# Backing-up question



## gerryt (Apr 14, 2009)

Up untill now i have been backing-up all my current shoots when importing from device and backing up to my Lacie 5''gb external HD and thats all fine, but i end up with hundreds of photos on it that i don't want, ones i delete when i sort through them in LP

Is there a way i can back-up my picks after i have sorted through them before i start developing them. I can't find a way

Thanks


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## Denis Pagé (Apr 14, 2009)

There is no direct backup function in Lightroom similar to the one offered at import time. But one thing you can do after sorting/removing bad ones is to select the remainders and "Export as Catalog" with the "Include negatives" option checked. You are then free to keep or not that exported catalog. If you do not want to keep that small exported catalog, then there is no need to "Include available previews" in the Export as catalog dialog box.


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## Andrew Hayton (Apr 14, 2009)

I have another approach. I have started using a Drobo and import everything to there and use that as my photo library. As it is backing itself up, if one drive goes down it will relay out the information across the rest of the god drives and then you can get another good drive to put in.
Doing it this way I only have the one copy of the original and any ones that I don't like get removed and I don't have to search for the duplicate on another drive.


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## Replytoken (Apr 15, 2009)

Gerry,

Are you sorting (i.e. deleting) after downloading images from media, but before backing up and importing into LR?

--Ken


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## Victoria Bampton (Apr 16, 2009)

So are you importing into LR, sorting through them and deleting duds, and then want to back up those?

I'd go slightly differently - I'd leave the import backup turned on as a temporary backup, delete any duds I definitely don't want to keep, and then either use Export (as original format) to create the backup of the keepers or use File Sync software to run that backup.  Once I know it's backed up, I'd then delete the temporary import backup.


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## gerryt (Apr 18, 2009)

I'm not 1''% sure of what any of you are saying, what i'm doing is importing from my CF cards into LR checking the backup box to back up to my external HD during import, once thats done i go through all my pics in the slideshow module and X all the duds, one done i delete them in the library module, then lastly i edit my keeps in the develop module.

For instance, say i have 1''' pics at the import stage, i may end up with 15' keeps after i've X the duds but i will have 1''' backed up to my external HD and 85' pics i don't want.

So i realy would like to back up those 15' remaning after the Xing (deleteing) the amount of money LR costs they should give us that option it can't be hard to add that to the program.

I do not want to have to use an other program ether.

Please could someone explain what you've said a bit more simply:?


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## Andrew Hayton (Apr 18, 2009)

Following on from what Victoria said,

What you can do is import the files as you do. Then when you have made all of your choices and deleted the necessary files form the LR part of things you could delete all the backup files that were created when you imported and then use a sync program to copy your kept images from LR.
Basically you are then using your back up on import just to save the files in case something goes wrong with your main drive before you can make a backup of your images from LR. How I would do this would be as follows

1) Have my main library of images on Main HD
2) On import backup to ext. HD
3) Do all the cutting and image development on Main HD
4) Once happy use a sync program (Carbon Copy Cloner for mac) to copy image files from Main HD to backup ext. HD but selecting an option to delete files not on source (Main HD), or you could delete the files first then copy the final files across.

Hopefully this makes sense. I think it would be hard for LR to keep track of the backup imports as you may rename the originals in LR to something else but the backup ones will keep the original name making LR work even harder than it has to at the moment. Some people want to keep the originals even after they have deleted ones in LR as they suddenly think that there may have been a better one or they just can't bear the thought of throwing them away.


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## sizzlingbadger (Apr 19, 2009)

Andrew Hayton said:


> I have another approach. I have started using a Drobo and import everything to there and use that as my photo library. As it is backing itself up, if one drive goes down it will relay out the information across the rest of the god drives and then you can get another good drive to put in.
> Doing it this way I only have the one copy of the original and any ones that I don't like get removed and I don't have to search for the duplicate on another drive.



Andrew, your Drobo is NOT backing anything up. This is a very common misconception. It is making your drive 'highly available' by protecting against a single drive failure using RAID technology. If you accidentally delete some files or they get corrupted by an application you will have no backup and will lose your images. If your Drobo or house catches fire you will lose them all.


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## Andrew Hayton (Apr 19, 2009)

Sizzlingbadger,

I now backup the drobo to separate hard drives and have off site drives that I back up to once a month. What I do is rotate the external hard drives that I have off site and use at home so that I can check that they still work ok and haven't corrupted.


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## sizzlingbadger (Apr 19, 2009)

I guessed you probably were but didn't want to confuse / mis-inform the less computer savvy amongst our ranks


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## Andrew Hayton (Apr 19, 2009)

No problem. I don't think that you can have too many backups now a days


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## sizzlingbadger (Apr 19, 2009)

I'm also jealous 'cos I want a Drobo !


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## Andrew Hayton (Apr 19, 2009)

If I had the money I would now get the Drobo Pro. It can handle 2 HD failures at once or one after the other before it finished relaying out the info.


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## gerryt (Apr 23, 2009)

Victoria Bampton said:


> So are you importing into LR, sorting through them and deleting duds, and then want to back up those?
> 
> I'd go slightly differently - I'd leave the import backup turned on as a temporary backup, delete any duds I definitely don't want to keep, and then either use Export (as original format) to create the backup of the keepers or use File Sync software to run that backup. Once I know it's backed up, I'd then delete the temporary import backup.


 
So victoria how do i go about Export to create the backup of the keepers:?


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## Victoria Bampton (Apr 23, 2009)

You could select the keepers, go to Export, choose the backup location, and set the file format to 'Original' instead of Tiff/PSD/Jpeg etc.


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## gerryt (Apr 25, 2009)

Thank you, i'll give it a try, it seems the easyest route, as i say i don't want to purchase any more software


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## PatrickC (Apr 25, 2009)

Gerry

I would question why you want to do this. I use a similar workflow, backing up at import. But this initial backup is really only a last-ditch final reserve, where I might go if I can't recover a specific image from either the main image store or either of the 'workflow' backups. In practice, I have used these backups only once or twice, and when I have all I managed to do was confirm that the original file was corrupt.

I just download everything and leave it. With hard drive costs now so low, I don't see  putting in time to edit out some of the images as being cost effective. By doing this, I ensure that, aside from corruption of image files on the card or in the camera, there is absolutely nothing which could damage the file, so if this initial file is corrupted I can at least be confident that it wasn't anything I did (apart from camera or card abuse!). It also means that if there should ever be a reason why I should need to look at a neighbouring image which might not have made it through QC for technical or compositional reasons, it will still be available even though it hasn't been cluttering up my catalogue.

I use 2.5" HDs for this initial backup (we shoot in all sorts of weird locations, so portability is important, though I have a suspicion that the 2.5" drives are actually more robust than the 3.5" ones, which is an added advantage), and I just keep using the same one until it is full. I then set it aside and start another one.

Patrick Cunningham


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## Jddolbee (Apr 25, 2009)

Victoria (or anyone else), do you have a suggestion for a back-up program that syncs for a PC. Is there a version of Carbon Copy that works with a PC?

Jim


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## Victoria Bampton (Apr 25, 2009)

ViceVersa (www.tgrmn.com) is my usual recommendation for Windows Jim - I've used it for years.


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## PatrickC (Apr 25, 2009)

.....and mine is backup4all www.backup4all.com - likewise, I've used it for years.

Patrick Cunningham


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## gerryt (Apr 25, 2009)

Your solution has worked a treat victoria, thanks, now all i have backed up to my external HD is my keepers before the edit stage in develop module, and iv'e not got hundreds of useless out of focus or bad pics clogging up GBs of space.

Thanks to all the others how replyed too


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## Jddolbee (Apr 26, 2009)

Thanks


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