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Online Photo Resource Guide™
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Updated October 16, 2003

These days, there are a lot of ways to put photo albums on the web for free, or almost free, or for some kind of subscription fee.  The intent of these sites is to allow consumers to upload pictures, invite friends to view them, send photo greeting cards, and sell ancillary merchandise and services.

These sites vary in their restrictions on amount of storage and their promises of retention, but hey! as long as they're free, sign up as often as you like.  There is a definite trend for free sites to run out of money and either be acquired, disappear, or convert to some sort of subscription model, not necessarily in a manner convenient to their current customers. If you expect any of these sites, paid or free, to preserve your precious photos for ever, you are very foolish indeed.  See thecasualty list if you doubt.  My prediction; more instability until the price structure has more relationship to reality.  The retail  price of storage is around $1/Gb, so how can anyone expect to correct $50/yr for a few megabytes of storage?  These sites do have expenses, but they're not primarily for storage.

The list is in approximate order of preference, from the viewpoint of a consumer seeking mass storage; but each site has special merits and demerits, so your preferences may differ.  If you're interested in their printing services, see  my notes on digital color prints.


Amid all these quite similar competing services, some sites have special features worthy of special note.

One final note: these sites vary greatly in what rights they claim you are granting them by uploading your images, and what protection from unauthorized use they provide.  If you care, get your magnifying glass and your lawyer and read a lot of fine print.   However, the only safe assumption is that any image you post on the internet can be seen and used by anyone in the world.
the list
DotPhoto.com
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
unlimited Yes 10 mb browser, email, ftp, snail mail, Windows IE plugin.  Original Images can be downloaded. direct links to albums thumbnails, medium size. 4x6 0.29
5x7 0.95
8x10 2.95
12x18 9.99
print quality: variable
Matte prints are available
Dotphoto is adequate as a viewing and sharing site, but their real focus is to sell prints and enlargements; Their print quality can be very good, as is control over cropping of your prints. On the other hand, perhaps from sheer volume, I receive more complaints about Dotphoto prints than for other sites, so proceed cautiously.  Besides free storage,  inexpensive print pricing and bulk discounts,. they sell what amounts to prepaid print service at bargain rates. In addition to selling your prints to you, they will also sell them to anyone else at prices you specify, and you get the difference.  They accept almost any form of image through the mail, including undeveloped film and negatives, but seem to have a cavalier attitude about returning negatives or CDs. 

Platform Notes:  Macintosh users are well supported, except there is no convenient bulk uploader.


Club Photo
sample album

sampleunenhanced scanned roll

sampleenhanced scanned roll

 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
unlimited
 yes
$1 prepaid mailers. 		 less than 4kx4k browser, album manager, uploader application (both mac and pc)
 direct links to albums,
direct links original image .		 thumbnails, medium size, original image (paid accounts only) .  Slide show. 4x6 0.25
5x7 0.60
8x10 3.99
print quality: good
Matte prints are available
A good site.  They have a good model for maintaining a private collection on your home machine, along with a parallel published version on the web.  Living Album , is good management software (free), with an inexpensive upgrade available.  Mailed-in film appeared on the web amazingly fast: 2 days after dropoff.  Scans are the usual 1536x1024 picture disk resolution, but appear to have been sharpened to the limit of acceptability, and other wise "enhanced", which may account for the strangely colored sand in the sample roll. Club photo offered to rescan the negatives without enhancement, so you can judge for yourself.   If you are a paying customer, It's possible to download the scanned images one at time through their interface, or buy a CD for $4.69.  The only thing wrong with the develop/scan/upload service is that negatives are not delivered in individual sleeves.
Platform Notes:  Macintosh users are supported by iview

PhotoAccess.com
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
accounts dormant 1 year may be deleted. no 10Mb per image. Unaltered originals can be downloaded. browser, ftp-like. direct links to albums. thumbnails, small image, medium size image. 4x6 $0.45
5x7 $1.09
8x10 $2.95
print quality: good.
Matte prints are available.

35mm slide 3.95

slide quality: good
Print quality is now quite good (greatly improved from earlier results).  Nice and sharp but color not quite perfect. Slides were rendered slightly yellow, and resolved about 22 lpm. Album owners can download the original images .  Photoaccess is also prepared to set up partner sites with pro photographers.
Platform Notes:  Macintosh users are well supported.

Ofoto
no sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
unlimited Yes 10mb browser, drag-n-drop plugin,
ftp-like		 Registration is required to view photos. thumbnails, medium size.
Original images are not viewable, but are printed.		 4x6  0.49
5x7 0.99
8x10 3.99
frames 
print quality: usually excellent
Ofoto has the basics, and everything that is there works.  Their uploader application (Ofotonow) has some builtin editing capabilities, including a very convenient redeye remover. Their print quality is usually excellent; among the best among those I've tried. Color and resolution are usually excellent, but exposure  is a trifle over. One batch of prints from Ofoto came back alarmingly blue (see notes). They're also offering inexpensive film scanning;  I was notified that the film had been received a mere 2 days after I mailed it; the actual photos were online 2 days later.  Ofoto tools for rotating the scanned images are pretty inconvenient to use.  Ofoto has no tools for examining the full resolution of the images, so it's hard to evaluate the quality of the scan.
Platform Notes:  Macintosh users are well supported.


Sony ImageStation
no sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
unlimited no 3mb browser, email, drag-n-drop plugin, mass upload plugin Registration is required to view images.
 thumbnails,  medium size, original image 4x6 0.39 
5x7 0.99 
8x10 3.49 
Matte prints on large sizes.
prints by Ofoto
This site includes some interesting special effect engines that can be applied to photos.
Platform Notes:  Macintosh users are well supported by the site's software, and by  iview

PBase.com
sample album


 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
$23/yr for 100mb
 no unlimited browser, single files or zipped collections direct links to albums, direct links to images thumbnails, medium size, large, original image no
This site is a one-man effort, supported by nominal fees collected from the users.  You can still sign up for free, but  It's unclear what will happen if you don't pay.  Pbase is adamantly noncommercial: no banner ads, no products to sell.  Pbase gives you more control over the presentation than most sites. 
Platform Notes: Macintosh users get equal treatment.

Fotki.com
sample album

ebay


 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
10mb free.  Unlimited for $30/yr.
 no unlimited browser, ftp, copy web URL,activeX control (IE only), java applet, compupic.
Ftp downloads are also supported.
 direct links to albums, direct links to original image thumbnails, web size, original image 3 x 5 $ .19 
4 x 6 $ .19
5 x 7 $ .95
8 x 10 $1.99
11 x 14 $4.99
Fotki allows albums to be structured in a hierarchy, like your file system; If you have a lot of categories, this could be a very useful feature. There is no advertising.   There are some other value-added services such as "co-branding" which gives your albums a short URL.
Platform Notes: Mac users are well supported

www.digitalpics.us
sample album

 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
7 day trial.
500 images/$35/yr
 no unlimited browser, java applet direct links to albums, direct links to individual images, original image thumbnails, medium size, original image no
This site is an independant effort by a small company; a nice, original effort - not a "me too".   This ad-free site runs on a subscription model.

GroveStreet.com
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
not stated no 2mb browser, ftp direct links to albums thumbnails, medium size, large, original image no
The basic features you expect are here, and the owner/operator is obviously putting a lot of thought and effort into making a site which is not just a me-too to all the other sites.  Best of all, he seems to read and respond to his email.  The only caveat for this site is that it's a hobby, not a business.  From some points of view that's a good thing!

FotoTime
sample album

 
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
30 day free trial. 23.95/yr for 250 mb no no apparent limit browser, album manager.
Batch downloads are also supported.		 by invitation with registration, or open access to all public pictures. thumbnails, medium size, original image . 4x6 0.49
5x7 0.99
8x10 2.99
 

print quality: very good
This site is uncluttered by advertising, and provides the basic services. Their online viewer is good. They're primarily oriented to maintaining a your site through their album manager, which has some problems (primarily, if you rearrange your hard disk, your web albums get deleted), but works.  Prints were generally very good.  Exposure is very carefully controlled, to the extent that some looked dull and lifeless.  Resolution is excellent.  Color is a little greenish.  Some scan irregularities occured in my tests.
Platform Notes: Mac users are supported by iview a third party album manager.

Webshots
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
about 240 images no 1600x1200 browser, email, album manager direct links to albums thumbnails, medium size, full size 4x6 0.49
5x7 0.99
8x10 2.99

prints by Ofoto
Webshots features basic storage and viewing capabilities. 
Site Notes: This site was affiliated by excite@home, but has been sold back to the original developers, rescuing it from excite@home's bankrupcy (for now).

Cartogra.com
HPphoto.com
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
100 mb no 5mb file size browser,
photo manager		 direct links to albums.  Cookies required. thumbnails, zoomable slide show 4x6 0.49
5x7 0.99
8x10 3.99
prints byOfoto
This site is associated with Hewlett Packard.  It seems to have the good set of standard features.  Their photo manager/uploaded is based on ACDSee .

Any Web Site
sample Web Album Album
sample Jalbum album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
varies, usually multiple megabytes no your choice ftp your choice your choice none
There are many places to get free or cheap web space these days.  They're not photo sites per se, but any web site could be a photo site with the right HTML. Consequently, one of the best choices to present images is to prepare your albums to be viewed as an ordinary web site.  You get complete control over the format and presentation, and you can view the result using any web browser, either directly from your disk (you don't have to run a web server to do this), from an archive CD, or from a real web site.   

Several free programs exist to automate the process of creating "web site" albums;   Web Album Generator.  is freeware.    Jalbum is a java-based freeware program (which presumably means it is available to Mac and Linux users).  In the also-ran category, is PhotoAlbumStudio, which works but needs lots of improvement.  In the "untested. but looks plausible" category is  Pixmatrix.

It's also worth mentioning other programs that specialize in making fancy presentations of your photos for offline presentaitons from disk or CD.  One I've used is FlipAlbum

ImageEvent.com
sample album
View full image in new window
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
25 images for 3 weeks..  $24.95/yr for 1500 no 5mb, 10mb for paid members
 browser, browser based uploader,
ftp, zipped multiple images, email, snail mail.
 direct links to albums are possible.  Direct links to images are possible for paying members. thumbnails, small size, other intermediate sizes up to 
Original images .		 4x6 0.45
5x7 0.95
8x10 2.95
This site works pretty well and has some nice customization options.  It's also ad-free.

NetSnapshot.com
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
unlimited no
 no apparent limit browser direct links to albums fit to various sizes, including Original images . no
This site has basic viewing,  no frills.  The viewer is adequate and the presentation uncluttered.  The main limitation is that upload is strictly one-at-a-time (but zipped collecections can be uploaded). 
8/2003 - Closed to new accounts.
PrintRoom
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
200 mb.  inactive albums are deleted after 6 months no 7mb browser, drag-n-drop plugin, mailed CDs, uploader direct links to albums,
direct links to photos are possible		 thumbnails, medium size, original image (for album owner only) 4x6 0.39
5x7 0.99
8x10 2.99
print quality: good
This site provides basic free album upload and viewing capabilities, and would especially like to sell you prints at reasonable prices. Their print ordering service seems well organized.  All the analog characteristics of their prints are good; Exposure was precise, saturation a little low for my taste but within the range of preference (rather than error), and color just a shade bluish.  However, digital scan line and moiré artifacts were visible in large monochromatic areas, especially in large prints.  It's particularly easy to get URLs for ebay use from Printroom, but you have to be have to be happy with their smallish scaled copy of your image.

Shutterfly
sample album

15 Free prints as a promotion.
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
unlimited Yes no apparent limit browser, drag-n-drop plugin, desktop uploader you can issue invitations to view arbitrary sets of images. thumbnails, small pictures 4x6 0.49
5x7 0.99
8x10 3.99

print quality: very good.
The viewer is less featureful than some, and the general site organization is confusing.  They have some interesting options to add effects to images.  Their prints are very good (not as good as ofoto) but have one consistent, flagrant flaw with yellows (see notes ) .  Prints include text printed on the back, which some of the partners let you control.  Scanned images are the standard 1536x1024 scans, but because of the tiny viewing size and the inabilty to download, it's very hard to acess the quality or use scanned images for any other purpose.  Print prices are lower if you prepay.

Snapfish


 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
Unlimited. Inactive accounts deleted after 11 months. yes 3mb browser Registration required for viewing thumbnails, medium size 4x6 0.39
5x7 0.75
8x10 3.79
print quality: excellent
High res images for prints are only retained for 90 days, but medium res images for web viewing are retained indefinitely. Snapfish will develop, scan,  print and ship your prints and negatives  for a $3.98 per roll.  Not quite free, but the cheapest way I know to get prints and scanning. A sample roll sent to Snapfish, at a nearby location,  took 18 days to reappear as negatives and prints in my mailbox; and the online notification of the prints arrived the same day.  Apparently, some extra-ordinary delay was involved, because Snapfish automated communications (not in response to a complaint) apologized and contained additional freebies in compensation.  Print quality of the analog prints is standard "drug store" quality; a little uneven in exposure, but quite satisfactory color.  High res scans (actually,  picture disk resolution scans) can be downloaded for a fee, starting at 0.49 each, or you can buy a photoCD for $9.99 They also offer substantial discounts on prepaid prints..

photo.Epson.com
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
not stated no not stated email, browser,ftp direct links to albums fit to various sizes, including Original images . 4x6 0.49
5x7 0.99
8x10 2.99
prints byshutterfly
Their online viewer is good. New photos arrive in an "inbox" album after an unpredictable delay for processing, and then must be be moved to other albums using a simple web interface.   Ftp using the same login to ftp.photo.epson.com.  Ftp downloads are also possible.
Platform Notes: This was once an official "powered by" photopoint site, so ran similar software.  They somehow managed to save their content from the wreck of photopoint and reinstitute their service independantly.

Eframes.com
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
not stated no not stated browser direct links to albums thumbnails, medium size, full size. 4x6 0.49
5x7 0.99
8x10 2.99
11x14 4.99
also available framed and in combo pages with multiple images  in various sizes on a single print.
print quality: excellent
This site seems to exist to sell you framed prints, although unframed prints are available in standard sizes up to 11x14; and also in "gang" format with multiple prints of the same photo on an 8x10.  Uploading and ordering are a bit cumbersome for multiple photos. My test prints had a slight blue bias, but were otherwise  excellent.

Nikonnet.com
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
50mb.
Inactive accounts deleted after 90 days.
 no not stated browser, ftp-like uploader  direct links to albums thumbnails, web size 4x6 0.59
5x7 2.95
8x10 7.95
This site is "powered by" Arcsoft.  Storage is unlimited, but the viewing environment is cluttered and doesn't provide a very friendly viewing experience.
Platform Notes:  Macintosh users are well supported.

Fotango
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
not stated Yes no apparent limit browser two-click access to albums thumbnails, medium size. 4x6 £0.49
5x7 £0.99
8x10 £1.99
This site is based in the UK, with plans to expand into the rest of the EU.  Prices for full sets of prints from scanned images are substantially better than the single print prices. Print quality is reported to be good.

fotopic.net
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
250 mb
 no no apparent limit browser, email, ftp direct links to albums are possible. Direct links to individual images are possible.
 thumbnails, medium sized, original image 4x6 £0.47
5x7 £0.75
8x10 £2.97
Another U.K based site.  New submissions are randomly screened for inappropriate content, and direct links are subject to limitations that effectively mean you can't link from another web site, but you can pass links around to friends.  Print prices are about halved if you order 40+ prints.

Photofun.com
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
unlimited no not stated browser, ftp (for paying customers) direct links to albums thumbnails, medium size, 
original image		 4x6 0.49 
5x7 0.99 
8x10 2.99
This site offers a fairly clean looking picture album, and a variety of tools for constructing story-oriented "scrapbooks" "web sites" "galleries" and so on.   Paying customers get FTP uploads, free customers get browser only.  The exact presentation of the pictures isn't very flexible - for example "photo albums" let you view thumbnails and original images only, but scrapbooks let you view only small sized view of images.


PictureCD.com
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
unlimited no 2mb  browser, compupic direct links to albums are possible.  thumbnails, medium sized, original image no
This site is associated with PhotoDex.com .  It has basic viewing and sharing facilities, but nothing special.  The uploader deals poorly with oversize images.

xpphoto
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
30 day free trial
19.95 / yr for 300mb
 no no apparent limit browser direct links to albums.
 thumbnails, small, medium size.  Original images cab be downloaded.
 4x6 0.18
5x7 0.38
8x10 1.88

matte prints available
This site is pretty generic; their real emphasis is on selling  prints cheaply.  I have not tested their prints.


  Yahoo Photos
no sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
30 mb no your choice browser, any URL Registration is required to view anything. thumbnails, small, full size for paying customers. 
4x6 0.25
5x7 1.99
8x10 4.99

prints by Shutterfly , quality: very good.
Everything works but there's nothing fancy here, and the ads are BIG.  Paid rates start at 24.95/yr for 50 mb.

PhotoDB.SanteeWeb.com
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
40 mb
 no 1mb browser direct links to albums thumbnails, medium size, large size no
This site is a photo subsection of a community portal (Santee California), but open to the general public. The web interface leads you one step at a time, which makes it easy to use.  If your needs fit within the rather limited storage and too-smalll image size,  this site is ok.

Imira.com
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
20 mb no 2mb.  Uploader defaults to an image reduced to web resolution. browser, ftp-like. direct links to albums, direct links to photos are possible. thumbnails, full size not yet
This site is associated with Ulead software.  It's very rudimentary at the moment.  Their uploader/browser, Ulead Photo Explorer , is mostly excellent, but insists on mangling photos upon upload.  Defaults produce web resolution images, and it's not possible to fully override the defaults.


PictureFuse.com
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
unlimited no 500K, 1280x1280
(4000 x 1280, for pano's) 		 browser direct to private or public galleries thumbnails, reduced size, full size not yet
This site is fairly clean and simple in appearance, but the 250K limit on file size and browser-only upload severly limit its usefulness.  Affiliate site photobucket.com allows direct linking.

PhotoIsland
sample album
(password is ddyer)
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
10mb free, 50mb for $20/yr. no no apparent limit browser, drag-n-drop, ftp-like, compupic guest password required thumbnails, medium size, original image 4x6 0.49
5x7 0.99
8x10 2.99
This site provides the basic organizing, viewing, and photo gift features.  It has a particularly good set of upload options.  Effective Sept 16 2002 inactive accounts will be deleted after 90 days, free members will be limited to 4 visits per day, and paid members to 10 visits per day.


Photo.net
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
not stated no not stated, no apparentl limitation browser direct links to albums thumbnails, meduim size, Original image . no
This site aspires to be a place for serious photographers to display, discuss, criticise, and learn.  The interface requires you to record some technical details about each photo, and uploading is one at a time, both of which discourage mass presentations.

PhotoASA
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
$20/yr for 30 mb
 no your choice browser, album manager direct links to albums thumbnails,  chosen size no
This seems to be mainly a demonstration site for the host company, hoping to attract customers who want similar sites.  Everything works, but it's all very basic stuff.

RitzPix
no sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
100 uploaded images for 30 days yes 3mb browser, upload applet (ie only)
 no direct links.
 thumbnails, small size.
 4x6 0.39
5x7 1.49
8x10 4.99
Primarily a site for viewing images processed by Ritz camera outlets.  Uploads or scans from film are kept for 30 days.  You can buy permanant space, starting at about 0.20/image/year.

PictureTrail
no sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
36 images or 20 mb. no no apparent limit browser direct links to albums, direct links to individual photos thumbnails, uploaded size 4x6 0.49
5x7 0.99
8x10 2.99
Their albums are basic,  with thumbnails down the left side and a viewing area in the rest of the frame.  The site is easy to use and works well.  You can pay for more storage.  Policy changes scheduled for Dec 2002 seem likely to make this site useless as a free service, but paid service should still be viable.

Photocountry.com
sample album
sample image
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
not stated, approximately 25mb no no apparent limit album manager direct links to albums, direct links to original image thumbnails,original image no
This site is lacking many basic features, but is apparently still under development.

Geofoto
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
20mb soon 2mb browser, direct links to full originalphotos are possible. thumbnails, medium size,
Original images .		 Yes, prices in Singapore $, checks only.
This site  is based in Singapore. interface is somewhat confusing, but works once you figure it out.  The upload tool is unresponsive to inputs while uploading, but works. Direct links are valid only for 2 weeks.

photojo.com
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
50mb no 5 mb browser, email, fotowire software, bulk uploader for IE only. Registration is required to view shared albums. thumbnail, small and medium size 4x6 0.39
5x7 0.95
8x10 3.95
Fotowire software isn't useful for building albums, only for placing print orders.  Emailed photos took a long time to appear.

Photobox.co.uk
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
50 mb no not stated browser, uploader direct links to albums thumbnails, medium size 4x6 £0.25
5x7 £0.42
8x10  £2.13
U.K. based site.  Claims favorable press coverage, but seems pretty ordinary.


MSN communities
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
30 mb no no browser direct links to albums thumbnails, full size none
Microsoft's community web site.  Nothing special, but linked to their other services.

ShutterPort
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
not stated no 54mb browser, uploader plugin direct links to albums thumbnails,original image 4x6 0.49
5x7 0.95
8x10 2.95
The interface is limited to a single album, and there is no provision to display intermediate sized images.


DigitalPrintStore
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
not stated no no apparent limit browser direct links to albums thumbnails, medium size, original image . 4x6 0.50
5x7 1.25
8x10 3.00
This site is a little flakey to use, uses tiny fonts and badly matched colors (red on black does NOT read!).  It also displayed the full sized image in a nonresizable medium sided window, so you pay full download price for reduced resolution viewing.  Overall not a winner.


Starphoto
sample album
ebay ok
 
 
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
150 photos no 1mb browser, email, web url direct links to individual albums, individual images thumbnails, meduim size no
Images are arranged on pages of  25 images.  Extra pages are available for a fee (or create more free accounts)..  Inactive accounts get deleted after 6 months.  The viewer is pretty basic but relatively uncluttered.
 

Photochannel
no sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
30 days free
0.49/mb/year		 no not stated browser, uploader direct links to albums thumbnails, medium size 4x6 0.49
5x7 0.99
8x10 2.99
This site seems to do gnerally the right things, however the recently instituted pricing of 0.49/mb/year is probably the early warning sign of impending doom. (Lets see, at current retail disk prices for disk, around 0.0025/mb, how much markup is that?)
Platform Notes:  Upload broken using Netscape 4.7 PC

parentshack.com
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
2mb free no 2mb browser direct links to albums possible.  web size, original image no
Intended for sharing family photos.  49.95/yr for 25mb. Rather expensive considering the small storage space for the price, but free of advertizing. 

Photoworks
sample scanned album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
not stated yes unlimited, but re-compressed ftp-like direct links to albums thumbnails, small size, medium size 4x6 0.19
5x7 0.95
8x10 1.95
Photoworks is the new name for Seattle Filmworks, a well-known (if not well respected) low cost player in the traditional mail order film processing business.  Analog prints from the scanned roll were good, but the scans are awful (greenish, overexposed: see scanned album ) and half the resolution of other services.  Digital images can only be added using their uploader program, which recompresses the images, and is not available for Macintosh or Windows NT.

WebPhotos
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
not stated no no apparent limit browser, java applet bulk uploader direct links to albums are possible. direct links to individual photos are possible. thumbnails, medium sized, original image 4x6 0.25
5x7 0.75 
8x10 1.99
This site is incompetantly constructed - doesn't work at all with Netscape 4.7, bulk uploader doesn't work with Netscape 6.2, and can't log in using IE 5.5.

PhotoPush
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
1mb no 1mb upload/downloader


Limited number and size of images depending on how much you pay, starting at a pretty low level for free service. Their uploader did not work for me (complaining about lack of license)

www.99photo.com
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
5mb permanant, 100mb temporary for prints yes not stated browser,  java applet by invitation thumbnails, medium size, original size (only for owner) Yes, see the site for details and pricing in various local currencies.

This might be a site some day, but today it seems to be an embryo, or maybe only an egg.  Located in Singapore and oriented toward selling prints to Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong.

www.pixfun.com This might be a good site, but they only support Internet Explorer.  That counts as all three strikes in my book.

 

Pro Photographer Sites
These are sites oriented toward professional photographers and their customers.  Evaluating these sites is mostly outside the scope of this page,  but both photographers and potential customers can start here to find each other. 

PhotoReflect.com
samle storefront
sample album		 I haven't completely figured this site out yet, but it seems to be oriented toward professional event photographers who need a turnkey web presence, but plan to do their own fullfillment. 

As a Photographer: Their software builds thumbnail-and-proof web sites based on published "events". Their web site takes the customers money and sends you order specifications. You fill the orders and photoreflect sends you your share of the proceeds.   Connection to semi-automatic fullfillment by EZPrints is available.  You have to manually manage the overall process, but the details of uploading and ordering with EZPrints are handled electronically. 

As a Customer: Photoreflect.com seems to be a "web shell" that handles the customer interactions and tells the photographers what services the customer has requested, but there is a real photographer back there somewhere who has to actually attend to your order.  If you have an existing relationship with a particular photographer (ie; the"the guy wo shot my bar mitzva") this seems like an excellent way to arrange to buy your prints.

disclaimer: this more-extensive review shouldn't be construed as an endorsement relative to the other pro photo sites.  We simply han't evaluated the others.
MorePhotos Paid e-commerce site for professional photographers
PortraitsOnline e-commerce site for portrait photographers
ProShots Another pro photographer site.  Apparently with some good features to support event photographers who prepare and sell wedding albms and the like,  including support for interfacing with album manufacturers.
PhotoWave another pro photographer portal
VisualWow another pro photographer portal
Collages.net pro event photographer site
Digiproofs.com
 pro photographer proof site spun off from Clubphoto.
kaorg.com
 another site that wants to host pro photographers
  PrintRoom , PhotoAccess and DotPhoto are also set up to partner photo sales.

 
 
 
Print Only Sites
These are sites where you can get digital prints, either from upload or from film, but which are not useful as photo sharing sites; "Not Useful" in my estimation, due to either restrictive storage policies or uncompetitive pricing for storage. 
Kodak PictureCenter
@Costco
@Bluelight
sample album
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
500 photos for 6 months yes no apparent limit browser, drag-n-drop uploader (IE only) direct links to albums are possible. thumbnails, small size at costco: 
4x6 0.24 
5x7 0.89 
8x10 2.59 
Print quality: very good
Kodak privides a branded photo portal for various retail giants, including Costco, Bluelight, RiteAde, CVS and probably others.  The photo sites and services are very similar,  but the exact list of items for sale and the pricing vary at each site.. Uploads are strictly one-at-a-time. Their viewer only lets you see a small sample image.  Prints seem to be the main reason for this site.  Prints in my test batch were a shade over-exposed, blocking some highlights, but otherwise very good.  Note that closely related sites branded as kodak, costco, and bluelight charge different prices for prints, but presumably provide the same service.

EZPrints.com
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
Images retained for 90 days. no no apparent limit browser (with smart java applet), ftp-like uploader, mail-in CD direct links to albums,
direct links to photos are possible.		 thumbnails, full size. 4x6 0.49
5x7 0.95
8x10 2.95
Print quality: very good
matte prints are available
This site seems primarily interested in selling prints, with viewing and sharing as afterthoughts.  Particularly, there is only one album per account, though you are encouraged to create more accounts; Their uploader application onlyuploads images for printing;.  Viewing is limited to thumbnail sized and full sized images, with nothing in between.  EZPrints can be used as the fullfillment shop for Photoreflect . Their turnaround is speedy, as advertised.

JumboGiant.com

This is a specialty site for poster size prints. Not quite cheap, but the prints are very good.  Color is good but not quite as saturated as from photographic prints. Heavy weight paper is used, which should stand up well.  Shipped (very quickly!)  in a bulky tube. Overall, as good as it gets, as long as what you are expecting is a poster and not an art-quality print.  18x24 $19.50 
24x36 $24.50 
36x48 $44.50 
40x60 $60.00

bigphotohelp.com
 Another "big inkjet print" site, claiming high quality, fast turnaround, and low prices.  Their free samples look good..
FotoWire Fotowire is a central registry for labs that will accept digital photos and produce prints and other output.   Labs are classified by service area, but only subdivided by country (so "United States" is one category) plus "Worldwide".  Each lab sets its own prices.  Uploading is through a dedicated uploader application.  It's not very practical to use either the uploader or the photowire web site to select a lab, but if you have a lab in mind, this might be the way to get the bits to them.  Their process works backwards from the consumer point of view - first they get your credit card info, then you upload.  Also, it's not practical to mix and match sizes and quantities of the prints, or arrange to store the images, even if the destination site supports it.
Platform Notes: Macintosh version exists
FujiFilm
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
100 images for 30 days yes 3mb browser
thumbnails, medium size, original size (only for owner) 4x6 0.49 
5x7 1.49 
8x10 4.29
This site is primarily a digital pick-up site for film developed at walk-in labs; but also lets you upload photos to be printed.  You can buy "picture spaces" to keep images permananly starting at $20 for 100 images for 12 months.  Limited sharing is available. 

walmart Walmart runs an online/mail-in photo business, apparently mainly for prints from new film. You can also buy space for uploads..  Some walmart 1hr photo labs will accept digital inputs.  Prints are inexpensive and good according to reports.
mysticphotocenter This is primarily a film mail-in site, but will sell you 100mb for $9.95/yr
PhotoAmerica This is a prints-only site.  Uploads are limited to browser only. There are minimal facilities to organize images into albums, but no provision for sharing or viewing beyond thumbnail size.  Storage, image size and other policies are all unstated.  Prints aren't that cheap.
Agfanet.com This is a portal to independant labs, worldwide, that use Agfa products.  Prices and services vary.
ClarkColor.com Film mail-in site with good scan and download capabilities.  Digital uploads are possible but ordering from uploaded images is poorly implemented.
colormailer.com Digital print service with affiliate labs in many countries, but apparently NOT the U.S.   YOu can submit photos by browser, upload application, or CDROM..
PepPhoto.com
 New York based service.  Low prices for digital prints.
photo-lab.net Pretty basic, no provision for bulk uploading.
operationphoto.com
30minutephotos.com
 OperationPhoto specializes in mailing digital prints to APO addresses at reasonable prices for prints and shipping.  Operation photo is a specialized service of 30minutephoto.com, which offers a variety of digital related services.
Bonusprint.com
 Low cost digital prints.
Printko.com
 General photo services online.
Photolab.ca Canadian site, (prices in Canadian $).  Upload and order prints.  Photo sharing by Yahoo.

Specialty Sites
These are not general sharing sites, but have some other useful service for digital photographers. 

photosig.com Mutual criticism seems to be the focus.   Each photo here is a gem (at least in the mind of the photographer) being submitted to the harsh world for criticism.   You have to jump through some minor hoops to sign up, and once signed up you have to earn your keep by writing useful critiques of  existing photos, before you are permitted to submit your own.   It's a lot of fun just to look at a site full of photos, each of which belongs in someone's "best of" collection.  Even better that they insist on you giving your opion!
www.goldirox.com This isn't a sharing site, but a professional web site builder oriented to build you a photo album site.  If you've got more money than spare time, and want to impress your friends with your family photos, this might be your place.
colorslide.com Offers 35mm slides from a variety of digital originals $4.75 - $1.65 each depending on quantity.  Super rush premium service is avaiable.  Multiple upload options including FTP.
slides.com
 Slides from digital originals.  $4.00 each, less for multiples from the same original. Glass mounting available.  Rush service is available. Multiple upload options including FTP.
digitalmonochrome.com
 Black and White film exposed from digital .  (Darkroom owners rejoice! )
calypsoinc.com
 Full service tradiditional and digitial lab.
photobucket.com Absolutely no hassles or frills.  Just upload small pictures (less that 250K) and cut-n-paste links to them.  In addition to ebay, this site is very convenient to use as a photo drop to send links to snapshots, rather than the snapshots themselves, in email.  This site is affiliated with picturefuse.
PennyThings.com
Pictureat.com
ebay ok logo 		A Specialized site for ebay images..  Pennythings costs $0.07 per image per 15 days.  You email them your images - they resize your images to 'ebay'  size and send you email with the URLs for the uploaded images.  PictureAtcosts $6/month for 20 image slots, for which the underlying images can be used in multiple auctions and also can be changed at will.   They claim perfect reliability (never leaving an auction with a broken image).  In general, they seem oriented to serious auctioneers who run similar auctions more or less continuously.  They bill monthly and accept paypal payments.
Ranchoweb.com
ebay ok logo 		Another EBAY specialist, get 1 mb storage for $9.95/yr (enough for quite a few auction pix) and the ability to initiate auctions from their own web interface. Paid customers get more features and more storage starting at $5.95/mo
VillagePhotos.com
sample album
ebay ok
 
free storage scanning image size upload album links viewer prints etc.
25 images,
unlimited for paid customers		 no 60K for free users, unlimited for paid customers browser direct links to albums, direct links to photos are possible. thumbnails, full size no
This site sees themseves as primarily a storage site for ebay images, and they make it very easy to cut and paste image URLs for use elsewhere.  Free mode is enough to show that it works, but bandwidth and image size limits are likely to make it unsatisfactory even for very limited ebay users. Paid use is $4/month

auction-images.com
ebay ok
 An ebay specialist with a free 1mb intro.  They're taking some pains to avoid multiple free accounts, which makes the signup a little inconvenient., but once registered the site is easy to use.
dynamicwebspace.com
 Another auction hosting site.  15 Day free trial. $3/mo for 5mb.
mypublisher.com
 Coffee table books and calendars.
classifiedpics.com
 Specialty site to host a few pictures identified by a phone number.  Intended as an adjunct to classified ads in print.
photosafe.com.au
 This site addresses the problem of pre-digital relics known as prints, slides, and negatives.  They convert physical forms to bits and return originals + cds to you.  Online storage "for all time" whatever that means, is also available.   It's all a bit pricey, $1.30AU per image (about $1 US), and based on cooperation with retail outlets (in Australia) rather than mail order.

 
 
 
The Waiting List
I know these sites exist, but haven't had time to evaluate them yet. 
HobbyStage.net They say they are worthy of mention
ezshots.com sharing service, very limited free storage.
www.digitalpose.com standard sharing site
www.photogra.com standard sharing site
www.inkfrog.com site specializing in ebay.  limited free, bulk users pay.
www.webaperture.com standard sharing/viewing site
photobeans.com site based in singapore, still under construction but funcitonal.
andale.com ebay image hosting site
auctiva.com ebay image hosting site
printatwolf.com
cord digital
samsclub.com  prices: 4x6 0.24 5x7 0.89 8x10 2.59
web-a-photo
 launched very recently by Aplus.Net www.aplus.net   Possibly no Mac support.
msn photos
photosatmydoor.com
 pro event photographer site
vendio.com
 ebay image hosting
searsphotos.com
 Affiliated with Sears portrait business.
Apple Iphoto
 Mac-only photo management and sharing.
pictage.com
 event photographer site
albinator.com
 free site, but with low image size/total space limits.
video photo memories unlimited
 premium quality prints
www.myonlinegallery.com
www.worldisround.com
 focus on travel photos
Gallery.menalto.com
 not a sharing site, but the home site for an open source photo sharing site system.  Power users wanting to set up photo galleries in their own web space are the primary audience.
Sendpix.com
 Free service associated with ACDSee,  30 day storage for "see my pix" emails.
Photoshare.co.nz
sample album
 An ad-free site, $6/50mb/yr
focusphotolabs.com custom lab site under construction 2/2003
thephotostation.net
 yet another site under development
neptune.com
 Photo and Video Sharing.  Requires flash plugin.  100mb for $39/yr.
unkeptsecrets.com small site still under development
SmugMug.com
 ad free paid site, $30/yr to start.   7 Day free trial, but they get your credit card before you start. Recommended by several readers. 
Boomspeed.com
 1meg free and 100mb for $6/mo.  Who are they kidding?
www.fast-photos.net Australian sharing and print site under development.
fotopages.com
 One example of a photoblogs (like weblogs), emphasis on streaming photos chronolocically from your camera to web.
www.pixagogo.com Paid site, 14 day free trial, $50/yr for unlimited storage.  No advertising.
www.preclick.com
 integrated photo organizer/fixer/printer/sharing software.
www.tzo.com
 share photos directly from your home computer, using dynamic DNS.
eachday.net
 a photoblog site
photothru.com
 standard sharing site
Photocatch.com
 standard sharing site, 10mb freee, doesn't support Netscape.
Sacko.com
 Free, Unlimited, Searchable.  Doesn't work well with netscape/mozilla.
www.ballofdirt.com
 Sharings site with maps and other special features for travel photography.
www.nationalphotos.com
 Sharing/Print site by Kodak, serving Australia
digitalstar.com
 sharng site with sell-your-prints features.
photofile.ru
 Russian language site.
myphotoalbumonline.com
 Flashy site design.  Not a conventional photo sharing site, but a service that will build a custom web album using your photos.

 
The Casualty List
sites that are no longer with us
  • Early 2001, live.av.com  Altavista's sharing site disappeared, along with altavista's "My" service.
  • Feb 2001, homepages.go.com disappeared when disney gave up on Go.com as a portal
  • March 2001 Ememories.comabsorbed by Photoworks.com.
  • April 7,2001  Ecircles.com announced shutdown as of April 15.  Once they thought they would take over the world.
  • April 14, 2001    OnlinePhotoLab.com, and InfoPics.com found dead.
  • April 26, 2001 Opholio taken off life support, declared dead.
  • May 2001 PhotoHighway shuffled on down the road.
  • June 26, 2001 Homestead.com    (photo subsection) reabsorbed into Shutterfly.  A lot of their other sevices disappeared too.
  • July 2, 2001 Zing.com closed.  They were one of the really good ones.
  • Oct 31, 2001 GatherRound.com absorbed into Ofoto
  • Dec 15, 2001  Photopoint.com disappeared suddenly for the second (and final?) time.  Eyewitness reports their former offices are dark and empty.  In their earlier debacle in June 2001, they went offline as a free service and returned a few days later as a paid service.  If you paid, don't expect to get your money back, but you can pay them even more to get a CD with your images (if you were foolish enough to leave them with the only known copy of anything).
  • Jan 16, 2002  StudioAvenue.com announced their demise, effective Feb 15, 2002.  At least they gave fair warning!  They were a clone of PhotoLoft.
  • January 25, 2002  Photoloft.com ceased free sevice.  The sequence of events seems to be that in March 2001, Photoloft ran out of money and started trying to charge for services.  In November 2001, Canon Hyperphoto (formerley a licensed clone) acquired Photoloft.  In Jan 2002 the new master set about shutting down the parent and the other clone, StudioAvenue.
  • Feb 14, 2002 Kodak.Photonet.com gracefully superceeded by Kodak PictureCenter
  • June 19, 2002  YourPhotosquietly disappeared and never came back.  No great loss in this case.
  • June 2002 Lifesketch.com - a strange hybred of software sales and multiple level marketing.  Learn to make web albums at a Tupperware party?
  • Sept 18, 2002 PhotoAlbumWeb.com discontinued services.
  • Dec 2, 2002 DigitalFridge.com 
  • Dec 9, 2002 Photos.Lycos.com
  • Mar 31, 2003  imgstudio.com never made it to my active list, but they died.
  • May 26, 2003 picturestage.com gracefully shut down, after plenty of advance notice.  A decent way to go.
  • July 4, 2003 photomoto.net went directly from "under development" to "closing soon"
  • Aug 31,2003, Seemesmile.com closed.
  • Sept 26, 2003 Canon Hyperphoto discontinued.  This completes the saga of Photoloft.
  • Oct 5, 2003 Albumatic, a nice freeware album generator, withdrawn to eliminate the financial and time drain it imposed.

 
 
footnotes

Resolution:  Resolution is frequently quoted in "lines pairs per millimeter" (lpm)
 
35mm negative, (on a good day) 80-100 lpm
photocd master scan (3kx2k) of 35mm original 40 lpm
1600x1200 digital original 25 lpm (printed perfectly to a 35mm negative)
Scanning: Details will vary, but the basic deal is they develop your film, scan your negatives, and create an album from your roll of film.  You negatives are mailed to you, and they hope you'll order prints.  In some cases this scan-and-post service is completely free, but at most sites there there is a small charge; and you do get your negatives back.
 
Original Image: Some sites recompress or otherwise reformat your image, which almost certainly involves some loss of quality, and also destroys the  EXIF information embedded in JPEG files by most digital cameras.  Where I say original image , I mean exactly that, the same bits as you submitted.    Most digital cameras record, exposure, date and other camera specific information about the image. Image browsing utilities that can show you the information embedded in your image include PIE, Ulead PhotoExplorer, Irfanview and Thumbsplus. Exifread andExifinfo are specialist freeware utilities that show exif information without frills, and of course, Adobe Photoshop knows about this information these days.
Iview MediaPro & Iview PhotoMover are a pair of Mac applications that at least aspire to be the de facto common solution to the photo upload and album management problem for the Macintosh.  Several of the major brand photo sharing sites can be accessed through Iview.  Iview setup is a little tricky and the documentation is not great, but the application itself seems to work. 

 
comments/suggestions (especially if you know of more sites I should mention, or have information about a site I already list)
to:ddyer@real-me.net

Pet Peeve: Do not write me with a list of your requirements and ask me what site you should use.  What I know is right here; the rest is up to you.
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