Open Windows Live Photo Gallery. I find it much easier to select photos here because I can see them easily and find them quickly, without digging through folders.

Put all your fun photos in Windows Live Photo Gallery

Select photos from a folder. (Here's a tip: Holding the Ctrl key and clicking individual photos allows you to pick more than one photo at a time.)

See the icon bar across the top of the program? That’s the ribbon. Look for Photo email (it’s the second-to-last feature on the ribbon’s Home tab). Click the Photo email icon on the top half of this button.

Click this button for photo emails

If you have Windows Live Mail installed, it will now open a new message, with the photos included in an album of thumbnails that you can see inside your new message.

The cursor is active, so I usually start writing my message. I can use Text edit on the top of the window to change the font, color, and text alignment of my email, add emoticons, and spell check.

Here's where you write your text

Next, I name the photo album by clicking Enter album name here. This album will appear in your Windows Live SkyDrive after the photos finish uploading.

Choose a descriptive name that will make them want to click!

After naming the album, I click Photo Album Tools to get more options. If you don’t see it at the top of the message, click anywhere inside the album in your message, and this tab should appear. Here I can choose a photo album style, shuffle the album for a more interesting layout, choose the photo upload size, change the privacy settings, and determine how long the album should stay in Windows Live SkyDrive before expiring.

Go to the ribbon for more choices

After making my photo album choices, I enter the recipient’s email address, write a subject line, and click Send.

Your photo album in fan formation

In Hotmail, click New to create a new message.

Type an email address or click To and choose recipients from your contact list. Then add a subject.

Click Photos, and then click New album.

Select the photos that you want to create an album with, and then click Open. Hotmail will upload and save the photos to Windows Live SkyDrive.

If you want to change the album’s expiration date or other details, click Edit album details. You can also preview your slide show before you send it.

Type a message, and then click Send.