As a photographer, I’m constantly on the lookout for ways to improve how my images are displayed on the web. Think about it, have you ever come across this amazing gallery of images but been slightly turned off by the fact that you could only view small thumbnails? Conversely, you may stumble onto some average-looking photos that are displayed in a way that really brings them to life on the screen. What’s a photographer to do? What’s an artist to do? (Wait, aren’t they one and the same?!?!)

It may not be the end-all-be-all, but a company has stepped up to the plate – Cooliris | Discover More – and I think they are doing a pretty damn good job at improving how we view media on the web.

There may be light at the end of the tunnel

Cooliris isn’t perfect. Images can appear grainy if the original copies (of the images) on the website you are viewing are smaller than how Cooliris displays them. Which brings up a point. The viewing screen doesn’t just happen…you have to download and install the Cooliris plug-in. Once it’s installed though, viewing images using this “player” is super easy, as every image you see online will contain a small box with an arrow in the bottom left corner. Click it and your screen comes alive. Say for example, a friend forwards you a link to some recent mountain bike photos on Picasa or Shutterfly. Instead of scrolling through each one (which we all know is super fun!) or watching a slideshow, Cooliris allows you to view all photos much faster. Sure, you can view them as a slideshow, but by simply dragging across the screen, you can scan images super quick.

I recently opted in as a beta tester for future versions, so once I play around with it a bit more I’ll let you know how it works. I’ve yet to use Cooliris for anything other than viewing images, but it should be noted that you can view video, TV clips and other media as well.

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