Galleries & proofingCamera to SmugMug: Upload Photos Live as You Shoot
Yes — you can send photos from your camera straight into a SmugMug gallery while you shoot. Connect a Canon, Nikon, Sony or Fujifilm to your iPhone or Android phone with CloudTether, choose one of your SmugMug galleries for the shoot, and every JPEG you take is uploaded into it within seconds. No laptop, no card reader, and no evening spent importing.
- Lands in the SmugMug gallery you choose
- JPEGs in seconds over mobile data or Wi-Fi
- Send to SmugMug and Dropbox from one shoot
- Canon, Nikon, Sony and Fujifilm in one app
7-day free trial · iPhone, iPad and Android
How it works: connect, choose, shoot
Your phone sits between the camera and SmugMug: it pulls each photo off the camera, uploads it once, and CloudTether delivers it to SmugMug — plus any other destinations on the shoot.
- 1
Connect your camera to your phone
Open CloudTether and tap “Connect a camera”. Plug in a USB-C cable (on Sony set the USB mode to PC Remote, on Fujifilm to USB tether), or tap “Wi-Fi” for guided wireless set-up — Canon uses the camera's “Remote control (EOS Utility)” function. The camera stays connected while you shoot for SmugMug.
- 2
Connect SmugMug and pick a gallery
In the Deliver tab, add SmugMug and sign in on SmugMug's own page — CloudTether never sees your password. Then choose the gallery this shoot should fill from the list of galleries in your account (CloudTether lists them as albums). Create the gallery in SmugMug first if it's a new job.
- 3
Shoot — every frame goes to SmugMug
Take a test shot and watch it arrive. From then on each photo comes off the camera at full resolution, uploads once from your phone and is added to the SmugMug gallery seconds later. The shoot screen counts what's been delivered, with a link to open it.
Screenshots of every step are in the quick start guide. New to tethering? Start with camera tethering software or camera to cloud.
What lands where in SmugMug
| Where photos land | The SmugMug gallery you picked for the shoot (SmugMug's API calls galleries albums). One shoot fills one gallery. |
|---|---|
| Gallery settings | Unchanged — privacy, sharing, presentation and any selling you've set up in SmugMug apply to the new photos, as they would to a manual upload. |
| File types | JPEG (and HEIF, PNG or TIFF if your camera makes them). RAW files and video clips are skipped for SmugMug — shoot RAW+JPEG. |
| Size | Full size by default, or smaller JPEG copies — 4096, 2048 or 1024 px, or a custom size — set in the shoot's Delivery resolution. |
| Which shots | Every shot, or only the ones you rate on the camera (Canon and Nikon). |
| File names | The camera's own file names, so they match the originals on your card. |
JPEGs to SmugMug, RAW stays with you
SmugMug galleries are for viewing, sharing and selling, so CloudTether sends them image files your clients can open: JPEG, plus HEIF, PNG or TIFF if your camera writes them. RAW files (CR3, NEF, ARW, RAF and others) aren't sent to SmugMug. They show as “Skipped” in the shoot rather than failed, so a RAW-only shoot won't fill the gallery.
The usual set-up is to shoot RAW+JPEG. Turn on “JPEG only — leave RAW files on the camera” in the shoot's settings and only the JPEGs leave the camera — the fastest option over mobile data. Or keep RAW and add a second destination such as Dropbox, Google Drive or an SFTP server: each shot uploads from your phone once and CloudTether delivers the JPEG to SmugMug and the RAW to your backup.
Smaller copies and only your selects
Galleries load faster with smaller files. In the shoot's Delivery resolution you can send Original, Large (4096 px), Web (2048 px), Small (1024 px) or a custom long edge with your own JPEG quality. Only JPEGs are resized. A 2048 px JPEG looks sharp on any phone or laptop screen and is a sensible default for same-day galleries; send full size if clients will order large prints from the gallery.
On Canon and Nikon you can go further and send only the frames you rate on the camera: switch on “Only shots I rate in camera” and pick a minimum star rating. Everything else stays on the card. It isn't available over Sony or Fujifilm tethering, where every shot is sent.
How fast does a photo reach SmugMug?
Two legs: camera to phone, then phone to SmugMug. The first is quick — in CloudTether's own app logs a Canon EOS R5 Mark II JPEG reached the phone in a median 0.06 s over USB and 0.20 s over Wi-Fi. The second depends on your phone's signal and the file size; a 2–5 MB JPEG over decent 4G or 5G usually lands in the gallery within a few seconds. With no signal at all, shots wait on the phone and send themselves when it returns.
Who sends photos to SmugMug as they shoot
Sneak peeks in the couple's SmugMug gallery before the reception, while the full set backs up to Dropbox.
Team galleries parents can browse and order from on game day.
A gallery that fills during the event for attendees and the organiser.
Proofs in the client's gallery before they've left the studio.
Good to know
- • Pick an existing gallery: CloudTether doesn't create SmugMug galleries, so make the gallery in SmugMug before the shoot.
- • One gallery per shoot. For two galleries (say, ceremony and reception) start a second shoot, or send everything to one gallery and sort it in SmugMug later.
- • RAW and video clips are skipped for SmugMug. Send them to Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive or your own server in the same shoot.
- • If SmugMug signs you out, deliveries pause and the destination asks you to reconnect; nothing is lost, shots wait on the phone.
- • SmugMug is one of several destinations. You can also keep a copy of every shot on the phone itself.
Send photos to SmugMug from your camera
Set-up for your brand, including the camera setting that matters (PC Remote on Sony, USB tether on Fujifilm, EOS Utility mode for Canon Wi-Fi):
Popular bodies
See all supported cameras, or tether from your iPhone, Android phone or wirelessly.
SmugMug upload FAQ
Can I upload photos to SmugMug directly from my camera?
Not from the camera on its own, but with your phone in between, yes. CloudTether connects a Canon, Nikon, Sony or Fujifilm to your iPhone or Android phone over USB or Wi-Fi and uploads each photo into the SmugMug gallery you choose, seconds after you take it.
Does CloudTether upload RAW files to SmugMug?
No. SmugMug gets JPEG (or HEIF, PNG or TIFF) files; RAW files are skipped and shown as Skipped in the shoot. Shoot RAW+JPEG and send RAW to Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive or an SFTP server in the same shoot if you want an off-site RAW copy.
Can CloudTether create a new SmugMug gallery for each shoot?
Not at the moment. Create the gallery in SmugMug, then pick it from the list in CloudTether. The gallery keeps its own SmugMug settings — privacy, sharing and selling.
Will clients see photos while I'm still shooting?
Yes, if the gallery is shared with them. Each JPEG is added seconds after the shutter, so a gallery link sent in the morning fills up during the day. Use “Only shots I rate in camera” on Canon or Nikon to send just your picks.
Can I send smaller files to SmugMug to save data?
Yes. Set the shoot's Delivery resolution to 4096, 2048 or 1024 px, or a custom size; SmugMug gets resized JPEGs. To reduce what your phone uploads in the first place, turn on JPEG only so RAW files stay on the camera.
Do I need Wi-Fi at the venue?
No. Your phone uploads over mobile data. The camera-to-phone link is a USB cable or the camera's Wi-Fi, which needs no internet. If there's no signal, shots wait on the phone and upload when it returns.
Can photos go to SmugMug and Dropbox at the same time?
Yes. Add both to the shoot. Your phone uploads each photo once and CloudTether delivers it to both — JPEGs to SmugMug, and every file, RAW included, to Dropbox.
Which cameras work?
Canon, Nikon, Sony and Fujifilm cameras that tether over USB. USB has been verified on a Canon EOS R7 and R5 Mark II, Nikon Z6, Sony ZV-E10 and Fujifilm X-T3, and every body of a brand uses the same code. Wi-Fi is verified on Canon; Fujifilm Wi-Fi is experimental.
Start sending to SmugMug today
Install CloudTether, connect your camera and SmugMug, and take a test shot. One plan with everything included, starting with a 7-day free trial.