I hope I never have to use….
Thursday, June 18th, 2009My Memory Card Backup Unit
If you’re after peace of mind for yourself or your client then a key area to ensure you have a contingency plan is that of digital files.
My thoughts have always been to have many cards rather than a couple of massive ones. So I carry a couple of 8GB, a few 4GB, a few 2GB and a few 1GB cards.
I then break down any assignment into key stages. Taking a Wedding shoot as an example.
- Bridal Preparation
- Church before ceremony
- During Ceremony
- After Ceremony
- Reception
- Evening Party
Each separate section gets it’s own memory card. After each section has been photographed the Memory card goes straight into a portable backup unit. It’s a simple device with a CF card slot and a built in 80GB hard drive. It has a screen to show the progress of the backup.
This ensures that within half an hour or so of each section there is two copies of each section of the day. I never re-format or re-use the CF cards during an assignment. Once backed up the CF Cards go in a pocket on my person. The backup unit stays with me too.
So actually I do use the unit. The part I haven’t had to use yet is transferring the files from it to the computer.
Once the CF cards are on the computer and backed up the small unit can be re-formatted. The CF cards don’t get formatted until the next job - giving plenty of time to ensure the copy and backup I have on the computer are reliable!
There are a couple of drawbacks. The device I use is quite slow - taking half an hour to backup a card is not out of the ordinary. But putting it in an inside pocket to do it’s job is fine. Having an internal battery means it’s rechargeable but for a full days work you need to take the mains adapter. I have a 12 volt to mains converter in my van so that’s not a problem though. I must feature the converter too - it’s a great piece of kit and very useful.
More stuff I hope I don’t need soon!
Richard