How to Send a Photo in an Email in HTML

Sending a photo email using HTML allows for a small file size.

Sending a photo by email in HTML format allows for a fast and visually appealing delivery option. The HTML code will refer the recipient to the image online, where the image is hosted. Sending a photo in HTML will keep the email size small while placing the image in the appropriate location in your email. This method is also used for professional email signatures where logos, graphics and images are often included with contact information.

Instructions

1. Optimize your image for uploading to the Web by checking the image resolution and file size in a photo-editing software program. An ideal digital resolution for computer, television and mobile device use is 72 dots per inch (DPI). The file size should be less than one MB, though many email service providers can handle larger files of five MB or more. If the image is going on a website, the ideal file size should be under 100K and JPEG compression should be used when saving for fast loading time of the image.

2. Upload your photo to the Internet using an online photo sharing site, a blogging platform or an FTP server. An FTP server, also known as a file transfer protocol, will allow you to upload an image directly to an online directory where a website is stored.

3. Copy the URL address of your image file and paste the address into a text document.

4. Open your email application and start a new email message. This step will vary based upon your application. Most major email applications, such as Outlook and Thunderbird, have an HTML option for creating the body of your email. If an icon is not present on your text-input window, look under the settings or options menu choice. There should be a customization option for email composition and the choice of creating the email in HTML.

5. Compose your email in the application program and insert the photograph into the email in the appropriate spot. Most applications will have an image icon for inserting the photograph, separate from actually attaching the image to the email. Select the photo icon and insert your image URL where the dialogue box states upload/insert photograph.

6. Check your email to see that the image embedded in the correct location and click "Send" when ready.

Tips & Warnings

• If you do not see an option for inserting the image and have access to a blogging platform, start a new blog post, insert the image, add any surrounding text or hyperlinks, and then select the HTML view on the blog post text input window. Copy the HTML code and place this in your email. This is a back-up step if you are unfamiliar with writing HTML code.

References

• Photoshop Essentials: Image Resolution, Pixel Dimensions and Document Size

Resources

• W3 Schools: Introduction to HTML