Best Photo Sharing Sites for Every Day Photography

Every phone and camera we have today will always have photos going back years, without any categorizations, you will never enjoy them watching. Moreover, you also have space issues; your old photos take too much space, and you never enjoy those past photos as much as you should do.

Now we have number of sites that are offering free space to save and show off photos, they contain features like printing and sharing it with friends and family. Another feature that is not available on all sites is selling your photos, yes you can sell you photos and earn handsome money out of it.

So, what all things you should consider before choosing these photo sharing / hosting services. In my opinion, basic things that are essential are the space, quality, ease of usage, ease of access, shareability and printability.

Below you will find The Best Photo Sharing Sites that has abilities and features that will help you determine the right service for your precious photos.

Facebook

Facebook has been there for many years now, and it give you plenty of options to share your photos. You can make them unrestricted or private, and you have unlimited space. Useful for photo clicking junkies.

DotPhoto

DotPhoto one of the coolest photo sharing services that makes it easy for you to share the pictures in fun and hassle-free manner. DotPhoto lets you build your own personal photo website, sell your pictures to other members, order custom uploads, share mobile phone pictures with Pictavision and much more.

Picasa

Picasa is free photo editing software offered by Google that makes your pictures look amazing. You can share your best photos with friends and family in simple and fun way.

Fotolog

Fotolog is the world’s leading photo-blogging social networking site with a global cultural phenomenon. It has more than 22 million members in over 200 countries for it offers simple and fun way to express through online photo diaries or photo blogs.

Fotki

Fotki is a thriving online community that lets the photographer in you share your work online. The website offers an easy way to share your photos along with the printing service for those interested. With the easy-to-use interface, fully automated Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds the users can sync the pics to their blog, and communities. It gives you the option to upload the pictures individually or in group. Also, you can recover the picture from another site, use a file (sharing software) transfer protocol client, email your picture or send it directly from your mobile phone.

Photobucket

Photobucket is the website that’s popularly known for uploading, sharing, linking photos, graphics and videos. You can sign up for free and host all your photos and share the same through email, mobile phone and IM. Also, you can edit your uploaded photos with feature-rich photo editor. You are not boud to upload pictures from your lappys or PCs, the Photobucket comes flexible uploading features and advanced mobile options.

flickr

‘Flickr’ is one name that each one of us is well introduced to and definitely deserves a mention. It’s the well known online photo sharing site that is endowed with impressive features and simple easy to use design. Flickr offers you with various ways to upload the photographs. It enables you to showcase, share and store your photos in flexible and user-friendly way. Besides this, it has the photo editing tools to edit the pictures in the fuss-free manner.

Webshots

Webshots is a photo sharing website that offers free and premium membership. It is one of the largest photo libraries of the world. It lets you share your photographs with friends and family in a number of ways using Webshots. Also, you can find out which one is best for you in our comparison chart provided.

Smugmug

Smugmug is an online photo sharing service that lets you upload and share your photos making use of four varying options. You can chose from batch uploading for Internet Explorer on Macintosh and windows, Windows Drag & Drop, batch uploading for other systems including Netscape, Linux etc , batch uploading for OS 9 & OS X. the site also supports videos in MPEG–1 format. Also, Smugmug is capable of supporting video clip of maximum size 8MB.

ImageShack

ImageShack is an online photo sharing website that gives you the choice of the way images will be displayed. If you don’t want gallery to be displayed and want a host to link your images to a forum or bulletin board quickly that too for free, then Imageshack is the right place to upload and share your pictures.

Tinypic

Tinypic is a photo sharing website that enables you to upload the pictures and videos and share the same with people. You can resize and edit your images thereafter share the same in Orkut, Myspace, Ebay and message boards or send them via email.

Go2Album

Go2Album is the website that with the Ultraslideshow Flash Gallery Maker makes it easy for the users to upload the pictures and the powerful flash slideshow maker and creator helps a great deal in enhancing the photos. The software lets users build their own flash slideshow and flash movie in juts few minutes.  It’s a web album hosting service with cool features like Photo Flash Maker and Flash Gallery Maker to let you share upload and pictures easily.

Jalbum

Jalbum is one free and easy to use online photo sharing website with amazing range of customization. Also, you can publish the photographs to any site. Uploading an album to Jalbum doesn’t cost you anything.

Dropshot

Dropshot is one of the most important resources for sharing memories online. The website is currently hosting over millions of photos and videos online. With Dropshot, sharing memories is made simple!

Last but not the least, you have another option to share your best photos online, that is the getting a web space by yourself and setting up a website. Its not that hard and you can learn to code.

I have tried to include all the best photo sharing websites in my list. However, if you feel I have missed any, you can share with us. So, guys keep your spirits high, take the best shots and share it with the world by signing on the above websites you feel will do the real justice with your shots!

             

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Apple’s 2015 Product List: iPhone 7, Apple Watch, iPad Pro

Apple Watch

This is the only device that we can say with absolute certainty that Apple will release, as the company has officially confirmed it. Apple’s first smartwatch, the Apple Watch, will likely launch in spring, and is expected to drag the smartwatch niche kicking and screaming into the mainstream. One can expect a health-related focus with this watch, as well as the usual Apple emphasis on design and fashion cachet.

iPhone 7

Although it is a long time until Apple will officially confirm the release of the next generation iPhone, such a device release is absolutely inevitable. The iPhone 6was another massive success for Apple, indicating that the momentum generated by the world’s most successful smartphone has yet to halt significantly. Speculation regarding the make-up of this device is in an embryonic state, but it's reasonable to assume that Apple will ramp up the capabilities of the handset, and include some new innovations. Additionally, close collaboration with the Apple Watch is pretty much guaranteed.

iPhone 6s

Rumors persist that Apple will release a smaller iPhone model at some point in the next few months. There has been absolutely no word from the Cupertino-based Company on this persistent Internet gossip, but it would be logical for Apple to release an affordable smartphone for the budget and East Asian marketplace in particular. Expect such a release to feature a 4-inch screen, if indeed it does ever come to fruition.

iPhone 6s

Rumors persist that Apple will release a smaller iPhone model at some point in the next few months. There has been absolutely no word from the Cupertino-based Company on this persistent Internet gossip, but it would be logical for Apple to release an affordable smartphone for the budget and East Asian marketplace in particular. Expect such a release to feature a 4-inch screen, if indeed it does ever come to fruition.

iPad Pro

The iPad was a massive success when Apple originally released it, and although the tablet market has slowed since then, last year saw Apple significantly refresh its tablet range, breathing new life into the iPad. The likelihood is that this will occur again in 2015, and particular emphasis will be placed on this iPad Pro device; a high-spec tablet with a larger screen size that may be as big as 12.9-inches.

This will be potentially the most advanced tablet to ever be released, and Apple will possibly be aiming this to some degree at professional and corporate customers.

iPad Air and iPad Mini

Meanwhile, these two more consumer-focused devices will also probably see the light of day in 2015, as Apple looks to improve his entire iPad range. Some rumors have suggested that Apple will consider completely discontinuing the iPad Mini, but given the relatively strong critical and commercial reception that the last device in the series received, this appears to be a little wide of the mark.

It is unlikely that Apple will redesign these industry-leading tablets to a great extent, and the focus will probably on upgrading its capabilities and internal components.

12-Inch MacBook

The Apple computing range which preceded its dominance as a mobile producer was always proclaimed for the quality of devices, as well as the by now renowned design parameters. In accordance with this image, it is generally accepted that the MacBook range is the pinnacle of laptop computing.

And Apple is looking to significantly upgrade its MacBook range during 2015, particularly by including Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC)'s 14-nanometer Broadwell chips. This will make this new MacBook release capable of 30 percent faster processing, while also introducing greater power efficiency to the range. The ultra-slim 12-inch Retina MacBook will be a particular highlight of 2015 for Apple, and will be well worth looking out for.

iMac

Apple has a lot to do to make a serious impression on the PC market, with the Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) Windows operating system still installed in around 90 percent of desktop computers worldwide. But Apple has begun to make some gains in this marketplace, and its introduction of the 27-inch Retina iMac in 2014, which featured the first ever 5K screen in a desktop, was an indication that Apple wants to deliver something of real quality in this niche.

2015 should see this device updated still further, this time built around the awesomely powerful Broadwell processor. Apple will also update the more affordable 21-inch model of this desktop. With new chipsets still under development, a likely release date for these devices will be the fall time.

iOS 9

There are already reports that Apple's next operating system for mobiles will be ready in due course, and IOS 9 is being linked with the next iPhone release in September. Functionality in this latest version of the critically acclaimed operating system will likely focus on mobile payment and Apple Watch functionality in particular.

Apple TV

Apple TV has been somewhat neglected in recent years, which is perhaps not surprising given that it has always been a minor product for Apple, with massive sellers such as the iPhone driving the company forwards both creatively and economically. Thus, Apple TV has not received an upgrade of significance since March 2012, and this stasis could insight Apple to upgrade the device over the next 12 months.

This has also proved a complicated and logistically challenging project for Apple, as agreeing suitable content deals with providers has been problematical. However, if these can be tied up successfully, then a brand new and significantly more powerful set-top box may be released in 2015, with enhanced App Store and gaming support.

Apple Television Set

The final item in this list is something of a speculative one, and is in all honesty not particularly likely to emerge in 2015. But it nonetheless remains a possibility. It is worth highlighting this remote chance, as senior Apple personnel have indicated that they believe the way that televisions present information to viewers could be significantly improved.

There is a massive potential for an Apple TV set, as surely consumers all over the world with a sense of style would love to have an Apple device at the heart of their living-room. Don't necessarily expect this to occur in 2015, but the possibility remains a tantalising prospect.

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Photographing Stars Using a Kit Lens

Looking at a starry sky while sitting in the open is always a soothing experience, but shooting those stars is a much better one. Have you seen those amazing starry skies and Milky Way photographs from professional photographers and wondered how to do this yourself but never tried it because you thought you did not have the proper equipment? Let me tell you, “You were wrong”.

If you own a normal DSLR camera and are interested in shooting stars (and the Milky Way), you can do this with your kit lens. I will explain the whole process step by step in the easiest possible way, so that even if you do not have much technical knowledge, you can understand and implement this method.

Basics of star photography

To get started, you need to have following points in mind:

• A place away from the city lights. The less light pollution you have, the more chance of getting clear stars you will have.
• A moonless night. Stars can also be shot on a full moon night, but the brighter the moon is, the more light pollution it creates, and the stars will not be as prominent.
• A normal DSLR camera with a standard 18-55 mm kit lens.
• A tripod

You can Google your surroundings for away from the city spots (Dark Sky) and moon phases at night. You should know beforehand in what direction, and at what time the moon is going to rise. That will help you a lot with composition of your images. A moonless night is always best to shoot stars.

Additionally, you can also use a compass app on your smartphone (for Android here) to locate the north star for star trails and you can also download an app called Star Chart (for iOS or for Android) or Google Sky just to give you an idea of which stars there are above you. Both of these apps also show you the direction of the Milky Way so you can directly shoot it and get amazing results.

These apps are pretty accurate, and with their help you can also see Mars, even with your naked eye (which I am sure you saw previously but were unable to differentiate it from stars). If you want to plan your shoot for future, or look for appropriate time sto shoot Milky Way in your location, you can download a desktop app Stellarium. Put in your coordinates and it will show you the direction of the Milky Way at a specific time, on a specific date of the year. Using this application, you can know exactly at what time of year, the brightest part of Milky Way will be above your location to shoot.

Camera settings

Now let’s get to the important part, camera settings. You will need to take control of your camera, keeping it in Manual mode. Change the mode to Manual and tune in the following settings.

Focal length: Set your focal length to the widest you have – e.g., 18 mm in the case of a kit lens. You can choose any focal length you want, but the more you zoom in (the longer the focal length is), the less stars you will be able to capture, and your optimum exposure time before star trails start to develop will also decrease (500 Rule).

Aperture: Setting your aperture to the widest option is key here – e.g., f/3.5 as in a kit lens. By using the widest the aperture, more light will enter through your lens giving you brighter stars and Milky Way.

Shutter speed: If you are only shooting stars and/or the Milky Way, set the shutter speed to 20 seconds or star trails will start to appear, giving the look of larger, unfocused stars. If you are wondering, why 20 seconds, here is the answer. Optimum exposure before you start getting star trails is calculated by dividing 500 by your focal length (also divide the answer by 1.5 if you are using cropped sensor.) So in the example of an 18mm lens on a cropped sensor – 500 divided by 18 = 27.78 divided by 1.5 = 18.52 (so roughly 20 seconds).

ISO: Start by keeping the ISO at 1600, and increase it later depending on your results. Keep in mind that greater the ISO, more noise there will be in your image. Although it does depend on signal to noise ratio of camera body you are using. High end or even new consumer camera bodies tend to produce less noise at higher ISOs, than do older ones, even three years old.

Shutter release: You need to have a shutter release (remote trigger) to avoid camera shake while shooting. If you don’t have a shutter release remote/cable, just use your camera;s 2-second or 10-second timer. That will minimize any blur in the picture due to camera shake.

It’s also best to switch OFF your “Vibration-Reduction” or “Image-Stabilization”, as the vibration of the motors can cause shake in the picture too.

Focusing the lens to infinity: Next, after putting up all these settings, the next most important thing left to do it focus your lens to infinity. As kit lens doesn’t have infinity marker on it, we will use hyper-focal distance values to focus the lens to infinity. Mount your camera and lens on a tripod, and focus it on any bright object far away at a distance of 20 feet or more. Point a flashlight towards camera from a distance of minimum 20 feet and focus on it if you are in the dark, and don’t have anything to focus. Once the lens is focused beyond 20 feet, its hyper-focal distance will project to infinity and your stars will be sharp. It will also help in getting anything in the foreground sharp too.

Don’t forget to switch your lens to M (Manual) after focusing, or else it will start to hunt for focus again when shutter is pressed.

If your lens is not focused to infinity, you will get the Milky Way but the stars will not be as sharp and will appear bigger. Same can happen if you go for a longer speed than required for not causing stars to produce trails. An example of these mistakes is here.

Lens was not focused to infinity.

Lens was not focused to infinity.

Lens was not focused to infinity.

Recommendations:

It’s better to first sit in the dark for at least 15 minutes to let your eyes adjust with the surroundings. This will help you to see a lot of stars, and even the Milky Way with the naked eye and will also help you compose your images better. Enjoying your surroundings for a while is better than just starting to shoot as soon as you reach the site.

You are all set to shoot your own stars. With the help of kit lens you might not be able to get an award or feature your shot on 500px but yes, the shots will be very reasonable to make yourself happy, and impress your friends too. You could even try merging panoramas to get more of the Milky Way in your composition.

Post-processing:

The first part to better post-processing is RAW. Yes! always shoot in RAW as it will give you a lot of room for post-processing without affecting the quality. Secondly, some post-processing is always needed to get optimum results. You can find many tutorials on how to post process Milky Way images but the most elaborate one I found is from Hammad Iqbal Photography who also has a tutorial here on dPS on making star trails in Photoshop.

Star trails:

If you are satisfied with your shots, you can advance further to get star trails. Just locate the north star on the north pole using the Star Chart app and keep the north star (all stars rotate around this star) in your composition. For star trails, all camera settings will remain the same except that you can increase the shutter speed to 30 sec if you want.

You can go with faster shutter speeds (20 seconds or faster, if there are lights in the area and 30 seconds is overexposing). Keep the camera on continuous shooting mode and let it shoot as many exposures as it can shoot. The more pictures you will have, the more clear your star trails will be. Later, you can join all the exposures in Photoshop or use any star-trails software to create star trails. Alternately, you can take one stars shot and make star trails with it using HM Technique.

Star trail created in PS using HM Technique

Fun in Photoshop

Once you have nailed the Milky Way, try including foreground objects for better compositions.

Happy shooting, and keep me updated with your results. Let me know if you need any help

             

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