Last weeks post looked at the basics of how to share on your Mac, iPad and iPhone.

Most of us send content to friends and family using Email or Messages.. but it’s also possible to share high-quality images using iCloud Photo Sharing.Photos - New Mac Application

Our tutorial below uses the Photos App on a Mac running Yosemite 10.10.3 or higher.

iCloud Photo Library

Sharing is easy and offers lots of options:

  • Open Photos
  • Select a group of images. I’m using a library I have of classic movie posters. Selected items are boxed in blue.

Photos - Highlight Images To Share

  • Click the Share icon in the top right-hand corner and choose iCloud Photo Sharing.

Photos - Use the Share Tool Yo Access iCloud Photo Sharing

  • Ignore the comment section.
  • Click the + button to create a New Shared Album.

Photos - Create A New Shared Album

  • Fill out the fields :
    • Name the album
    • Invite people using their email addresses. Each person is sent an invitation.
    • Add any comments you’d like them to see.
  • When you finish, click Create.
  • The new album appears in the Photos sidebar under the Shared category.

Photos - Shared Album Appears In Sidebar

iCloud Photo Sharing Options

Select your shared photo library in the sidebar.

To add or remove content, click Add photos and videos at the top right-hand corner of the screen.

Photos - Add Additional photos or Videos to a Shared Album

Click the man shaped icon in the toolbar to reveal 6 more options:

  • Name – Rename your album.
  • To – Add or remove subscribers
  • Subscribers Can Post – Let subscribers add photos and videos to the album.
  • Public Website – Click this option to turn the album into a Public Website. An url (web address) is provided that you can share with others.
  • Notifications – Get notified whenever subscribers add content, leave comments or likes.
  • Delete Shared Album – As it says.

What Mac Users Get When They Are Invited

Mac users receive an invite to subscribe to your iCloud Photo library.

If they’re using iPhoto, on a Mac not running Yosemite, they can can browse, watch a slideshow or download images.

If they’re using Photos, the library appears in the Photos sidebar. They can browse, watch a slideshow or download images.

If they’re using Yosemite, but not yet not yet using Photos… the invite will nudge them to turn on iCloud Photo Sharing.
Yet another push toward using Photos for those who may not yet be ready to make the leap. Slightly annoying, if you ask me.

On an iPad or iPhone, using iOS 8 or above the process works seamlessly and they can download images in full native resolution.

What PC Users Get When They Are Invited

PC users receive an invite to subscribe to your iCloud Photo library.

On clicking Subscribe, they are presented with the unceremonious message that, they need to be signed into the iCloud on:

  • an iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch running iOS 6 or later or
  • a Mac with OS X 10.8.2 or later and iPhoto 9.4 or Aperture 3.4 or later

In other words… f**k off and buy an Apple.

Personally, I think this is a bit shortsighted if you’d like the Apple Photo library system to be universally embraced. If Flickr and Photobucket can do it… why not Apple.

Some Kind Of Answer

Creating a public weblink (see above) allows Mac and PC users full access without any restrictions and lets them download full resolution images. It’s the perfect solution… if security isn’t a huge concern.

Photos - Create Shared Album as Published Website.

Haven’t We Been Here Before?

I could say it’s early days and I hope Apple take the initiative and make some strides here, but… the company are building on old ideas.

Part of Steve Jobs reality distortion field remains alive and well at Cupertino.

Apple completely trashed MobileMe in 2011, then introduced the iCloud… basically repackaging every single MobileMe feature and touting it as a major step forward.

MobileMe Vs The iCloud

Mobile Me worked fine for most of us… and provided terrific photo library sharing over ten years ago.

This isn’t new… and we’re not stupid… so please, show us something different.

That’s it!

Have a great weekend.

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