How To Properly Store Your Wedding Video & Photos

In the midst of planning your wedding, coordinating with vendors, and navigating your day to day life, it’s easy for certain details to be overlooked until the moment arrives. I’m specifically talking about what you need to do once your wedding photos or video have been delivered. It’s important to understand that you will be responsible for managing those files for, hopefully, the rest of your life. I’m going to break down three data management options and explain how you can safely store all of your wedding files without needing to worry.

It’s recommended that you have three copies total: two onsite, stored in your home, and one offsite to avoid the risk of losing your wedding photos or videos in the event of a fire or other destructive incident. The two onsite options are Solid State Drives (SSDs) and Hard Disk Drives (HDDs). For the offsite option, we recommend using cloud storage, but if you prefer a tangible alternative, you could place a drive in a safety deposit box. Once you’ve safely stored your files, you’re not quite finished.

Tangible storage devices degrade over time, eventually becoming obsolete. In this day and age, technology is rapidly advancing, so having some awareness is necessary. This isn’t, by any means, something you should preoccupy yourself with on a daily basis. However, there is always the possibility of losing your data, so set yourself up in a way that makes the worst-case scenario relatively unlikely. Every two to three years, take 10–15 minutes to assess your storage situation. Is it time to update one of your devices? If so, quickly research the best storage option for your specific needs and transfer your files to a new device at your earliest convenience.

Data Storage Options: HDD, SSD & Cloud Storage

If you’re storing both photos and video, you will need to ensure that you purchase enough capacity for each of the storage options mentioned above. This varies from situation to situation. If you’re receiving standard wedding photo and video deliverables, the total file size should typically fall within the range of 10 GB to 65 GB. However, if you want the RAW files, you’ll require significantly more storage capacity, and you should consult your vendors so you can prepare accordingly.

Hard Disk Drive (HDD) is the most affordable option. If you own a computer, it’s likely that it already contains an HDD and could therefore be used as one of your storage locations. Otherwise, an external HDD is a great option depending on your needs. Keep in mind that HDDs are the most fragile of the three storage methods discussed here, so storing one at home and leaving it in place is ideal. While HDDs can certainly be transported safely, you might as well avoid unnecessary risk.

Solid State Drive (SSD) is far more durable. If you need to transport a physical copy of your files, an SSD is the safest option. These are essentially a more advanced version of a hard drive. In addition to their durability, SSDs offer faster read and write speeds and generally require less frequent replacement. However, it's very important to understand that SSDs, when not connected to a power source, can degrade over time. So, if you are choosing to use an SSD as a long-term backup, it's best if it is a device that you regularly turn on. Since most computers now have an SSD, your personal or work computer should receive enough active use for the SSD backup to last for long periods of time. Otherwise, if you are looking to back up your files on a device, store it in a safe place, and forget about it for years, a Hard Disk Drive (HDD) is the better option.

Cloud storage, in our opinion, is a must. You don’t need to worry about updating hardware, and as long as you maintain your subscription account, your files should remain stored in the cloud. However, provider policies change, inactive accounts can be suspended. So, it’s important to stay on top of the management of your cloud storage files. That being said, the cost is relatively affordable given the storage capacity most wedding clients require. It also makes sharing files with friends and family easy, and it is the best offsite option for backing up your wedding photos and videos.

Key Distinctions

• HDDs offer the largest capacity at the lowest cost

• SSDs are faster, generally more reliable but requires active use to maintain files

• Cloud storage is the easiest option for sharing photos, accessibility, and offsite backup.

We feel that the safest way to avoid data loss is to maintain three separate copies. However, at the very least, you should have two: one onsite drive, and one offsite backup using cloud storage. This should be considered a requirement and completed immediately after receiving your files from your wedding vendors. As a wedding photographer myself, I personally keep my clients’ photos backed up in two locations for at least one year. Before deleting everything, I send an email confirming that my past clients have securely backed up their files.

File Backup Steps

1. Ask your vendors for the total file size of everything included.

2. Purchase two onsite storage solutions and one cloud storage plan.

3. Make sure to purchase protective cases for your onsite drives.

4. Transfer the files to all three storage locations and confirm that each transfer was successful.

Before doing any of this, you should consult your vendors and check whether they offer an SSD or HDD as part of their package, or whether they are willing to transfer your files to a drive and mail it to you. This can save you the headache of purchasing storage and transferring the files yourself. As a wedding photographer, I personally offer to handle the drive purchase and file transfer because I’m happy to simplify the experience in any way possible.