Jag ska ladda upp två bilder ikväll, men först måste jag välja den som är skarpast.

Ska is often used to talk about the future, especially when something is planned or intended.

So Jag ska ladda upp två bilder ikväll means something like:

• I’m going to upload two pictures tonight
• I will upload two pictures tonight

It often sounds a bit more intentional than just using the present tense.

Because ska and måste are modal verbs, and modal verbs in Swedish are normally followed by the infinitive without att.

So you get:

• ska ladda upp
• måste välja

Not:

• ska att ladda upp
• måste att välja

This is similar to English, where we say I must choose, not I must to choose.

Yes. Ladda upp is a fixed verb expression meaning to upload.

• ladda by itself often means charge or load
• ladda upp specifically means upload

So upp is important here. It is not just an optional extra word.

Examples:

• Jag laddar upp en video. = I’m uploading a video.
• Hon laddade upp bilderna igår. = She uploaded the pictures yesterday.

Because after a number, Swedish normally uses the indefinite plural form with no article.

So:

• en bild = a picture
• två bilder = two pictures

You do not say två en bilder or de två bilder unless you mean something more specific, like the two pictures.

Compare:

• två bilder = two pictures
• de två bilderna = the two pictures

Ikväll means tonight.

Yes, i kväll is also possible. Both spellings are accepted. In modern everyday writing, ikväll is very common.

So:

• ikväll
• i kväll

Both mean the same thing.

This is because Swedish main clauses follow the V2 rule: the finite verb usually comes in the second position.

In this part of the sentence:

• men = but
• först = first
• måste = must
• jag = I

The clause itself begins with först, so the finite verb måste has to come next, before the subject jag.

So:

• men först måste jag välja = correct
• men först jag måste välja = incorrect

This kind of inversion is very common in Swedish after time words, adverbs, and other elements placed first.

Literally, it means the one that is sharpest.

Breaking it down:

• den = the one / that one
• som = that / which
• är = is
• skarpast = sharpest

So the whole phrase means the one that is sharpest, referring here to the picture with the best focus or clarity.

Because bild is a common gender noun in Swedish:

• en bild
• not ett bild

When Swedish refers back to a common-gender noun, it uses den.

So:

• bild → den
• foto or barn (if neuter) → det

Here den stands for the picture / the one, because bild is an en-word.

Som is the normal relative word in Swedish for who, that, or which.

In den som är skarpast, som introduces a relative clause describing den:

• den = the one
• som är skarpast = that is sharpest

So som connects the one to the description.

It works a bit like English that or which, but Swedish som is used much more broadly and does not change form.

Here skarpast means sharpest, in the sense of a picture being well-focused or clear.

It comes from the adjective skarp:

• skarp = sharp
• skarpare = sharper
• skarpast = sharpest

So this is the superlative form.

For images, skarp usually means something like:

• clear
• in focus
• not blurry

Yes, often you could.

• den som är skarpast = the one that is sharpest
• den skarpaste = the sharpest one

Both can work, but they are slightly different in feel.

Den som är skarpast:

• sounds a bit more explicit
• clearly means the one among them that is sharpest

Den skarpaste:

• is shorter and more compact
• often works when the noun is understood from context

You could also say:

• ...måste jag välja den skarpaste bilden.

That means ...I have to choose the sharpest picture.

Because Swedish normally needs the verb är in this kind of clause.

So:

• den som är skarpast = correct
• den som skarpast = incorrect

The relative clause needs a full predicate:

• som är skarpast = that is sharpest

English sometimes allows more compressed expressions, but Swedish usually keeps the verb here.

The comma separates two main clauses:

• Jag ska ladda upp två bilder ikväll
• men först måste jag välja den som är skarpast

A comma before men is very common and natural here, especially in writing, because men joins two full thoughts.

So the comma helps readability, even though Swedish punctuation can sometimes be a bit more flexible than English punctuation.