Which back-up device ?

[Antonio Correia]

I am going to be away for a couple of days with to time to communicate and shooting like hell.

I can't take my Macbook because it is too heavy to carry with all the equipment I want to drag (20D+70-200 f/2.8 IS+ 1.4x + 5D+24-70 f/2.8 + 580 EX II + G9 )

Chargers elsewhere.

I need a back-up disk. ( I have an old one of only 12 GB which doesn't seem enough )

An Epson P-6000 would suit fine but a bit too expensive.
Or a Canon Media Storage with only 80 GB also pretty expensive.

I need something cheap and simple which reads compact flash, SD cards and eventually others.

There is no need to see the raw files after downloading.

I would like to get some suggestions please.

Thank you.

[Alis]

I don't use one but I have a friend who uses Hyperdrive portable backup and is quite happy with it.

[Antonio Correia]

Thank you Alis !

I am already considering other options like buying more CF cards for example.
However I would like to made 2 back-ups at the same time. Just in case.

[Colin Southern]

I don't use one but I have a friend who uses Hyperdrive portable backup and is quite happy with it.

Although - I'd just like to point out that if Ali owns one, it wasn't one that I talked him into getting (for a change!)

Antonio - the other thought is "just don't worry about it". If you're using a reliable brand - formatting them in-camera - not swapping cards between the 20D/5D then I'd think the chances of losing data - assuming that it was written to the card correctly in the first place - would be very very low. And if if wasn't written to the card correctly (which seems to be where a lot of the issues occur) then any backup device would be backing up bad data.

On a side note, I see that Sandisk have just announced a 64GB CF card (that's about 2500 full-size RAW images from a 21MP camera)

[Antonio Correia]

Thank you Colin.

The mentioned 64 Gb is really expensive and I wonder if they sell it in this country.

On the other hand I have the old back up witch eats about 400 Raw files.

May be, just maybe, getting 2 cards of 8Gb is enough but I am tempted by the Epson P-7000 where I could even store some G9 films...

I rarely - never - change cards between cameras.

They have different sizes and I always think that the 2 Gb is for the 20 and the 4 Gb is for the 5...

Thank you for your opinion and advice

[Alis]

Although - I'd just like to point out that if Ali owns one, it wasn't one that I talked him into getting (for a change!)

I think your advice is always right on target. Buying is easy. I wish it was as easy to follow the technical advice you share here with us!

[Colin Southern]

I think your advice is always right on target. Buying is easy. I wish I was as easy to follow the technical advice you share here with us!

At times I think that people forget that often the advice I give is an accumulation of lots of things that I've learned - but they shouldn't feel like they've failed if they try it and it doesn't work 100%. If it works "25%" then they've made an improvement - an improvement that they can now consolidate and build upon next time.

Perhaps it's a bit like the old saying "how do you eat an elephant", with of course the answer being "one spoonful at a time". Perhaps it's a good time to pause and take a look at just how far you've come in a few short months; producing many images that many parents would have been happy to pay a full-time photographer to capture!

You're doing really well - give yourself a pat on the back and enjoy it!

[Alis]

At times I think that people forget that often the advice I give is an accumulation of lots of things that I've learned - but they shouldn't feel like they've failed if they try it and it doesn't work 100%. If it works "25%" then they've made an improvement - an improvement that they can now consolidate and build upon next time.

Perhaps it's a bit like the old saying "how do you eat an elephant", with of course the answer being "one spoonful at a time". Perhaps it's a good time to pause and take a look at just how far you've come in a few short months; producing many images that many parents would have been happy to pay a full-time photographer to capture!

You're doing really well - give yourself a pat on the back and enjoy it!

Thanks, Colin!

I know what you mean about improvement. I usually put together a Photobook of my son's pictures every year and since the pictures are in chronological order, I can clearly see the the pictures improve as you go forward. But some of you here make it look so easy that people like me get too greedy!

[Antonio Correia]

... a Photobook ...

On line book ?
Like Blurb or ... BookMaker for example, among so many ?

Tell us, please.

[Alis]

On line book ?
Like Blurb or ... BookMaker for example, among so many ?

Tell us, please.

No, no, a printed photobook. I use Mpix. They have a software you download and use it to put together the book. Then I upload it to thier site and get the printed bound book in a few days. I send a couple of copies to the grandparents for their records and keep one for myself

[Antonio Correia]

No, no, a printed photobook. I use Mpix. They have a software you download and use it to put together the book. Then I upload it to thier site and get the printed bound book in a few days. I send a couple of copies to the grandparents for their records and keep one for myself

Yes. But that is what I was meaning.

I also make my books this way.

My humble public books

[Alis]

Yes. But that is what I was meaning.

I also make my books this way.

My humble public books

Yes! I have seen them before, the books and the pictures in them! They are great! Mine are more private, with only one model, so no interest for anyone outside the family to brows them online

[Antonio Correia]

Yes! I have seen them before, the books and the pictures in them! They are great! Mine are more private, with only one model, so no interest for anyone outside the family to brows them online

Sure Alis, I have others which are not on line.
No. They are on line but private.

Take care.

[KentDub]

That canon backup sure looks sweet. I didn't even know they made them. Albeit a little on the expensive side -- but like everything else photography, its "an invesetment".

[Antonio Correia]

Thank you Kent !

I go zzzzzzz now

Take care

[GillR]

When I'm away from home, I always take a laptop with me and backup the cards onto that, as well as keeping the original shots on the cards. As Colin says, the data will be safe on the cards but I consider it an 'insurance policy' against loss/theft/damage. I'm thinking of getting rid of the laptop and buying a netbook for this purpose because they are so much smaller & lighter ... and are less expensive than the specialised storfage options.

Would a netbook be an option for you, Antonio?

[Dave Humphries]

Personally, I also subscribe to the theory of more cards and keep them safe.

Thus 'exposed' cards are not kept with the camera!
So, if someone nicks the camera and bag, I won't have lost all the shooting up to that point in time.
They are small enough to be secreted around the body without going in the obvious taregt areas of camera bag or wallet.
Also reduces risk of accidentally overwriting, although I also use the little slidy thing (on SDHC) too.

I'm not saying that this is best, it just suits me.
I considered lugging the laptop with me on holiday, but decided it was just another thing to carry around or worry about being nicked if left at the accomodation.

Cheers,

[Antonio Correia]

... I considered lugging the laptop with me on holiday, but decided it was just another thing to carry around or worry about being nicked if left at the accomodation. Cheers,

Gill and Dave. Thank you both for your concern and attention.

I have never done a duplicate of the photos when I am not at home or even when I am home.

To take the Macbook with is a drag/bore.

Too sensitive to drag around, heat, cold, theft ... Too ,any problems.

I think that with the cards I already have, with the one I am going to buy - Extreme III 8 Gb - and with the back up disk I I will have of 6,3 Gb I will be confortable with a small investment.

Thank you everybody ! I know I can count on you people !

[KentDub]

The thing about laptops vs the specialized storage deviced is simple: Laptops don't have solid-state storage. This means they have mechanical parts inside them that are very sensitive to vibrations and being dropped. A solid state storage sollution (such as a CF crad, or any flash memory) is extremely secure. Since there are no moving parts, batteries get you a lot further too.

[Antonio Correia]

The thing about laptops vs the specialized storage deviced is simple: Laptops don't have solid-state storage. This means they have mechanical parts inside them that are very sensitive to vibrations and being dropped. A solid state storage sollution (such as a CF card, or any flash memory) is extremely secure. Since there are no moving parts, batteries get you a lot further too.

And that also happens with the Epson E-7000, isn't it ?