Back up those digital pics!

[Steve Foss]

With the upsurge in popularity of digital photography, from the smallest compact to the largest professional bodies, there are a couple ways to avoid the heartbreak of computers crashing and costing us digital images we can never replace.

I had my 250 Gb supplemental hard drive die a couple months back. I got a new one on warranty, and 95 percent of all I had on there was backed up on other format. A narrow miss, and the only stuff I lost was unimportant.

Here's how I download, process and back up digital images. Others may do it other ways, but this way covers all the bases, I think.

1. Download from memory card to dated folder in computer. Ex: 8-11-05 Basswood Lake.

2. Remove card from reader and put it back in camera but do not erase yet.

3. Go through images on computer and throw away those that you don't want. I shoot RAW plus small jpeg. I use RAW because of the flexibility and big enlargements it allows, and attach a small jpeg to each image because I can quickly pull up each jpeg and see if I want to keep the image.

4. Once the discarded images are gone, go back and give the ones you want names. If you're shooting RAW, make sure you leave the extension on the end of your filename. With my Canon 20D it's a .CR2, so a filename might read chickadeeflies.CR2. If they're jpegs, you don't have to worry about an extension. Naming your images makes it a lot easier to find the ones you want later.

5. OK, now your folder is in shape. Burn it onto CD or DVD. CD will allow less, about 700 Megs, while a DVD can handle a few Gigs. I have only a CD burner. Anyway, burn the folder onto TWO separate discs. File one at home, one in another location. Some pros have safe deposit boxes or other fireproof locations. The vast majority of folks who are shooting just to have fun or to capture the memories of a lifetime don't need to go to those lengths, but by filing one copy at home and another copy somewhere else, you not only protect against losing images from computer crash (an all-too-common occurrance), but from a fire or flood or other mishap at home. Whether you are a pro or an amateur or are just fooling around with digital, you still don't want to lose your work.

6. Once the discs are burned, erase the images from the memory card and you're ready to do it all over again.

[jonny_redhorse]

well said Steve!. I save 95% of my pics on CD's "just in case"...sure it takes some time to do and if one's "in a hurry"(which is the case in most of our lives)...one sets themselves up for a a big loss if their computer fails....only thing I can say is "back those pics up "....eventually,our computers will fail at some point....I'd be at a great loss if I lost those "twin fawn" pics that I took last month..some of those photos can never be captured twice for sure!...jonny

[hobbydog]

One other thing I would stress is come up with a standard naming convention and stick with it. It makes sorting and finding stuff a bit easier. Second, discard the stuff you don't want. With digital you can go out and shoot a 100 pics of a single loon. If you try to save them all you will never find what you want later on. I always try take my top 5 to 10 shots from a shoot in a separate folder called keepers and then do subfolders for each set. This gets backed up often and stored offsite.

[Slyster]

Here's my EZ solution. I installed a 2nd hard drive in my computer (the D: drive) and all I do is drag my photo folder over to D every so often. What are the odds of two drives failing at once? A million to one.

Now.. of course there's the tiny chance of lightning for fire etc.. so once a month or so.. I bring home my USB portable 250GB hard drive that I keep at work.. drag the photos over.. and run it back to work and lock it up.

Only problem in my scheme.. is that for 1 day a month... every picture is in one location.. so there IS a billion to once it could ALL go up in flames! I better start making some DVD backups to keep out of the house.

I have over 30,000 photos btw... dating back to 1970 (bought a negative/slide scanner and converted all my pix to digital)

[hoggsback]

I am wondering if there is a "shelf life", so to speak, for cd's? I have heard this before, but don't remember the specifics. Something about the data degrading over time. Anyone heard this before?

[Steve Foss]

Archival grade CDs are supposed to last for many, many decades. Regular grade ones aren't as long-lasting, but no one really knows how long any of them will take to degrade, because simulations on wear are just that, simulations. And some CD manufacturers make consistently excellent CDs in all the grades they produce, while others are less consistent. That means you might have a regular grade CD from one manufacturer that will last longer than an archival grade from another. Sheesh! Takes a little research to separate the sheep from the goats.

I'm now to the point where, after only two years in digital photography, I'm ready to buy several hundred archival CDs. Right now I just have each shoot, and the images post-processed for printing, backed up on standard inexpensive Imation brand CDs.

Aside from not having a whole second CD set in a different, safe location, (like a bank deposit box or a fireproof safe at home), I want to get those archival CDs for the longest life possible. Once I'm done, I'll have one set of each shoot on the hard drive, one on CDs in my studio/office and a third in a fireproof safe or deposit box.

For archival CDs, I'll likely go with MAM-A gold Mitsui. My research shows these are the best or in the top three or four for archival. They run about a buck apiece.

The big cash, of course, is in the outlay. It would take about 300 of them to duplicate what backup CDs I've got so far. And then I'd need another big bunch to keep backing up on them from now on. So each shoot only costs a few bucks to back up, but shelling out the cash up front is troublesome on a budget.

Two things about burning CDs for long-term backup. Do not write on the CD. This can cause degredation because of the compounds in the ink sinking into the CD over time. And don't put sticky labels on them. The CDs you buy of music and such from music stores are either professionally mass produced labels or thermal transfer, and both those won't hurt a CD. If you buy any old sticky label, you're risking your data.

A good way to store CDs is in a big plastic CD bin or a CD binder, using plastic sleeves with the soft inner surface. One CD slips in the front of each sleeve, one in the back. Then you label the sleeve, not the CD. I buy my sleeves from the Viking office supply catalog.

Gotta make sure they don't get mixed up, though, when you're labeling the sleeves and not the CDs themselves.

[Ralph Wiggum]

Thanks for the advice on the CDs! I usually follow your steps and keep one CD at home and the other in my car or at work, just in case! But they are written on with a Sharpie. Perhaps I'll have to re-copy them!

[MN Shutterbug]

Actually, you can buy special markers designed specifically for writing on CD's or DVD's. Another option is a flash memory card. Just plug it into a USB port and it works like another hard drive. I believe you can get them that hold up to 2 gigs now. They are only about 1 inch by 2 inches. Unfortunately they are not cheap.

[carlcmc]

Here is a different take:

I copy them into folders based upon year. And sometimes folders within that for special occasions.

I then use Adobe Photoshop elements for tagging. This is so much better than trying to name each file. I have tags for people in each of our families, tags for fish outdoors etc. Drag and drop the tags onto the pics. It even has a "find face" feature that scans all your pics for faces and presents just faces to you for tagging to make it easier.

Here is the best part. Now I can click on my name and my daughter, exclude grandmother on mother's side but include grandfather on mother's side. This is an example of the detailed searching/sorting that is available. Basically, any tag you assign to the pictures then becomes a sorting option. I can in seconds bring up any picture that has just my daughter, just my daughter and my mother, my kids but not me or my wife, etc etc...

I encourage you guys to check it out and get away from naming all your pictures. I have thousands of pictures and can't imagine having to name them all.

[Dbl]

For those without Photo Shop Elements or the like, which is probably most, this is an easy trick. Organize your photos by folder as suggested, then click on your first photo, hold shift and select your last photo. This will highlight all your photos.

Now you can rename the first photo however you choose, to suit your subject matter (Duck Hunting, Fishing Trip, ect). When you click enter you will rename all your photos with the same name and they will be numbered 1 to however many photos you have. Very simple and easy and it makes finding your photos a snap.