How to Send Digital Photos Via Email

By Editorial Team

Updated December 12, 2019

Digital cameras have made it very easy to take photos and send them to friends and family almost instantly. One of the easiest ways to send digital photos is to send digital photos via email. Sending a digital photo via email is not much more difficult than just sending an email message by itself.

If you send digital pictures via email the recipient will be able to view and save the pictures on their own computer and print out the pictures if they desire. Sending digital pictures via email is a preferred method because most people have email nowadays.

Still, there are other methods of sending digital photos other than email that are more sophisticated and make it easier to send pictures frequently. Email is a good for a few pictures here and there, but look into more sophisticated options if you will be sending many photos.

Follow these simple instructions to send digital photos by email to friends and family.

Transfer digital photos to your computer.

The first step in sending digital photos via email is to upload the pictures into your computer. In general this means plugging your digital camera into the USB port on your computer, turning your camera and using default software or specialized software to save the images on your computer by following the step by step instructions on your computer screen.

View the digital pictures.

After you upload onto your computer, view the pictures and find the ones that you want to send via email.

Rename photos that you want to send by email.

When you locate a photo you want to send by email, rename it. Give the picture a name that makes sense. This will make it easier to find the picture and easier for the email recipient to know what the picture is about.

Warn your friend that an email with photo attachments will be coming.

Before sending the photos via email, it is best to warn your friend or family that you will be sending an email with attachments - especially if it is the first time you are sending such an email or if the recipient is not technical oriented.

Some people have filters on that do not allow them to pick up email attachments, or at least ones over a certain size. Other people are scared to pick up email attachments because of viruses. Therefore, it is best to find out how the recipient feels before sending the digital photo via email.

You can warn the recipient by sending an email message without the attachment telling them another email with attachment will follow.

Compose your email message.

Compose the email message as you would any other email. It is a good idea to write in the email how many pictures you will be sending so that the recipient will know if all attachments were downloaded.

Attach the digital photo to the email.

There should be an attach icon or text on the compose email screen. Press the icon. This should open up a pop up window that lets you choose your directory. Find the directory with your digital photos and within that directory find the photos that you wish to send.

Allow enough time for the digital photo to load.

You might have to wait a minute or 2 for the attachment to load up. This is especially true for web-based email software. Look on top of the email if there is a message saying that attachment is loading. If there is, wait for it to complete before sending.

Send the email message.

Once the attachment(s) are loaded, send the email message off as you would any other email.

Send in multiple emails if you have many pictures to send.

Your email software or your recipients may have a size limit per email. So if you want to send many pictures, you should send them in multiple emails.

Tips

Be considerate of your friends and family. Send photos to those who appreciate them, but avoid cluttering up their inbox if the recipient will not be interested in your pictures.

Items you will need

  • digital camera

  • computer

  • email address

  • internet connection

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