Upload to Photobucket by FTP (Pro Only)

As a Pro account holder, you can use any FTP program that your computer supports. Connect to your Photobucket account from your FTP program. After you are connected via FTP, you can drag-and-drop images in either direction.

Settings

Use the following FTP settings:

• host address: ftp.photobucket.com
• port: 21
• username: your Photobucket username
• password: your Photobucket password
• directory: blank or default

You may need to use “Passive Mode” if you have a firewall.

Restrictions

• You cannot rename or delete folders and pictures via FTP.
• Only image files can be uploaded with FTP.
• Acceptable file types are: gif, jpeg or jpg, png, bmp, and swf

Note: Photobucket converts bitmap files (.bmp) to .jpg files. When you upload via FTP, a .bmp file will overwrite a .jpg file in your album, if they have the same name. For example, you have a file named "test.jpg" in your album. If you use FTP and upload a file named "test.bmp" to the same album, the "test.bmp" file is converted to "test.jpg" after upload, and the original "test.jpg" file in your album is replaced by the FTPd file. If you perform the same set of actions via the upload function in Photobucket, the .bmp file is converted to a .jpg, but given a suffix (e.g., “test.bmp” is uploaded, converted to a .jpg, and renamed “test-1.jpg”)

• Image files must be uploaded as binary files. You may need to select the binary transfer type (bin) in your FTP settings. If you do not select “bin”, your images may not display in your Photobucket account even though it appears that they transferred through your FTP connection.
• Image file names and directory file names can only contain these characters:
  • upper or lowercase a-z
  • 0-9
  • -
  • _
  • space
• Sub-albums can only be five levels deep within the default album. For example: myalbum> album1 > album2 > album3 > album 4 > album 5.

Example: Upload with Windows Explorer FTP

The following steps are based on using Windows and the Windows Explorer (NOT the Internet Explorer browser). Pro users on a Mac system can download 'Cyberduck' FTP here

1. Open My Computer from your Windows Start menu or desktop. You can also open any folder on your desktop that you have created.

2. Paste this URL: ftp://username:password@ftp.photobucket.com into the Address field of the Windows Explorer window.
3. Make sure you replace username in the URL in step 2 with YOUR Photobucket username and password with YOUR Photobucket password.

4. Open another Windows Explorer window, and locate the image(s) on your computer that you want to upload.
5. Drag-and-drop the file(s) into the FTP window.

Notes:

• Make sure your filenames do not include any special characters, i.e., ',"$!&.
• Make sure any albums you create via FTP do not contain special characters or spaces.
• Files with a 'th_' in the name represent the thumbnail images in your account.

6. Open a browser window, and log into your Photobucket account.
7. Navigate to the album where you put your FTP uploads. You can see the images you uploaded

Taken from Photobucket help section.