How do YOU archive?

[jsvphoto]

Sorry if this has been done to death - I searched for, but didn't find, the advice I've looking for...

I'd really appreciate hearing from anyone who's willing to describe their archiving setup.

I'm using a MacBook Pro with a 250GB hard drive, and I really don't like the idea of keeping more than just a week or two worth of photos on it. I recently started using Lightroom 3; I'm a LR newbie, but I'm starting to get a handle on it. Have it set up to auto backup my Catalog, but I don't really know how to get it to archive the photos themselves.

Thanks in advance.

[crn3371]

All my originals reside on my internal drive. Backups on 2 externals, with one being stored off site. I also have some (not all) things in the cloud.

[ecub]

My original are in an external HD connected to my computer. I make backups on DVD. My photos are just family, not paid shoots. If they were, then I would setup for redundancy, as what crn3371 does.

[Headshotzx]

I have a 20 + 20GB buffer for my MB 160GB harddrive, partitioned. Once one 20GB is full, photos get copied into my external powered harddrive, deleted from MB, and once the ? notice comes up in LR2, I point the location to the external harddrive and there we go.

[MCAsan]

If I were a pro with serious money in my files, then I would be using a NAS with multiple RAID types powered by UPS plus achiving blueray DVDs to a bank vault (or similar safe offsite storage).

But for our home, we simply use RAID1 (mirroring) on multiple TB drives. We do not burn DVDs.

Another choice...upload the files to a web backup service...or even a web hosting service (which is not really to publish them). Just don't depend on the hosting company to backup your files on their servers.

[pcj]

Depending how much money you want to throw at it - you could go nuts. As a "simple" home user, I have my Aperture library stored on my internal hard drive - then Time Machine copies it to my external hard drive frequently. I use Apertures Vault to copy it again to a second external drive.

I do have photos on Flickr and Facebook, but don't consider them backups.

I *could* take one of the drives off site, but I don't
I *could* use the Time Capsule I have on my network - but the 150+gb Aperture file takes too long to copy, and each shoot could be gb's of data on top of that

[JATO]

When I am done shooting I transfer the files from my camera to the laptop. Then after touch up the files are tranfered to one the external network RAID drives. Only then are the files deleted from the camera's CF card and laptop drive,

[Tony-S]

I'd really appreciate hearing from anyone who's willing to describe their archiving setup.

Time Machine volume is two Hitachi 2 TB drives in an OWC RAID enclosure (4 TB volume) by FW800. I'm in the process of burning all my RAWs to 25 GB Blu-ray discs. Those will be stored off site.

[jsvphoto]

Thank you everyone. I apparently have a lot of research to do, as I don't even really know what "RAID" is...

Before switching to LR3, I used Canon's DPP software. Everything was archived in a folder by Body, then by date. Backup was simple: current on the desktop; monthly move to an external, archives to DVD (off-site).

Maybe I'm making too big of a deal of this, but the whole LR catalog thing seems to make this a slightly more complex issue to me. Also, I'm working off a new Macbook Pro as my main computer now, with the external still attached to the old desktop (which is acting as a file server for my wireless network now, with my wife's laptop in the mix). So I want to leave the external where it is...

*sigh*

Change - ain't it grand?

[joeseph]

T I don't even really know what "RAID" is...
RAID is just a method of throwing data at more than one hard drive at once, either for speed purposes or redundancy in case a drive fails. For all intents & purposes RAID and "Backup/Archive" are completely different animals.

[brettski]

Kind of a related question...Is having your photos on a site like SMUGMUG or Flickr a good back up? Is there any IQ loss??

[XxDJCyberLoverxX]

Kind of a related question...Is having your photos on a site like SMUGMUG or Flickr a good back up? Is there any IQ loss??

Flickr is actually one of my backup sources (in addition to an external HD). I paid a $25/yr. fee and have unlimited storage capacity, plus I can share my better works with others. Pretty awesome deal!

I don't think Flickr compromises on IQ. I can upload the original pictures from my camera and can view at 100%.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/xxdjcyberloverxx/4471983864/sizes/o/

[snakekid]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-6EQo6it7Y&feature=player_embedded
this is some serious backup.

[jsvphoto]

Wow - I'll say...

As always, it's a matter of balancing cost with function. Obviously important, but there has to be a financial justification as well.