Lee Bjorklund wrote:
I would like to make this a simple as possible. So I need a better way to store pictures while traveling. What do you recommend? A laptop (PC), an external hard drive, or both.
Thanks
I think this issue needs more elaboration.
1. Are you traveling by aircraft or motor vehicle?
2. Do you use RAW or JPEG or both as your format?
3. What is your destination and how long is this travel lasting?
The first consideration is bulk of taking a laptop and external HDDs with you on an extended trip with possibility of theft. No matter what you decide on, make sure you store serial numbers for all equipment in a safe place before departing and insure all your equipment in case of theft.
If you only take JPEG photos, then almost any laptop or lapbook will do the job since the files will not be huge. I agree with Jerry that you shouldn't erase your memory cards until you get back and download to your home computer. Having all the data on 3 separate media is sensible.
Unless you store huge RAW files, like those generated by a D800 or similar large megapixel camera, you probably won't fill up a small 250 or 300 gig HDD.
A nice solution for those owning older small HDD sized laptops is the replacement of the small drive with a WD BLACK2 dual drive that has a 120 gig SSD and a 1 terabyte HDD enclosed in the same 2.5" enclosure. Solves 2 problems with one solution. It revitalizes the laptop with it's fast SSD for bootup and increases your HDD storage to a good sized 1 terabyte.
There are also some portable storage devices to keep your photo files on that do not require a laptop but I've never tried any and suspect they utilize the the insertion of your SD card into them for files transfer. No idea of price or storage space either.
Easiest and cheapest solution is to take lots of memory cards and just keep them full until you get back home.There are SD card storage wallets available that will keep your cards safely till you get home. Airport X-ray machines will not destroy your photo files stored on SD, CF or CM cards.
There's also "CLOUD STORAGE" but here again you need a computer and internet access.