Guide · 6 min read
The best way to share photos with clients
What professional photographers actually use to give clients their photos, what each option does well, and which to pick for weddings, portraits, events and commercial work.
By the SendShoot team · Updated
Seven ways to share photos with clients
| Way | Full quality? | Lasts | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Private client gallery | Yes | As long as you set (30–90 days is typical) | Almost every paid shoot |
| Transfer link (WeTransfer, Smash) | Yes | Days (WeTransfer Free: up to 3) | Handing raw files to another pro |
| Shared folder (Google Drive, Dropbox) | Yes | Until you delete it | Commercial clients who want files, not a gallery |
| Only a few photos | In their inbox | One or two previews | |
| Only as documents | In the chat | Sending the link, not the photos | |
| USB drive | Yes | Until it’s lost | Clients who asked for something physical |
| Social media | No | Forever, publicly | Sneak peeks, with permission |
WeTransfer limits are from its help centre, checked 23 September 2026. Our WeTransfer comparison and Google Drive and Dropbox comparison go into the details.
What professional photographers use
Most working photographers deliver through a client gallery. It looks like part of the service, the client sees the photos rather than filenames, and it answers the questions that otherwise arrive by message: which ones are the edits, how do I download them all, how long do I have?
A good gallery for sharing photos with clients should let you:
- send one private link, protected by a passcode, with no client account to create;
- choose whether clients can download full size, web size or nothing yet;
- let clients heart their favourites, with a note, when your package includes retouching;
- deliver the retouched finals into the same link, so clients never juggle two.
Which way suits which shoot
- Weddings: a gallery, always. Couples share it with family, and you need their picks for the album. See how many wedding photos to deliver.
- Portraits and families: a gallery with favourites, so clients choose the frames you retouch.
- Events: a gallery the organiser can pass on to guests, with full-size downloads switched on.
- Commercial work: a gallery for approval, then a ZIP or shared folder if the client’s team wants the files in their own system.
How to share photos with clients in SendShoot
- Drop the shoot folder in. The folder name becomes the shoot name.
- Hide anything you don’t want the client to see, and pick a cover.
- Copy the link and the 4-digit passcode, or email them from SendShoot.
- Your client opens it on their phone, hearts favourites and downloads full size or everything as a ZIP.
The free plan includes 5 GB of storage and 3 live shoots at a time, with every feature. For the whole delivery workflow, from export settings to the message you send, read how to send photos to clients.
