If you love traveling, chances are you also love capturing sweet memories and experiences through photos and videos. The last thing you want is to lose these photos and videos. Luckily, you can prevent such incidents by backing up your important files somewhere safe and perhaps in a separate location away from your camera or phone.
Depending on the duration of your trip, you may have a ton of images and videos to keep, but your phone or camera can only store so much. This is where external storage devices and cloud storage solutions come in. These options serve not only as extra data storage spaces but also as great backups against data loss. Below are tips on how you can back up your photos while traveling.
- Use an External Storage Devices
This is probably the common option for most old-school travelers who want to backup photos, documents, videos, and other files. External HDDs and USB flash drivers are very cheap nowadays, and technology has made them quite user-friendly. For instance, most modern cameras come with USB 3.0 ports for the best backup speeds possible.
You can also use an external hard drive if you want more space, typically anything beyond 64 gigabytes of data. Some of the best portable hard drives common among photographers and travelers feature a rugged design with super-fast image and video read/write speeds. Most models also have excellent data encryption capabilities and are light, slim, and stylish.
If using your phone to take pictures and videos, you can use a compatible adapter to connect your external USB drive to your phone’s internal memory. For iPhones and iPads, use a 30-pin/lightning connector at one end and a standard USB port on the other. You can use an OTG adapter for Android phones, and you’ll be good to go.
- Travel with a Laptop
Whether on a family vacation or a workation, you should consider traveling with a small laptop just for convenience. There’s a lot that your laptop can help with beyond using it to reply work emails or update clients and customers. A laptop can be a convenient option for backing up your photos while traveling. All you need to ensure is that the computer has enough space to accommodate your pictures and videos and that it’s free from viruses or malicious software that may harm your digital files.
Consider a lightweight, small laptop or tablet if you are traveling for fun and have no work obligations. You also want to be careful of the networks you connect to while traveling. Where possible, avoid public WI-FI networks in cafes, parks, and hotels as they are generally unsafe.
- Embrace Technology
Another great way to back up your photos is to use cloud storage services. The cloud is more convenient, affordable, and secure than the two options above. Nowadays, several storage-as-a-service solutions are offered on the cloud that allows individuals and businesses to securely store their documents online.
Whether you are tech-savvy or a newbie, using cloud storage is quite simple. Some phones and even modern cameras directly connect to the cloud, but the free options often have some drawbacks. For instance, there are data size restrictions, and some cloud storage options are not as safe as you would expect. A rule of thumb is to find a cloud storage solution that’s affordable, safe, and reliable.
The Bottom Line
Being outdoors and taking photos is great for your health, self-esteem, and overall wellbeing. What’s not great, however, is losing these memories and experiences due to theft, physical damage, or malware attack on your phone or digital camera. Use the three tips above to protect your important documents and avoid the stress and disappointment that comes with losing valuable personal photos.
