Following our trial of Flickr, we will be returning to Google Photos for our monthly photo sharing.
The Flickr trial has not attracted any more members to take part, and commenting has almost ceased. Even during the trial, most photos continued to be uploaded through Google Photos, so it makes sense to return to the service the majority are used to.
A change to how we share
We will use Google Photos differently this time. Each photographer will create and share their own album each month, rather than sending photos to me to upload and host in my account.
Having everything in my account has created two problems. When I upload photographs on someone else’s behalf, it can be difficult to identify the photographer. It also uses my personal Google storage allocation.
Members managing their own albums will make it clearer whose photographs we are viewing and put each person in control of their own collection.
What members will need to do
Each month, you will:
Add the photographs you want to share with the club.
Share the album link so other members can view your photographs.
Follow the links above for information cards explaining the steps, including creating an album, adding photographs and sharing it with the club.
Thank you to everyone who tried Flickr and helped us assess it. The aim remains the same: to make sharing our photographs straightforward and encourage members to look at and comment on one another’s work.
Edit - 25 Sep 11:14
Beware of fake Google storage warnings
Scam emails claiming that your Google storage is nearly full are common. Some threaten that you will lose all your photos unless you act immediately or pay for more space. They can look convincing, especially if you have recently started using Google Photos.
Watch out for misspellings such as “Gooogle”, unexpected sender addresses and pressure to act urgently. However, a familiar sender or a convincing Google logo does not guarantee that an email is genuine.
The safest way to check is to open Google Photos yourself—not through a link in the email. Tap your profile picture or initial at the top right, check that you are using the correct account, and look for “Account storage” or “Manage storage”. If you need more space, you can explore the options from within the app.
Google does send genuine storage notices, but being 75% full does not mean your photos are about to be deleted. Check directly in the app before taking any action, and never enter your password or payment details through a suspicious email.