Before You Start Using Cloud Storages…

Cloud storages can be used to store all your photos. You can reach them from all your devices no matter where you are. That sounds like a great idea, but there are a few questions you should ask yourself before using it:

1. Transparency: Where are my photos? On which computer in which country? Who is moving my photos from one server to another?
2. Security: Is my cloud storage encrypted? How? Are all my personal photos stored at a safe place? Are there administrators with full access to servers and data?
3. Internet connection: Oh, I need an internet connection to synchronize my photos. What if I have 10.000 photos in the cloud? Is that still possible and is it fast enough?
4. Metadata: What happens to my metadata? Most photos contain metadata like date taken, camera model, or photo captions. Is it still available after uploading photos and synchronizing them on another device?
5. Originals: Cloud services may reduce the resolution of a photo because there is an upper limit for file sizes. Where are my original files?
6. Accessibility: How can I access the cloud storage? Do I need to install a specific software (app)? What if I like other apps better than the ones that work together with my cloud storage?

What do you think about cloud storages? I would like to hear from you.