As a photographer, I often find myself caught between impetuous models and their ravenous fans. I am of course talking about my children and their grandparents.
作为一名摄影师，我经常在急躁的模特和他们狂热的粉丝间陷入两难的境地。当然，我说的是我的孩子和他们的祖父母。
Keeping the photos coming can be a lot of work. I take many spur-of-the-moment shots on my phone, which I rarely connect to my computer. And my laptop itself has less storage than before, because I now rely on fast, lower-capacity solid-state drives.
摄影师的工作非常繁重。我用手机拍摄了很多随手照，不过我很少把他们转存到电脑中。另外，我笔记本电脑的存储空间比以前少了，因为我现在使用的是高速度、低容量的固态硬盘。
I need a nice, uncomplicated service that quietly collects all my photos, then helps me share the best shots -- earlier and more often.
我需要一款简单好用、能够自动上传我所有照片的软件，此外，它还需具备照片分享功能，让我能够更快、更经常地分享照片。
This means public and private gallery options, and automatic uploading from phone and tablet. I also want drag-and-drop uploading and organizing, and the ability to edit photos online.
这意味着这款软件需要具有公共相册和私人相册两种功能，并且能通过手机和平板电脑自动上传照片。我还需要拖放式的上传和整理功能以及照片的在线编辑功能。
In my hunt for the best cloud photo option, five services stood out: Dropbox, Flickr, Shutterfly, SmugMug and the powerful yet clumsy combination of Google Drive and Google+. In the end, only Flickr managed to satisfy all my requirements, though SmugMug was a close second.
在我寻找最佳照片云存储工具的过程中，有五款服务脱颍而出：Dropbox、Flickr、Shutterfly、SmugMug以及虽然强大但稍显笨拙的Google Drive和Google+。最后，只有Flickr满足了我的所有需求，SmugMug的表现紧随其后。
Many obvious choices didn't make the cut.
很多看起来不错的选择却并不能满足我的需求。
Facebook, for starters. My parents aren't on it, and I certainly wouldn't force them to join. Also, although Facebook is the sole repository for many people's digital images, it's not a storage site. Facebook downsizes large photos, and if you download them, you're only promised image files that 'match the quality they have on Facebook, ' according to support pages.
对于初级者来说，Facebook还算差强人意。不过，我的父母并不使用Facebook，我当然也不会硬逼着他们加入。另外，尽管Facebook是很多人唯一使用的数码照片上传工具，然而Facebook并不是一款照片存储工具。Facebook会将高像素的照片压缩，据该网站的帮助页面称，如果你从Facebook上下载照片的话，你只能获得“满足照片在Facebook上显示所需质量”的文件。
I also ruled out Apple's Photo Stream.
我还排除了苹果公司(Apple)的“照片流”(Photo Stream)服务。
While it automatically syncs iPhone and iPad images to a Mac's iPhoto library, it doesn't permanently keep images in the cloud. You can lose pictures if you never sync with iPhoto. And with no Web interface, an Apple-only requirement for most sharing and -- in my experience -- complicated and unreliable controls, it's less than ideal.
虽然“照片流”能够自动将iPhone和iPad上的照片同步到Mac的iPhoto图库中，但是这个工具并不能将照片永久地保存在云端。如果你从来不与iPhoto同步的话，你可能会丢失照片。由于照片流没有网页版用户界面，并只能使用苹果公司的设备进行大部分分享，加上这款工具在我看来复杂且不具备可靠的操控性，它达不到理想效果。
(I miss the good old days of the imperfect but functional MobileMe Gallery.)
（我怀念过去那些使用MobileMe Gallery的日子，它虽然并不完美，但功能非常强大。）
What about Instagram? Let's just say a public stream of single images doesn't make for the best family photo organizer. Here's what I want from a photo service:
那Instagram怎么样呢？这么说吧，一款单张照片的分享工具并不足以成为最好的家庭照片管理工具。以下是我对照片工具的要求：
I want to put all my photos into the cloud.
我希望把我所有的照片都上传至云端。
A few years ago, the idea of putting more than a few key documents into a cloud account for safekeeping was absurd. Now, Flickr offers a free terabyte for image storage, while the retail-focused Shutterfly promises unlimited uploads. Snapfish does, too, as long as you occasionally buy something.
几年以前，把除关键文件以外的内容上传至云端账户保管还是一个荒唐的想法。而现在，Flickr向用户提供了用于照片存储的1TB免费空间，专注于零售的Shutterfly则承诺支持照片的无限上传。喀嚓鱼(Snapfish)对不时在其网站消费的用户也做出了同样的承诺。
SmugMug -- less well known, but a worthy pairing of pro-level tools with novice-friendly interface -- charges $40 a year for unlimited storage of photos up to 50 megabytes in size.
并不为人熟知的SmugMug可以与专业水准的照片处理工具相媲美，其界面对初学者非常友好，这款工具收取的年费为40美元，它向用户提供无限的储存空间，单张照片的容量可高至50兆。
Others sell storage space for any kind of files. Google charges $120 a year for a terabyte. Dropbox is pricier: a 500-gigabyte plan (what I'd need to store my photos) costs $500 a year.
其他云服务供应商出售的存储空间可以用来存储各种类型的文件。谷歌(Google)对1TB空间的收费是每年120美元。Dropbox收取的费用更高：500GB计划（我存储照片所需的空间大小）的年费为500美元。
While I always recommend that people keep copies of their most precious photographs on a drive at home -- perhaps even in a safe -- it now makes perfect sense to also put all of our photos online.
尽管我总是建议人们应该把最重要的照片储存在家中的硬盘上，甚至把硬盘放在保险柜里，但是现在，把所有的照片上传至云端完全合情合理。
I want to share some images publicly and others privately.
我希望把一些照片公开共享，把另一些照片在小范围内分享。
If Facebook has taught us anything, it's that oversharing is real. When I say I want to share my photos, I generally don't mean that I want them broadcast to the public. That said, I do have some shots from trips or hikes that I'd be happy to blast out into the ether. An ideal site should give me control over who sees what.
如果说Facebook教会了我们什么的话，那就是过度分享是确实存在的。当我表示我希望分享我的照片时，我并不是说我想把照片全部公之于众。在这一基础上，我的确愿意在网上分享一些拍摄于旅途和远足中的照片。一款理想的照片分享工具应该让我在谁可以浏览照片、可以浏览到哪些照片这个问题上有掌控权。
Dropbox is working hard at this. Earlier this month, it introduced the Carousel app for iPhone and Android, which lets people send photos to friends and groups. The Dropbox website allows you to create photo albums specifically for sharing. The trouble is, the concepts don't overlap enough: Carousel won't do albums, and you can't see Carousel shares on the Dropbox website.
Dropbox花费了很多精力解决这个问题。4月份，Dropbox推出了针对iPhone和安卓(Android)用户的应用程序Carousel，用户可以使用它将照片发送给好友或群组。你还可以在Dropbox的网站上创建专门用于分享的相簿。问题是，这两个工具没有实现共通：Carousel没有相簿功能，你也不能在Dropbox的网站上看到通过Carousel分享的内容。
I witnessed a similar disconnect on Google: Google Drive is increasingly becoming the best deal in cloud storage, with 15GB free and the most competitive prices around. I could envision spending $10 a month to keep all my photos there.
我发现谷歌也有类似的问题：鉴于Google Drive提供15GB的免费空间，其收费也在同类产品中最具竞争力，Google Drive正在逐渐成为云存储的最优选择。我愿意每月花费10美元将我的照片储存在Google Drive中。
But Google has put its struggling social network, Google+, in charge of all photo organizing and sharing. To send pictures to a few select people, I have to create a post, de-select 'Public' and 'Friends, ' then add specific email addresses.
但是，谷歌让旗下举步维艰的社交网络工具Google+承担起了照片整理和分享的重任。为了向几位选定的用户发送照片，我不得不创建一项新的发布内容，反选“公开”和“朋友”选项，然后再添加选定用户的电子邮件地址。
I wish Google could merge its photo service with Google Drive instead of giving all that power to Google+. There's a lot to like about the service, especially a terrific integrated photo editor. But the proximity of my family photos to random strangers' eyeballs is a little close.
我希望谷歌可以将照片服务功能整合到Google Drive中，而不是让Google+承担这项责任。谷歌的照片服务有不少可取之处，特别是其强大的照片编辑工具。但是，用户稍不小心就可能会把家庭照片暴露给毫不相干的陌生人。
When it comes to sharing, Flickr and SmugMug are equally on top: It's very easy to keep your public shots public and your private shots private on both, using elegant, intuitive controls.
至于分享功能，Flickr和SmugMug可以称得上并驾齐驱：用它们公开分享和保护隐私都非常简单，它们的操作界面也非常简洁直观。
Shutterfly, the old standby, is also an option. The mug-and-calendar service offers Share Sites, which can be customized on the Web or fed images via its iPhone app.
老牌的Shutterfly也是一种选择。这家马克杯及日历定制服务公司提供照片分享网站，用户可以通过网页版或iPhone应用程序设计自己的个性网站。
I don't want to have to remember to sync my phones or tablets.
我不希望自己必须得牢记同步手机或平板电脑这件事儿。
In the past, most of the great pics and videos I captured on my phone just stayed there, never to be revisited. That's why I am a firm believer in the apps that let you save your photos to the cloud.
过去，大多数我用手机拍摄的优秀照片和视频就一直存在手机里，从来不会被利用到。这也正是为什么我非常支持那些能让用户把照片上传至云端的应用程序。
Dropbox, Google, Facebook, Microsoft's OneDrive and Flickr are all examples of this. (Dropbox also has the best tools for automatically uploading images from your desktop, too.) You can even make sure your device only syncs when on a Wi-Fi network, so you don't blow out your wireless data allotment.
Dropbox、谷歌、Facebook、微软(Microsoft)旗下的OneDrive和Flickr都是这样的应用程序。（Dropbox还拥有能够从台式电脑自动上传照片的最佳工具。）你甚至可以将自己的设备设定为只有在Wi-Fi网络环境中才上传照片，这样你就不会消耗自己的无线数据流量了。
A black mark against SmugMug is that it doesn't automatically upload on iPhones. Co-founder Don MacAskill said that while the new Android SmugMug app does, the iPhone app will likely 'continue to evolve and contain features like that.'
SmugMug的一个不足之处就是它不能自动上传iPhone中的照片。SmugMug的联合创始人唐·麦卡斯基尔(Don MacAskill)表示，尽管适用于安卓系统的新SmugMug应用程序支持照片的自动上传，但是适用于iPhone的应用程序很可能“继续保持现状”。
The site relaunched last summer with code that works just as well on phones and tablets as it does on a PC. Having drag-and-drop edited a SmugMug album using my finger on an iPad, I can attest to this, but the iPhone app is still behind.
去年夏天重新推出的SmugMug网站可以让用户通过电脑取得与在手机及平板电脑上一样的编辑效果。由于我曾经在iPad上用拖放方式编辑过SmugMug相簿，我可以证实这一点，但是SmugMug的iPhone应用程序仍然有些落后。
Shutterfly doesn't automatically upload your photos either, though you can manually upload photos from an iPad, iPhone or Android device.
Shutterfly也不能自动上传照片，不过你可以手动上传iPad、iPhone或安卓设备中的照片。
Flickr may satisfy my criteria the best, but it's not perfect. I was unable to test its online image editor because of a continuing service outage.
Flickr或许最能满足我的要求，但是它也并非完美。我无法对其在线照片编辑器进行测试，因为该服务一直处于瘫痪状态。
(Yahoo, Flickr's parent company, says it is aware that the online editor was unavailable, adding, 'We apologize to affected users.' As of late Tuesday it was back up.)
（Flickr的母公司雅虎公司(Yahoo)表示，该公司已知悉Flickr在线编辑器暂时无法使用的状况，他们称：“我们向受影响的用户致歉。”4月22日晚间，Flickr在线编辑器已恢复正常。）
Flickr relaunched its iPhone and Android phone app this week with a handsome user interface. While it's missing the ability to share entire albums (just individual images), the app is a nice extension of the always evolving website.
Flickr于4月底推出了针对iPhone和安卓手机的更新版应用程序，新应用程序的用户界面非常美观。尽管该应用程序不支持对相簿的整体分享（只能分享单张照片），但是这款应用程序对于不断更新的网站来说是一个不错的扩展。
Next up, Flickr and others must embrace tablets. Photographers love them, and besides, there's nothing like plopping down on the couch with a glowing touch screen after a long, hard day of getting squirrelly children to hold still for your camera.
未来，Flickr和其他服务商必须要拥抱平板电脑。摄影师热爱平板电脑，此外，在辛苦地给顽皮的小孩拍摄了一整天照片后，再没有什么能比抱着平板电脑躺在沙发上更舒服的啦。
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