Direct URL link to photos

tfboy

I guess I already know the answer to this, I was just wondering if there's an easier way to automate...

I'm on the legacy SM, contemplating moving to the new SM, but this is a tricky point I need to be 100% sure of before I migrate (and cannot roll back).

I often share photos in forums. The link I want to use needs to be a direct link to the photo that's untracable to the gallery it's in (whether the gallery is public, unlisted with or without password).

The issue with the Share -> Get a link -> Embaddable Links -> Forums is that it provides the gallery details so one can easily get back to the gallery view and see all the photos even if the gallery is private.

I suppose I can use the Share -> Get a link ->Photo links -> Direct photo links. This works, but the URL is rather cumbersome repeating the image ID with some other data inserted in the URL (size and version number?). for example:

http://photos.xavimages.co.uk/photos/i-kRctgRW/1/L/i-kRctgRW-L.png

The problem I have with that is when I need to change the size used, it's heavy as I have to edit the URL in several places.

Up till now, I've done it manually, retrieving the image and key and shortening it, appending the size, for example start with this:

http://photos.xavimages.co.uk/Category/SubCategory/Gallery/38063828_m2n7JB#!i=3143674950&k=kRctgRW

and edit it so it becomes this:

http://photos.xavimages.co.uk/photo/3143674950_kRctgRW-L.png

That makes it easy to change the size and keeps the URL relatively short, but it's a pain having to edit the URL in the first place, especially when you have a dozen you need to do manually. I could do an entire copy / paste into notepad to get all the links, then replace all the bits, but it is time consuming.

I suppose the answer is just use the Direct photo link, even though it's complex and live with the hassle of editing it to change size when I need to which isn't that often.

Why can't the direct URL be the simpler version? :scratch

Does any of this change with migrating to the new SM?

Allen

I checked my earliest blog post and the photo link is from old Smug. So your link
http://photos.xavimages.co.uk/photo/3143674950_kRctgRW-L.png
still works. I found no way to construct this in new Smug though.

denisegoldberg

tfboy wrote: »

I'm on the legacy SM, contemplating moving to the new SM, but this is a tricky point I need to be 100% sure of before I migrate (and cannot roll back).
.....
Does any of this change with migrating to the new SM?

I believe the entries from Share... Get a link... are the same (or very similar) in legacy and new smug.

If you want to change the size of the image it needs to be changed in two places in the URL.

If you want to hide the gallery the photo lives in but not hide your site you will need to continue the process you are currently using.

If you want to hide your site but still share your photo, place the image in a gallery with the setting Hide Owner = ON. The URL generated for the Share... Get a link... page will no longer reference your site. Instead it will look like this: http://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-bW7ZxpK/2/M/i-bW7ZxpK-M.jpg.

Info on hide owner is at http://help.smugmug.com/customer/portal/articles/93131-can-i-hide-the-account-owner-information-for-a-gallery-.

--- Denise

tfboy

Thanks Allen. It was you who helped me understand this the first time round

Denise, thanks for your input. I did think about the hide owner as it does simplify the process (of hiding the gallery the photo comes from), but I would like to retain my domain in there in case anyone is curious - having it point to "a generic photo sharing website" is a bit of a downer in terms of "human SEO".

I'll drop the support team an email - I really need confirmation and assurance that it will continue to work with the new SM as I cannot afford to go through all my links everywhere on the net where I have linked to photos in case the URL changes!

I noticed there is a new "private sharing" option, so SM are thinking along those lines I guess.

denisegoldberg

tfboy wrote: »

I'll drop the support team an email - I really need confirmation and assurance that it will continue to work with the new SM as I cannot afford to go through all my links everywhere on the net where I have linked to photos in case the URL changes!

My old blog entries contain many references to photos I linked in old smug and they all continue to work.

I imagine that the answer you get from the help desk will confirm that.

--- Denise