file uploading from front end

I know this is not specifically an Atahualpa issue but I am hoping someone here can help me with this. I been searching the internet for weeks to no avail. I need to add upload capabilities to the front end of a few pages or a set page that allows the scouts and parents to upload photos without requireing them to log into wp-admin.

I was going to use photosmash to do this because I was told that it has the capabilities but I decided against it because the author has stopped development of the plugin. I went with NextGen Gallery which has a public uploader created by a third party but it is full of bugs and flaws. I will use it however if I am unable to find a better solution.

I thought about using Uploadify, but lots of people using wordpress with it complain about how complex it is and many cannot even get it to work. Plus I am really looking for something that has the ability to upload several files at once. Because many times they may be uploading 20-30 pictures at once.

I considered paying someone to write a plugin to do this for me so I asked for bids and many were 500-700 dollars which I suppose is fair but since I am paying out of my pocket for all of this thats a lot more than I can afford for a non-profit troop website.

Does anyone have any thoughts or advice?