If the photos are .jpg files, zipping (compressing) them will not help. JPG
files are already highly compressed files. You simply cannot reduce the size
using zipping software. If the photos are .tif files, the best way to
compress them is to batch process them to convert them to .jpg. Free
software to do this is available here:
http://www.irfanview.com/
Sending 60 photos via e-mail can be done, but you need to look at the size
of the files and limit the number of files to less than 1MB per e-mail,
unless your recipient has a large mail box and is on a DSL line, not a phone
line.
It also depends on the quality you need. For example, a typical file from a
3MP camera will be around 1.2MB.
Do you need this kind of resolution for the work being produced in Word. You
may get away with a much smaller file ( by reducing the number of pixels,
which is quite different than zipping a file) and the above software can
also do this. This would make it more convenient for e-mail.
However don't do anything to your original files. Make a new folder and copy
your original files there. Then use these for conversion or reduction.
The problem I see is then returning this Word file back to you. You will now
have 60 photos embedded into this document. Zipping it will greatly reduce
the file size as far as the text is concerned, but not for the pictures.
A possibility is that after saving the Word file, the same file can be saved
as a PDF file. Now this will greatly compress everything and can be used for
e-mail, but you will not be able to edit it, you can only read it.
So, for sending large files you may want to ask your IT friend how to set up
an ftp procedure or exchange the info by copying to a CD-R and mailing it.