Nothing quite compares to that awful sinking feeling you get when all of your photos are destroyed. While digital images are easy to capture, it's equally easy to lose them by mistake. Here are some tips for protecting your digital photos from accidental erasure.
Know Your Enemies
First, it's important to understand the most common threats to digital photographs. A few of them are almost inherent to diving: moisture, freezing temperatures, and heat; even heat from the sun on a warm day. The threats are many - even simple static can zap a memory card. What to do?
-
Avoid Extreme Temperatures - average warm and cool temperatures underwater don't pose much of a danger to your photos at all. It's the extremes that can wreak havoc on flash memory and other digital components. Never leave your camera in a hot car, and don't let it lie in the sun either; put a wet towel over it to keep it from overheating and prevent fogging, or keep it inside a cooler or a specially designed case.
-
Waterproof - Keep everything, including accessories, inside watertight bags when you are traveling. Prolonged exposure to moisture or chemicals such as those found in personal care products can destroy electronics.
-
Unplug It - If you're having any kind of problems with the electrical supply, unplug immediately. Never leave a computer or other device plugged in if there is even a remote chance that surge could occur. Carry a surge protector with you when you travel for a little extra insurance, and keep the batteries in it fresh.
-
Protect Flash Memory Cards - Use the plastic holders designed for flash memory cards to protect them from dirt and debris and to prevent them from static buildup which can render them unreadable. A quality flash memory card can be used about 1,000 times before it starts to lose integrity and needs to be replaced.
-
Follow Instructions - You might be surprised to discover that many people don't follow instructions regarding ejecting flash memory from a camera, card reader, or computer. Always use the proper eject command to prevent accidental deletion.
-
Store digital photos in more than one place - Electronic equipment fails with almost predictable regularity. Just like everything else, it has a life span. Back up your photos in the same way you back up other important digital information, and consider paying for a cloud drive service (online data storage) where you can keep photos and more. Don't delete photos from one place until you're sure they're safe and secure in another location.
Finally, remember to maintain your underwater camera and its housing regularly, and transfer photos from one dive to your computer or another device before heading out for another dive, if at all possible. This way, if you lose your camera or it floods accidentally, you'll at least have the photos you took on previous dives. Protect your camera by purchasing some flood insurance for it; DAN offers this service among the many others they offer, and other travel insurance companies cover camera loss too.