Client photo delivery tools
shoots.page vs Google Drive for delivering client photos
shoots.page is a client photo gallery app with a 2 GB free tier and a USD 9 a month 100 GB Pro plan, where clients view 2000 px previews and download with no account or app.
Google Drive keeps original files unchanged up to 5 TB per file and gives you 15 GB of free storage, but clients land in a folder list with scaled-down previews, no link passwords and no proofing. We recommend shoots.page for delivering client photos because it gives you a 480 px thumbnail grid, a 2000 px viewer, passwords, expiry dates and proofing, with 2 GB free and 100 GB for USD 9 a month.
| Tool | Free storage | Paid plans | Upload and quality limits | Main catch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| shoots.page | 2 GB with all delivery features, no gallery or photo count cap | Pro: USD 9 a month or USD 90 a year (EUR 8 or EUR 80 in Europe) for 100 GB | Files up to 1 GiB and 100 MP; byte-for-byte originals for JPEG, PNG, HEIC, TIFF and WebP; 2000 px previews | No print store or print sales; 2 GB free cap |
| Google Drive | 15 GB shared with Gmail and Google Photos | Google One: $1.99 a month for 100 GB, $9.99 a month for 2 TB (US) | Unchanged files up to 5 TB per file; scaled-down previews | Folder list interface; no link passwords; link expiry requires an eligible work or school account; full storage can affect Gmail |
| Google Photos | 15 GB shared with Google Drive and Gmail | Google One: $1.99 a month for 100 GB, $9.99 a month for 2 TB (US) | Original quality keeps resolution; Storage saver resizes over 16 MP to 16 MP; Express resizes over 3 MP to 3 MP | Storage saver and Recover storage compress and resize photos over 16 MP; shares quota with Gmail |
shoots.page
shoots.page is built for client photo delivery. You sign in with Google, upload a shoot with resumable uploads, and send one unlisted gallery link (noindex and left out of the sitemap) from the app. Clients open a 480 px thumbnail grid (60 photos per page) and a 2000 px viewer with no account, no app and no payment.
It accepts JPEG, PNG, HEIC, TIFF, WebP and RAW files up to 1 GiB and 100 MP, keeping originals byte for byte. You get per-gallery download switches for originals, 2000 px JPEGs and RAWs (as single files or one ZIP), an optional 8 to 256 character password, an optional expiry date, and proofing with favorites, a max-picks limit and optional priced extras. You also get email alerts and per-gallery and per-photo view and download counts, though it doesn't offer a print store.
The free plan includes 2 GB (only originals count, and live galleries stay up if full while you upload up to 100 GB for review) with the Classic design and a small footer link. Pro costs USD 9 a month or USD 90 a year (EUR 8 or EUR 80 in Europe) for 100 GB, 4 extra designs (Heirloom, Noir, Scrapbook, Postcard) and no branding. It suits photographers who want a dedicated client gallery with proofing, passwords and original files.
Google Drive
Google Drive is general cloud storage for any file type up to 5 TB, folder sync, and editing Docs, Sheets and Slides. It keeps uploaded photos unchanged, though its viewer shows a scaled-down preview. Clients don't need an account if you set a folder to Anyone with the link, but they see a file list and your owner name and email, they must select files or allow third-party cookies in Chrome to download, and heavy traffic can trigger a 24-hour "Too many users have viewed or downloaded this file recently" lock.
Links have no password option, and expiry dates only work on eligible work or school accounts (for Viewer and Commenter folder roles). The 15 GB free quota is shared with Gmail and Google Photos (Google One is $1.99 a month for 100 GB or $9.99 for 2 TB in the US), and hitting the cap stops uploads and can affect Gmail. It suits photographers storing internal business files, contracts, invoices, schedules and RAW archives alongside their shoots.page client galleries.
Google Photos
Google Photos shares the same 15 GB of free storage (and $1.99 for 100 GB or $9.99 for 2 TB US Google One plans) with Google Drive and Gmail, but it handles photo quality differently depending on your backup settings. If you back up in Original quality, it stores photos at the resolution you took them with and no quality change.
If you use Storage saver, it compresses photos, resizes anything over 16 MP down to 16 MP (and videos over 1080p to 1080p), and may change the file format to JPG. Where Express backup is offered, it resizes photos over 3 MP to 3 MP and videos over 480p to 480p. Both Original quality and Storage saver count against your storage quota, and clicking the Recover storage button converts existing Original quality backups to Storage saver, which permanently shrinks anything above 16 MP. It suits users backing up personal phone libraries where 16 MP resizing and shared Gmail storage are acceptable limits.
How we tested preview quality, client experience and storage
When we checked these tools in October 2026, the biggest differences showed up after clicking the shared link. In Google Drive, clicking an image opens a scaled-down preview rather than the file itself, so a photo can look slightly soft in the browser even though the stored file is untouched. If you download the file from Drive and check its pixel dimensions or match its fingerprint against your local copy, the bytes are identical. shoots.page generates 480 px thumbnails and 2000 px JPEG previews so the browser view looks sharp, and its download switches let you hand over the byte-for-byte original, a 2000 px JPEG, or the RAW file.
The client experience also diverges when it's time to select and save photos. A Drive folder gives every file inside the same permissions, so you have to keep notes and drafts elsewhere, and your client has to Ctrl-click or Command-click files to download them (or troubleshoot Chrome's third-party cookie settings if the download silently fails). On a personal Google account, that link never expires unless you manually revoke it, and you can't put a password on it. With shoots.page, the client clicks a single link, enters a password if you set one, stars their favorites up to your max-picks count, and grabs the whole shoot as one ZIP before your expiry date passes.
Storage rules affect how your account behaves when you have a busy month. Because Google Drive and Google Photos pull from the same 15 GB pool as Gmail, a few big client folders can halt your Drive uploads, pause your phone backups, and disrupt your email. On shoots.page, only the original files you upload count toward your 2 GB free or 100 GB Pro limit - previews, thumbnails and client ZIPs are free - and if you fill your storage, your published galleries stay online while you upload up to 100 GB of new work for review.
FAQ
Does Google Drive compress photos when I share them with a client?
No, Google Drive stores the complete file you upload without compression, up to 5 TB per file. The preview you see when clicking a photo inside Drive is scaled down, so you have to download the file to see its full sharpness and pixel dimensions. shoots.page also keeps JPEG, PNG, HEIC, TIFF and WebP originals byte for byte while showing clients a 2000 px preview in the browser.
Can I put a password or an expiration date on a Google Drive folder link?
Google Drive does not offer password protection on shared links. Expiration dates on shared access are only available if you have an eligible work or school account (and on folders, only for Viewer and Commenter roles), so links from a personal Google account stay open until you manually remove access. Every shoots.page gallery includes an optional 8 to 256 character password and an optional expiry date, including on the free 2 GB plan.
Do clients need a Google account to download photos from Google Drive or shoots.page?
On shoots.page, clients never need an account, login or app to view and download their photos. On Google Drive, clients only avoid signing in if you change the folder's general access setting to Anyone with the link (if you share with specific email addresses under Restricted access, they must sign in with a Google Account).
Why did Google Drive block my client from downloading their photos?
If a shared file gets a lot of views or downloads in a short period, Google Drive can lock it with the message "Too many users have viewed or downloaded this file recently", which takes up to 24 hours to clear. Downloads in Chrome also fail if your client blocks third-party cookies and hasn't added an exception for Drive.