Noob status won't affect your photo sharing abilities. That is just something we all have because webspace is a premium from my understanding. You will always have to use an outside source to store the files. Flickr and Photobucket work fine for this, though you could always buy storage online if you want! But they are still easy to place in the thread wherever you want with the IMG tags, there is a limit of like 10 pictures per post, but beyond that there's nothing stopping you from putting up some cool work in progress pics.
[ IMG ] image address here like "http://www.whatever.photobucket.com" [ /IMG ]
If you remove the spaces from between the IMG things and the brackets above, they become image tags, and what's in between them becomes a visible image:
Also, when you are typing your thread, there is a button above the text box that is a tree in a box, click that and it will do this for you too! If you still don't get it, I can answer more questions, I remember that in my old n00b threads I was able to put in pictures.
To answer the broader question though, it lasts for about three months, and a minimum of 100 meaningful posts. Just spamming other threads won't get you in good graces, but making a good contribution, and putting up some good work will get you there fast.