Flickr Pro is the reintroduction of a premium photo storage service. It’s a reintroduction because Flickr Pro was offered before but then removed when the entire Flickr service was overhauled.
The previous version of Flickr Pro was mainly just to avoid the ads, but this new version seems better value if you’re an avid digital photographer. The ads are still out, but the new version also offers various stats on views, reach and impact of your images, 20 per cent off Adobe’s Creative Cloud Photography subscription, and a nice little pro badge. Curiously, the same 1Tb storage limit applies whether you’re a free or pro member.
However, Flickr said that storage limits are not the strength of Flickr over the competition. Rajiv Vaidyanathan, product director for Flickr said that in Flickr’s history, less than a 100 people have ever hit the storage limit.
Rather, the strength of Flickr over competitors such as Amazon or Google is the ability to store full resolution images. Currently, Google limits resolution to 16Mp and video to 1080p. For hobbyists, this is plenty enough detail, but for professional photographers or enthusiasts it certainly isn’t. That’s where Flickr Pro is positioning itself.
The design is simple and it’s easy to use and very social
For anyone who hasn’t used Flickr, it’s a very easy system to use. Simply log in and you’re presented with a web page where you can upload images, create a gallery or camera roll, create a public gallery called a photostream, create albums, tag favourite images, join groups and view your stats. The design is simple and it’s easy to use and very social. A lot of work has gone into making the application straightforward, unfussy and powerful enough to work for the hobbyist and professional alike. In this, Flickr is a triumph of design and function.
One of the best bits of Flickr is the explore function, which allows you to load a huge range of creations from around the world in a selection of categories. Every time you load it up you get to see something new. The sheer variety and quality of the images on the site is astounding and it’s why the site is so popular.
If you’re a photographer and use Flickr to showcase your work or as a platform to sell, Flickr Pro is definitely something to consider.
Jesmond Darmanin is a technology enthusiast who has his own blog at www.itnewsblog.com.