Saving photos whilst on holiday

[arnica]

Hi Guys,

I just wanted to know what you guys use or do when you are shooting lots on holidays. If you are starting to run out of memory card space, what do you use to back up the photos?

I'm tempted to bring my laptop, however it's an additional 3.5 kg. Just seeing and wanting to know whats out there and what you guys do.

[rossco]

asus net book for me

[fess67]

I take a netbook now but in the past have taken pretty hefty laptops.

My basic setup...

• netbook / laptop
• 2 x card readers (just in case one fails, they are cheap and I have had one not work on me)
• 1 x external hard drive

I save to the laptop and also to the hard drive. Depending on where you are going it can all go in the checked luggage usually. Africa is not a place you can do that, keep the laptop in hand luggage but the hard drive etc is fine in the checked baggage.

[Wobbles]

Hi Guys,

I just wanted to know what you guys use or do when you are shooting lots on holidays. If you are starting to run out of memory card space, what do you use to back up the photos?

I'm tempted to bring my laptop, however it's an additional 3.5 kg. Just seeing and wanting to know whats out there and what you guys do.

Phil,
what's your definition of "shooting lots" (100's or 1000's) and/or how long are you away for (days/weeks/months)? Also where are you going (power, security) & what form of transport (road, jet/ light plane)...
If it's few hundred to a thousand shots and/or short term a few extra memory cards may be most cost effective solution. If it's thousands and/or long term laptop is best option. Yes, i used to lug a 'beast' around to.. now have a Net book that weighs just a tad over 1kg, two extenal hard drives (packed separately) USB hub and two card readers all USB 3 for speed.

Cheers
John

[arthurking83]

I think you have to define the term travel.

Travel means different things to different folks, so where carrying a netbook for one person traveling by plane with large suitcase may be a trivial decision, for another hiking the Himalayas it's a harder decision to make.

The important question has already been asked ... how long is the holiday for. Can you simply do with more cards? Having extra cards isn't a bad thing.

My solution for travel is one of two tablets, and a few peripherals.

1 10" Windows tablet, with various USB ports on board.... basically a netbook, but running Windows. All external peripherals if needed. It used to be 500G, but I changed the drive to a 256G SSD for the extra speed.
At 500G it was plenty of space to not need an external hard drive, but 256G is a bit small considering the on board space requirement. But that's dependent on your camera too.
When I first got the Win tablet I had the D300. Even 200G of storage was plenty .. but with the D800's 3x bigger raw files! ....

Some time later I got myself a 7" Android tablet, it's primary use is as a GPS for my vehicle. But of course its a tablet, and the connectivity options are plentiful for these things too.
You can connect any number and type of external peripherals via an OTG connector.
It's less easy to transfer files from camera/card to external storage than it is via the Windows tablet, but the extra portability of the entire system makes for a handy lightweight travel option.

If the holiday is only a few days long .. maybe a week, then calculate how many images you're likely to capture per day and get more memory cards to cover those days.

[ameerat42]

(At present) a small (and weak) netbook computer AND-D-D!!! a 500GB or 1TB WD Passport-type ext drive.

(You asked "you guys", but it depends on what you want to do/how long, etc.)

[arnica]

Morning All!

Thanks for all the replies.

Here is my plan for my up coming trip, oh Im going to NZ agin

• Christchurch
• Arthurs pass (Temple Basin)
• Hokitika Gorge (Gorge, Lake Kaniere)
• Fox Glacer area (Chalet look out)
• Wanaka (Roys peak or Rob Roy)
• Queenstown (Mt Crichton, Lake Hayes, Moke lake)
• Mt Cook (Mueller Hut, Hooker Valley)
• Lake Tekapo (, Mt John)
• Mt Hutt area

I've got 12 days on my own for this trip. I'll be driving around in a rental vehicle.

I can see myself talking several thousand shots. I'll also be bringing the GoPro along so I can capture some of the views when I'm hiking.

I can already see that battery life is going to be an issue here.

[arthurking83]

Hiking and the dreaded battery life issue!
Wish I had a dollar for every time this problem has been posted

So the real issue is: how much money do you want to spend, and do you need any new gear?

More accurately: Do you want need any new toys to play with?
My Galaxy Tab2(7") lasts about 8 or so hours on a single charge. I can't see an easy way to swap out a battery for it tho(for hiking trips where no power may exist).
They cost very little nowadays.
An OTG accessory with both card reader and USB port was had for about $6 off ebay.
The tablet won't power a USB powered external hard drive, where a laptop/Win tablet will. So any external drives will require power too.
But, with a powered USB HDD, the Android tablet works well.

Of course this then assumes that you'll get some sort of value for money from any newly acquired devices, once your holidays are over.

Depending on your camera model, a better alternative would simply be the extra memory card route.
You don't always need speed from memory cards. So older gen, larger capacity and cheaper types may offer the simplest and cheapest solution.

[Iscariot]

Asus transformer tablet with 1GB extenal USB hard drive. Weight is next to nothing as well as space occupied. Also doubles as e-reader and allows me to surf the web and watch movies.

[Lance B]

I take my laptop and use portable USB hard drives.

[arthurking83]

Asus transformer tablet with 1GB extenal USB hard drive. .....

I'm assuming 1Tb and not 1Gb??
1Gb is not enough for photo storage if your files are raw.

And that's the advantage with the Tablet system .. it's ultra ultra portable, especially for hiking.

Does your Transformer have enough power to supply the external HDD, or do you need supplemental power for this?
I haven't actually tried to power an external HDD via the Galaxy Tab(yet). My assumption is that the USB line out of a tablet doesn't have the required current to power up an external HDD.

[Iscariot]

I'm assuming 1Tb and not 1Gb??
1Gb is not enough for photo storage if your files are raw.

And that's the advantage with the Tablet system .. it's ultra ultra portable, especially for hiking.

Does your Transformer have enough power to supply the external HDD, or do you need supplemental power for this?
I haven't actually tried to power an external HDD via the Galaxy Tab(yet). My assumption is that the USB line out of a tablet doesn't have the required current to power up an external HDD.

Yeah you are right. Sorry meant 1TB not 1GB.

Yep it does. Assuming that the drive its self does not require external power its fine. I have to use the keyboard attachment though so I have enough USB ports to use the tablet as a through put device.

Give it a crack Im pretty sure the Galaxy tab will suffice.

I took exactly that setup to Thailand with me and did it nightly worked a treat. No power needed the tablet battery was enough for 5 days worth of travel.

[calloyd]

I also use a netbook and portable HDD but would switch a tablet with standard USB if I could afford one. Even though I've doubled the RAM and upgraded to Windows 7 Home Edition I find the netbook quite slow.

One thing I wouldn't do is put any of my electronics or camera equipment in my check in luggage on any holiday which involves flying. On a recent trip to Vietnam my brand new suitcase ended up looking like it had travelled around the world 5 times, with a zip closer and lock completely ripped off. After each flight (total of 6) the contents looked as if they'd been in a tumble dryer for several hours. A new, solid metal glasses case was dented on both sides - not sure how as it was in amongst clothes. There's no doubt that any electronics or camera equipment wouldn't have survived even one of those 6 flights.

Thankfully I was fully reimbursed for the damaged luggage!

Hope you have a great trip, I did a similar one two years ago and loved it!

[Anne Sh]

Hi I have traveled using heaps of memory cards, loading them on to portable external hard drives where I could view them....then I moved on to a 13" laptop and I have never looked back.

Yes it is a pain carrying it around and making sure it is safe...but it has enriched my traveling experience so much. I now keyword and process some of my photos, watch movies, use free wifi and have a really good look at my images to make sure that I am doing the best I can in camera.

I also most importantly back up all my photos onto two separate hard drive. The laptop and hard drives are separated as much as possible.

[Gribbles]

I believe you can also get various 'memory card backup devices'.

Generally they have both storage, and memory card readers built in, along with a user interface to access the various functions (LCD screen etc)

They are available in a range of storage sizes, and of course, prices.