The photo posting is much easier than you think, once you've done it. Tony_K taught me a couple years ago and I've tried to pass on the information to others.

Here's the basics:

I think it's easier to do all this if you have two browser windows open - one on photobucket and one on gardenweb.

Go to photobucket(dot)com and open an account. It's free, takes only a minute, and is no harder than signing on to GardenWeb. There are other photo posting services but I think this one is the easiest to use.

Once you have the account you'll see how easy it is to upload your photos to photobucket. You can set up sub-albums with one click of the mouse, so you can sort your photos into different subject (more on that below).

When they are there, you'll see three little 'addresses' under each picture. Highlight the middle one - the TAG line - and 'copy' it. (You can copy it by right clicking on your mouse and selecting 'copy', or by clicking on EDIT at the very top of your computer screen.)

Once it's copied, go to the GardenWeb message you are composing and paste the TAG line directly into the text of your message. Don't put it at the URL line under the text box. At this point you will only see text, but once you choose to view your message you'll see the photo. If it comes out too big, then go back to photobucket and choose the EDIT button over that photo. You'll have the option there to reduce the photo by 75, 50, or 25 percent. 75% makes it a good size for these messages, but 50% works too. Try both on different photos and see what you like.

Technically I think you can post as many photos as you want in each message but remember that not everyone has a high speed line and try to keep it to 5 or less. More than that makes it pretty slow to load for some.

Here's the sub-album tip about photobucket or any other service you use: set up sub-albums for different subjects so you don't end up with 200 photos in one album. For example, I have Garden 2005, Garden 2006, House Shots, Yard Sale (where I post photos for things I am selling through the newspaper or eBay), All the Muffins (pet pictures), etc. Besides making it hard to find something if you have it all in one album, if you ever decide to move photos later, any link you've posted on the web will be lost.

If you still have problems, send me an email with your email or phone number and I'll talk you through it. I think photos make every post more fun and I encourage everyone to do it. The digital camera I use is a 10 year old 2.1 Nikon, so you don't need a fancy or expensive camera to share images of your garden. We all want to see!

A special thanks, once again, to Tony_K for helping me get my first picture posted a few years ago!

Hope this helps,
Kate