Two 2GB, or One 4GB

Just in case one fails - i think it is better to have smaller cards.

Only time I feel different would be if shooting in inclement weathr eg very cold, very dusty, very wet - where you would not want to open the CF compartment and risk the camera itself.

How about 1 4gb and 1 2gb CF...

That is my plan darktiger.

After all of this, i think i will need a 4GB, but i will also need an extra one, and i think a 2GB will be good for that.

Currently I use 4x 2GB CF cards so I am of the multi-card opinion.
I would never go with only one card unless I had no other choice for some reason.

I am currently looking at buying one of the 8GB cards for those rare times I don't have time to switch out the card (such as 4th of July fireworks), but am waiting now until Feb to see if I need to go up to the Extreme IV version or can live with an EIII or Ultra II version as I don't need the larger card right this moment.

I also have some left over cards from previous years, but have been slowly giving them away as gifts as their value drops to me, but still usefull to others. (so I am down 2x 256MB cards right now). I retain the 2x 1GB cards for emergency backup and it has to be a real emergency to use my 1GB standard Sandisk - way too slow.

meanwhile as far as leaving a card at home, luckily I have a 1DsMkII so have a 1GB SD card that pretty much stays in the camera ready to go.

steved110 wrote in post #2194898
Just in case one fails - i think it is better to have smaller cards.

I don't agree with the "smaller" cards. Having two is just plain common sense. Ideally, having 2 4GB cards would be great. Affording it might be a little harder.

work_at_bored wrote in post #2192032
don't put all your eggs in one basket.

2- 2GB

I agree with this guy. I use a 1g Sandisk Ultra II and 3 512mb Ultra II I can easily fit a few football games on all 4 of them.

This boils down to what you shoot and what your shooting habbits are.

As a professional portrait/wedding photographer I take about 30,000 exposures a year. For business reasons I subscribe to the multiple smaller cards theory. I use multiple 1G cards.

I HAVE had CF CARDS fail on me before. And let me tell you it is much better to lose some images at a job rather than ALL of the images. No Question there. If shooting a wedding you are taking on a lot of responsibility and using multiple smaller cards is protecting yourself like having insurence. It is a question only of professional responsibility. If one card fails you do not lose the entire wedding's images.

Shooting Habbits: From a professional portrait viewpoint. I keep one card per portrait client. This card gets put with the clients paper work and all cards get downloaded and processed at the end of the day. This seperation (use of smaller cards) keeps things organized. Of course you can use multiple 4G cards for this, but why? Would get expensive.

I don't see any great advantages for amateurs to use multiple cards. Especially if the shooting subject is not critical. As oppossed to a wedding, you can not go back the next day to redo the shoot.

____

Note on wearing out cards from taking in and out all the time:
I started shooting digital CF Cards in 2002 doing Santa Claus mall type photos. Durring 30 days and 2000+ kids each December, I have not worn out one card, using about 6 32MB SanDisk cards. Thats a lot of in and outs I use the same cards every year.

CoolToolGuy wrote in post #2192337
I use a Flashtraxx to unload my cards, so having two lets me keep shooting on the second one while I empty the first.

Have Fun,

exactly....

the shot that counts always takes place when there's no card in the slot...

-D

They need to have RAID for cameras

jasonhuebert wrote in post #2206198
They need to have RAID for cameras

They do. Check out the 1D series.

Interesting that with all the things that we attach to camera bodies ie., flashes, pocket wizards, flash brackets, PC flash cords, grips, black boxes, tuxedos, cp-e3's, that a company has not come out with a CF card that ribbon cables to larger storage device of some sort.

Could be something simple like a CF card stack putting 6 CF cards is the space of a single D cell battery. Such a device could even mount to the bottom of your grip. Fill one CF card, automatically start filling the next, etc...

Could be complex. Same ribbon cable idea connecting to a portable hard drive. Pick your size, 100, 200, 500 gb..., but then again that's putting your faith in only one device again isn't it?

Two 2GB, one 4GB and one 8GB with a 20D and a 5D. 2GB Extreme IV is coming soon....

I use a 2GB and 4GB extreme III sandisk cards and I have never had any issues with them, I am even thinking about selling my 2GB card to buy an 8GB extreme iv.

I have 2x 4GB Sandisk Ultra II Compactflash Cards for use in my Canon 400D.

2 x 4GB