Gordon Laing has shared another episode of Retro Reviews, this time reviewing the 24-year-old Sony Mavica FD5, one of Sony’s earliest digital cameras that recorded cameras directly to 3.5” floppy discs.
The Mavica FD5 was released in 1997 and retailed for around $ 600. While not the first Mavica camera, it was the first digital Mavica camera. As Gordon explains in the 13-minute video, the selling point of the FD5 was its use of the ubiquitous 3.5” floppy disc as a storage medium. Whereas most other digital cameras in the mid-to-late 1990s either used built-in storage or more expensive (and sometimes proprietary) storage solutions, Sony opted to go for a solution that didn’t require most consumers to go out and purchase additional hardware.
Naturally, this solution made for a rather large, square-shaped camera. But, aside from its brick-like ergonomics [insert Sony ergonomics joke here], Gordon suggests the camera is fairly intuitive and straightforward due to its almost entirely auto nature (the only adjustable setting was exposure compensation +/- 1.5EV in .5EV increments). However, there are a few user experience quirks, such as the camera displaying only the numbers of images captured, not how many remain until your 1.4MB of storage is used up.
Below is a collection of sample photographs captured by Gordon with the Mavica FD5, used with his permission:
At the heart of the FD5 was a CCD sensor that was carried over from Sony’s line of digital video cameras and offered a whopping .3MP (640 x 480 pixels) of resolution. Gordon notes the camera applies rather aggressive JPEG compression to the images in order to fit 20–40 60KB photographs onto a single 3.5” 1.4MP floppy disc. The fixed focal length lens on the FD5 is a 47mm equivalent with a slider on the front of the camera for activating a macro lens that popped in front of the main lens.
The FD5 uses Sony’s FP-530 batteries, which were rated for up to 500 shots per charge. However, reviewing images and keeping the rear LCD display on for extended periods of time dramatically cuts into that shot count.
As always, Gordon’s video coincides with a written Retro Review of the camera, which you can read over on CameraLabs. You can find more of his Retro Reviews on Gordon’s DinoBytes YouTube channel and find his other photography work on his camera review website, CameraLabs.
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.
Who doesn’t love Amazon? Come on, where else can you buy live ladybugs, a ready-made shipping container home or tiny house kit, and a bacon-scented mustache all in one place? Amazon’s Prime membership is pretty sweet too. It allows you to take advantage of free delivery, as fast as same-day delivery for some products. You can also take advantage of Continue Reading Photodoto
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Google has announced that it is ending its unlimited free photo and video storage through Google Photos. On June 1, 2021, users will be capped at 15 GB of free ‘high quality’ photo storage per account. This change will take place alongside additional changes with Google Drive’s storage programs, including counting Google Workspace documents and spreadsheets against the same cap, per The Verge. Google will also begin deleting data from inactive accounts (accounts that haven’t logged in for at least two years).
While it’s unfortunate, if not understandable, that Google will be changing its storage policy, the company has given users plenty of time to determine if they are willing to pay for additional storage beyond the 15 GB cap or find photo storage solutions elsewhere. Further, any photos and documents you upload before June 1, 2021, will not count against the 15 GB cap. The cap will come into effect with files uploaded after this date. Additionally, it is worth noting that the existing storage is only unlimited for ‘high quality’ files, not ‘original quality’ files. Google has long been compressing photos and videos as part of its unlimited storage program.
Image credit: Google
As The Verge points out, the change takes away one of the best features of Google Photos. The website wrote an article in 2015 about the significance of Google Photos and how important the service’s storage solution proved to be.
Looking ahead to next June, how will Google Photos look relative to its primary competition with its 15 GB cap? As of now, Apple’s iCloud service offers only 5GB of free storage, so Google will maintain its advantage there. Google also claims that upwards of 80 percent of users won’t hit the new 15 GB cap for three years. For heavy users, a new alert system will help you stay aware of your free storage limit. Google offers a ‘personalized estimate’ to help users determine how long their storage will prove sufficient.
To help save space, Google Photos will incorporate tools allowing users to easily find and delete blurry and dark images. Image credit: Google
Google Photos will include new storage management tools, such as one that helps you locate photos you likely don’t want to keep long term. Google states, ‘This tool will help you review the memories you want to keep while also surfacing shots you might prefer to delete, like dark or blurry photos or large videos.’ Perhaps Google’s machine learning will come into play here as well, letting you find and delete more specific images.
If you own a Google Pixel smartphone and currently store images in ‘high quality’, today’s announcement doesn’t impact you. Google says that ‘Photos and videos uploaded in High quality from [Pixel 1-5 devices] will continue to be exempt from this change, even after June 1, 2021.’
For users needing more than 15 GB of storage, Google will be heavily pushing its Google One membership. Image credit: Google
If you want to continue to use Google Photos for your photo/video backup needs and need more than 15 GB, plans through Google One will start at $ 1.99 USD per month for 100 GB of storage plus additional benefits
Adobe has given the public a new sneak peek at a future update for Lightroom on iOS that will simplify the process of importing images into the app. As demonstrated in the above video, Adobe will enable users to directly import images from card readers into Lightroom on iOS, after which point the content is uploaded to the cloud and added to the app’s photo library.
The ‘seamless importing experience’ will arrive in a future Lightroom update starting with iOS 13.2, according to Adobe’s Tom Hogarty. The company doesn’t provide an exact release date for this update, but says that it will arrive ‘soon.’
All Android phones running Google apps come with free Google Photos cloud storage for images and videos captured with the device. However, image and video files are not stored at original quality. Instead, they are compressed to what Google calls ‘high quality’. Users who prefer to store their original out-of-camera files in the cloud have to shell out for one of Google’s storage plans.
On its own Pixel device, Google has in the past made an exception. Users of the Pixel 3 and previous Pixel devices could store unlimited original files for life, but this perk has ended with the brand new Pixel 4. Users of the latest Google flagship will just be treated like users of any other Android phone.
Now it seems the only ones benefiting from Google’s free unlimited storage for original photos are actually the users of one of Apple’s recent iPhones. Reddit user u/stephenvsawyer discovered that images in the HEIC/HEIF format, which recent iPhones use by default, will be stored without any compression.
A screenshot from Google’s Pixel 2 promotional page captured at the time of the release showing the no-longer-current benefit of getting unlimited storage of original files for free.
The reason for this is pretty simple: if Google tried to compress the images, the file size would actually increase. So the decision to save original HEIC/HEIF files to its cloud platform saves Google both storage space on its servers and computing power. It’s worth noting that this only applies to photos. iPhone videos are saved at 1080p resolution, even if they were recorded at 4K settings.
The latest version of the Android OS, Android 10, technically supports the HEIC/HEIF format, but Pixel 4 devices don’t currently offer this option. So, at least for now, iPhone users are actually getting more out of Google Photos than users of Google’s own flagship phone.
In a statement made to Android Police, Google said ‘We are aware of this bug and are working to fix it.’ What exactly this ‘fix’ entails remains to be seen, but there’s a good chance this iPhone loophole could get closed down in the near future.
A new Kickstarter campaign launched in collaboration with Singapore-based Flujo presents Signature Pro, a product claimed to be the first SSD enclosure with an HDMI port that also functions as an adapter hub for USB devices and SD cards. The accessory was designed for graphics professionals and others who deal with large amounts of data, external displays and dongles.
Flujo Signature Pro is around the size of a smartphone, offering USB-C connectivity and M.2 SSD support for use as an external drive. Unlike other external SSDs, however, Signature Pro also packs an HDMI port; it can be connected to a laptop, for example, via Thunderbolt 3 as an external drive and also drive an external 4K monitor via HDMI, offering both functionalities while only using a single port on the computer.
In total, Signature Pro features two USB-A 3.1 Gen 2 ports with up to 10Gbps speeds and power for USB devices, a USB 3.0 TF card reader and a UHS-I SD card reader, a USB-A 2.0 port, a USB-C power delivery port with up to 100w, the Thunderbolt 3 port with support for up to 4K/5K 60Hz video and up to 40Gbps data speeds, and an NVME M.2 PCIe enclosure for SSDs.
The enclosure is made from aluminum; it measures 140 x 72 x 10.45mm (5.5 x 2.8 x 0.4in), making it around the size of an ordinary smartphone. The team has already exceeded its funding goal on Kickstarter where the Signature Pro is offered for pledges of roughly $ 150 USD. The company estimates that products will start shipping to backers in November 2019.
Disclaimer: Remember to do your research with any crowdfunding project. DPReview does its best to share only the projects that look legitimate and come from reliable creators, but as with any crowdfunded campaign, there’s always the risk of the product or service never coming to fruition.
As powerful as iPads have become over the past few years, one of the most limiting factors of the device is its operating system. Apple has incrementally updated iOS, but overall has left much to be desired from the creative world, most notably in the area of storage. That might just change, however, according to the latest reports from 9to5Mac.
At its World Wide Developer’s Conference (WWDC19) in June, Apple is expected to announce iOS 13, which 9to5Mac says will finally include the ability for third-party applications, such as Adobe Lightroom CC and Affinity Photo, to import photos directly from external storage.
Until now, it was only possible to import photos into Lightroom CC and other post-production apps after the photos had been imported to the iOS Camera Roll. This not only effectively doubled the time it took to start processing photos, but also doubled the amount of space the images took up, at least until the photos were entirely imported to Lightroom CC and deleted from the Camera Roll.
According to the reports, which 9to5Mac has had a solid history of getting right on the iOS front, it will now be possible to plug in a memory card via the iPad Pro’s USB-C port and skip the Photos app altogether. Combined with the ability to now add various docks and hubs to the iPad Pro via its USB-C port, it could make for a pretty capable mobile setup.
There’s no definitive word on whether or not external HDDs and SSDs will be supported in terms of storing Lightroom CC libraries and other media elsewhere, but that too is one area that needs to be addressed for many photo professionals and hobbyists alike to make the jump to working off an iPad Pro exclusively.
Network attached storage manufacturer Synology recently announced a new DiskStation model that aims to provide a lower price-point 5-bay NAS for photographers and small businesses. The DS1019+ will sit below the DS1517+ and offers a more restricted set of options for reduced cost, but without killing the speed and functionality associated with the brand.
The device offers a maximum capacity of 60TB when each of the five bays are loaded with a 12TB drive, which is the same level of storage that can be achieved with the top end model. But the DS1019+ has only two LAN ports, limiting expansion – the more expensive DS1517+ NAS has four. The DS1019+ also doesn’t offer an upgradable LAN connection and has less flexibility when it comes to the functions of its RAM. It does, however, provide a fast processor and the same set of software packages that are common to most Synology products. It can also transcode and stream two channels of H.264/H.265 4K video at the same time to your TV, tablet or phone.
We got hold of a unit to take a closer look at the NAS itself, how easy it is to set-up and the applications that can be installed on it.
Twin fans cool the five drives, LAN provides expansion
Twin fans keep the five drives cool, and ensure the quad-core 1.5GHz J3455 processor doesn’t over-heat. The DS1019+ comes with 4GB of RAM built in, but that can be expanded to 8GB via the dual M.2 slots hidden in the base, with the extra RAM being used for cacheing.
The rear also reveals two 1GBE LAN ports – these can be used to connect a single Expansion Unit DX517 for additional storage. Maximum storage capacity when the DS1019+ is linked to a DX517 is 120TB. With 1GbE LAN you can expect read/write speeds of up to 225MB/s even with AES-NI encryption.
Accepts 3.5-inch or 2.5-inch SATA HDD/SSD drives
The Synology DS1019+ can accept five 3.5-inch or 2.5inch SATA HDD/SSD drives, which sit in these trays to be mounted into the NAS. The tray is well made, and although lightweight it feels solid enough to hold and protect the drive. The base is open for ventilation, and the front face is hinged to provide a handle for removing it from the enclosure.
Drives are secured in trays
I used 6TB Seagate Ironwolf drives and filled four of the bays. The drives slot in to the trays nicely, and a pair of plastic rails with protruding pins secure them into place. Securing all four of the disks was a two-minute job and about as straightforward as it is possible to be. A set of screws comes with the kit for fixing 2.5-in drives to the trays.
To swap drives, simply slide in and out
The loaded trays slot back into the enclosure along runners that make it very difficult to do it wrong or to misalign on entry. Once in place and pushed in as far the tray will go, the protruding handle can be pushed in flush with the rest of the unit.
Plastic keys lock drive bays closed
A pair of plastic keys comes with the NAS that allow the bays to be locked. It would be pretty difficult to open one by accident and to pull out the drive, but it’s better to be safe rather than sorry. Provided you’re using a RAID configuration, drives can be switched out should they fail or if you want to increase the size of your storage capacity later.
Status lights indicate which drives are in use, failure
With the DS1019+ plugged in, the drives come to life, and lights on the enclosure illuminate to let you know they are in action. It is then ready to use. The lights let you know when each drive is in use, and also when one has failed. The lights stay green when the drives are at the normal temperature, and go orange when they are too hot.
Router setup is simple
With the DS1019+ powered up, and connected to a router, it is only a matter of seconds before it becomes available to set up on the computer. Synology’s Assistant detects the NAS and when you select it, the management software can be started up.
Disk Station Manager guides setup
Disk Station Manager makes it pretty easy to get the NAS ready to use. The applications take us through the setup step-by-step and explain what the options are at each stage. Most of the language is straightforward, but when it isn’t, the company’s online Knowledge Base does a good job of supporting you through with a mixture of text and video guidance.
Drives can easily be configured
When you come to create a storage pool you need to choose what RAID type you want the NAS to use. The DS1019+ allows RAID 0, Basic, JBOD, 1, 5, 6 and 10. RAID 10 can only be used if there are four or more drives in the pool. The drop down interface allows you to select the type while the information panel clearly explains the properties of that type of RAID, with the pros and cons of each. Even if you don’t think you know what you are doing this interface takes most of the mystery out of the set-up.
Using RAID can feel a bit painful, as it seems we only get to use a part of the storage capacity we have bought. The idea of using a RAID system is that the drives effectively back each other up by the degrees that we choose. RAID 0 doesn’t provide any backup so the full capacity of the drives is available as storage, but if a drive fails we lose the data that was stored on it.
RAID 10, on the other hand, effectively saves each element of data twice across the drives, so that if one fails whatever was on it will be duplicated somewhere on the other drives. This makes your data safe, but the downside is that it halves the amount of space we have to use. With my four 6TB drives in this test I can only save just under 11TB of data to the NAS when it is set up for RAID 10 – less than half of the potential 24TB I paid for. If I used RAID 0 however, I would be able to save close to 23TB on the same drives – but it would be insecure.
There’s a good explanation of the different RAID types in the Synology Knowledge Base.
Create a network folder to access content of drives
You can access the contents of the NAS by creating a network folder in Explorer or Finder, or through a web browser using the DiskStation interface via the network address of the NAS. A QuickConnect link can be dropped onto the desktop too that takes you straight there without having to type into the browser search bar.
Useful suite of applications included
While the storage capacity is the obvious concern with any NAS, how you can use that space is also very important. Synology offers a suite of applications that allow the space to be tailored in order for it to be more than just a data bank that can be accessed via your home network. Critically for photographers DS Photo, DS Video and media streaming facilities make organising, accessing and sharing images and movies very easy and convenient wherever you are – provided you have an internet connection.
One of the key elements of the Synology system is the choice of apps, or packages, available to help get the most from the device. Typing ‘Media’ into the search bar shows all the packages that will be relevant to photographers.
Photo Station 6 to create photo albums
Photo Station will be the main package for stills workers as it offers a way to create albums of images saved on the NAS that can be viewed both from your desktop computer and via the DS Photo smart phone app. Both desktop and phone based applications let you organize your images as well as to share them directly to social media or to send links to other people. You can create a private album for a client and send a link for them to view and/or download the contents.
The same features are provided for videographers via Video Station, so you can stream content to a TV or your phone when you want to show a project. Of course you can host your website on the NAS too, via Web Station and email servers can be created – as well as the usual timed data back-up services you’d expect.
The Synology DS1019+ will cost $ 599/£543 plus tax, and comes with a 3-year limited warranty. For more information see the Synology website.
GoPro has given a boost to its Plus subscription service. From now on the service offers unlimited cloud storage space for photos and videos to its subscribers. Previously users could upload unlimited photos but there was a 35-hour limit for video footage.
The service is specifically useful for users of WiFi-enabled GoPro cameras, such as the Hero5, Hero6 and Hero7 models, who can now automatically upload all captured footage to the cloud, without the need for any manual data transfer to a computer or other device first.
In addition to the lifted storage limit, the discount on GoPro accessories has also been increased for Plus subscribers. It is now 50% off most mounts and other accessories, compared to 20% previously. What hasn’t changed is the monthly subscription rate at $ 5 which makes the service a pretty enticing option for GoPro power users. There’s also a 30 day free trial period for the service if you’re interested in trying it out first.
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