The cherry on the pie for my back up game!
Not long ago I wrote an article on how I run my backups: The Never ending Back Up story. While I was writing that article I was in great expectation for my GNARBOX 2.0 SSD.
GNARBOX 2.0 SSD is a rugged backup device for pro content creators who need the most reliable way to back up their files in the field. Unlike other storage solutions, its compact design and powerful on-board backup features make it effortless to manage files without a laptop.
This was the missing link in my on site back up process. Being abroad a lot for photo & video shoots makes the chance of loosing precious data quit big. For example on the speedboats shoots, where I create photo, video & drone footage all from a supporting speedboat, my biggest concern is that all my dat on my SD cards fall into the water, have a card crash or gets compromised by sea salt. I used to bring a laptop on the boat to back up halfway the day, preview footage to check ideal composition, sharpness etc… you know the drill. But that takes a lot of time. Hard drives and laptops aren’t big fans of salt water, sand and other elements of mother nature.
The GNARBOX offers great solutions for that. It’s rugged, actually rugged, not just a plastic case around it with tough looks. It has dust and waterproof sealing, full rubber cover that also gives grip, … One of its elementary features is plug ‘n play backup. Insert your SD cards and it automatically makes a backup on its SSD. It checks for duplicates, if you select that option. Depending on your settings it will auto generate folders based on type, date, camera, … it will even check the integrity of the copied data. But that is just scratching the surface of the extended possibilities boxed in that little brick.
It has two modes, a ‘Field mode’ and a ‘Home mode’. Field mode allows direct WIFI connection from any mobile device. Provided that you installed their supporting apps: SafeKeep & Selects, to manage your device and its files. In Home Mode the intelligent brick connects to your wireless network and you can access your files over your wireless network. It actually acts like a kind of network drive, when in Home Mode it can also run al back up of the (selected) Files to dropbox. Home mode can also be in your hotel room or when connected to a MIFI router, you don’t have to be at home for that 🙃.
Those mobile applications are another great feature. You don’t need a laptop anymore to manage your files on site, a smartphone or tablet with the earlier mentioned apps are more than capable to manage, edit and preview your files. I can even import files from the GNARBOX wireless to my iPad to edit the file on Lightroom Mobile.
It would be even greater to keep the files on the GNARBOX and edit them remotely and just store the adjustments in the Lightroom catalog. Maybe there is an option to do that but I haven’t found it yet. Instead of bringing a laptop to the sea, desert or the ice covered Finnish tundra, I take a waterproof cover for my iPad and the GNARBOX. They both can handle the extreme conditions.
Anyway this changes my personal and professional travel setup and gear list drastically! When we go on holiday, we usually leave for at least a month and we tend to pack light and flexible: www.nikocaignie.be/travel. Having a small backup and edit kit is a big improvement. And it will give me peace of mind knowing my files are safe on my SD cards AND my GNARBOX. (Always back up the back up ;-))
This is not just a rugged backup hard drive but also an intelligent storage, manage, edit and review device. When you are serious about traveling and photography, a professional photographer/videographer, DOP, or just take way to many selfies…… this is an indispensable piece of kit. It does come at a price but I haven’t seen anything like this before, it fils a large gap if you’re professional about the way you manage your image files from the start until you deliver them to your client.
I’m not going to dive into all the technical specs and possibilities here, head over to the website and read all about the advanced possibilities… There are features for every kind of image maker: whether it’s photography, drone footage, basic mp4's or high res ProRes and Raw video files. They got you covered: www.gnarbox.com.
For the record, this is not a sponsored post, I did not received gear or money from the makers to write this article. This is just based on my sheer happiness about this piece of gear and the technology packed in it.
This article is part of a series I wrote about how I handle my digital life:
My Perfect Travel kit
A decade of paperless office
How I roll in the cloud
Where do all the photos go
Being a Professional Photographer: The Never Ending back up Story
