Photo Credit - Flickr, Fanch The System

One of my friends recently sent me an email, “My hard drive crashed and I lost all my photos. Can you send me any pictures you have of the gang?”

A little while back, I described how to organize your digital photos. Organizing your photos is just as important as backing them up. You can’t effectively back up your photos if you don’t have them organized.

Backups Are More Feasible Than Ever

But why do so few people do it? Is it because we’re lazy? Yes. Stop being lazy. You’re not my teenage stepson, so you’ll actually listen when I say, “stop being lazy!” Does it take much effort to burn a CD or DVD once a month? How about a little drag and drop action between two Windows Explorer or Mac OS Finder windows?

In the film-only era, organizing your photos meant putting them in photo albums and storing the negatives in a safe place. Did we ever do that? Based on how people are now, I doubt that many people’s photos were organized. I still have shoeboxes with envelopes in random nooks and crannies in my house! My digital photos have fared much better. In the digital world, organizing your photos is easier than ever. Having a backup copy is within the reach of our budgets, our technology, and the precious time we have.

Several of my older co-workers in the past were afraid of the computer and skeptical of the security of the data. The argument always was, “but what if something happens to the computer?”

My internal dialogue went like this, “Sure Louise. Your paper filing system is really secure. What if we had a fire? All the electronic files we have on the swappable backup drive is off-site. We’ll still have those files. Your paper files are toast! See what the boss will think if you spent the next 6 days doing nothing but photocopying every sheet of paper in our file cabinets. Then see what he thinks about leasing storage space across town to keep all this paper!”

Storing your data, or in this case, your photographs, in digital form is the easiest, most cost effective, time-efficient, and most secure option available to us.

Backup Methods

Backup strategies range from the simple to the elaborate. Your family photos are no less valuable, but you don’t need the same robust solutions that professional photographers use. The important thing is, you must do something.

CD-R and DVD-R

Once your photos are organized, it’s only a matter of dragging and dropping the folders into your CD/DVD burning software or your external hard drive. If your photos are organized on your “live” drive, then they will be organized on your backup media too.

External Hard Drives

I’ve seen many references to CD-Rs and DVD-Rs being an affordable method of storage. Byte for byte, even an external firewire drive (more expensive than USB drives) are cheaper than the equivalent storage in CD-Rs and DVD-Rs!

Hard drives are always getting cheaper and cheaper. This is the most convenient method of redundant storage. You can drag and drop folders from one window to another. Voila! Your photos are saved to more than one location. You win extra bonus points for stashing the external hard drive off-site, like in your desk drawer at work.

Memory Cards

Memory cards also continue to drop in price. For special events, consider buying memory cards just for the occasion and storing them somewhere secure. Of course, you’ll also have the images on your hard drive, your external drive, and a CD-R too.

Multiple Locations

The ultimate in security is to have your data in different locations. This protects your family memories from natural disasters.

Send a CD-R copy to your relatives. They would love to see the pictures, and storing your backups off-site is as secure as it gets. Likewise, you should offer to store their backups too.

Upgrade to a pro account on Flickr. For $25 a year, you get unlimited storage. You can even set up your computer to automatically upload your photos to your account. You will be uploading uncompressed full-resolution photos, but do not fear. They can be set for private viewing only. The added bonus here is, you can just flag the ones you want to share publicly with a few clicks.

There is some debate on the volatility of the media we use to back up. CD-Rs, DVD-Rs, and hard drives each have their advantages and potential downfalls. Data can get corrupt on any storage medium. However, with redundancy, you are ensured that your family memories are secure. Storage media fails, but the chance of all of your redundant media failing is slim.

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Digital Photography Has Revolutionized the Way We Preserve Family Memories

Within a week of getting your first digital camera, you already know why it’s so awesome to have one. It takes a little longer to realize the bad that comes with the good. You have a hard drive full of photos and they’re all disorganized.

My method of organizing photos requires no special software and works on any operating system. What’s even more amazing is, my method is free and easy.
Read the rest of this entry »

Just caught wind of some great deals on Amazon. I normally pimp the ‘zon on Fridays, but this deal is too good to wait another day. Your tax refund is on its way, maybe it’s already here.

Amazon is giving $100 instant rebates if you buy any of the following cameras:

• Nikon D40 with the 18-55mm kit lens
• Nikon D40x with the 18-55mm kit lens
• Nikon D80 with the 18-135mm kit lens

The savings are deducted separately during checkout so take a short hop of faith and add the items to your cart. You will need to do that to see the discount applied. Select Amazon as the seller (if the option is available) otherwise, you’ll miss out.

The instant rebate on the D40 will bring its price down to point and shoot territory. If you’ve been thinking about getting a DSLR, now is the time. After showing off the photos you take with your new Nikon DSLR, people will tell you “What kind of camera do you have? Your camera takes great pictures!” You can smile and say, “My children love Harry Potter, Ms. Rowling! What version of Microsoft Word do you use?”

But wait. There’s more! Amazon is also offering rebates on select lenses too! Extend your reach with some of these telephoto zooms:

• 55-200mm
• 55-200mm VR
• 70-300mm VR

The 55-200 paired with the kit lens will give you just about every focal length you’ll need for general shooting. I’d spring for the VR version. VR (”Vibration Reduction”) is Nikonese for image stabilization. You need faster shutter speeds at longer focal lengths. VR is like having a virtual tripod. My point-and-shoot has image stabilization and it’s addicting.

They’re not pro-grade lenses, but they are a HUGE step up from the mega-zoom point-and-shoot you were duped into buying. Those silly 10x zoom cameras are totally worthless for sports photography. As long as your kid’s soccer game is during daylight hours, these lenses will be fine.

I’ve talked about taking your own photography to the next level. I even told you what camera to buy. But there are times when it’s better to outsource this family duty. As the family photographer, you are conspicuously absent from your family’s visual history. Sometimes you just want to be in the moment rather than behind the camera.

This is the perfect opportunity to hire a pro. I’m not talking about taking your child to JC Penney, Wal Mart, or Sadie’s. I am referring to independent freelance family and portrait photographers. You see them all the time on craigslist. There may be brochures in your pediatrician’s office. You might even know someone. He’s an all-around nice guy, he takes great photographs, and he writes a great blog. You might have heard of it. It’s called 21st Century Dad.

You can’t beat the portrait factories on price, but you get the same tired backgrounds and props that everyone else gets. They might as well just Photoshop your child’s head in. An independent professional is always the better choice.

• An independent pro can come out on location. Your children will be more comfortable in familiar settings.
• You can have a one-of-a-kind portrait session at your favorite park, the beach, or even in your own home.
• The big studios play it safe. There is no room for creativity and experimentation. You get a photo of what you look like. An independent professional can take photos of who you really are.
• Independent professionals are driven by a passion for photography. Photography is their livelihood, not just a means to drive traffic to the retail store.
• The personal interaction will bring your family portraits to life, especially if the photo shoot occurs at a location of your choosing.
• You are free to enjoy the special occasion. My neighbor hired me to be the photographer at their son’s 1st birthday party. They were so thankful that they could focus on being gracious hosts and enjoy this special day without the additional responsibility. They ended up with hundreds of high quality photographs instead of hurried snapshots.

A personable and friendly photographer with a consumer camera will get higher quality photos than the stick in the mud with a top-of-the-line pro rig. How can you tell? You’ll figure this out when you speak to the photographer and view the portfolio. Photography is a people skills job, not technical one.

Develop a relationship with the photographer; it will translate into even better photos. Repeat customers are treated better. The smart ones offer discounts for package deals. For example, a photographer may offer a package where they shoot the maternity portraits and the newborn photos for an all-inclusive price lower than two separate sessions. If they don’t offer it, suggest it.

You don’t have to make a donation. If you use the money to hire a professional photographer instead, that’s certainly OK by me.

Now that I’ve convinced you (and hopefully your wife) that you need a DSLR, it’s time to take your lighting to the next level. A well-lit 6 megapixel image will trump a poorly lit 12 megapixel image any day. The word photography literally means “writing with light.” You will still take the same crappy photos with a $2000 camera if you don’t increase your knowledge base.

Increase your knowledge base through one of my favorite blogs of all-time - Strobist.

The winky little flash on your digital camera is responsible for more red-eye than every instance of demonic possession ever documented by paranormal experts. Its location near the lens axis provides the most unflattering light ever known to mankind (think of your driver’s license or passport photo). When you have an external flash unit (or multiple flash units) positioned away from the camera, it makes your photographs come to life with a 3D-like quality. Strobist teaches you how to do it.

I debated whether or not to really pimp Strobist here on 21st Century Dad, but I have to admit it. I am a pathetic Strobist fanboy! David Hobby is the MacGuyver of lighting. I’m doing more with two small flashes, some free sample gels, and stuff lying around the house than I ever did with an entire professional studio strobe setup. The studio strobes are now sitting in someone else’s closet gathering dust. Now my wallet weighs more and my lighting bag weighs less.

I’m so grateful that I had the chance to learn how to use off-camera lighting. My daughter’s first year is being documented in a much more satisfying way. I’m getting professional results from a pretty minimal rig that’s easy to use. We’ll never have to drag her to JC Penney. With some more tools in my toolbox, I’m also able to get some the most elusive photos of all - photos of angst-ridden teenage boys.

Just as it was when you made the jump from point-and-shoot to DSLR, you can run on a sort of a semi-automatic mode until your comfort level and knowledge increase. The most basic Strobist techniques already improve your photos dramatically. As your ambition and budget grow, your creativity does too. It doesn’t have to cost much at all. For around $200, you can get a complete starter kit.

When you buy your Strobist kit, you might want to pick up a battery charger and some rechargeable AA’s too. I recommend the La Crosse Technology BC-900 AlphaPower Battery Charger and Sanyo Eneloop NiMH AA batteries. Standard NiMH batteries lose their charge over time, even when unused. The Eneloops don’t. Strobists are among the most demanding and critical users of AA batteries. You can get an 8-pack on Amazon for a little more than the 4-pack at your local discount store.

David started the blog in February of 2006 as a way to store his notes. It has since grown to get over 1 million page views a month. He took a leave of absence from his job in June of 2007 to focus on the blog full-time. David is an inspiration photographically, but he’s also one of the reasons I started blogging. He made the right decision for his family and for 200,000 daily readers. The blogger’s lifestyle allows David to spend more time with his favorite Hobbys - Susan, Emily, and Ben.

Buy your Strobist kit on Amazon