Hockley Photography

I suffered a hard drive failure yesterday. I’ve been meaning to write a long post explaining my storage and backup methods, and I suppose this would be a great time to do so, since my methods were put to the test (and passed). My system isn’t overly complicated, and probably could be enhanced, but here it is:

Primary Storage: Internal Hard Drive

My primary photo storage is on the internal hard drive of my PC. This is where images are transferred from the card reader, this is where they are cataloged, and this is where I make all edits.

First Backup: External Hard Drive

My first backup location is an external hard drive. The external drive is a copy of the photos stored on my PC. When I download images from the card reader, I also make a copy to the external hard drive.

Secondary Backup: Offsite DVDs

My secondary backup method is burning DVDs which are then stored offsite. This is the “last resort” backup, intended for use if something were to happen to my home (fire, major theft, etc). I burn DVDs after photos have been processed and cataloged, and store the DVDs in a relatively secure offsite location.

Yesterday I got back into town from vacation. As I was preparing to shoot a wedding last night, I noticed my external hard drive wasn’t available and the lights were dark. Further troubleshooting indicated a drive failure. I’d purchased the drive about two months ago at Costco. I probably could’ve gotten it a few dollars cheaper online, but one of the reasons I shop at Costco is their awesome returns/exchange policy. Today I drove to Costco, told them what happened, and they promptly gave me a refund for the full price of the drive. I picked up a new drive and was on my way in about 10 minutes.

My files? They’re now happily copied over to the new backup drive. With my backup system of two copies onsite and one copy offsite, a single drive failure will never mean data loss.

Robert Scoble recently recorded a spur-of-the-moment interview with the founders of Twitter. As he notes in his blog post, some folks are giving him grief for not using a “professional” camera, but he notes that the meeting wasn’t originally scheduled to be an interview.

He got the video because he had a video-capable camera with him at all times. Have you ever missed a photo opportunity because you didn’t have a camera? I always recommend that photographers have a camera with them at all times.

Carrying a DSLR and lenses and other gear all the time isn’t practical for many, but even a relatively inexpensive point-and-shoot camera can take some great photos. I have a Canon A540 with me all the time for opportunities to shoot when I don’t have my 40D. When it comes to getting the shot, a $150 5-megapixel point-and-shoot is far better than nothing at all.