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Original poster

Best way to back up 12,000 photos and videos?

33 replies

januaryblues46 · 05/01/2022 22:52

I have an oldish iPhone containing around 12,000 photos and videos, many of which are very precious showing family holidays, the DC growing up and suchlike.

I’m feeling increasingly paranoid about losing them especially after nearly dropping my phone down the loo today and was wondering how best to back them all up just in case?

Are they all backed up automatically on my laptop via iTunes when I plug my phone into that? It says my phone is backing up but I can’t find the physical photos on my laptop anywhere, so it’s not very reassuring.

If not, could something like iCloud or Dropbox be a good option?

I’m not tech savvy so if anyone could shed any light I’d be very grateful!

OP posts:
Ionlydomassiveones · 05/01/2022 22:53

This reply has been withdrawn

This has been withdrawn at the poster's request.

1990s · 05/01/2022 22:58

Google photos.

Create Google account if you don’t have one. Download app. Log in. Back up photos (use original quality). Set to auto back up on future.

Free. It’s probably also backing up on iCloud.

1990s · 05/01/2022 22:58

Sorry should say - download Google photos app.

BestZebbie · 05/01/2022 23:00

Mine seems to sync everything to ICloud photos, which I can then see as a folder on my PC.
I am very very dubious about this though - I used to just download pictures to the pc and then back them up to an external hard drive too, which worked well. Now I have to click on each picture to get it to actually download to my PC in a proper resolution rather than a thumbnail at all, and I worry that if I delete a photo from my phone it will vanish from the cloud and therefore the folder on my PC too. I do click everything and then copy it to another disc but it is incredibly time consuming and clearly intended to discourage ever removing any file to be hosted elsewhere.

dustofneptune · 05/01/2022 23:24

When you plug your phone into your laptop and iTunes tells you it's backing up, it most likely means that it's saving a backup of your actual phone (like contacts, settings, etc.), so that if your phone crashes, you have a recent backup to restore your phone to.

I would definitely get yourself a cloud service. iCloud makes sense in your case.

The benefit of iCloud is that you'll be able to see all of your images on any new phone whenever you upgrade, and it will continue to upload new images you take automatically.

You can also use Dropbox, OneDrive, etc. Either as a second backup (that's what I do), or instead of iCloud.

Bratnews · 05/01/2022 23:32

Amazon Photos is a good option. Not too much free video storage though.

LibrariesGiveUsPower · 05/01/2022 23:41

If you’ve got Amazon prime you get free unlimited storage for photos.

Original poster
januaryblues46 · 06/01/2022 07:21

Thanks - I will look into Google Photos. Does it store videos as well? It sounds like iCloud is also a good option, although BestZebbie’s experience doesn’t sound ideal?

OP posts:
Blastandbollocks · 06/01/2022 07:23

I have Dropbox. App sits on my phone and automatically backs up as I go. Photos on phone data, videos when connected to WiFi. I can then share specific photos with people too which is fab for nights out, children with grandparents etc.

itwasntaparty · 06/01/2022 07:25

I have an iPhone and use google photos. I don't like the format of images on iCloud.

I then periodically back up to an external hard drive as well.

Yes Google stores video too.

HeronLanyon · 06/01/2022 07:32

I don’t understand or trust backups at all - sometimes I don’t understand the difference between upload and download !
Mine are backed up on my iCloud account. However friend of mine once lost a lot from iCloud (very possibly through her own fault or doing something silly). Because of this I also have all of mine backed up on usb memory drives - the photos vids themselves not just thumbnails or links.
I do this usb backup every few months. Each time I forget how I managed it so can’t help with details. Do know it’s become much more difficult to select and copy lots of photos at once than it used to be.

Really really important photos I also Email to myself. Eg last/favourite photos of parents and friends who have died.
This thread has reminded me I have voice mail messages from dead parents/friends. Not sure I ever want to listen to them but I think illogically I’d be upset if i lost them.
Good luck op.

bonetiredwithtwins · 06/01/2022 07:35

Dropbox - download the app and it will back up automatically- easily found on any computer - you can organise them into files, easily download them and share with others

Redcrayons · 06/01/2022 07:39

Google photos for me. It’s free and automatically syncs all the photos.

I go through it once a month and delete all the random screenshots and photos of the inside of my bag.

One day never I’ll sort them all into folders.

Original poster
januaryblues46 · 06/01/2022 07:44

So will iCloud, Google and Dropbox all back up photos as I go - and if I delete a photo on my phone, will it delete from the storage app as well? It would be good if it did, as I’m always taking photos of random stuff that I don’t want to keep. I actually went through all my photos over Christmas and deleted around 4,500 screenshots, blurred images, random photos taken of the floor by accident and other images I didn’t want to keep.

OP posts:
Original poster
januaryblues46 · 06/01/2022 07:52

So I’ve just started backing up via the Google Photos app. I used my Gmail address and it says I have currently used 12GB of my 15GB free space (I have a lot of emails!) so I think I’ll probably have to pay for more space soon - does anyone know the cost? It’s backing up as we speak though and seems easy to use so far!

OP posts:
IamtheDevilsAvocado · 06/01/2022 07:57

Be careful that your phone doesn't automatically sync with the storage...

A pal inadvertently did this... She took a whole load of pics of her phone storage... IPhone as it was getting full.... And so they were deleted off the storage too, and lost them

Original poster
januaryblues46 · 06/01/2022 08:00

@IamtheDevilsAvocado Argh that has worried me now!

OP posts:
Fimofriend · 06/01/2022 08:07

We have harddisks one at home and one at DH's job in case of a fire.

dustofneptune · 06/01/2022 09:16

@januaryblues46

So will iCloud, Google and Dropbox all back up photos as I go - and if I delete a photo on my phone, will it delete from the storage app as well? It would be good if it did, as I’m always taking photos of random stuff that I don’t want to keep. I actually went through all my photos over Christmas and deleted around 4,500 screenshots, blurred images, random photos taken of the floor by accident and other images I didn’t want to keep.
iCloud basically mirrors your phone. So if you delete something off your phone, it will also delete it in the cloud. However, it keeps a copy in iCloud's "deleted files" area, in case you made a mistake and want to restore the photo :)

iCloud is basically the best option if you want to be able to carry photos over to your future phones easily and see them easily through the iPhone gallery.

BUT it's not the best option if you want to keep the photos completely separate. That's why I use OneDrive as well :)

dustofneptune · 06/01/2022 09:27

Looks like these are the costs for storage via Google One -

one.google.com/about/plans?hl=en_GB

dustofneptune · 06/01/2022 09:36

Just had a look at Google Photos. It looks like that syncs to your device (your phone, if you've downloaded the app onto it). So if you delete something from your phone, it should delete it from the cloud too.

The help section says that it allows you to restore deleted files for up to 60 days (i.e. if you accidentally delete something or your phone gets wiped). You just go into the Google Photos app, go to "library" then go to "bin" and click "restore".

support.google.com/photos#topic=6128818

MamaEs · 06/01/2022 09:37

Slightly unrelated but the Get Sorted app is brilliant for going through photos and deleting anything you don't need. I managed to get rid of thousands of photos that were duplicates or blurry etc. may make back up easier

1990s · 06/01/2022 09:39

@IamtheDevilsAvocado

Be careful that your phone doesn't automatically sync with the storage...

A pal inadvertently did this... She took a whole load of pics of her phone storage... IPhone as it was getting full.... And so they were deleted off the storage too, and lost them

When you delete a photo from your iPhone, it should alert you that it’s deleting it from Google Photos as well.

You can completely separate the two things by backing up everything to Google Photos, then stopping “Photos” app in your phone backing up to iCloud, checking everything is in Google, then delete on your phone.

Or you can keep them all on both, which is safer if you’re nervous.

Just make sure you do a test with a recent photo, so delete something and check where it’s deleted.

You can pay for more storage on Google, I think it’s about £2 a month.

dustofneptune · 06/01/2022 09:41

Also, as for backing up as you go - yes to all of them (iCloud, Google Photos, OneDrive, DropBox, etc.). It should automatically backup your photos.

Once in a while, just open the app to make sure it's working properly. You might find that it only backs up when your phone is plugged in and connected to WiFi, to avoid draining your battery and data.