Dropbox is the go-to platform for cloud storage and file sharing, thanks to its user-friendly setup and solid free plan. But if you’re a professional photographer using Dropbox to share photos with clients and guests, there are some key limitations you should know about:
- Dropbox doesn’t provide control over download sizes. There is no automatic way to generate versions of your photos at different sizes, which provides convenience for your clients and guests. For example, they might want to download smaller versions for sharing on messaging apps or social media.
- Anyone with access to the folder can see all of the photos, which can be a privacy concern. For many events and weddings, it’s not appropriate to share all of the photos with everyone, and better privacy controls are needed.
In addition, there are other limitations related to how we deliver photos today, especially for events, weddings, and high-volume headshot sessions.
- It’s too slow. People are the most excited to receive their photos while the event or wedding is happening, not days or weeks after it’s over. By delivering your photos slowly, you miss the most important time window.
- It’s too much work for guests to find their own photos, because they have to scroll through the whole gallery to pick them out. It’s also too much work for photographers or clients to send only the right photos to each guest.
That’s why we built Honcho—a smarter alternative to Dropbox, made specifically for photographers.
Here’s how Honcho changes the game:
- Honcho showcases your photos in a beautiful gallery that can be viewed in the browser, on any device. It automatically generates different sizes for download, so you can offer high resolution and lower resolution downloads for different purposes—such as sharing on social media.
- Honcho helps you deliver the photos instantly, during the shoot. This is done by uploading photos from camera to cloud (by tethering the camera to your phone), while you shoot.
- Honcho helps you share the right photos with the right people, with AI-powered face recognition. Your guests can easily find their own photos by uploading a selfie. Honcho then matches the right photos with the selfie and delivers them in a personal gallery for each guest.
The concept behind Honcho is simple but powerful.
It helps you deliver your photos instantly, during the shoot. This maximizes the impact of your photos because you’re sharing them when people are the most excited to receive them. And by allowing anyone to find their own photos with AI-powered face recognition, you share the right photos to the right people.
When you start using Honcho in your business, you will see the impact on your bottom line:
- You get to charge higher prices because you’re offering a premium, value-added service.
- You stand out from the competition. Clients will choose you over others because of the unique experience you provide.
- You generate leads on the spot. Guests will notice your service and come up to ask how you do it—hello, future bookings!
In this article, we’ll show you exactly how to use Honcho as a Dropbox alternative to deliver an unforgettable photography experience. Or, skip ahead and create a free Honcho account to get started today!
Upload Photos Instantly, From Camera to Cloud
Honcho makes sharing photos a breeze by instantly uploading them as you snap them, creating an online gallery that’s super easy to share with clients or guests. All you need is the Honcho app (available for iOS and Android) to connect your camera to your smartphone. Once it’s linked, the app automatically detects your camera and uploads each photo to the cloud as soon as you take it.
You can access your uploaded photos from any device—whether it’s your phone, laptop, or tablet—using the mobile or web app. Honcho uses a wired connection for quick, reliable transfers with any standard data cable, so high-res images are up in about five seconds.
Need more control? You can choose the upload resolution, from full-quality photos to smaller, compressed versions at 640px on the longest side, which upload almost instantly.
The best part? Honcho keeps things simple. There’s no need for extra gear. Unlike other tethering tools like CamRanger, which often require additional hardware, Honcho only needs your camera and phone. It gives you virtually unlimited range, so you can roam around the venue without stressing about losing your connection.
Upload Post-Processed Photos After the Event
Along with real-time photo uploads, Honcho lets you upload images after the event too. Many photographers like to mix it up—giving clients immediate access to photos during the event, then uploading the final, edited versions later as polished deliverables.
When you upload edited images to Honcho, clients and guests can use the face recognition feature to easily find and share their own photos.
The upload process is super simple—just drag and drop your files onto the Honcho website. It’s built to handle large batches smoothly, and with flexible cloud storage options, you can scale up as you need.
You can also customize how downloads work, offering both high-res and web-sized versions. Web-sized images are great for quick sharing on social media or through messaging apps.
As a photographer, you’ve probably felt the frustration of guests not getting their photos after an event.
We get it—your main responsibility is to your client, whether that’s a wedding couple or an event planner. Ultimately, it’s up to them when and how the photos get shared. But let’s be honest, clients sometimes forget or delay sharing, which often leaves guests reaching out to you directly, hoping to see their pictures.
The thing is, these photos aren’t just important to your clients—they’re meaningful for the guests too, capturing moments they want to remember.
It’s not about blaming clients; they’ve got a lot on their plate, and sharing photos might not be a priority. The real issue is that there hasn’t been a simple, efficient way to share event photos—until now.
That’s where Honcho comes in.
Honcho makes it easy for guests to view and download photos instantly through an online gallery. Thanks to real-time uploads, they can see their pictures while the event is still fresh and exciting.
Of course, scrolling through hundreds of photos to find their own can be a hassle. Honcho solves this with a clever solution: guests just upload a selfie, and the app’s face recognition technology finds their photos for them. The result? A personalized gallery featuring only the shots they’re in, making the whole experience easy, fun, and personal.
Privacy is often a big reason clients hesitate to share event photos with guests. For example, wedding couples might want to keep certain moments private, and event planners may want to avoid widely distributing photos of attendees to respect their privacy.
The result? A lot of photos end up not being shared at all, which means they lose their value and impact over time.
Honcho solves this with smart privacy options.
One option is to password-protect the gallery, so only approved people can view it—perfect for sharing with a smaller, select group.
But for events where you want to share photos with everyone who attended, password protection alone can feel too restrictive.
That’s where Honcho’s guest-friendly solution comes in: it can blur all the photos in the gallery. Guests can upload a selfie, and the app’s face recognition technology unblurs only the photos they appear in. This way, everyone can access only their own photos without seeing the rest.
It’s the perfect balance—guests get a personalized experience, while clients maintain control over privacy and sharing.
Play Live Slideshows to Engage the Audience
We believe photography should go beyond just capturing moments at a wedding or event—it should create an unforgettable, immersive experience. Every feature we’ve built is designed to help you enhance your photography service and make it stand out.
One of the best ways to create this kind of experience is with a live slideshow. Showing photos on a big screen gets the crowd excited and sparks conversations.
It’s also a perfect way to showcase your work in real time. When someone in the audience needs a photographer down the road, guess who they’ll think of first?
With Honcho, setting up a live slideshow is super easy. Just open the online gallery, click “More,” and select “Slideshow.” No extra software needed.
You can moderate the slideshow right from the mobile app, or have an assistant moderate it from a laptop, seeing your photos live without any manual transfers. Plus, you’re in control—you can choose to automatically publish new photos or hold them until you’re ready.
Print On-Site Without Manually Transferring Files
Our features don’t just improve your photography services—they also help you upsell, allowing you to charge premium rates and earn more per booking. A great example? Offering instant on-site prints, which is always a great way for boosting revenue.
There’s something special about getting a physical print, and clients love giving guests a personalized keepsake. It’s a unique, thoughtful alternative to traditional party or wedding favors.
The problem? On-site printing used to be a hassle, with manual file transfers from your camera to a laptop—a nightmare when you’re juggling a busy event. Honcho makes it super simple by removing manual transfers entirely, letting you print wirelessly from any device.
You’ve also got plenty of flexibility. You can print directly from the mobile app, or have an assistant take care of it from a laptop. Since photos are uploaded to the cloud in real-time, your assistant gets instant access to them, making the whole printing process smooth and stress-free.
Conclusion
As event photographers, it’s time to shake up the way we deliver photos. The old-school method of sharing images days or weeks after a wedding or event misses some big opportunities—to build excitement, enhance the event experience, and grow your business. Sharing photos instantly, during the event, makes a much bigger impact.
Honcho gives you a better alternative to Dropbox, letting you do all that—and more. With features like face recognition, guests can easily find their own photos, while live slideshows and on-site wireless printing take the event experience to the next level.
These days, event photography isn’t just about capturing moments—it’s about creating unforgettable experiences. If we stick to just documenting, we risk falling behind, especially with high-quality smartphone cameras everywhere.
Now’s the perfect time to rethink how we can make events and weddings more memorable through photography. By delivering real value to your clients, you not only stand out but also grow your business in the process.
Sign up for a free Honcho account today and see how it can take your photography business to the next level.
