The consummate guide to how nosotros utilisation a NAS backup workflow to protect our photos together with videos.
Back inwards 2014 nosotros bought ourselves a picayune point-and-shoot photographic goggle box camera to document our most ambitious adventure to date: Travelling from Thailand to South Africa without flying.
We knew null virtually photography, but over the years it started to plough into a fighting of a hobby of ours. From a hobby it turned into a passion, together with presently plenty from a passion into a job.
Fast forwards to 2019 together with nosotros at nowadays piece of work every bit professional person go photographers, together with receive got over 50 terabytes of photos together with videos from to a greater extent than than seventy countries inwards our digital media collection.
Over the years the demand to maintain this digital media condom has acquire an ever-growing concern for us, especially every bit nosotros receive got on to a greater extent than together with to a greater extent than clients who contract us for creating photos together with videos.
Beyond the piece of work aspect, these pictures together with videos are also our memories of travel, belongings moments inwards fourth dimension where we’ve met incredible people, explored remarkable areas together with achieved unbelievable feats.
To lose this would live on tragic non but for our business, but for personal reasons every bit well.
But fifty-fifty though nosotros realise but how valuable our digital media is, it isn’t until real of late that nosotros truly established a proper workflow to dorsum these upwards using a NAS backup system.
Today nosotros desire to part alongside you lot what nosotros used to do, together with what nosotros do now, to professionally dorsum upwards our photos together with videos.
How We Backup Photos – From No Method to Pro Workflow
When nosotros took our source trip to Antarctica inwards 2017, nosotros captured over 2TB of photos together with videos inwards xi days. That’s a lot of footage.
There’s 2 reasons nosotros took shot together with filmed therefore much. The source was that it was Antarctica, a identify therefore beautiful that words don’t do it justice.
The 2d is that it was a piece of work trip, together with nosotros were trying to acquire the best content possible for our client. And every bit such this digital media was extremely of import for all parties involved.
Losing it wasn’t an option.
Unfortunately we’re also full-time travellers, together with afterward nosotros disembarked from the send inwards Ushuaia, nosotros spent the side past times side 4 months wandering around Patagonia together with the residual of Chile, alongside 2 difficult drives filled alongside our most valuable content ever.
Uploading it to the cloud wasn’t an option. Internet was barely practiced plenty to post a photograph to Instagram one-half the time, therefore trying to pose 4K video footage together with thousands of RAW files into a cloud storage scheme would never receive got worked.
If nosotros had receive got lost those difficult drives, had them stolen, or if they but became corrupted, we’d receive got had a lot of explaining to do to our client…
Luckily null happened, together with when nosotros finally settled into an AirBnB for a duet of weeks alongside a solid cyberspace connexion nosotros managed to acquire the most of import media into the cloud.
Ever since therefore though we’ve realised that our workflow of backing upwards photos together with videos was but horrendous, together with it’s been a irksome journeying trying to uncovering the perfect method.
Finally, afterward years of lawsuit together with error, nosotros receive got it figured out, together with alongside our NAS storage for domicile together with a redundant backup solution we’re feeling confident alongside our media.
We’ll live on the source to acknowledge that our sometime workflow of backing upwards photos was pretty bad to tell the least.
Here’s what nosotros used to do:
First, Take a Million Photos together with Videos
We aren’t real conservative when it comes to the number of photos together with videos nosotros capture.
With 2 of us walking around alongside full-frame cameras around our necks shooting inwards RAW, a GoPro each videoing 4K footage together with our phones taking quick pics together with videos for social media, it’s non unheard of for us to halt upwards alongside over 100gb of footage inwards 1 unmarried day.
Especially if we’re on an assignment somewhere beautiful similar South Georgia, our cameras are constantly firing, together with we’re e'er filling upwards SD cards.
When nosotros filled 1 up, we’d pose it into our photographic goggle box camera handbag together with supervene upon it alongside an empty one, therefore repeat the process.
Back Up to a USB Hard Drive
Once nosotros filled upwards all of our SD cards (which could receive got anywhere from a twenty-four hours to a week, depending on where nosotros are), we’d finally empty them onto a portable USB difficult drive.
Often we’d live on tired or inwards a rush to acquire out for dinner or do some to a greater extent than shooting, therefore this would live on a quick-and-dirty method.
Our organisation wasn’t too bad (we’d receive got 2 difficult drives, 1 for photograph together with 1 for video, together with we’d sort the folders out similar this: Country > City > Day), but it would quite literally but live on a re-create together with glue affair. This meant we’d halt upwards alongside hundreds of thousands of files called DSC*******, where the stars are but a number series.
When nosotros had the content backed up, we’d therefore format the SD bill of fare in-camera, create for the side past times side total twenty-four hours of shooting.
Edit
If nosotros had some fourth dimension we’d edit a duet of photos for social media, export them at 2048 pixels broad to the laptop, therefore part them online.
We wouldn’t go through every photograph though. It would but live on a quick edit of the 1 or 2 photos that nosotros idea were the best from that day, therefore we’d motion on alongside our life.
Every at nowadays together with therefore we’d sit down downwards to write a weblog post, or pose together a collection for a client, together with only therefore would nosotros go dorsum together with uncovering the photos that we’d demand for that particular task.
We’d edit together with export them at low-res, uploading to them to this site, or high-res together with seek to acquire them to the cloud.
Automated Dropbox Sync for Edited Photos
This is quite literally the only fourth dimension nosotros uploaded anything to the cloud, due to e'er having crappy cyberspace wherever nosotros travelled.
Our folder of edited photos on the laptop had an auto-sync to Dropbox connected. Whenever nosotros ended upwards somewhere alongside a decent cyberspace connection, we’d sync the folder to Dropbox.
All of our other RAW files together with video clips though would go along to alive on the difficult drive forever.
Client Media
If nosotros had a number of images or videos we’d receive got to deliver to a client, we’d edit those past times the deadline therefore upload them to a shared folder on Dropbox. But that was the extent of our cloud storage solutions.
Pray
After the photos were backed upwards to an external difficult drive, therefore nosotros would literally repeat the procedure every twenty-four hours or week, praying that the drives didn’t neglect us or acquire stolen.
We’d go around the world, taking photos, shooting videos, together with but collecting portable difficult drives. These would fill upwards up, therefore we’d purchase some other one, stashing the total drive into 1 of our twenty-four hours packs.
We rarely made double copies of whatever digital media, unless it was a especially of import shoot for a client. But fifty-fifty therefore we’d but receive got the same content on 2 difficult drives, or construct a folder of ‘best photos’ that lived alongside us at all times.
This wouldn’t live on a huge number if nosotros only travelled for a calendar week at a time. But that’s non how nosotros travel. For nearly v years nosotros were completely nomadic, moving around betwixt dissimilar countries alongside but the gear on our backs, gathering to a greater extent than together with to a greater extent than difficult drives.
Going Home – Bulk Backup
Every at nowadays together with therefore we’d come upwards dorsum to Commonwealth of Australia to meet family, together with when nosotros did nosotros would acquire out together with purchase a duet of larger desktop difficult drives, alongside capacities around 6TB or 8TB.
We’d receive got our portable difficult drives together with re-create all of the media straight across to these novel larger desktop drives. Then nosotros would receive got that large drive, pose it into a drawer at a solid unit of measurement member’s house, together with go travelling again.
Afterwards we’d do 1 of 2 things alongside our total portable difficult drives – we’d either retire them, placing them inwards a drawer total of whatever media was already on there, or we’d receive got them alongside us on the route if nosotros idea we’d demand the media from a particular goal at some indicate presently (if nosotros wanted to write a weblog post inwards the time to come for example).
This is pretty much how nosotros operated for years, together with nosotros know nosotros were gambling alongside our content the entire time. If a difficult drive got corrupted or stolen patch nosotros were on the road, all of those pictures together with video would live on gone forever.
If somebody contacted us together with wanted to purchase a high-resolution photograph from a few years back, nosotros but had to apologise together with tell nosotros didn’t receive got access to it. This happened way every bit good many times, costing us business.
We pose this horrible workflow downwards to 3 factors:
- We were e'er travelling
- We rarely had practiced internet
- We didn’t know whatever better
Luckily this workflow is a thing of the past, together with we’ve at nowadays improved our systems alongside a NAS backup to ensure we’re no longer gambling alongside our media.
Improving Our Workflow – Introduction of a NAS Backup System
This has all changed inwards 2019 every bit nosotros finally stride upwards our horrible method of backing upwards together with innovate a professional person workflow, doing everything nosotros tin give notice to ensure nosotros can’t lose our media, together with therefore nosotros tin give notice receive got access to it at all times from anywhere inwards the world.
The real source thing nosotros did was innovate a NAS (Network Access Storage) backup scheme into our workflow. If you lot don’t know what this is, don’t worry – nosotros didn’t receive got a clue either until nosotros started heavily researching how to best dorsum upwards our photos.
Without getting every bit good technical, basically a NAS is a serial of difficult drives placed inwards 1 unit, working together together with connected to a network. These are known every bit RAIDs, or Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks.
This entire scheme of drives tin give notice therefore live on accessed on your domicile or business office network, or if you lot receive got it connected to an cyberspace router, accessed online every bit well.
Sounds fancy, together with mayhap it is compared to how nosotros used to work, but inwards price of information storage it’s truly pretty standard, together with many huge offices utilisation similar setups on a larger scale.
Imagine having all of your photos together with videos you’ve ever taken sitting on a few massive difficult drives at home, together with therefore beingness able to access those difficult drives patch you’re overseas every bit if they were plugged straight into your laptop.
That’s basically how nosotros await at our NAS unit.
We receive got our NAS installed at our grandparent’s solid inwards Sydney, Australia. This is where nosotros temporarily telephone outcry upwards domicile whenever we’re dorsum inwards the country, together with every bit of this yr it finally has a stable cyberspace connexion (internet inwards Commonwealth of Australia has e'er been inwards the black ages).
A NAS is made upwards of 2 parts – the unit of measurement itself, together with the difficult drives that install within it. You can’t receive got 1 without the other.
These are the brands together with models that nosotros utilisation inwards our NAS photograph backup system.
Synology DS1618+ NAS
The construct together with model of NAS nosotros utilisation is a Synology DS1618+. Synology are 1 of the best makers of NAS systems inwards the world, alongside high lineament products together with a fantastic back upwards squad inwards place, therefore if nosotros ever receive got whatever questions, nosotros tin give notice acquire an response almost immediately.
They also receive got years of inquiry together with evolution behind them, together with receive got constantly been innovating the manufacture at a consumer level, therefore nosotros know that their products are upwards to scratch.
The DS1618+ is a 6-bay NAS, pregnant nosotros tin give notice install half dozen difficult drives into it. It tin give notice also connect straight to the cyberspace using an ethernet cable.
Once it’s all ready together with connected, which does receive got a few hours intially, nosotros tin give notice access the actual NAS past times using Synology’s user interface, which tin give notice live on done through the network portion on our computers, or remotely using a dedicated together with password-secured IP address together with login.
Where this Synology scheme truly stands out for us though is the utilisation of their swell software together with applications, allowing us to interact, monitor together with command the NAS without needing to know whatever technical skills.
These do things similar automatically sync the media on our NAS to our cloud storage of choice, lets us rearrange all of our files, monitor its health, part folders alongside clients together with fifty-fifty access files from our phones.
It also has a bunch of technical features, such every bit quad-core CPUs, 4GB of RAM (expandable upwards to 32GB), optional SSD cache, the possibility to install a 10gbE network card, etc.
But we’ll live on honest, most of this goes straight over our heads. All nosotros help virtually is if it industrial plant good together with improves our professional person photography workflow. And it definitely does.
Seagate IronWolf 6TB NAS Hard Drives
The Synology DS1618+ is the unit of measurement that nosotros install the difficult drives into, but it doesn’t come upwards alongside the difficult drives themselves. We had to acquire these separately.
After chatting straight to the squad at Synology they recommended Seagate IronWolf difficult drives. We checked out the reviews together with they definitely seemed similar the best option.
We ended upwards getting 6x Seagate IronWolf 6TB NAS difficult drives to install into our system. This would give us a total of 36TB of storage inwards a basic RAID setup.
However nosotros didn’t utilisation a basic setup. After some to a greater extent than inquiry together with recommendations from the 2 teams at Synology together with Seagate, nosotros ended upwards using a double-drive-redundancy setup.
Basically what this way is 4 difficult drives are inwards normal use, patch the other 2 are used every bit spare backup drives.
Because the Synology DS1618+ is constantly monitoring the wellness of both the scheme together with the difficult drives, it tin give notice instantly pick upwards if something seems to live on going wrong, such every bit a difficult drive malfunctioning.
If it picks upwards that a drive is starting to play up, it automatically starts copying over all of the contents of that drive to 1 of the spare ones. When it’s done, it deactivates the faulty drive therefore nosotros tin give notice receive got it out together with supervene upon it, keeping everything condom on the spare drive.
The double-drive-redundancy adds an extra spare drive inwards instance something goes incorrect earlier nosotros acquire a adventure to supervene upon the faulty drive, or if some other drive fails patch 1 is backing upwards to the other.
It mightiness appear similar overkill, but the thing is it’s non a affair of if a difficult drive fails, but when. Plus alongside our piece of work schedule seeing us e'er overseas, the chances of 1 drive failing patch we’re somewhere remote similar Central Asia is pretty high.
After years or running the gauntlet, nosotros don’t desire to receive got whatever to a greater extent than chances.
How We Backup Photos Now – Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 Professional Photographer’s Workflow
Now that nosotros receive got a NAS scheme ready inwards our domicile office, nosotros receive got made it a indicate to construct our workflow every bit professional, seamless together with awesome every bit possible. It took a fighting of practise together with discipline, but we’ve finally managed to attain this.
Copying together with Importing Using Adobe Lightroom
We notwithstanding receive got a 1 one 1000 thousand photos together with videos, but at nowadays we’ve made it a indicate to properly dorsum these upwards at every adventure nosotros acquire alongside updated organisational tools.
The source alter we’ve made is nosotros at nowadays dorsum upwards our SD cards to 2 dissever difficult drives the 2d nosotros acquire dorsum to our laptops, fifty-fifty if it’s betwixt shoots.
No to a greater extent than waiting until we’ve run out of SD cards to finally dorsum them up!
For our photos nosotros at nowadays organise together with import them to external difficult drives through Adobe Lightroom. Here’s how.
First nosotros opened upwards up the import tool on Lightroom, conduct ‘Copy’, together with banking concern check all the photos. We’ll therefore go through each photograph super chop-chop together with uncheck whatever shots that are patently useless (out of focus, bad composition, etc).
On a total 64gb bill of fare shooting that’s virtually 1500 compressed RAW photos from our Sony A7Riii, but going through them all takes less than 10 minutes. That’s how fast nosotros move.
Remember, this is the import together with backup stage, non the editing stage.
Then nosotros alter the directory that it’s getting copied to inwards the same way nosotros e'er receive got done. That is straight onto a difficult drive, using the folder structure: Country > City > Activity or Day.
Of course of written report that folder construction volition live on dissimilar for everybody. We are full-time go photographers, therefore having everything sorted past times countries together with cities industrial plant for us, but do whatever feels best to you.
Next nosotros conduct the choice to rename our files to something obvious from that particular shoot. We do this with ‘Custom Name – Sequence’. That way nosotros aren’t left alongside thousands of DSC files followed past times random numbers.
For instance nosotros mightiness alter the file advert to: “Right Whale Bay A7Riii – 1”, alongside the 1 beingness the sequence number. We also add together inwards the photographic goggle box camera that it was shot on, every bit nosotros currently utilisation a Sony A7iii together with a Sony A7Riii.
In add-on nosotros add together it them to a collection (usually the chief goal we’re in, such every bit South Georgia) together with add together keywords to construct searching for images quicker together with easier inwards the Lightroom Catalogue.
There’s also an choice to add together images to a subfolder using dates inwards the ‘Destination’ tab of Lightroom’s import feature, but nosotros don’t e'er utilisation this unless nosotros experience it’s important.
Hit import, together with all the images volition re-create over to the novel difficult drive.
Once it’s all backed up, nosotros therefore plug inwards some other difficult drive together with re-create those painting folders straight across from the source difficult drive to the second. This way nosotros receive got an exact duplicate of everything we’ve but captured.
Finally nosotros double banking concern check that both difficult drives receive got the same content every bit the SD card, together with nosotros do this past times comparison folder size together with making sure enough the numbers tally exactly. Then it’s fourth dimension to format the cards together with acquire create to shoot again.
Videos
You tin give notice utilisation the same way of copying together with importing videos from your SD bill of fare to your difficult drive using Lightroom, but nosotros currently don’t utilisation this every bit nosotros don’t similar having videos inwards our Lightroom catalogue.
Instead nosotros re-create these from the SD cards into folders using the same structure, but alongside the parent directory beingness ‘Video’.
Backing Up to the NAS
This phase completely depends on whether or non nosotros are somewhere alongside decent internet. If we’re somewhere similar Patagonia or Central Asia, this isn’t likely. But if we’re inwards a large urban center staying inwards an AirBnB alongside swell internet, nosotros therefore follow this step.
At nighttime earlier nosotros go to bed nosotros connect to our Synology NAS scheme using their remote connexion method. Then nosotros opened upwards up the File Station application.
We plug inwards our chief portable difficult drive, therefore literally drag together with drib the most recent backup folders across to the File Station app.
We receive got our NAS folder construction the exact same every bit nosotros dorsum upwards on our portable difficult drives, therefore it’s slowly for us to navigate.
Now it’s a affair of waiting, together with this is where having a practiced cyberspace connexion is important. If nosotros are somewhere alongside fast internet, the folders that receive got been dragged across to the File Station volition at nowadays commence uploading to the NAS remotely.
This is our 3rd shape of file backup, together with this way if anything happens to 1 (or both) of our difficult drives patch nosotros are travelling, the files are at nowadays on our Synology NAS DS1618+ dorsum inwards Sydney, which tin give notice live on accessed remotely.
It’s of import to complaint hither that this truly does depend on cyberspace connection, therefore earlier nosotros commence this nosotros e'er do an cyberspace speed seek to meet if it’s something nosotros tin give notice fifty-fifty manage.
Coming Home – The Final Backup
Once we’re dorsum from a trip nosotros caput dorsum to our temporary base of operations inwards Sydney together with connect our laptops to our domicile network, where the Synology NAS scheme resides.
We tin give notice easily access the NAS using Finder on our Macbooks. From hither nosotros plugin our external difficult drives into our laptop, therefore re-create together with glue (drag together with drop) the folders of novel media from our in conclusion trip onto the NAS.
The NAS also has a few other apps similar USB Copy which allows you lot to plug the difficult drive straight into the NAS together with ready an import, but we’ve had issues alongside this therefore don’t bother doing it that way.
Our cyberspace connexion at domicile is quite fast for Australian standards (95mbps d0wnl0ad, 35mbps upload), therefore uploading the files to the NAS happens surprisingly quick.
One of import complaint – nosotros don’t re-create the entire parent folder over inwards 1 go. We’ll do it fighting past times bit, only uploading 1 folder at a time, but inwards instance something happens similar nosotros receive got a ability outage or the network drops out.
Syncing to the Cloud
Now for the cream on top! The Synology NAS DS1618+ has a swell application called Cloud Sync. You install it onto the NAS, therefore 1 time it’s all ready you lot tin give notice automatically sync whichever folders you’d similar to your favourite cloud storage solution.
For us personally nosotros receive got unlimited cloud storage alongside Google Drive together with G Suite, therefore nosotros receive got our NAS synced alongside that.
Once you lot start the sync it automatically uploads your files together with folders to the cloud every bit long every bit it’s connected to the internet, which for us is 24/7 at home.
Now everything on the NAS is duplicated on Google Drive, which nosotros tin give notice also access from anywhere inwards the world.
This stride is also real of import to us, because at the halt of the day, something could go on to the NAS (house gets flooded, someone breaks inwards together with steals it, etc), together with inwards that instance all of our media would notwithstanding live on gone despite our best efforts to backup.
By having them inwards the cloud on Google Drive, using the same folder construction nosotros know together with love, there’s fifty-fifty less adventure of that happening.
Now that nosotros receive got all of our media backed upwards on the NAS, together with also synced to Google Drive, nosotros receive got our 2 difficult drives that nosotros go alongside together with format them, create to go on the side past times side photography adventure.
And that’s how nosotros at nowadays professionally backup all of our photos together with videos!
Pros of This Workflow
We’re therefore glad that nosotros finally receive got this workflow for backing upwards our photos together with videos inwards our lives now. It’s taken away the stress nosotros used to receive got of keeping our digital media safe.
We realise it’s non perfect, together with there’s notwithstanding some elements nosotros tin give notice fine melody to go far stone solid, but for at nowadays we’re real happy.
Here’s what nosotros consider some of the benefits of using the Synology DS1618+ NAS scheme together with Seagate difficult drives:
- Organisation: Now that nosotros receive got a dedicated workflow it keeps all of our media construct clean together with organised, making it easier to uncovering inwards instance a customer needs access to some of our files (like if nosotros sell an image).
- Redundancy: The Synology NAS scheme uses a redundancy drive therefore that if 1 of the other difficult drives fail, it volition automatically recover together with backup the images onto the spare drive. This is golden!
- Cloud Sync: The NAS automatically syncs all of our files to the cloud 24/7. Never forget to do it!
- Useful Applications: The Synology DS1618+ has a swell collection of applications installed on the system, making access to our media painless.
Cons of this Workflow
Now of course of written report it isn’t all roses, together with at that topographic point are few negative aspects of this workflow.
- Lots of Steps: This truly depends on what you lot consider ‘lots of steps’, but inwards club to backup our digital media properly nosotros do receive got a listing that nosotros demand to follow inwards a sure enough order. Once it’s been learnt though, it’s easy, but it tin give notice receive got a few times to acquire inwards the musical rhythm of things.
- Old Media Isn’t Organised Properly: We could e'er go dorsum together with reimport/backup our sometime photos together with videos using our novel organisation scheme inwards Lightroom, but this would receive got a lot of fourth dimension that nosotros but don’t have. For at nowadays we’re but dealing alongside our sometime file together with folder construction on the NAS from previous years.
- Need Good Internet to Access Remotely: Not but at your domicile base of operations where the NAS is connected, but also when you lot go if you lot desire to upload files on the route or d0wnl0ad some from the NAS. Of course of written report you lot tin give notice notwithstanding utilisation a NAS without an amazing cyberspace connexion but similar whatever difficult drive backup solution, together with it’s much to a greater extent than secure than desktop difficult drives.
- Too Slow to Work Directly From the NAS: This mightiness but live on the way nosotros receive got our network setup, but at the instant nosotros haven’t found a fast way to piece of work straight alongside files from the NAS. For instance if nosotros desire to edit a video on Adobe Premier, nosotros demand to re-create the files over to a portable SSD drive rather than access them from the NAS. Luckily it’s quick together with slowly to re-create them over.
Final Thoughts – Is the NAS Backup System Worth It?
A NAS scheme is a large investment, together with depending on which way you lot go it tin give notice toll anywhere from $1000 upwards to $3000 or more. It’s non a inexpensive backup solution.
However if you lot piece of work every bit a professional person lensman or videographer, or utilisation huge amounts of digital media inwards your life or business, therefore the safety of having your files condom on this scheme is invaluable.
Even if you’re a hobbyist who loves photography or videography, a NAS scheme is a swell tool to receive got inwards your workflow to protect the content you lot shoot.
That beingness said, they’re non for everybody.
If you lot are a beginner lensman or don’t capture a lot of content, your coin would live on improve spent but buying 2 portable USB difficult drives together with backing upwards your media on there.
For us, every bit people that capture a lot of content together with construct a living from doing so, a NAS scheme is at nowadays something nosotros couldn’t imagine non having inwards our photography tools.
When nosotros fill upwards up the electrical flow system, we’ll acquire out together with purchase some other one, that’s how much nosotros honey it.
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