[ TRY THIS SIMPLE STEP-BY-STEP ROUTINE ]

DOWNLOAD

Copy the images files from your memory card to your computer or connected storage device as soon as possible.

IMPORT

You can use image browsing or cataloguing software, such as Adobe Bridge, Lightroom or Photo Mechanic to import your pictures onto your chosen drive. This enables you to add titles and keywords as you do so.

NAME THE FILES

Decide on a file naming convention, as this will make it easier to locate images later. Try Date + Keyword + Serial No, such as ‘2016-06-28-Amsterdam_trip_01’.

NAME THE FOLDER

Choose a naming convention for the folder structure, too. Think in terms of broad themes, such as location, subject and so on.

ARCHIVE

The raw files (or JPEGs) that come straight from the camera are your digital negatives and should be archived on a separate drive to the edited images.

BACK UP

Copy your images to a separate hard drive, which will form the backup to your working archive. If you’ve used Lightroom to import your files, make sure that you back up the Catalog too, as this contains details of the keywords and edits you have applied.

DELETE

It’s only once you’ve created a backup of your archive that you should reformat the memory card.

BACK UP AGAIN

Create additional backups of your archive on different hard drives: follow the 3-2-1 rule, keeping one hard drive at a safe location away from your house or office. Finally, make weekly computer back-ups using Time Machine or similar software.

BACK UP YOUR PHOTOS BEFORE YOU DELETE THEM FROM A MEMORY CARD AND CARRY OUT A FULL BACKUP OF YOUR ARCHIVE AT LEAST ONCE A MONTH.