Similarly, the choice of choosing the best photo sharing site out there depends a lot on how and why you are planning to store your photos online. If it is just for a one off case where you want to send some pictures to someone it doesn't matter and there are a lot of websites enabling you do this. And, most of you would already be either using or are aware of websites like Flickr.com, Picasa, Yahoo Photos (closed down recently) and may be Sony/Kodak if you bought a Digital Camera. And yes, it is perfectly alright to stick with these websites if you are satisfied with them and need nothing more.
I was never a fan of Yahoo Photos before in particular because of the blurry, shrunk images it used to offer. Even though my picture was a 1.5 MB, 5 MP photograph, once it goes online onto yahoo, it looks nothing more than a picture taken using an old webcam and so, wasn't my preferred option if I want to share the photos for printing purpose. And now after Yahoo bought Flickr and closed Yahoo Photos, it is a bit better but is still not enough as free accounts offer only 100MB, which really means 60 5MP photos which does not fit even a single weekend photos of mine.
In my opinion, a best photo sharing site is that which:
1. Allows you to upload unlimited photos without any restriction on size.
2. Allows you to browse the pictures in Full Screen and if needed Full Resolution, as was uploaded.
3. Allows you to share pictures, without the other party having to register/sign in.
4. And, allows you/your friend (with whom the photos were shared), to download "Full Size" High resolution images, as you uploaded them.
5. Provides you the ability to upload multiple photos in a fast breezy manner.
6. Allows you to store photos online for life, without you having to sign in at least once in three months.
Now, whatever it is that you are using, it wouldn't satisfy all of the above.....So, we settle for something that matches with those options that we need from the above. And that's exactly, why there is no direct answer saying...this site is the best. It depends on your P.O.V (point of view).
Okay, Given below is the list of the best photo sharing websites currently available. I will try and explain the features and the limitation of each one below.
Please take a look at the comparison grid of some of the sites listed above, comparing their features side-by-side, at this link: Photosharing-Toptenreviews.
Now, let me walk you thru and review the most useful of all of these. Each of them made it to the list either because they are too popular or they have something special which others do not provide.
Yahoo's Flickr:
Flickr is the most popular of all the photo sharing websites. Flickr has almost everything that you would expect in a good photo sharing site. Flickr has got this outlandish brilliant idea (don't know from where) but they allow you to upload as many pictures as you want but would allow you to see only the first 200. This limitation really 'limits' you, when you cross your allocated 100 MB. Also, there is a limit on how much you can upload each month. Check the 'Flickr's Few Limits' on their Free service and then decide.
Link: http://www.flickr.com
Also note that if you do not login to Flickr atleast once in 90 days, you cannot even kiss goodbye to your pictures. They will be deleted before you are given the chance to kiss.
Picasa from Google:
Google's Picasa has been growing popular since the past year (2006). Picasa was mainly a desktop software, which allowed you to view pictures and to upload them online when needed. When other photo sharing websites have become much popular than ever, google released its Picasa Web albums so that you can share your desktop collection of photos with your online buddies. And integration of picasa with orkut has made life much easier now when it comes to photo-sharing from orkut.
Link: http://picasaweb.google.com
Nevertheless, Picasa still requires you to install the software onto your PC. Except for that, everything else is pretty good. Unlimited pictures, slide shows, photo sharing, tagging etc are all present.Downloading full-size original pictures back from the album is an issue of concern.
Photobucket:
Photobucket has been around since quite some time and had 43% of all photosharing market in 2006. its integration with Myspace and the features offered had given it an edge then. Flickr and Picasa are catching up. The one striking difference in Photobucket from Flickr and Picasa is that Photobucket allows you to store/share videos too. Moreover, it has all the regular options: 1 GB Storage, full screen slideshow, video uploads, slideshow creator etc.
Link: http://www.photobucket.com
MyPhotoAlbum:
Myphotoalbum is another website where you can share pictures. The only reason it deserves a mention separately is because it provides you the option of unlimited photo uploads even for a free account. If you are a club member-as they call it, you would be allowed to do much more. Without the membership, all the other options like Full size download, fullscreen slideshow etc are disabled. Yet, it is one of the websites that has all the features you are looking for and allows a free account to do much more than what the above brands allow you. So, if you just want a storage for photos, this is a very good option.
Link: http://www.myphotoalbum.com
Fotki:
Fotki.com used to top my list until last year. It matched my criteria for the best photo sharing site until recently it could no longer cope up with the costs involved. And then, they reduced their hosting space to a 'meagre' 100MB. Think about it, that's hardly 150 photos if you even try going for a medium resolution photograph on your digital camera, and fotki cannot host all of them. This no longer works if you are looking for a solution for your online sharing needs but is a perfect fit if you want a 'one time sharing' solution.
Link: http://www.fotki.com
WindowsLive Photogallery:
WindowsLive Photogallery at live spaces is another thing I came across recently. Though it does require you to install some software on your machine, it provides a lot of features and allows you to download an entire album of full resolution picture. Now that is something.
Link: WindowsLive Photogallery
Sharpcast:
Sharpcast gives unlimited sharing of full-size photos. It actually shares the pictures right from your PC and so, you would need to keep your PC switched on, but is a good option if you are sharing it for a shortwhile. And, if you need online storage, it is unlimited but the pictures would be only 1600*1200 (good enough resolution). Here are the features of a Sharpcast free account.
Sharpcast FREE Plan (no credit card required)
Unlimited sharing of full-resolution original photos
Unlimited Group Albums and Photo Chat
Unlimited online storage of resized photos (1600 x 1200, good for prints up to 5 x 7)
A free, secure personal website for all your photos
No ads, no spam
Link: http://www.sharpcast.com
Update: Still trying to find time to write the review for other sites :).