Like many online photo hosting services, Phanfare allows you to upload your pictures to a Web album and then share that album with others. But Phanfare adds a social networking element that makes it more like a cross between Facebook and PicasaWeb, complete with shared group albums, to which other users can add their own photos. Thus, everyone who went on the trip can contribute his or her snapshots to the same album, with captions and comments.

Phanfare really shines with its list of sharing-centric features. Friends and family members can view slide shows. And they can easily download individual photos or entire albums at high or reduced resolution. They can also order prints and photo gifts from third-party services such as Kodak Gallery, Shutterfly, and Snapfish.

In short, Phanfare is a well-rounded, easy-to-use service. Newcomers can obtain a free account with 1GB of storage. Upgrading to unlimited storage will run you-and each other sharer aper year. Though Flickr is a better deal at annually for unlimited storage, it doesn't include batch downloading and has fewer printing and gift options. The extra buys you an interface that is much easier to use, as well as family-friendly sharing features that simplify distributing your pies to sharing network and ogling your snapshots.