Taking care of your data can be daunting. What if you lose your images due to corruption? What if the card doesn’t read? Even with cloud service in place, one still can’t upload all the material, especially if one is working from remote locations. Since taking care of digital pictures can be a challenge, here are a few essential tips that can help beginners avoid any negligence. Some of these suggestions will really save you time, and thus, make sure you focus on shooting rather than wasting it on figuring out where your files are.
High-Quality Cards and Drives
Step one is to always get hard drives or cards from reputable companies. At the same time, don’t keep your cards or drives in cheap plastic boxes; that will affect them, too. Once you get the new card, format it before use. This should be applied every time you go out to make images. That’s because you may have some junk software on it that could impact or crash your card or drive.
Have Multiple Back Ups
Before you run to format your images, always ensure you have two different backups. In some cases, three would also be ideal. You should have these in two different drives, located in two different places. For instance, two different bags or one at home and one at a studio. Drives can fail, and bags can be stolen. So having two or three backups can save you from a lot of trouble.
Back Up Everyday
Yes, this does sound daunting, but you need to remember that your data is not safe. Why leave it to chance if you are just delaying things? So after every shoot, remember to backup your card and secure your images. Otherwise, you can forget. And when you go for a shoot, you will have no other option but to erase the images that do not have a backup.
Organize, Organize, Organize
Another important thing is to organise your hard drive and card. Put labels on them as ‘back up 1’ and ‘back up 2.’ At the same time, you will also have to use a YYYYMMDD_Event-name format and even add the name of the camera or card you used to shoot this. If you cover two events in a day, put all of that in different folders based on this. As a result, it makes it easy to retrieve the data even when someone asks you a decade down the line.
Carry Physical Labels
In addition to labeling drives and cards, you must carry colorful paper tape. This can be helpful when your card or cable is not working as it is supposed to. It will help you figure out faulty cables and save you time when you are hurrying off to a shoot. Also, label your charger and batteries, especially when you have other photographers working with you. This way, you won’t lose your gear either.
Be Prepared for the Worst
Photography is all about working with technology. And as it is with tech, it can go wrong. Your camera can die, and the cards won’t work. Or, your bag of lenses gets stolen. As a result, you should create a workflow that will help you tackle the worst. Ask yourself:
- Does your archive have a backup?
- Does your camera have insurance?
- If your camera is stolen, will the gear cost you more, or will confidential client photographs cost you more?
- Where are your files? Carry bag or luggage?
Gear insurance, thus, can help you in ways you can’t imagine.
Respect Your Gear
When using cameras or accessories, remember a few things. For starters, wrap your cables properly so that they don’t coil. Don’t toss your drives with cables attached to them into your bags. At the same time, remove any cable that doesn’t work immediately. Ensure that you don’t add stress to your equipment, so that it can last longer.
Last but not least, keep a mental or physical checklist for this. Initially, it may be hard to get everything done, but once you start, your images will be far more secure and easily found than your peers’. More clarity means you are