Sharing trip pics via social media while traveling

Christine,

With only an iPhone and P&S camera, your options may be a bit limited. One option might be to set up a photo site using SmugMug, download the iPhone app and then add photos to your site when you have Wi-Fi available. Another possibility would be to set up a Blog with TravelPod as they also have an iPhone app.

Without either an iPad or Netbook, I'm not sure there's an easy way to transfer photos from your P&S camera. I don't "do" Facebook, so I'm not sure what options might be available there.

As you're travelling with an iPhone, be careful with data roaming, as the roaming charges can be HUGE (assuming your iPhone is a model that will work in Europe).

The iPad is really great for this as already noted. I also get the PhotoToaster app which lets me crop them and check exposure etc. I love it.

Pam

On a recent trip, I used Blogger to post a few photos each day. I downloaded the Blogger app on my iPhone and iPad and set up the site before we left for our trip. I took photos using my iPhone--it was simple to post photos from my phone to the site. While the photos weren't professional quality, they weren't bad. I found it to be a good way to capture the highlights of the day in photos with a little text that could be edited or updated at a later time.

I used my iPad a bit as it was easier to add text but it's wasn't absolutely necessary. I didn't use my camera at all on this trip and liked the simplicity of just carrying my iPhone rather than a camera.

For non-photo purposes, do you want the portability of the iPhone to carry around every day? I just bring my iPad and just use it in the hotel with Wi-Fi, then switch to lighter, old-fashioned paper maps and (pieces of) books out on the street. Of course, you'll be with your guide about half the tour time.

Christine,

I should add that if you go the Blogger route to post photos, you can send the link to family and friends. Set the security and privacy settings so that only people with the link can view your photos.

I use my iPhone and post 5 or 6 pics per day to Facebook - mostly so that my father knows I haven't been run over by a bus or fallen off a mountain somewhere. He worries! I just spend a few minutes before bed that night putting up a few pics that are representative of my day. Easy!
Instagram works too if you want to post just one or two - it's fun to play with the filters and make things look interesting and artful.

Hi Christine, use caution when posting on-line that you're traveling by posting photos. You don't want to return from a fantastic vacation and find that your home was burglarized. Travel light & just share your favorite photos when you return. : )

I will second Jean's message. She posted exactly what I was going to post. Posting on any social network that you are away from home is an open invitation to thieves.

I also agree with Jean's message to some extent, not to post details on line that could be used by criminals. However, I believe it's also important to look at the specifics of each situation before deciding whether that will be a problem.

If the Blogger uses an alias and no information is provided on the Blog in terms of address or whatever, then it would be very difficult for criminals to find an address to burglarize (especially if the Blogger has an unlisted phone number). Other aspects that would affect the situation are whether there may be family members living in the house during the owner's holiday, whether the homeowner has "enhanced" security such as alarms or patrol services or whether there are neighbors keeping an eye on the place.

I do what Anita basically does minus the social media aspect of it. I use my iPhone for pictures (the picture quality serves my needs well) and just as good as a point-and-shoot camera. Then, I set up a shared photo site right on the photo application that comes with the iPhone, and with the use of WiFi upload pictures on a daily basis. It takes about 30-seconds. I also upload the pictures to my Shutterfly account as I go along, and organize them a bit, so that when I get back, I'm pretty much ready to create that photobook. I suppose I could set up a shared site through that as well, but it's just easier on the iCloud. The folks who can view my photos are invited directly by me.