Att välja Köp valutor online de bästa kryptosystem som finns på marknaden är en mycket viktig aspekt av handeln. Om du inte är medveten om detta kan det sluta med att du förlorar mycket pengar i det långa loppet. Om du vill göra mest vinst på kortast möjliga tid måste du göra din hemläxa väl. Här är några av de grunder som du bör känna till innan du väljer de bästa mynten att handla på marknaden med.
Köp valutor online
En av de första sakerna du måste titta efter i de bästa valutorna som finns på marknaden är deras inflationsgrad. För att förstå detta måste du först förstå vad inflation är. Inflation är helt enkelt en ökning av priserna utan att varor och tjänster minskar. Till exempel är en enårig dollar värd mycket mer om några månader, eller hur? Så om du väljer att investera i de bästa råvarorna för det här århundradet vore det klokt att hålla utkik efter de valutor som enligt prognoserna kommer att uppleva den högsta inflationen under de kommande tio åren.
Ett annat grundläggande övervägande när det gäller att investera i de bästa valutorna är deras historik när det gäller handel och gruvdrift. Man kan inte bara välja vilket gammalt system som helst att investera i idag. Det finns hundratusentals valutor som handlas på marknaden och endast ett fåtal utvalda är lönsamma. Därför är det nödvändigt att du forskar väl om de olika systemen som finns tillgängliga för att veta vilket av de tillgängliga kryptosystemen som är det bästa att investera i.
Ett av de enklaste sätten att avgöra vilken av de bästa valutorna att investera i är genom att titta på den underliggande tillgångens egenskaper. Detta kallas tillgångens egenskaper och de är kända som Ripples. Låt oss ta en titt på två exempel på de bästa valutorna att investera i under det kommande decenniet. Den första typen av tillgång är aktier. Ett index som följer värdet av olika typer av företag kallas aktier. Så om vi tittar på de tio främsta valutorna som kommer att styra aktiemarknadens värde i framtiden är det troligt att dollarn kommer att fortsätta sin uppgång eftersom värdet på aktier i USA och Europa förväntas stiga.
Den andra typen av tillgångar är guld. Det finns en stor sannolikhet för att guldpriset kommer att stiga under det kommande decenniet. Om du håller på med handel och inte har teknisk kunskap om vilken av de bästa valutorna du ska investera i bör du prova de bästa kryptovalutorna som sannolikt kommer att öka i värde under detta årtionde. Bland de möjliga valutorna att investera i Köp valutor online finns euron, den japanska yenen, den australiska dollarn, schweiziska francen, den kanadensiska dollarn och det brittiska pundet. Var och en av dessa valutor har sina egna för- och nackdelar och du bör noggrant studera dem innan du investerar i dem.
Även om det är lätt att bli lockad av de dåliga nyheterna om att investera i kryptovalutor finns det ingen dålig investering när det gäller mynt. Anledningen till detta är att de flesta investerare som är nya i den här branschen slutar med att förlora sina pengar eftersom de inte har rätt kunskap om vilka av de bästa valutorna de ska investera i. Så när du letar efter de bästa valutorna att investera i är det viktigt att du blir bekant med alla dessa. Detta beror på att endast genom att bli en registrerad användare av en onlinehandelsplats kan du få tillgång till alla de bästa kryptovalutorna som finns tillgängliga i världen idag.
Det finns många fördelar som är förknippade med att investera i de bästa kryptokurvorna, bland annat det faktum att de handlas på den globala marknaden. Därför är det lätt att handla med de bästa valutorna och du kan också förvänta dig god avkastning. Att investera i de bästa valutorna kräver dock att du lär dig hur systemet fungerar, grunderna i ekonomi och företagsledning. Om du till exempel är en investerare som är ny på att investera på altcoin-marknaden, är det bättre om du får hjälp av professionella personer som experter och handlare.
Det finns många fördelar som du kan njuta av när du investerar i de bästa valutorna i världen. En av dessa är att när du väljer de bästa kryptosurferna kan du vara säker på att värdet på din investering alltid kommer att vara stabilt. Eftersom värdet på varje mynt varierar beroende på utbud och efterfrågan är det viktigt att du investerar i de bästa valutorna och sedan handlar med dem enligt dina behov. När värdet på en valuta fluktuerar kan du alltså enkelt sälja dina tillgångar och investera i de nya.
Det bästa sättet att investera i de bästa kryptosurfarna är att se till att du är välinformerad om de olika faktorer som påverkar värdet på ett visst mynt och du har också en expert som kan lära dig hur du väljer de bästa valutorna att investera i. När du vill göra vinster från handeln med den bästa kryptosurf bör du alltså se till att du utbildar dig om marknadens ekonomi och affärsmodeller. Här är nästa intressanta blogginlägg: Köp och handla Bitcoins.
The post Köp valutor online Erfarenheter first appeared on Hur man använder kryptovalutor på rätt sätt.
Att välja Cryptocurrency Provider Online Trading de bästa kryptosystem som finns på marknaden är en mycket viktig aspekt av handeln. Om du inte är medveten om detta kan det sluta med att du förlorar mycket pengar i det långa loppet. Om du vill göra mest vinst på kortast möjliga tid måste du göra din hemläxa väl. Här är några av de grunder som du bör känna till innan du väljer de bästa mynten att handla på marknaden med.
Cryptocurrency Provider Online Trading
En av de första sakerna du måste titta efter i de bästa valutorna som finns på marknaden är deras inflationsgrad. För att förstå detta måste du först förstå vad inflation är. Inflation är helt enkelt en ökning av priserna utan att varor och tjänster minskar. Till exempel är en enårig dollar värd mycket mer om några månader, eller hur? Så om du väljer att investera i de bästa råvarorna för det här århundradet vore det klokt att hålla utkik efter de valutor som enligt prognoserna kommer att uppleva den högsta inflationen under de kommande tio åren.
Ett annat grundläggande övervägande när det gäller att investera i de bästa valutorna är deras historik när det gäller handel och gruvdrift. Man kan inte bara välja vilket gammalt system som helst att investera i idag. Det finns hundratusentals valutor som handlas på marknaden och endast ett fåtal utvalda är lönsamma. Därför är det nödvändigt att du forskar väl om de olika systemen som finns tillgängliga för att veta vilket av de tillgängliga kryptosystemen som är det bästa att investera i.
Ett av de enklaste sätten att avgöra vilken av de bästa valutorna att investera i är genom att titta på den underliggande tillgångens egenskaper. Detta kallas tillgångens egenskaper och de är kända som Ripples. Låt oss ta en titt på två exempel på de bästa valutorna att investera i under det kommande decenniet. Den första typen av tillgång är aktier. Ett index som följer värdet av olika typer av företag kallas aktier. Så om vi tittar på de tio främsta valutorna som kommer att styra aktiemarknadens värde i framtiden är det troligt att dollarn kommer att fortsätta sin uppgång eftersom värdet på aktier i USA och Europa förväntas stiga.
Den andra typen av tillgångar är guld. Det finns en stor sannolikhet för att guldpriset kommer att stiga under det kommande decenniet. Om du håller på med handel och inte har teknisk kunskap om vilken av de bästa valutorna du ska investera i bör du prova de bästa kryptovalutorna som sannolikt kommer att öka i värde under detta årtionde. Bland de möjliga valutorna att investera i Cryptocurrency Provider Online Trading finns euron, den japanska yenen, den australiska dollarn, schweiziska francen, den kanadensiska dollarn och det brittiska pundet. Var och en av dessa valutor har sina egna för- och nackdelar och du bör noggrant studera dem innan du investerar i dem.
Även om det är lätt att bli lockad av de dåliga nyheterna om att investera i kryptovalutor finns det ingen dålig investering när det gäller mynt. Anledningen till detta är att de flesta investerare som är nya i den här branschen slutar med att förlora sina pengar eftersom de inte har rätt kunskap om vilka av de bästa valutorna de ska investera i. Så när du letar efter de bästa valutorna att investera i är det viktigt att du blir bekant med alla dessa. Detta beror på att endast genom att bli en registrerad användare av en onlinehandelsplats kan du få tillgång till alla de bästa kryptovalutorna som finns tillgängliga i världen idag.
Det finns många fördelar som är förknippade med att investera i de bästa kryptokurvorna, bland annat det faktum att de handlas på den globala marknaden. Därför är det lätt att handla med de bästa valutorna och du kan också förvänta dig god avkastning. Att investera i de bästa valutorna kräver dock att du lär dig hur systemet fungerar, grunderna i ekonomi och företagsledning. Om du till exempel är en investerare som är ny på att investera på altcoin-marknaden, är det bättre om du får hjälp av professionella personer som experter och handlare.
Det finns många fördelar som du kan njuta av när du investerar i de bästa valutorna i världen. En av dessa är att när du väljer de bästa kryptosurferna kan du vara säker på att värdet på din investering alltid kommer att vara stabilt. Eftersom värdet på varje mynt varierar beroende på utbud och efterfrågan är det viktigt att du investerar i de bästa valutorna och sedan handlar med dem enligt dina behov. När värdet på en valuta fluktuerar kan du alltså enkelt sälja dina tillgångar och investera i de nya.
Det bästa sättet att investera i de bästa kryptosurfarna är att se till att du är välinformerad om de olika faktorer som påverkar värdet på ett visst mynt och du har också en expert som kan lära dig hur du väljer de bästa valutorna att investera i. När du vill göra vinster från handeln med den bästa kryptosurf bör du alltså se till att du utbildar dig om marknadens ekonomi och affärsmodeller. Här är nästa intressanta blogginlägg: Vad är Bitcoin Red.
The post Cryptocurrency Provider Online Trading Erfarenheter first appeared on Hur man använder kryptovalutor på rätt sätt.
Att välja Köp Ether online de bästa kryptosystem som finns på marknaden är en mycket viktig aspekt av handeln. Om du inte är medveten om detta kan det sluta med att du förlorar mycket pengar i det långa loppet. Om du vill göra mest vinst på kortast möjliga tid måste du göra din hemläxa väl. Här är några av de grunder som du bör känna till innan du väljer de bästa mynten att handla på marknaden med.
Köp Ether online
En av de första sakerna du måste titta efter i de bästa valutorna som finns på marknaden är deras inflationsgrad. För att förstå detta måste du först förstå vad inflation är. Inflation är helt enkelt en ökning av priserna utan att varor och tjänster minskar. Till exempel är en enårig dollar värd mycket mer om några månader, eller hur? Så om du väljer att investera i de bästa råvarorna för det här århundradet vore det klokt att hålla utkik efter de valutor som enligt prognoserna kommer att uppleva den högsta inflationen under de kommande tio åren.
Ett annat grundläggande övervägande när det gäller att investera i de bästa valutorna är deras historik när det gäller handel och gruvdrift. Man kan inte bara välja vilket gammalt system som helst att investera i idag. Det finns hundratusentals valutor som handlas på marknaden och endast ett fåtal utvalda är lönsamma. Därför är det nödvändigt att du forskar väl om de olika systemen som finns tillgängliga för att veta vilket av de tillgängliga kryptosystemen som är det bästa att investera i.
Ett av de enklaste sätten att avgöra vilken av de bästa valutorna att investera i är genom att titta på den underliggande tillgångens egenskaper. Detta kallas tillgångens egenskaper och de är kända som Ripples. Låt oss ta en titt på två exempel på de bästa valutorna att investera i under det kommande decenniet. Den första typen av tillgång är aktier. Ett index som följer värdet av olika typer av företag kallas aktier. Så om vi tittar på de tio främsta valutorna som kommer att styra aktiemarknadens värde i framtiden är det troligt att dollarn kommer att fortsätta sin uppgång eftersom värdet på aktier i USA och Europa förväntas stiga.
Den andra typen av tillgångar är guld. Det finns en stor sannolikhet för att guldpriset kommer att stiga under det kommande decenniet. Om du håller på med handel och inte har teknisk kunskap om vilken av de bästa valutorna du ska investera i bör du prova de bästa kryptovalutorna som sannolikt kommer att öka i värde under detta årtionde. Bland de möjliga valutorna att investera i Köp Ether online finns euron, den japanska yenen, den australiska dollarn, schweiziska francen, den kanadensiska dollarn och det brittiska pundet. Var och en av dessa valutor har sina egna för- och nackdelar och du bör noggrant studera dem innan du investerar i dem.
Även om det är lätt att bli lockad av de dåliga nyheterna om att investera i kryptovalutor finns det ingen dålig investering när det gäller mynt. Anledningen till detta är att de flesta investerare som är nya i den här branschen slutar med att förlora sina pengar eftersom de inte har rätt kunskap om vilka av de bästa valutorna de ska investera i. Så när du letar efter de bästa valutorna att investera i är det viktigt att du blir bekant med alla dessa. Detta beror på att endast genom att bli en registrerad användare av en onlinehandelsplats kan du få tillgång till alla de bästa kryptovalutorna som finns tillgängliga i världen idag.
Det finns många fördelar som är förknippade med att investera i de bästa kryptokurvorna, bland annat det faktum att de handlas på den globala marknaden. Därför är det lätt att handla med de bästa valutorna och du kan också förvänta dig god avkastning. Att investera i de bästa valutorna kräver dock att du lär dig hur systemet fungerar, grunderna i ekonomi och företagsledning. Om du till exempel är en investerare som är ny på att investera på altcoin-marknaden, är det bättre om du får hjälp av professionella personer som experter och handlare.
Det finns många fördelar som du kan njuta av när du investerar i de bästa valutorna i världen. En av dessa är att när du väljer de bästa kryptosurferna kan du vara säker på att värdet på din investering alltid kommer att vara stabilt. Eftersom värdet på varje mynt varierar beroende på utbud och efterfrågan är det viktigt att du investerar i de bästa valutorna och sedan handlar med dem enligt dina behov. När värdet på en valuta fluktuerar kan du alltså enkelt sälja dina tillgångar och investera i de nya.
Det bästa sättet att investera i de bästa kryptosurfarna är att se till att du är välinformerad om de olika faktorer som påverkar värdet på ett visst mynt och du har också en expert som kan lära dig hur du väljer de bästa valutorna att investera i. När du vill göra vinster från handeln med den bästa kryptosurf bör du alltså se till att du utbildar dig om marknadens ekonomi och affärsmodeller. Här är nästa intressanta blogginlägg: Kreditkort med Bitcoin.
The post Köp Ether online Erfarenheter first appeared on Hur man använder kryptovalutor på rätt sätt.
The post The Best Online Photo Storage Platforms in 2021 Compared appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Simon Ringsmuth.
Of all the options for managing our digital images, which one offers the best online photo storage?
With dozens of services to explore, it can be difficult to find the right storage for your needs. Some prioritize features, while others compete based on price. Some services are basic but easy to use, and others are highly customizable but intimidating to set up.
The trick is to find the service that works right for you!
And that’s what this article is all about:
Exploring the current photo storage options to find one the one that best meets your needs.
Let’s get started.
Online photo storage: a brief overview
Not long ago, cloud-based storage was slow, expensive, and out of reach for most users. People kept their digital photos in folders on their computers, and images weren’t widely shared like they are today.
But now people take more photos than ever, and all those images can quickly fill up a phone, memory card, or hard drive.
Fortunately, online photo storage solves this problem – by giving people a way to store photos remotely and access them at any time from any device.
In 2013, Flickr rocked the photography world by offering one terabyte of free storage, and in 2015, Google fired back by offering unlimited photo storage.
Sadly, these deals didn’t last; in 2018 Flickr slashed the storage limit for free accounts to 1000 photos, and in June of 2021 Google will limit users to 15 GB of storage for their entire account: photos, movies, documents, and everything else.
Flickr’s redesign in 2013 gave every user one free terabyte of storage. It seemed too good to be true. Turns out it was!
While the halcyon days of near-infinite online photo storage might be over, that doesn’t mean there aren’t options.
In fact, you now have more storage solutions than ever, but they have a few caveats and tradeoffs that didn’t exist before. Pricing has finally caught up with demand, and most online photo storage sites now have a limited free tier along with paid options.
One immutable fact we have learned over the last two decades of digital photography is that the old adage rings true: There’s no such thing as a free lunch. Or in this case, free online photo storage. Some sites have free tiers, but all are limited in important ways.
So if you want the best online photo storage, you’re going to have to pay for it.
Not much, mind you – generally only a few dollars each month. Just know you can’t get something for nothing, especially when it comes to storing your photos in the cloud.
Will you use online photo storage for backup or sharing with others? The answer could affect your choices dramatically.
The best online photo storage in 2021: Flickr
Flickr has been in the online photo storage business longer than almost any other site. That doesn’t mean it automatically earns a place at the top of my list, since longevity does not equal quality when it comes to internet ventures.
But in the case of Flickr, it is a huge advantage, since the site carries a rich legacy that photographers have enjoyed for years. Its interface is specifically designed around sharing photos, which is a pleasant change from social media sites that seem to be more interested in advertising than photography.
Flickr’s main interface is the Photostream, or a scrollable list of the most recent pictures you have uploaded.
The Flickr Photostream is a public showcase for your most recent images.
You can create Albums and Galleries, and mark photos as viewable for the public as well as friends or family members. Pro members get detailed statistics on how often their photos are viewed, favorited, and commented on. The mobile app automatically uploads all recent photos and videos. Images can be categorized with keywords, added to groups, and licensed with several types of Creative Commons.
Flickr shows complete EXIF data for photos, which is an invaluable tool that helps photographers learn more about how a given image was taken. Images can be embedded or downloaded (if the photographer allows), and prints can be purchased directly on the site.
Flickr also has over two million groups – online communities organized around specific topics where users engage in discussions about photos and share information and advice.
Flickr Pro users have access to advanced statistics and data for their images.
While the 1000 photo limit for free users seems positively anemic in the age of smartphones (when average users could easily reach that in a month or two), it does strike a good balance between end-user practicality and long-term business sustainability.
Also, the mobile app for Flickr can automatically upload pictures from your phone (though its interface is a bit simplistic compared to some other options).
Free Version: 1000 photo limit, ad-supported, no statistics for photos.
Paid Version: $ 59.99/year, unlimited photo/video uploads, no ads, advanced statistics, desktop app for automatic photo backup.
Pros: Easy to use for casual photographers. Rich set of tools for power users. No ads or storage quotas for Pro members. Photos are uploaded at full resolution with no compression.
Cons: Some interface elements are very outdated. RAW files are not supported, which limits Flickr’s appeal for professional photographers.
2nd place: Google Photos
Born from the ashes of the Google+ social media site in 2015, Google Photos quickly became the most popular photo-sharing site in the world thanks to its free, unlimited photo storage.
For five years, Google Photos reigned supreme as the go-to place for over a billion users to upload their images. Unfortunately, starting in mid-2021, a 15 GB limit will be imposed on new files added to free accounts.
But just because Google will start charging users who exceed 15 GB of storage doesn’t mean it is no longer a great option for people looking for online photo storage.
Google Photos is a great option for mobile users who want easy, intuitive photo storage, organization, and sharing.
Unlike Flickr, Google Photos is built for mobile. The Google Photos app uploads your images automatically, where they are sorted, tagged, and automatically analyzed by Google’s AI-driven software. Some users find this to be a bit invasive, but Google has said that this data remains private and is not used for advertising. The app also contains a surprisingly in-depth photo editor that also uses AI to enhance your images and suggest edits.
Google Photos has powerful built-in sharing features that let you set up shared albums and galleries and allow multiple people to contribute to a single album. This works great for parties or events where everyone is taking photos; the files can be instantly shared among attendees.
Photo albums can be shared publicly, or they can be shared privately with anyone who has a Google account.
AI software also recognizes people and uses geotagging for places, and this can help with sorting through your images. These algorithms also find objects in your photos, so you can search for words like “pumpkin” or “fireworks” and the app will display relevant images, all without you doing any extra work to add tags.
For privacy hawks, this might be a little too intrusive, as there’s no telling exactly what Google is doing with all this information in your photos. And there’s no way to adjust or customize the AI scanning and analyzing of your images. However, you do get to control who sees your images, and all photos are private by default.
Instead of offering a quantity limit, Google Photos restricts the free option to 15 GB. That might seem like a lot, but the 15 GB is for your entire Google account, not just your photos. If you have large files or other data already taking up lots of space in your Google account, there won’t be much left for your photos.
Free Version: No limits on functionality, but storage is limited to 15 GB.
Paid Version: $ 19.99/year for 100 GB. $ 29.99/year for 200 GB. $ 99.99/year for 1 TB. Same features as the free version, but storage is increased.
Pros: Excellent mobile interface. AI algorithms help with tagging and organizing. Sharing albums is easy since most people have Google accounts.
Cons: Some privacy concerns related to how Google uses your data. Storage that you pay for includes all your documents and files, not just photos.
3rd place: Apple iCloud Photos
Apple iCloud Photos is the de facto standard for iPhone and Mac users and with good reason. It’s designed to be extremely easy to use and integrates deeply with the Apple software and hardware ecosystem.
All photos you take with your iPhone are automatically uploaded to your iCloud account, where they can be synced with other devices such as iPhones, iPads, and Macintosh computers. The iOS Photos app has a rich set of editing options, and all edits are automatically synced across devices, as well. Images can be edited with the Photos app on a Mac, and edits are synced instantly.
iCloud Photos is excellent for Apple users, though the free 5 GB of storage is very limiting.
Apple has steadily been improving iCloud Photos over the years with on-device machine learning, which ensures your photo information is not sent to the Cloud or mined for advertising or other purposes.
You can search for people, places, and objects without doing any extra work; on-device software analyzes your photos, organizes them into groups of related images (i.e., vacations, holidays, etc.), and even attempts to pick out favorite moments and memories. None of this information is done in the cloud, which makes iCloud Photos a little more attractive for people who value privacy at the expense of some functionality.
One of my favorite iCloud Photos features is its ability to back up all the images and videos on your mobile device and retrieve them instantly. This is great for people whose phones are constantly low on storage space. Small thumbnails of all your photos are left on the device, while the full-size originals are safely stored in the cloud. Tapping a photo will download the original file on the fly, so you can take thousands of pictures without using up all the space on your phone.
All your mobile phone pictures are automatically uploaded to iCloud Photos. They can be synced with other Apple devices or shared publicly.
Unfortunately, iCloud Photos stumbles with the social and sharing functions. Flickr and Google Photos have easy options for sharing images and albums with others, making some photos public, and letting people leave comments or even their own tags. Some of this is possible with iCloud Photos, but it’s not as easy or seamless as other platforms.
Also, while Google Photos and Flickr work on both iOS and Android devices, iCloud Photos is specifically designed to work with Apple hardware and software. This is a dealbreaker for anyone who prefers to use non-Apple products.
Free Version: No limits on functionality, but storage is limited to 5 GB.
Paid version: $ 12/year for 50 GB, $ 35/year for 200 GB, $ 120/year for 2 TB.
Pros: Incredible suite of editing tools in the Photos app. Integrates seamlessly with Apple devices. Private and secure, with no advertising or data mining.
Cons: Limited to Apple devices. Sharing and social elements like commenting are not as easy as other platforms.
Honorable mentions
Flickr, Google Photos, and iCloud Photos are great options for online cloud photo storage, but you might have other requirements or workflows that are better suited to other platforms.
Thankfully, there are a host of other companies to consider. So if none of the above options meet your needs, here are a few excellent alternatives:
SmugMug
SmugMug has a suite of features and tools that make it great for professionals, but even casual photographers will find a lot to like.
SmugMug is designed for professionals who need a way to showcase their images and create galleries for clients, but it has a good option for casual users, too.
The Basic plan has everything most non-professionals could want, including unlimited uploads, solid organizational tools, options for sharing, and even a front-facing website. The latter is somewhat unique among online photo storage tools and makes SmugMug one of the best options for people who want a web presence along with storage.
SmugMug’s features are about what you’d expect. You can upload images from your phone or computer, and people can follow you to see your public photos.
You do have some options for sharing photos with SmugMug, but not nearly the same as Flickr or Google Photos. There isn’t the same level of community and engagement as on other sites, but if you want a simple method for storing your photos, SmugMug might be worth a look.
SmugMug lets anyone create a website to showcase their best work.
If you’re a working professional who needs control over how your photos are presented, as well as methods for selling your images to clients, SmugMug is definitely worth considering.
Paid version: $ 55/year for unlimited uploads. $ 85/year, $ 200/year, and $ 360/year options for professionals, which include advanced organization options and client tools.
Pros: Unlimited photo uploads. Price includes a website for showcasing your best work, plus a high degree of control over organizing your images.
Cons: No free option with limited functionality (but you can get a 14-day trial).
500px
Like SmugMug, 500px is generally geared towards professionals and more serious artists, but it is worth considering for people who want a solid option for online cloud photo storage. It offers a limited, ad-supported free tier, but the basic paid plan is priced similar to other sites.
What separates 500px from other options on this list is its communal focus. It’s a great option if you want to get exposure and build engagement with a community.
500px is more geared towards building a photography community, and it gives users a chance to build a brand and grow their following.
In some ways, 500px is better compared with Instagram than Flickr or Google Photos. You can quickly gain a following and view statistics on which of your photos lead to the greatest audience engagement.
If you are tired of the endless advertising and data mining on social network sites, then 500px might be worth a look, but its walled-garden nature somewhat limits its appeal. That can be a good thing, as it leads to more considered, curated content – but ultimately, 500px doesn’t have the same level of broad appeal as other sites.
500px has Quests to help members grow their skills and educational resources offered for free or at a discount.
Free version: 7 uploads per week, ad-supported, with limited access to some of the more powerful features like statistics and liked photos.
Paid Version: $ 48/year for unlimited uploads, data on how your photos perform among the 500px community, and tools to organize, share, and promote your images. $ 72/year for professionals who want a powerful platform with tools for creating a website, gaining clients, and finding jobs.
Pros: Unlimited photo uploads and access to a vibrant community of artists sharing quality work. Tools to organize and share images with the community and others.
Cons: Free option is extremely limited.
Adobe Creative Cloud
If you pay for a $ 9.99/month Adobe Creative Cloud plan, you already have pretty awesome online photo storage built into your subscription. Whether you have the cloud-focused Lightroom plan or the desktop-centric Photography Plan, you can create online galleries and share them with specific people, or make them publicly viewable for anyone who has the link.
You can upload photo galleries to the cloud even if you just use Lightroom Classic. This is extremely useful for sharing images publicly, privately, or with clients. (Note: The uploads are not full-resolution originals.)
Best of all, if you use Lightroom Classic, these online galleries don’t even count against your storage quota. When you create a public gallery, Lightroom uploads Smart Previews of your images to the cloud. These aren’t full-size, high-resolution images, but they’re great for just sharing pictures with friends and family.
You can also use the Discover feature in Lightroom Mobile to join a community of photographers in order to showcase your work and engage with an audience.
Adobe has been building a photography community similar to Instagram and 500px through their Discover tool (which is built into Lightroom Mobile).
While Adobe Creative Cloud isn’t as full-featured as Flickr, Google Photos, or others on this list, it’s definitely worth investigating if you already have an Adobe subscription and don’t want to pay more for an online photo storage site.
Paid Version: $ 9.99/month for 1 TB cloud storage or 20 GB cloud storage. Creating online galleries to share does not count against your cloud storage.
Pros: Included as part of the Adobe Lightroom or Photography plans. Unlimited images with no storage quota. A decent level of control over how your images are shown in online galleries.
Cons: Images you upload to online galleries are smaller-size previews of your images. Not as full-featured as other photography sites. No built-in support for sharing videos or allowing your photos to be purchased.
Amazon Prime Photos
If you’re one of the millions of people who pay for Amazon Prime, you already have access to Amazon Photos at no additional charge. This service allows you to upload an unlimited number of images (including RAW files) from desktop or mobile. You can organize your photos with Albums, buy prints, and share images with other people in just a few clicks.
If you pay for Amazon Prime, you also have access to Amazon Photos, which allows for unlimited photo uploads to the cloud.
The Amazon Photos app lets you back up all the images on your phone to save space. However, accessing them afterward involves using the same Amazon Photos app instead of the native Photos app on your device. You can also use the desktop app to automatically upload all the pictures on your computer to your Amazon Photos account.
All these features make Amazon Photos great for online storage, but there are a few glaring issues that hold it back from being a true competitor to the others on this list. For one, there are no social networking features and viewers can’t leave comments on your images. The desktop app is kind of clunky, and all your uploaded images are organized solely by the folder they happen to be in on your computer.
The user interface for Amazon Prime Photos is pretty basic, but it gets the job done. You can create albums, share images, and order prints.
Amazon Photos also does auto-tagging by default, but you can turn this off if you prefer to keep Amazon’s artificial intelligence algorithms out of your images. This feature looks for easily-recognizable objects and also analyzes people using facial recognition algorithms, which is similar to a feature that Google offers. Some people find these extremely useful, but your mileage may vary.
If all you want is a simple way to back up your images, then Amazon Prime Photos is a great choice. If you are looking for robust organizing tools, options for sharing your images, and a full-featured image browsing experience, it’s best to look elsewhere.
Paid Version: Included with a $ 119/year Amazon Prime account. No limit for photo uploads; a 5 GB upload limit for videos.
Pros: Great for backing up your images. No extra charge for Amazon Prime members.
Cons: No social features. Web interface is unrefined and desktop uploading app is clunky with occasional bugs.
Dropbox
In the search for the best online photo storage platforms, Dropbox might not be the first option that comes to mind.
While it’s not exactly designed with photos in mind, if you want a solid option for storing, backing up, and even sharing your images, Dropbox is a great choice.
Now, there’s nothing in the way of social features and the web-based user interface is fairly utilitarian, so keep your expectations in check. But it’s one of the best services around for easily transferring and managing huge amounts of data, including images.
Dropbox is made for online file storage and not specifically geared toward photographers, but it’s definitely an option to consider if you have a vast library of photos that you want to keep safe and secure.
Designed first and foremost as a cloud-based storage platform, Dropbox works great, not just for storing photos, but also for syncing them across multiple devices. If you want to back up your photo library to the cloud and mirror it to another computer, Dropbox just might be the solution you are looking for.
DropBox’s free version is positively anemic with only 2 GB of storage, but the paid version is outstanding – if a little on the pricey side.
Photos can be shared publicly, and other Dropbox users can leave comments next to an image or by clicking directly on a specific portion of an image.
One of my favorite features of Dropbox is the ability to instantly share a file or folder with anyone via a public link. Navigate to a file or folder on your computer that is synced with Dropbox, right-click on it, and get a link you can copy and paste into an email, text message, or social media account. Anyone with the link can view the file or the contents of the folder, and of all the photo services on this list, Dropbox handles this simple task easier than the rest.
The mobile app can automatically upload your images to Dropbox and includes a host of other features for managing all your cloud-based files.
Free Version: 2 GB storage, limited to 3 synced devices.
Pros: Rock-solid cloud storage with outstanding backup and syncing features. Easy to share photos with a public link. Images can be easily downloaded from the public link.
Cons: Designed more for file storage and backup than sharing photos. No social networking features. 2 TB storage is generous, but the price is expensive.
Microsoft OneDrive
We’re a little off the beaten path here, since OneDrive isn’t exactly known as the world’s greatest online photo storage platform.
However, it’s a service many people already pay for in order to use Microsoft programs such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. And since 1 TB of storage is included in a personal or family OneDrive plan, it’s something to consider if you want a simple way to back up your photos.
Microsoft includes 1 TB of OneDrive storage with their cheapest paid plan, which also includes access to Office software such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
OneDrive is similar to Dropbox in that it is designed around file storage and syncing, but it has some useful features for photographers, as well.
You can automatically upload your mobile device pictures directly to OneDrive and share individual images or folders with others. OneDrive syncs across devices, too – though over years of using both platforms, I have found Dropbox to be more reliable and less prone to head-scratching glitches.
Photos in OneDrive can be viewed online and shared with others.
OneDrive won’t blow you away with its photo-centric features, AI-based image organization, or a community of shutterbugs to connect with. But if you already pay for the service, then it’s worth checking out for the features it does offer.
Free Version: 5 GB storage only. No access to Office apps like Word/Excel/PowerPoint.
Paid Version: $ 2/month for 100 GB storage. $ 70/year for 1 TB storage as well as access to Office apps.
Pros: If you already pay for OneDrive, you can use your 1 TB storage for managing photos. Great for backing up your images and sharing with others.
Cons: Designed more for file storage and backup than sharing photos. No social networking features.
iDrive
For photographers who want a simple, robust, and fairly inexpensive solution to backup their photos, it’s hard to beat iDrive. iDrive has a long history of offering cloud-based storage and backup, and this reputation makes it easy to recommend them over other storage providers.
While iDrive is more specifically geared toward backing up your entire computer, that doesn’t mean it has nothing to offer photographers. Quite the opposite, in fact.
iDrive is built for file storage and backup. It’s a good choice if you have a huge photo library, but doesn’t have the same level of features as Dropbox in terms of sharing and commenting.
If you have a massive photo library and care more about making sure your work is safely backed up than sharing your pictures with the world, iDrive is a good option to consider. Their software will securely transfer all your data, or just the files and folders you choose, to their cloud servers. You can sync everything with another computer, access your photos via the web interface, and use the mobile app to automatically upload your camera photos.
Don’t expect image editing tools, a community of photographers, or other advanced features found on photography-centric platforms. But you can share images with others and use iDrive to transfer large batches of photos to clients.
Free Version: 5 GB Storage
Paid Version: $ 70/year for 5 TB storage. Back up one or more computers continuously. Clone an entire hard drive, which is useful for backing up a photo library.
Pros: Great reputation for cloud-based storage and backup. Price is very good for the amount of storage, which is important for photographers with large photo archives.
Cons: Not specifically created for photographers, and options for creating galleries and for sharing images are limited.
pCloud
Like Dropbox and OneDrive, pCloud isn’t known first and foremost for online photo storage. It was created for easy-to-use file storage and syncing, and has a free tier with 10 GB of storage for people who want to try it out without committing to a monthly fee.
What sets pCloud apart is its price: It’s the only cloud storage option on this list that has a one-time fee option instead of monthly or yearly charges. While the one-time fee is expensive, it is far cheaper in the long term if you plan on using the service for years.
pCloud is a great choice for photographers on a budget who don’t want to commit to expensive yearly fees but require solid online photo storage.
pCloud’s options for photographers won’t knock anyone’s socks off, but they do have some pleasing features. The mobile app can upload your images directly to pCloud, and the web-based interface lets you resize your photos to make them smaller. This is useful if you want to share photos while keeping an eye on file sizes and bandwidth usage.
Free Version: 10 GB storage. Includes all pCloud features in the commercial version.
Paid Version: $ 175 one-time fee for 500 GB storage. $ 350 one-time fee for 2 TB. Annual plans also available.
Pros: One-time fee. Uploading via the mobile app. Offers an easy way to resize photos.
Cons: Expensive up-front cost. Not designed for social networking or easy image-sharing.
Synology Photo Station
Synology Photo Station differs from the other options on this list because Synology isn’t really a cloud-based photo storage platform.
With Synology, you essentially build your own cloud storage server, called a NAS (network-attached storage). It’s a physical device you keep at home and can access from anywhere with advanced, highly-customizable software. This might make its inclusion on the list a little confusing, but hear me out.
Synology gives you your own personal cloud storage on a device you own. You can then access your photos and other files from anywhere.
Instead of an external hard drive that you plug into your computer, a NAS is a disk or array of disks that you access over a network. NAS devices are standard in many businesses, and are becoming more popular at home as people realize how flexible and powerful they can be.
In late 2020, Synology released a service called Photo Station. It’s designed for people who want to easily share images with others in online galleries, but need to control the physical media themselves. That way, you can buy a Synology NAS and use it to host photo galleries, share images, and manage all your digital images – without relying on a cloud server you can’t always control.
Introduced near the end of 2020, Synology’s Photo Station tool gives photographers a way to share images and create public albums. It’s a nice perk for those who have already invested in Synology hardware and don’t mind a bit of a learning curve.
Synology Photo Station lets viewers engage with your images by leaving comments and clicking on highlighted areas, so it’s great for sharing images with clients or even the general public. Storage space isn’t a problem, since you can just add more drives to your NAS or swap out the existing disk for a bigger one.
There is a learning curve to set it all up, and if something goes wrong you might find yourself spending more of your own time to fix it than you want. But it’s definitely worth a look for photographers who require the highest level of control over their photos.
Price: Around $ 200 for a basic enclosure, but drives need to be purchased separately.
Pros: Highly customizable, infinitely expandable. Easy to share photos with others and no long-term recurring fees.
Cons: Steep learning curve. Not true a cloud-storage service, so your photos aren’t backed up remotely.
How to choose
At the end of the day, you just want the right solution for you and your workflow.
With so many options available, how can you possibly pick the best online cloud storage option for your photos?
To answer that question, it’s helpful to reframe things just a little and realize that there is no one single solution that is ideal for everyone. Different people have different needs, and no single cloud platform is going to meet the needs of every individual.
Keeping that in mind, here are my picks for the best online photo storage options for three types of people:
The casual photographer: Flickr
Flickr occupies the ideal middle ground between storage, price, features, and community. Its yearly cost is right in line with what many other services offer, and it offers unlimited photo uploads so you never have to think about running out of space or upgrading your storage plan.
Flickr has existed since 2004 and has outlasted many competing services while still remaining relevant today. Its mobile app is perfectly usable, if not as feature-rich as some alternatives, and the 1000-photo free tier is enough for you to get plenty of use before paying to upgrade.
The lack of RAW uploads makes Flickr less appealing to professionals, and there’s no front-facing website for showcasing your best work to clients. Additionally, some elements of the Flickr web interface feel like they haven’t been updated since 2004, which can make using them a bit of a challenge.
Flickr has been around since 2004, which is also the last time some parts of its interface appear to have been updated. Nevertheless, it’s the best online storage option for many photographers.
You won’t find artificial intelligence sorting and organizing on Flickr, either. But if you’re a casual or even semi-professional photographer looking for an outstanding online photo storage platform – one that can meet your needs without requiring too much money – Flickr is the best option.
The professional photographer: SmugMug
SmugMug is the best storage option for professionals who require more feature-rich storage. The Basic plan is fine for casual photographers and shares many of the same features as Flickr, though it lacks the social elements and photography communities that have made Flickr so useful over the years.
SmugMug has tools for professionals to create a website and let clients order prints, and its SmugVault tool allows for uploading RAW, TIFF, and other high-quality image formats. Combine that with unlimited storage and the result is an online photo storage platform ideal for working professionals.
The archiver: Dropbox
If you’re a person with hundreds of thousands of photos and you just want to store them safely in the cloud, Dropbox is your best choice.
The price is a little higher than some of the other options, but you do get what you pay for. Dropbox handles tasks like uploading, downloading, syncing, versioning, and restoring deleted files and folders more smoothly than any other platform.
Dropbox has been refining its file syncing technologies since 2007. They only do one thing – online cloud storage and syncing – and they do it very, very well.
Dropbox syncs your files instantly across multiple devices and has a robust and full-featured mobile app for uploading photos and managing files. Plus, the one-click public sharing for pictures and entire folders is so useful that, once you have it, you won’t ever want to go back.
The cheapest paid tier offers a generous 2 TB of storage, and if you want to free up space on your computer, you can tell Dropbox to store originals in the cloud; you can then download them on an as-needed basis.
Dropbox doesn’t have productivity apps like OneDrive, and it’s more expensive than iDrive or pCloud, but it handles the straightforward task of cloud storage better than anything else on the market.
The best online photo storage: conclusion
I hope this guide was useful to you!
And now that you’ve finished, you should know the best online photo storage provider for your needs.
Now I’d like to ask you:
What do you think about online photo storage options? Do you have a site you like that didn’t make it on this list? Are there features of these tools that you use but I didn’t mention in my review? Leave your thoughts and questions in the comments section below!
The post The Best Online Photo Storage Platforms in 2021 Compared appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Simon Ringsmuth.
The post Is the Online Photography Community Toxic? appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Carl Spring.
Is the online photography community toxic? It certainly feels like it sometimes.
There seems to be a lot of toxicity to go around right now – and not just in photography.
Every time I look at social media these days, things get angry very quickly. You only have to look at anything political on Twitter and it generally takes just a few tweets before everything descends into accusations and hatred.
When I look at the photography groups I follow, I’m sad to say I tend to find similar issues. Not in every group, but you only have to look at news of any camera release before things generally descend into tribalism:
“My brand is way better! What were they thinking? This is garbage!”
And my personal favorite:
“You call yourself a professional with opinions like that?”
Sometimes it’s easy to drop the popcorn meme and sit back and enjoy the fireworks. But it does make me question whether there is value in staying in these groups and reading these sites (and comment threads). For pretty much all of us, photography is a hobby that some of us have been lucky enough to turn into our career.
So we need to think about why the photography community can be so toxic.
And we need to ask ourselves:
How can we do better?
Why are online communities toxic?
There any many in-depth essays from people way more qualified than I who have looked into this. It tends to boil down to the fact that not looking in someone’s eyes when you are talking to them removes inhibitions. There is no person and no feelings to be seen, just text on a screen.
That, combined with the ability to hide behind a username, gives people the power to be the vilest version of themselves without consequence.
It’s hard not to retaliate when faced with somebody sniping at you, whether you’re talking online or in person. However, what makes things harder is the fact that, when talking online, we lose the subtlety of delivery and expression.
I am sure everyone reading this has received an email, got the tone completely wrong, and sent a blunt reply. Our ability to articulate through speech is much more advanced and allows for many more subtleties than the written word.
This inability to read tone can get amplified when people from different backgrounds and cultures clash. The internet is worldwide, and as such, cultural differences can be misunderstood and can lead to innocent comments being taken the wrong way.
Finally, we need to take into account the stresses of real life. These days, we tend to lead less social lives. We work longer hours in incredibly stressful jobs where we cannot always say what we want to due to the repercussions.
So we need an outlet for our frustration.
Each of us responds in a different way. For some, it may be going for a run, whereas others may blast away their stresses on the latest first-person shooter video game.
But some people haven’t found a healthy outlet for their frustration, and the release of their anger occurs in online conversations.
With photography, every discussion tends to have two opposite viewpoints. And so, depending on the way your brain is wired, you may struggle to see other community members’ points of view.
Let me explain what I mean in the next section:
The horizon is crooked. What a joke! Idiot!
Two schools of thought: technical and artistic
Have you ever seen someone from an arts background make conversation with someone from an academic background?
It’s usually very awkward, and both individuals will struggle to find some common ground.
Because while artists tend to deal with unquantifiable factors such as feeling and emotion, academics prefer to work with facts and theory.
Photography, however, is the point at which science and art meet. This brings in two distinct schools of thought – which tend to be polar opposites of each other.
Those who prefer the academic side of photography enjoy technical perfection. The fact that engineers made sensors with the ability to capture so much detail and lenses that are so amazingly sharp is fascinating to them. They look at composition based on mathematical formulae, and past this, they may struggle to make sense of their art.
On the other hand, there are artistic photographers. Those who like lenses that have character, those who do not mind blur in photographs. Those for whom the feeling and the moment are the keys to the perfect photograph, not how sharp it is or whether it follows the golden ratio.
These photographers feel the confines of technology should not stop them from capturing the perfect moment.
Who is right in this argument depends on where you sit on the scale. Without getting too psychological about it, people generally fall into one of two character types: academic or creative. This is due to the makeup of each person’s brain and goes some way toward explaining these differing schools of thought and why people don’t see eye to eye.
In other words:
People are approaching the same problem from different angles.
But this doesn’t explain why there can be so many arguments about photography brands. For this, we need to look at sports teams and the problems of tribalism.
What the hell is this?! Are you trying to be Banksy or something?
Tribalism
Tribalism is clearly present in sports. But is it also rife in photography?
As photographers, we tend to find a brand that we like, and we stick with it. If the company (and their marketing team) do their job properly, we become loyal to that brand.
Now, we invest a lot in photography from an emotional standpoint. We all know that feeling when you get a shot that turns out better than you expected. It releases the same chemicals in the brain as when your favorite sports team scores.
And the camera you used to take the photograph becomes your team. Your investment in the camera (both emotionally and financially) means it plays a part in your victories.
Ultimately, your camera brand becomes part of your photography and therefore part of you.
They should have called it the H5 for “hot.” Canon sucks!
Over time, this can lead to tribalism. You love your brand, your brand has helped you in many photographic victories, and in many cases, it has been with you since your youth. So hearing someone talk badly about the brand you shoot with becomes associated with them talking badly about you. You feel the need to defend yourself and your team.
We also tend to surround ourselves with people who love the same brands that we do, which reinforces our opinions. Canon users frequent Canon groups, where Canon is the best and everyone else sucks. The same with Sony, with Nikon, and with every brand. This leads to our opinions becoming reinforced by those we surround ourselves with, cementing the inevitable tribalism.
No brand seems to personify this tribalism more than Sony. If Sony were a football team (or soccer, depending on where you’re from), it would be Manchester United – a team with incredibly adoring fans, but that is also despised by many others.
I have wasted too much of my life reading comment sections of Sony releases (and every brand!) that erupt into arguments about how much Sony rules or Sony sucks. Each time fans attack, then defend their side until the final whistle.
However, unlike sports, these arguments always end in a draw. Nobody wins, nobody loses. It just creates a deeper rivalry between those on either side of the argument and increases tensions for the next meeting.
Also, when you’ve invested thousands into a system, you don’t want to feel like you’ve made the wrong decision. You need to be secure in the knowledge that you have made the right choice, which leads nicely to my next point:
Do Sony users have their own chant yet?
Insecurity
It’s scary to put something that you are so passionate about out into the world.
Sharing a photograph you are proud of is like putting a part of yourself out there for people to talk about. And to have people pick your photo apart can be soul-destroying. It can feel like people are saying that they don’t like you.
How people deal with this critique differs. Some people get depressed and withdraw. Others don’t take criticism very well and lash out toward those giving the critique. It depends on the person, their mood, and a multitude of factors that, quite frankly, are none of anyone else’s business.
A photo similar to yours getting more likes doesn’t mean anything. Unfortunately, thanks to social media, we are now conditioned to associate likes with validation.
Personally, I feel this is shallow, meaningless, and only serves to stroke the ego rather than nourish the soul. However, some see likes and positive comments as the holy grail of photography. It all comes back to our cultural values and our personal belief system.
Art is subjective by nature; remember, we are allowed to have different opinions. It’s not a bad thing to disagree with other people, but it is important that you respect other opinions. It is okay to agree to disagree.
And always try to remember:
Different is good.
Otherwise, there would only be one camera brand, one style of photography, one editing style. It’s also fine to be passionate and argue your case, but always keep it civil. Your bad day, boredom, and whatever else you have going on have nothing to do with your “opponent” or their creativity.
Remember that ripping something to pieces just to make yourself feel better is a pretty lousy way to interact with other people.
Which brings me to my final point:
It’s just a nice-colored leaf. It sucks, right? I mean, how many leaf photos does one article need?
Some people are simply not very nice
All groups have people that are amazing, kind, and like helping others out.
Unfortunately, all groups also contain people who are simply not nice.
And these are the ones who make the online photography community toxic.
There is nothing much you can do about it, apart from blocking those who you simply cannot agree with and trying not to let them bother you. Life is too short.
For some, going online to try and get a reaction from people is almost like a sport. And what better place to spark a reaction than a creative space where people are giving something of themselves?
A seagull! Jeez, you can’t even find a rare bird of prey to photograph. Give up as a bird photographer!
What’s it like having to moderate all of this?
While websites and forums may seem full of hate, remember that there are moderators behind these pages trying their hardest to make people’s experience the best it can be.
I caught up with Simon, who moderates the Digital Photography School Facebook page and works with other camera companies’ social media, to see what it is like trying to keep a photography community a nice place for users to interact.
Here’s our exchange:
Can you describe your job and how it works?
I’ve been a social media/community manager for about 12 years now – 10 full time, and part-time for the two prior. I manage all aspects of social media, from content creation to community management to customer support.
Have things gotten better or worse over that time?
When Digital Photography School was in its infancy, I was working in the VBulletin forums that we had back then. I don’t think things have become particularly worse or better. I think, ever since people had a platform where they could speak their mind with little (to them) consequence, we’ve seen people talking without thinking.
How much toxicity do you deal with on a day-to-day basis in your work?
I see negativity on many levels every day: commentary on politics and religion, right through to “your horizon is crooked, are you stupid?” The sad part of what I see is that, with minor wording changes in the photography space, I think there’s potential for a lot less online anger and toxicity. From “Your horizon’s crooked, idiot!” to “I wonder how this photo would look if you straightened up that horizon?”
What is the most common thing that sparks arguments/toxicity in your experience?
In my opinion, insensitivity is what sparks most negative sentiment online. From insulting someone’s photography skills to insulting their way of life, we never can know what someone’s going through on the other end of that interaction; someone has a bad day and takes a comment badly, and up and up it goes until someone’s very upset. I see it daily.
Do you feel that photography is better or worse than other communities for this type of behavior?
I feel like photography is similar to any other, but I’ve always asked myself why. (I mean, I feel like I know the answer! We are making our vision come to life through photography, and when someone leaves an insensitive comment, we respond passionately…)
As someone who sees the worst of the photography community, does it depress you how bad it has become? Do you tend to avoid parts of the community due to this?
It does depress me. Obviously, it’s a little different for me than I guess most people, as it’s my job to wade into those conversations where it has an impact on a community that I manage or a brand that I manage, so I can’t avoid it. If I were a reader or contributor in one of our groups or on the blog, after seeing the conversations that I have seen spiral out of control so many times, I’d teach myself to have patience with people and to skip through threads that made me angry or sad; life is too short for that stuff!
What one thing would you ask of dPS readers when they are posting comments that could be considered obnoxious/rude/toxic?
I don’t want to ever control people’s commentary on a topic; sometimes I need to close and remove threads or give people little “timeouts.” But I’d ask that, if they were replying to something that made them angry, to maybe take a minute and think through what is happening in that thread; find a different way to respond. Don’t use incendiary phrases like “You’re an idiot!” It never achieves anything. Be kind.
You didn’t use a tripod for a long exposure?! How can you call yourself a photographer?
How can we do better?
To conclude, I wanted to find a way to try and help the photography community. After many hours of thought, I came up with four simple words you should think about before you post to a website. They are as follows:
Don’t be a jerk!
I hope that helps.
Now over to you:
How do you feel about the photography community? Do you think that things are pretty toxic? How does that make you feel, and what can be done to make things better? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
The post Is the Online Photography Community Toxic? appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Carl Spring.
After facing imminent closure, Tetenal is back with a vengeance and has relaunched their online shop. This is fantastic news for analog photographers, as Tetenal has been producing critical photochemicals since 1847, making Tetenal the oldest active company in the photo industry.
In January 2019, we reported that Tetenal Europe faced closure. After going into voluntary insolvency protection in 2018, Tetenal Europe GmbH failed to find new investors and was preparing to close its doors. In February 2019, an employee-led management buyout was accepted and Tetenal lived on.
In an announcement at the time, one of the leaders of the employee-led movement, Burkhardt Mueller, said, ‘We respect the heritage and the responsibility for 172 years of photo history that we inherit. Together with the global photo community and commercial partners from the analog photo industry, we will relaunch proven products to ensure reliable sustainable supply for film and photo studios, while developing new business models, products and services.’
A screenshot from Tetenal 1847’s new online store.
Jumping ahead to the current day, the wheels are in motion at the new Tetenal. The company is offering a 5% discount on all purchases from their online store using the discount code ‘tetenalpromo09’. The company offers worldwide shipping.
Tetenal’s relaunch includes new black and white chemistry, including film and photo paper developer, stop, fixer, photo paper tones, stabilizer, wash aids and wetting solutions. If you’re interested in traditional wet plate photography, there’s emulsion available for that as well.
Tetenal is not content to simply keep producing more of the same, however, it is also working on new products. Tetenal has nearly completed the development of Tetenal Developer Tablets. These E6 and C41 developer tablets are dry chemicals you can dissolve in water to make your own solutions at home. This has two major advantages over traditional liquid concentrates. First, tablets have a lower shipping weight and volume. Secondly, liquids can oxidize, which limits shelf life when using chemicals in small batches. Tablets, on the other hand, are easier to store and have a longer shelf life.
Tetenal has nearly finished the development of effervescent tablet forms of E6 and C41 developer. Click to enlarge. Image credit: Tetenal
It is a big deal for Tetenal to survive. While the company is perhaps best known for its film processing chemicals, it is also a producer of source chemicals for many other companies throughout the world. Tetenal also contributes to digital photography by supplying chemicals to companies such as Epson, Eizo and other inkjet and dye sub media distributors. Tetenal’s chemicals are also critical to the motion picture industry.
In an article for PetaPixel, Ludwig Hagelstein wrote an excellent in-depth look at Tetenal since its 19th-century beginnings. It is well worth checking out for those interested in photographic history and analog photography.
Click to enlarge. Image credit: Tetanel
To learn more about Tetenal’s history and its product offerings, head to its website. It’s excellent to see the company continuing to survive and innovate amid challenging market conditions.
On September 1, Canon Australia announced that it will be closing its online direct to consumer marketplace, Canon Store, for the ‘foreseeable future.’ The store will close starting on September 30.
Canon Australia has determined that current Australian market conditions and challenges demand a shift in how consumers access products, services and support. Of the decision to shutter the online store, which was launched in 2011, Canon Australia says ‘…we are proudly streamlining our efforts in supporting local retailers to drive competition in the local market and bring you the best value product offers, promotions, services and experiences possible.’
The Canon Store will stop taking product orders on September 30. For any backorders not scheduled to arrive before September 30, Canon will directly contact consumers to arrange for a refund or refer the customer to a local retailer.
Image credit: Canon Australia
Any Canon Store gift cards and vouchers can be applied to purchases and existing eligible offers until September 30. Beyond this date, customers are advised to contact Canon Australia. Promotion codes and discount offers are valid until September 30 as well. Canon Store codes will not be transferable to other retailers, so consumers with any questions about codes and offers should contact the Canon Store.
The closure of the Canon Store will not affect Canon Australia’s 5-year local warranty for mirrorless cameras, DSLR cameras, video cameras and lenses. Canon Australia’s warranty for purchases made at authorized Canon sellers will also be unaffected.
In addition to closing the Canon Store, Canon Australia will continue to organize hands-on product experiences, promotions and special events with local retailers. Canon Australia’s statement ends as follows: ‘We look forward to bringing you the best of our innovative products, services and imaging solutions in new ways and trust that you will benefit from our strengthened arrangement with local retailers.’
For Canon customers outside of Australia, it will be interesting to see if Canon Australia’s decision is an outlier or a harbinger of what’s to come for other Canon online retail presences around the world. Different regions face varying market conditions and challenges, so the impending closure of the online store in Australia may just be a one-off situation.
The Oakland Museum of California has put together a digital archive of photographs captured by Dorothea Lange, showcasing some of the best works from the 20th-century documentary photographer and photojournalist.
The extensive archive is split into four categories: The Depression, World War II at Home, Post-War Projects and Early Work/Personal Work. Each of the categories provide a synopsis of Lange’s work during the specified timeframes and further divides her images into themed galleries, which show not only the images Lange captured, but also supplementary material, such as notes to Lange from the United States Department of Agriculture, contact sheets of Lange’s images, maps of her travel routes and more.
It’s a fascinating, insightful and sometimes heartbreaking journey through the life and work of one of the most iconic 20th century American photographers. The online exhibition is entirely free to view, so set aside a few hours and head on over to the Oakland Museum of California website.
The post Great Photoshop Tools to Edit Backgrounds in Images for Online Use appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Ana Mireles.
Are you moving your business online? You’re probably noticing the huge amount of possibilities? From blogs to Instagram; from banners to thumbnails – you need to keep editing your images to fit your every need. Fortunately, there are some Photoshop tools to edit backgrounds that come to the rescue. Keep reading to learn how to solve some of the most common issues about backgrounds.
Are your white backgrounds really white?
Photoshop tools to edit white backgrounds
There are a number of Photoshop tools to edit white backgrounds, so let’s break them down.
Curves
A white background shot seems simple, but it ‘s not so easy to achieve. You can always cut out the subject and replace the backdrop, but this can be very time-consuming even if you did it right in the photo-shoot. You still need to do some editing, and one of the best Photoshop tools to edit a backgrounds’ brightness is Curves.
When a white background image is placed on top of a digital background you can see if it was really white.
Often, despite your best efforts, your seemingly white background is not 100% white. Look at the example above. On the left, you can see the result of the photo-shoot, which appears to be okay. But, if I add a white background layer, you can see it’s not. Notice how you can see the difference in the corners. To easily fix this, you have to add a Curves Adjustment Layer.
To add a Curves adjustment, click on the Adjustments icon at the bottom of the Layer palette, denoted by a circle with black and white halves.
Then, lighten your image by dragging the top part of the curve. Keep going until the transition between your photo and the digital background is not visible. Don’t worry if your subject is getting too light, you’ll fix that in the next step.
Now, grab the Brush tool, and with a soft brush at 10 or 15% flow, start painting black over your subject. This will mask out the adjustments from the curve to keep the original exposure on the subject, including its shadows.
Photoshop tools to extend backgrounds
There will be times when you also need to extend your image backgrounds. Here are some tools to help you do that.
Clone Stamp
The Clone Stamp is one of the most useful Photoshop tools to edit backgrounds. Being able to clone one part of the image to another, helps you to retouch almost anything.
You can correct any specks, dust, or scratches in your image.
I want to show you another situation where it can come in handy too. Imagine you need to extend your background to gain some negative space. You can clone your background to cover a bigger area. First, enlarge your document by going to Menu->Image->Canvas Size and set up the new size.
For this example, I was turning a thumbnail into a header.
Grab the Clone Stamp and take a sample from the background to start cloning. If you are working on a separate layer, make sure to set Current and Below in the options bar. If you’re working on the same layer, use “Current Layer.”
Keep going by sampling from different areas each time, that way, it’s less noticeable, and you’ll get a better result. If the area is too big for this, then the Pattern Stamp tool will be more efficient.
Pattern Stamp
First, use the Rectangular Marquee tool to select a sample of the background. Then go to Menu->Edit->Define Pattern. This will open a pop-up window where you can name and save this background as a pattern.
Pick the Pattern Stamp tool that you’ll find under the Clone Stamp. On the options bar, you can open the pattern menu and choose the one you just created.
Now you just have to paint all the space you want to fill. You can adjust the size of the brush, the hardness, and flow for better results.
If the separation between stamps is noticeable, then go back to the clone stamp tool and smooth out the junctions.
Photoshop healing tools for backgrounds
Similar to the Clone Stamp is the Healing Brush, which has two variations. Unlike the clone, both of them will blend the new pixels with the existing ones. As a result, the correction is much smoother. Let’s see the difference between them.
Spot Healing Brush
The Spot Healing Brush will automatically sample the pixels it thinks are best to use as a source. It will take the texture and reproduce it while blending the color and luminosity with the pixels in the new spot.
This is really useful when you’re working on large empty areas, like textures. In most cases, I find it’s very unpredictable, and it includes pieces that don’t belong, so I don’t use it often. However, it’s a matter of finding what works best in each situation.
I wanted to extend the background. Notice how it included the texture from the subject.
If you cancel the action by going back on your history or using the command Ctrl+Z and try again, it will give you a different result. It works better when you use a small brush and tackle small areas at a time.
If you want to cover a big space, you’ll be better off using the Healing Brush Tool.
Healing Brush
This tool is a mix between the Spot Healing Brush and the Clone Stamp. You can manually choose where to sample by clicking on the spot while holding the Alt key. Then click on the area you want to ‘heal’ and it will blend the source pixels with the current ones. This way the result will be much more uniform. Make sure that “Sampled” is marked as the Source in the Options bar.
You can use this tool to extend your background or to retouch any details on it. It’s very versatile, so try it out.
Conclusion
Your background can complement, enhance, or distract from the subject, so it’s just as important and you want to give it enough attention. Whether it’s a blemish or an extension, these Photoshop tools to edit backgrounds can help you out for most of your online needs.
What is your favorite tool? Share it in the comments section!
The post Great Photoshop Tools to Edit Backgrounds in Images for Online Use appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Ana Mireles.
Note: This is an updated version of an article originally published in Fall 2019. Assessments of print quality and delivery times have been carried over from that article.
Believe it or not, there are still people that like to print out their photos and create photo books to send gifts to family members. There seem to be more options than ever when it comes to online printing services, which makes choosing one a bit overwhelming.
We tested out five popular online printing companies and assessed them based on their ease of service, price, turnaround time and most importantly, print consistency/paper quality.
How we tested
We placed an order for three 8×10 and three 4×6 prints on the same day (October 23rd, 2019) from Snapfish, Amazon Photos*, Shutterfly, MPix, and Printique (formerly known as AdoramaPix). We used the automatic ‘smart crop’ feature on each website when preparing the prints and, when it was possible, requested that the image be printed on Lustre paper. All prints were shipped with the economy shipping option.
Our picks: Printique and MPix
Printique.com Our top pick
Printique, formerly AdoramaPix, offers slightly higher pricing than the competition, but has the most consistent/pleasing print quality. Print turnaround is fast.
MPix.com Also good
MPix’s pricing is in the middle of the road, the print quality is consistent – second only to Printique – and print turnaround is also speedy. But you’ll have to pay extra for options like lustre paper.
Now let’s take a closer look at each of these print services including the process of ordering, the speed of delivery, the condition prints arrived and the overall quality of our purchase.
*FULL DISCLOSURE: DPReview.com is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Amazon. We are editorially independent of our parent company.
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