I have been testing three different systems for putting pictures on a website. Coppermine, Gallery 2 and Exhibit Engine.

Coppermine is used by a golfclub where I am member and I help them taking pictures now and then. I installed Gallery 2 to check it out a couple of places, but ended up using Exhibit Engine (EE) on my own website, www.oceanwatcher.com .

The main reason I went with EE is the general functions of the system, the nice designs that come with it (much less "box" feel than the other two) and the fact that it is able to use IPTC and EXIF data the way it should be used. There is a new version on its way (should have been ready a while back now...) and I am looking forward to that version. Hope it is not too far away...

But I was wondering if there are any other systems out there that you would consider using for your site.

I definitely prefer php/MySQL systems. Would be nice to make a list and then put it in a new post with links and make it a sticky here.

Also, it should be standalone systems. Not just a plug-in for a CMS.

Check out www.photopost.com.

But if you just want to publish your own photos (you don't need member registrations, forum capabilities, member uploading, etc.) you might just want to use the web gallery in Photoshop or even Elements.

Check out www.photopost.com.

But if you just want to publish your own photos (you don't need member registrations, forum capabilities, member uploading, etc.) you might just want to use the web gallery in Photoshop or even Elements.

I never looked too hard at Photopost since it is not a free system. But it look ok.

One other reason for me to use EE is that it is made for only one photographer. It is not a community system. Both Coppermine and Gallery 2 are larger systems that can have member registering and upload if you allow it. But EE is a single user system. None of them have forum.

The simple web galleries that several programs produce (Photoshop, Elements, Fotostation etc.) are very simple. So you need something else as well to tie your site together. And then you end up with a mess that is hard to maintain. The beauty of using a system like the ones I have mentioned is that it makes things easy to change. No extra software needed. You can do it from a webcafe when you are travelling.

One more thing that I like about EE is that it has a simple system to enter news on the site. Not a big publishing system, but small messages that show up on the right side of the page as default. This is enough for me on this site.