Backing Up Files

[Abel]

I sure hope you guys back up your photos, if you dont you ought to start!

anyways, i was curious to see how people store and backup their files etc...

i store my files in months and then break it down into days.

Example for months directories:
2004-08-Aug
2004-09-Sep
2004-10-Oct
2004-11-Nov
etc

Example for daily directories:
18aug04 - bridge
19aug04 - park
20aug04 - motocross
21aug04 - horse
etc

this filing system for me works the best because then all of the directories will list in order by yr then number of month and then the subdirs will list in order by days etc.

since i had a photo a day gallery for 8+ months i had to find an easy way to catalog these shots and that was the best that i came up with.

i have all of these files on an external 250g maxtor hard drive specifically for my photo files and such. once a month is complete then i burn it to a DVD and then store it in a fire proof box. im considering getting a safe deposit box in order to have them off site in case the house gets robbed or burns down etc. material items can be replaced but photos would be lost forever...

[Hogleg 44]

I keep one Folder on My C drive for my Raw files, by Year>Event, using DLP to change file name to something I will recognize and name the folder accordingly. I manually copy them to 2 other internal drives and one External drive, then to 2 DVDs. One kept here, 1 at one of my Kids homes.

After converting to jpg;

I file to My Pictures Folder by General Subject>Secondary Subject>Year>Event...
These are copied automatically to one internal drive at shutdown each evening via "12Ghosts" Manually to the other internal drive and one external drive, then to DVDs as per the Raws
That works pretty well. I can usually find what I'm looking for.

My photography is strictly Hobby, Things personal of interest to me, and Family events. Family mostly is GrandKids, as you can see if you investigate my WebShots folders, which you are welcome to do, via the link below.....Assuming you don't get bored very easily!

I do the WebShots thing so I can share the pictures that I put there very quickly with family and/or friends here and in other parts of the country. I keep the albums 'Public" Except, for some of my Granddaughters Soccer matches.
I keep those albums private, by invite only, because there are lots of other little girls on the teams, and there MIGHT be some parent who might not like their child's picture showing on the internet???? So with their interest in mind I hide those pictures.

[sbug_adam]

good info indeed! I just make folders and label them with a theme and date.


Adam

[mattchow]

i usually name mine something like "2004_0101-New_Years_Day"

one copy on my hard drive.
one copy on my firewire backup drive.
one copy to dvd. (assuming that a span of files will fill the dvd)

[bbailey]

I copy my RAW files into a folder on my internal 250GB drive. Usually the folder is named with the subject and or date of the photos, e.g. Dec Tiger Shoot or Holiday04.

Then I back them up as well as any edits saved on the save drive to my external 250GB drive at least once a week, depending on how often I shoot or how important the new images are to me.

[Mary]

I download my clients files onto a folder on my desktop (for easy immediate access). Then I immediately burn them to a DVD and then copy to an external hard drive. I like the quick access that my desktop offers for retrieval. I keep my "working" files here until I close that account and then move the folder from the destop to the original "backup" folder I created on the external hard drive.

When saving the images to my computer, I name the folder using the clients last name followed by the date of the shoot. This can easily be cross-referenced in an excel folder.

I place the backup DVD in a small envelope with the clients name and date of shoot on it. Inside, I keep a copy of the Image Order form in case they ever want reprints.

I know my husband's office uses an "offsite" computer storage that they backup their files to via the internet. Anyone use this type of system?