The best way to send photos to clients (and keep control of the link)

In March, a bride emails you. Her mum wants the full set for a photo book, and the link you sent in October says the transfer has expired.

You find the folder, make a new link, and send it with an apology you didn't need to write.

The link didn't fail. It just expired on someone else's schedule, not yours.

What's the best way to send photos to clients?

It depends on three things: how big the set is, how long the client should have it, and what they need to do with it once they open it.

Pick a method that suits all three and you won't be re-sending in March.

Here's how the usual options compare, and where each one is the right choice.

Email works for five photos, not fifty

Personal Gmail accounts cap attachments at 25 MB, and anything bigger goes as a Google Drive link instead (Google's help page). That's a handful of full-size JPEGs at best.

Email also keeps everything forever, in your sent folder and theirs. For a headshot or two, it's fine. For a wedding, it's the wrong tool.

WeTransfer is quick, but the clock isn't yours

WeTransfer's free plan lets you send up to 3 GB in total, across up to 10 transfers, in a rolling 30 days (WeTransfer plan limits).

Free transfer links expire after a maximum of 3 days, and a password is included at no cost (WeTransfer's free plan page). Both checked 9 October 2026. The full breakdown is in WeTransfer's free limit in 2026.

That's generous on file size, far bigger than our 150 MB per-file limit on Free. It's the 3 days that cause the March emails. We compare the two in more detail in TinyX vs WeTransfer.

Google Drive and Dropbox are storage with a share button

Google gives you 15 GB free across Drive, Gmail and Photos (Google One plans). You can share a folder and the client sees full-quality files.

The problem is the other end of the job. A folder shared with "anyone with the link" has no expiry of its own, so your client's photos stay one forwarded link away from anyone, for years.

We wrote about that in Google Drive will expire a named share. "Anyone with the link" will not.

Gallery platforms do the most, and charge for it

Pixieset, Pic-Time, ShootProof and SmugMug are built for photographers.

Pixieset's free plan, for example, includes 3 GB of storage and unlimited galleries, but full-resolution downloads start on its Basic plan at $8 a month billed annually, or $10 monthly (Pixieset pricing, checked 9 October 2026).

If you sell prints, need proofing or want a branded client experience, a gallery platform is the better choice. They do proofing, print stores and websites, and we don't.

Expiring links: delivery on your schedule

This is what TinyX is for. You send a link, you decide when it stops working, and the files arrive as you exported them.

A TinyX gallery stores and serves your original files unchanged, with a small thumbnail and a larger preview for viewing. Clients download images one at a time.

There are no favourites, no watermarks and no bulk download from a gallery. You get 1 gallery on Free, 10 on Pro and unlimited on Max.

If the client wants the whole set at once, use a folder link instead. They can download everything as one zip.

Zip downloads work for unencrypted files up to 100 MB each, and larger or end-to-end encrypted files download one at a time. Folder links are on every plan.

File links can take an expiry date, a download limit or both. When it's reached, the link shows a dead page with no redirect, so nothing hangs around after the job.

File links can also take a password, which you can send separately by text.

Picking an expiry that won't bite you in March

Most re-send emails come from expiry that's too short, not too long. For a wedding, think in months.

Set the link to expire after the date in your contract by which clients should have downloaded their photos, and say that date in the delivery email.

If the set includes anything private, add a password and send it separately from the link. We cover that in how to password-protect a link or file.

For a single-file link with a download limit, remember that a preview counts as a download. If you set a limit of 1, the client's first look uses it up.

The click analytics on each link show whether it's been opened, so you can nudge a client before it expires instead of after. Free has basic analytics, and Pro and Max have full analytics.

Sizes, quality and plans

Files are stored as you upload them, so quality is whatever you exported. The per-file limit is 150 MB on Free, 1 GB on Pro and 5 GB on Max, with the details on the pricing page.

Full-size JPEGs fit comfortably. A zipped RAW set needs Pro or Max and may need splitting.

There's more on how photographers use galleries and upload links in TinyX for photographers.

FAQ

How do I send photos to clients without losing quality? Send the original files, not a compressed copy. Email attachments and some messaging apps shrink images. A gallery or folder link that serves originals unchanged keeps full quality.

How can I send photos to clients for free? Google Drive, WeTransfer's free plan and TinyX's free plan all work. TinyX Free gives you 1 gallery, folder links, passwords on file links, and expiry, with a 150 MB per-file limit.

Can clients download the whole gallery at once? Not from a TinyX gallery. Use a folder link for a one-click zip of unencrypted files up to 100 MB each.

Does TinyX have client favourites or watermarks? No. If you need proofing or watermarking, a gallery platform such as Pixieset is the better fit.

If your next delivery is a set you want to stop circulating once the client has it, try it on the free plan, or see everything a link can do on the features page.