solutions I would consider do have those sticky rights issues, but I consider it a calculated risk. "Smurkheads" (love the term) exist regardless of where I put my photos, but I consider that low risk because of its low probability. I prefer G+ over Facebook in this regard because the sharing settings seem easier to follow, in my opinion. It seems easier to share with the right "circles" (G+) than the right "custom group" (Facebook), and easier to manage those circles.
Regarding accessibility/technical savviness- I'm dealing with the VCR-flashing-12:00 demographic, so it feels like "in for a penny, in for a pound." If I'm going to do online photo sharing at all, I'd rather use a system I'm already familiar with, and I do use the Google universe of apps fairly regularly. Heck, I've even set up a few Google accounts for family members, complete with "here's how to use G+ to see my photo albums" instructions. It would be equally difficult for me to explain any other sharing system.
I hope that helps with anyone else choosing a photo sharing system. You might weigh the variables differently than me, those are the ones I weighed.
If you have the patience to do that for the G+ interface, it's a good way to share. It's not that it's THAT complicated, but I prefer the simplicity of Dropbox, where no one needs to have any kind of account to view my photo albums, and even my grandmother can use the interface.
All in all, they're all good options. Thanks for the comment!
This is useful - thanks!!
People should keep in mind when they share photos on facebook, they give facebook the right to do anything they want with those photos in perpetuity. If you like to retain ownership of your photos, or at least have some control over them, you might want to think twice about sharing them on facebook.
True enough!
I know a couple of very security-conscious families that are going to perk up at the idea of Wee Web. Thanks.
Shameless plug: I built PicDigest (picdigest.com) to do something similar to this, although it plugs into Facebook and/or Instagram so it's not *exactly* the same.
Thanks, Scott. PiCDigest looks interesting, I'll take a look at it.
You may use a service call Wagapi.com. It is very efficient and based in France
Nice, never heard of this one. Thanks!
I use minus.com you can save what ever file you want and share the link in privage
Oh yes, minus is a great option. Thanks!
I use Sugarsync for sharing photos as there is more options what friends can do and not do
I tried Sugarsync for a while a few years ago and didn't really get along with it. I bet its improved a lot, I should give it a spin again. Thanks!
I lucked out with Skydrive and got 25 Gb of storage. I have been sending links to friends and family to slideshows, videos, etc. with great success. It works very well.
thanks for the article
What about for Instagram?
I'm not sure what you mean when you say "for Instagram". I can try to help if you clarify. :)
I think he meant 'what about instagram?"
Dropbox is the easiest,I think, since most of us alrwady have an account ready. All sites featured are interesting in their own right. Thank you!
Thank You!!
Google+ + Picasa program, which has face recognition, it's a very good experience to upload and share your photos. I'm in process of uploading all my photos on g+, and using picasa is quite easy to put them online and share them with the ones that are in the those albums.