LocalArchiver.com -
Print Friendly Version
Guides to Photo and Document Preservation
and Sharing for Families and Community Historical Societies
Copyright © 2009 - Historical Images of New England LLC - All Rights Reserved.
Sharing Possibilities Expand With Digital Images
As more images are being captured with digital cameras and older paper images are being scanned into digital images, the range of digital image sharing possibilities continues to expand. This article describes some of the newer, easy, and creative ways to share images.
There will always be a place for the local photo shop. Most offer good neighborly advice and can meet a range of needs for equipment, supplies, scanning, and printing.
However, over the past few years, in reaction to rapid growth in digital imaging and the ease of transferring these files over the internet, a robust and technologically savvy online marketplace of digital image services has evolved. This article will describe some of the possibilities for sharing images using the most popular of these services.
Free Online Photo Albums and Share Sites
Digital image technology, and the ease with which we can now transfer digital image files, has given rise to several specialized online printing companies.
In order to encourage you to upload your images to their site for future printing order potential, many online printers offer unlimited free storage and the ability to share your images with family and friends via the printer's website. Typically your images are uploaded to an "album". You can then specify who has access to the album, and you are provided a means to notify family and friends when new images are available for viewing online.
Some printers provide you with a more sophisticated "share site" that has the look and feel of a dedicated web page. With share sites, you can add notes, commentary, notices, and many other template features. These share sites are available to individuals or organizations, such as a youth sports team or community historical or genealogical society. These "share sites" have a very professional look and will no doubt continue to evolve.
I recommend Shutterfly.com as the best overall online printer
for free image album storage and its share sites. In addition,
Shutterfly.com
appears to
be most committed to expanding its offerings, as a growing independent
and public company.
Visit a description of Shutterfly's Share Site offering by using the
link to the right.
If you have not used the large online printers, it is useful to note that they do provide consistent high quality printing in a broad range of print sizes and paper finishes. In addition, these printers offer a long list of other products that make use of your images (cards, mugs, puzzles, etc., etc.), many of which can be ordered as creative and unique gifts.
If you wish to
explore some other online printers that provide free album storage and
image sharing ability, I recommend that you visit Snapfish.com by HP
and Kodak Gallery.
Online Photo Books
In addition to free storage and prints, many of the leading online printers offer photo book products as well. This allows you to incorporate your images into soft and hard covered books of varied sizes by using template layouts. These products are impressive, and have improved with advancing technology over the past couple of years. Since these companies are printers, they can simply print multiple images onto a page intended for a book rather than printing standard sized photos to organize into a traditional album format.
If you have photos already stored at one of the major online printers, you may use their photo book services out of convenience. However, if you have the same or other images on your computer or other storage media, you should not feel limited to one online printers. Many of the specialty photo book publishers allow you to download proprietary layout design software, and your only obligation to pay is when you upload the finalized layout and images and actually place the order.
Photo books are great to commemorate an event, trip, or era, and they are appreciated as thoughtful gifts. Illustrated family history books are also a common use of these services.
Photo books may initially appear costly. However, traditional albums are not cheap when you factor in the cost of developing/printing, the cost of the album, and often the need for additional album pages. Additionally, online photo book services offer you the flexibility to add customized captions and comments, and the final result is a long lasting and professional looking product.
Picaboo
is my choice for best photo books. Although not a broad product line printer, Picaboo's
emphasis on photo books has allowed it to offer the largest selection of
layouts, fonts, and other template choices. To create a Picaboo
photo book, you simply download their proprietary software, work at your
leisure, and only commit to pay when you place your order and upload the
final layout and images. If you visit the Picaboo site by using the link
to the right, take a look at the template
examples under "travel" and "heritage" to see how flexible and powerful
the layout and font choices can be.
Shutterfly.com, Snapfish.com by HP,
and Kodak Gallery
also offer photo book products. Their
offerings are all a good quality. If you do not have the need for the additional bells
and whistles found at Picaboo,
it
can be useful to explore the offerings of these as well.
The links to the left will take you
directly to their photo book descriptions, if you would like to compare.
Websites to Share Your Images
Online albums and share sites are a great way to get
started, and provide plenty of power and flexibility to share your
favorite images. Before you take on the challenge of designing
your own website or use one of the many web host offered templates, I
suggest that you give Shutterfly.com share site approach a try.
This capability is actually more powerful than many web host templates.
It costs nothing to build the share site, you can upload a few of your
digital images, decide who you want to give access to, and add many
interesting elements (visitor comments, a calendar with event
notification, a message board, links to other related sites, etc.)
If you have the urge to have your own domain name and website, it is more challenging, but probably easier than you think. Many web hosting companies offer a range of services to help get you started. Web hosts walk you through the steps, including allowing you to select a domain name. Most also provide website templates for different purposes, and you may adjust styles, fonts, colors, and sections. Web Hosts offer tiered packages depending upon storage needed, number of domains hosted, and other bells and whistles. Depending on which package you select, monthly charges will range from about $4 to $20+.
If you are ready to try your own website and domain name, I suggest that you start by exploring templates at GoDaddy.com. GoDaddy is the #1 register of domain names and has a strong offering of templates for many uses. To get a feel for template choices, look for a tab marked "site builder" on the www.GoDaddy.com homepage. Once there, click "Learn More", and take the "Product Tour" to explore their website templates.
Another site worth exploring is Yahoo Small
Business. Building a website is now easier than ever with Yahoo! Web Hosting.
Although oriented toward small business, Yahoo provides a
friendly user interface that can be used to build a personal, family, or
business
website.
If you have an interest in having your own website for sharing images, or for any other purpose, these sites are good places to learn more about pricing and options.
If you are really ambitious, and want to try your
hand at web site design, I recommend Microsoft's web design software,
Expression Web 2.
Framing and Albums to Display Images
Depending on your budget, tastes, and project objectives, there are many framing and album choices.
Framing
If you have prints or originals to display, a local frame shop or other source of ready made frames may meet your needs. If you have digital images, the possibilities are expanded. With advances in digital printing technology, it is now possible to easily upload an image to be printed using different print technologies. Prints can be ordered in many sizes and on a broad selection of paper types and qualities. You can then order custom framing by viewing your image against different wall colors, using varied mat colors, and see your image in several frame types until you find the combination that looks most attractive to you.
Custom Framing
Imagekind.com is an impressive site that allows you to upload your digital image in order to experiment with framing options. No special software is needed. You simply browse your computer for the image you are considering printing and upload the image with a press of the upload button. Once the image is at Imagekind, you may experiment with different crops, print sizes, aspect ratios, background wall colors, mat sizes and colors, paper types, and frames. Imagekind also offers several other display choices including canvas prints, story frames, fine art paper prints, posters, and greeting cards.
Ready-Made Frames
Dick Blick Art Materials is a good source for
quality and moderately priced ready-made
Frames and Framing Supplies.
If you plan to do your own framing, Dick Blick offers a wide selection. Noteworthy among their
offerings are Nielsen Bainbridge "ArtCare Archival" black metal frames.
ArtCare frames are made of Archival materials, and are used by many leading museums.
Plain black metal frames can be used effectively to frame a collection of several
similarly sized images as a wall grouping or to develop a framing theme
within a room, home, or museum. DickBlick.com also carries a broad line
of Storing and Organizing Supplies
other framing
supplies and tools.
Canvas Prints
Recent advances in digital printing have now made it possible to print enlargements on canvas, which is then wrapped over a frame. These large canvas prints can be used very effectively to create a dramatic focal point in a room. Again, your digital image can simply be uploaded to a provider such as CanvasOnDemand.com - Turn Your Sentimental Photos into Canvas Art! Click here!
Albums for Photo Prints
Photo print albums and scrapbook supplies are available in many sizes and styles. The best advice, if you choose to organize your photos and other documents in albums or scrapbooks is to be cautious about the archival qualities of the materials. Many albums and scrapbooks are described as "archival", but the qualities can vary. Therefore, it is recommended that you purchase your supplies from a reputable vendor, stick with name brand materials, and learn a bit about archival materials before you make a major purchase. Good online sources of archival albums and scrapbooks is the major art supply retailer Dick Blick Art Materials at DickBlick.com and ArchivalMethods.com.
Copyright © 2009 - Historical Images of New England LLC - All Rights Reserved.