4 thoughts on “Digital Condoms

  1. Fantastic article! The headline definitely got my attention and the information was very helpful. I’ve done something similar – always copy and paste (not cut and paste) to a folder in my photos folder, rather than letting a program download and organize my photos. I like the idea of making an initial backup before doing any organizing or editing. It’s so easy to lose track or accidentally hit save when you didn’t mean to.

    Another thing I see people doing a lot is uploading pictures to Facebook or some other online site and using that as a back up and or/storage system. I’m all for sharing on social media, and it’s great to have photos saved online, but most of these sites downgrade your photo size and quality so if you delete your originals you’re losing a lot. Also, if their servers crash or there is some other error…. there go your photos. I’m obsessed with having multiple backups!

    Thanks again for a great article.

  2. Naomi, good point about Facebook and other online sites not being a good backup. When I post to social media I make a downsized copy at 604 pixels on the long side, which is the max Facebook stores, and add my visible watermark. To me those online images are throw-aways, just a small copy for sharing.

    Some photographers like to have both an onsite and an offsite backup, the latter often another external hard drive stored at a friend’s house or even in a bank vault. I’m not that obsessive, but perhaps I should be.

  3. Larry M on said:

    Good article, Mark. My workflow is identical to yours, and I didn’t even read the DAM book! lol A simple rule of thumb I use and tell other photogs is: “If it’s not saved TWICE, it’s not backed up.”
    Thanks again for your excellent newsletter and informative articles!
    Larry

  4. Pingback: Digital Photo Tip: Backups Are Boring – Turner Photographics Newsletter | Turner Photographics