It took me three attempts over three days to photograph this rock pool at Petrel Cove:
My historical baby Linhof camera--an old Linhof Technika 70 --- had a mechanical problem on the first morning as the locking mechanism wouldn't lock the downturned folding camera bed so I could not focus; the second morning it was raining; the third morning things finally came together.
A digital version (using the Sony NEX-7) from the photoshoot with the Rolleiflex SL66 (both colour and black and white) this morning. I had come across the rockpool yesterday when I was on a poodlewalk with Ari and Kayla. I needed cloud cover and a low tide to be able to do it.
I had to wait for the low tide so that I could access the site. I needed the cloud cover to soften the early morning sun whilst I waited for the tide to go out. Even then, I was photographing with the sea swirling around my shoes and tripod legs.
Exhaustive checks ended up with the conclusion that the electrical storm of a week ago had caused the studio's Fritzbox modem to frizz. Surge protectors are useless for this kind of electrical interference apparently. I had to get a new modem from Internode. The studio finally has internet connectivity and I can now post online.
This is the second time a modem has been fried by an electical storm this year. This digital storage and equipment is nerve wracking.
I've also managed to get my old Lacie external discs properly formatted for the iMac. 3 years of digital files from the digital cameras have been backed up. The digital files of my film cameras have also been backed up.
Backup is making a duplicate copy to prevent a problem in the event of something like a computer failure. Archive is safe storage and at least one archive copy of your photos should be stored off-site (away from home).
I now have two sets of backup at the studio--they have already been backed up on a Netgear mirroring hard disc. So I have three separate sets of my digital photos. This double backup insurance means that I'm feeling a little bit more secure about digital file storage and hard disc collapse. I also have the photos on a Mac Pro in Adelaide, which is also backed up.
It's a long way from the file cabinets, briefcases, safety deposit boxes and the fireproof safes of the analogue world.
The above picture is one of the ones that I took the day after the electrical storm when I was walking along the coast trying to make more pictures for the sea abstracts book. This project is not going well and I'm frustrated by the failures.