I’ve spent the last six months worrying about getting a proper off-site backup solution for my photographs. It’s all very well backing up to an external hard-drive, but what I the house goes on fire or an electrical surge blew the lot? Until now I have relied upon Flickr and SmugMug until now, but they weren’t able to act as back-up for my precious RAW files.

Yesterday SmugMug announced SmugVault, a new service that would allow users to back-up those RAW files too. I was extremely happy, and hurriedly signed up for the service. Unfortunately, I was quickly disappointed. I had thought it would “stack-up” the RAW files with the displayed jpeg files. This wasn’t the case. It was just a manual service where you could upload the RAW files alongside the jpegs, or keep them in a different folder.

It became apparent that the service was not for me.

Within minutes, however, it was suggested by Phill Price that I took a look at Mozy. An unlimited set-it-and-forget-it service that would back up all my important files, and for two computers would only cost me a fiver a month. I never have to worry about remembering to back-up. It takes care of all the thinking.

I’m still in the process of my initial back-up, but so far it has been extremely smooth and easy. The software is simple to use on both the Mac and the PC. It begins by suggesting the files that need uploaded to which I added a few (a lot!) more, and I hit go.

It really has been as simple as that.

Check back for a follow-up post next week as I update you on the completion of the back-up and the incremental updates.

While I think the photography of Thomas Hawk is great, I think this is his secondary skill. He is a man with vision.

Thomas first hit my radar when I bought a Tivo back in 2001(?). I went online looking for more information about the more unofficial things that could be done with my shiny new box. I did a search on Google, and his blog popped up. Later on when I bought a Media Center, he was already there with valuable advice on how to make the most of it.

I have always loved photography. My dad and his dad were amateur photographers, so I knew a fair bit about the art. I was never hugely inspired to get my own camera and do it myself though. That said, I was the first person I know who bought a digital camera. It was horrible. The resolution was bad, and the sensor was so poor. But I was smitten.

When I found Flickr in January 2006, guess who was there before me showing the way. You guessed it…Mr. Thomas Hawk.

Over the years, his blog has changed from a predominantly technology based blog to one that is about sharing ideas. I put the emphasis on sharing. While many want to keep their ideas to themselves, in order to make the most of their page views, faves or likes, Thomas spreads his around, using them as starting points for discussion and providing inspiration to others.

I’ve lost count of the amount of ideas I’ve taken from Thomas. Not once has it felt like stealing. I always feel like they have been given to me to do with what I want, and to take forward in any direction that pleases me.

Last week he came up with the idea of keeping $2 in his wallet so that when he’s asked for money in the street, he can give them the money in exchange for a photograph. The idea was innundated with positive comments on FriendFeed. Almost universally people wanted to use the idea for themselves. This happens regularly on his FriendFeed, Flickr and his blog. His ideas flow, and this has become more obvious since he joined FriendFeed.

Mr Hawk, please consider this a hearty hand shake and a thank-you.

Yours Aye.

This morning I’m heading off for my first professional photo job. A corporate highland games. Nothing too stressful; a few group shots, then an afternoon of candid shots. One of my team at work does a lot of these things and needed an extra pair of hand, so decided that he’d turn the tables and be my boss for a day.

I’m looking forward to it. It’s well outside my normal photography comfort zone, so it’s a chance to do something new.

Yours Aye.

One of my pictures has been blogged over at GeekDad, part of the Wired Blog Network.

Even though I’m subscribed to the blog, I completely missed my shot in it, but thanks to Flickr’s stats page it was very obvious that there was a lot of traffic coming through Wired.

Anyway “Nom Nom Nom” is one of my favourite phototgraphs of the wee one, so it’s nice that somebody else recognises it too.

Thanks GeekDad.

Ministers in the UK are considering plans for a database to hold details of every phone call and email sent in the country. Apparently the system will be a “crucial tool” to protect national security and prevent crime. From BBC News:

A Home Office spokesman said: “The Communications Data Bill will help ensure that crucial capabilities in the use of communications data for counter-terrorism and investigation of crime continue to be available.

“These powers will continue to be subject to strict safeguards to ensure the right balance between privacy and protecting the public.” The spokesman said changes need to be made to the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 “to ensure that public authorities can continue to obtain and have access to communications data essential for counter-terrorism and investigation of crime purposes”.

I will never vote for any party that votes for this to go ahead. They are going too far.

Of course, it will never get passed. What will happen is a watered down version of this will sneak through under the radar of the press, chipping away a little more at our civil liberties, something which many Western governments seem to care little about. They want to spend millions in tax payers money protecting our freedom, yet are willing to trade away that very same freedom in the interest of security.

At the weekend I took my daughter to the swimming pool for the first time. I was not allowed to take photographs of the occasion because paying customers are no longer seen as people by management, but as potential paedophiles. It’s blindingly obvious that those in charge don’t give a crap about the dangers of these criminals, they’re just covering their arses should something happen in their venue. Banning phototgraphy won’t solve the problem. It will just make it less likely that they’ll have legal action against them.

In the same way, the goverment doesn’t give a crap about the freedom they claim to be protecting, they just want to be seen to be doing something by voters.

The UK is now a country whose authorities are obsessed with terrorism and by paedophiles. We have suffered at the hands of terrorists in the past and mistakes were made then. The wrong people were fingered for crimes they didn’t commit. Sad though that was, I’d rather live in a country where mistakes are made than one where everybody is considered guilty before any crime has been committed. It bet if these laws were put to statute these mistakes would STILL happen, no more correct convictions would be made, and the collected data would fall into the wrong hands.

I no longer feel trusted by the people who I helped put in power, and whose wages I pay, along with the millions of other tax payers. They need to think about the consequenses of their actions.

Read more at: The National Terror Alert and at Engadget
Photograph licensed under Creative Commons from nolifebeforecoffee

We took a family outing to Duthie Park and the David Welch Winter Gardens recently. The winter gardens are a brilliant resource to the city. Aberdeen is not best known for it’s beautiful weather, and when the rain pours, this is a great place to take the family.

The temperate house gives you the chance to experience different plants and climates under a glass roof.

It’s also a brilliant place to take the camera. Plants and flowers from around the world are on display…and the layout means you can get close-up to everything. My 50mm lens got a real work out…and with the wee one strapped to my chest…so did my back.

I’ve had a couple of long nights over the weekend. Feeding through the night has taken it’s toll on daytime activities, but I plan to get out of the house for an hour today to get my 2008 Community Challenge photograph today. I know it’s meant to be a planned shot, but I have no inspiration, so fresh air and a little light excercise will have to inspire me.

View on Flickr :: View on Ipernity :: View on SmugMug :: View on Zooomr

The first of my 2008 Challenge photos is this view out my window, the first view of my community every day.

For more info about photo challenges, visit photochallenge.org.

Uploaded on Oct 2nd, 2007
by Chris Nixon

Technorati Tags: photography, zooomr, aberdeen