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View Full Version : Looking for pro photo hosting like photoshelter, smugmug, etc.


erob
20th of July 2009 (Mon), 17:08
Hi all!

I've been looking into options to create a fully customizable webgallery for clients to view locations we've scouted but have not found what I need. The situation is that smugmug, photoshelter and zenfolio combined would offer everything I need. So I'm hoping there are some pro sites out there that I may not have come across that have it all. Namely:

- FTP upload ability (photoshelter)

- Ability to hand out guest accounts (not only to view galleries but to modify them) (photoshelter and smugmug)

- Password protect galleries (most services)

- As close to fully customizable layout as possible (photoshelter, smugmug is also acceptable)

- Gallery in gallery, without limitations (MOST important and seemingly ONLY zenfolio can do this)

- User friendly admin pages (photoshelter is horrible, smugmug is amazing)

I think that's about it. I'm not looking for a free service and have a massive and growing collection of photos we'd want to upload.

Yes, we are looking into custom creating a website that would suite our needs but we would prefer a service of the above mentioned nature. That said if there are some professionals out there who you would recommend who specialize in custom photography websites, that would also be helpful. The layout would be extremely simple, the features are what are important.

Any and all advice would be helpful.

Best,

Rob

mbellot
20th of July 2009 (Mon), 20:26
My only advice is to be careful about the SmugMug "guest" option.

Its really a mini-owner login, IIRC the only thing that can't be done is delete photos/albums and modify pricing.

SmugMug is really great (I have a Pro account myself), but no service is perfect - even one you might roll yourself.

If you haven't checked out dgrin.com (SM user forum) yet I would strongly recommend it.

If you end up signing up with SM you can use my coupon code (6sQ2m3UCfcZtf) to save $5 off your first year fee.

dustyporch
20th of July 2009 (Mon), 20:37
I haven't looked into this too much, but I've heard many people recommend squarespace.com (http://www.squarespace.com/) .

ScottME
20th of July 2009 (Mon), 20:39
I haven't looked into this too much, but I've heard many people recommend squarespace.com (http://www.squarespace.com/) .

Squarespace has no space available. The biggest package has 5 GB.

egordon99
21st of July 2009 (Tue), 07:25
Gallery2 might do what you want. Buy some "cheap" web space from 1and1 and you're good to go. Web hosting would be ~$10/month, Gallery2 is free.

yogestee
21st of July 2009 (Tue), 09:12
I've been using Pbase since 2004 and I'm happy with it..

Check it out http://www.pbase.com/

DStanic
21st of July 2009 (Tue), 12:23
Zenfolio doesn't offer much in the way of customization, but I really like default look the way it is. You can see on Smug's site how you can customize it to make it look like a website, but after some thought I realized I doesn't really have the time or patience to play around with that so Zenfolio was my pick (also due to lower price for the basic account).

CrateMaker
21st of July 2009 (Tue), 12:58
Have you looked into Pickpic? I've heard great things about them if you have the upfront money to afford it. No monthly. I'll stick to smugmug for now. :)