PPA member Rick Williams of Four Season Photography in Mobile, Alabama offered us the following advice for protecting your image files when shooting a wedding or event:
- Dump your card during the event to a laptop or other device. This will give you an instant backup copy.
- Keep the backup device separate from the camera/camera case. If your camera or case is stolen, you will still have one backup.
- Never leave cards in the camera. Rick keeps them in his pocket to prevent loss in case of camera theft.
- On return to the studio, dump everything onto a computer there and immediately burn a DVD of the event images.
- Take the DVD to another secure location.
Great tips for creating backups for photos - although if you're like me, putting a card in your pocket is an invitation to launder it. I prefer a secure zipped pocket in my camera bag. I also use online photo storage (through an online photo proofing software). As for keeping dvd's or hard drives in a separate location, it's a terrific idea - find a photographer friend and swap a box of storage space at each other's studios!