How do Pros Store Images

I want to start storing my images in a format, and at a resolution and size as a Pro would do when anticipating publishing the image. I currently shoot RAW and export as a JPG (900 pixels on the long edge and 900 pixels resolution) with a watermark placed on each image. I use Lightroom 5 for editting. This, I assume, is fine for a portfolio, but not for publication or selling. How many other copies should I make, what other formats (e.g. TIFF) should I consider, and what size/resolution on export. I wouldn't expect any of my images to be converted to anything larger than 11x17 print. I'm not shooting with pro equipment yet. Are there standard minimum sizes/resolution for publications, or does it vary for each. Need some resources to help me understand all this. Thanks.

Edit: I'm not referring to backing up files. I understand how to do so.

Most pros store their photos as RAW using Lightroom or programs that work the same as Lightroom. Then they would do the simple modifications to the photos that Lightroom is capable of doing.

Only when you have a buyer in mind would you worry about further processing the photo and saving it in another format. Basically if you take thousands of photos a year, there is no reason to process all the photos fully unless you have a reason to. If you are not showing it, selling it, or putting it in your profile the only reason to save a photo as something other than RAW is because you want to do it for yourself.

Once you process it with Photoshop (or other pixel level editor) the size you save it in depends on the buyer.

Save as raw and keep 3 copies of everything.

flowrider wrote in post #17405193
Save as raw and keep 3 copies of everything.

What this guy said.

Preferably with one copy stored off-site.

I keep the Raw files on 2 separate external drives. I also keep my SD cards untouched until the client receives their photos. Adding cloud storage is on my to do list. I name the 2 external drives the same so that Lightroom can find the catalogue easily, regardless of which hard drive is plugged in.

Nogo wrote in post #17404987
Most pros store their photos as RAW using Lightroom or programs that work the same as Lightroom. Then they would do the simple modifications to the photos that Lightroom is capable of doing.

Only when you have a buyer in mind would you worry about further processing the photo and saving it in another format. Basically if you take thousands of photos a year, there is no reason to process all the photos fully unless you have a reason to. If you are not showing it, selling it, or putting it in your profile the only reason to save a photo as something other than RAW is because you want to do it for yourself.

Once you process it with Photoshop (or other pixel level editor) the size you save it in depends on the buyer.

Thanks for the reply. I certainly do have my images as RAW files (i.e. CR2 format) and use Lightroom 5 for editing. Let's assume, for the sake of educating myself, that someone wants to buy a few of my images for use on their webpage and publishing in their magazine. Would they specify a minimum size/resolution/format for each image, and, if so, what are those specifications for a typical request. Maybe I don't know enough about the "output" side of photography to ask the right questions. This is what I want to understand and learn about.

Ask the customer to give their requirements for image size in pixels - i.e., 3000x2000 pixels. Tell them that you'll supply images in jpeg format saved at quality 8.

It depends on your clients. I save my files in RAW - only RAW - unless I've delivered photos to a client. In that case, I will also save the files exactly the way they were delivered to the client, which is usually uncropped, a watermark added, some corrections and conversion to high quality JPEG. If a client ever loses their images and wants to receive them again, or if there is any discussion regarding the quality of the photographs, I will have them ready.

This may or may not suit your work flow. If your clients demand a certain image size you can certainly make a profile for that client and have their preferences ready so they don't have to tell you over and over. But unless you have clients that have clear demands, I wouldn't guess before hand at the risk of doing a bunch of work only to discover you've used the wrong settings or whatever.

For storage I would recommend a RAID setup and keep another copy off site if possible (fireproof safe would be a perfect solution). I currently have a RAID setup (2 - 3TB drives) that holds all of my photos along with a 4TB that has a 3rd copy. I also intend on getting a HD for off site keeping as well. Typically, I save every RAW file + a DNG (I need these for my 70D and CS5).

Currently: RAW, some online on my PC, 2 onsite but offline locations, 2 offsite locations.
Future: 4TB ReFS formatted storage spaces volume internally. This gives me RAID plus error checking and correction, preventing bit rot. That will likely couple with one onsite location and one offsite location. I haven't decided whether to stick with NTFS/FAT or move to ReFS - probably ReFS as it will let me know if a drive is dying, though a single drive can only do error detection unless you tell it to keep two copies or use two drives.

I posted this on another thread too.

For Hard Drives of production Macs and location Mac Book Pros I use simple Time Machine which is built in the Airport router. Its good for small mistakes etc. I also clone hard drives about once a month with SuperDuper incase the hard drive dies, I can swap the cloned ones without delaying any work.
For the RAW image library which is roughly 24 TB, I use a Thunderbolt2 external drive which has four 6TB 7200 rpm drives in it. Works perfect speedwise when working with files, editing etc. For the added security, I also make a second copy via USB harddrive dock to regular hard drives and store them offsite in a Pelican case.
And for a 3rd copy I store only the keepers/edited copies (these are the ones submitted to the clients) online which is accessable by me and the client.