Manual method
Copy originals from camera cards and preserve existing scans with their filenames and folder structure.
- Insert the card in a reader or connect the camera using its supported file-transfer mode.
- Copy the complete relevant folder tree, such as DCIM, into a folder named for the camera/card and capture date.
- Preserve RAW/JPEG pairs, sidecars and video companion files; do not reorganize the only copy.
- Compare counts and verify files before ejecting the card. Keep scans in original resolution plus separate viewing copies if needed.
Coverage and limitations: Camera-specific folders may contain required metadata. A file copy cannot recover deleted or damaged data. Existing scans cannot reproduce physical details that were never captured; label their scan settings where known.
Size and time to allow
Illustrative small / central / large case: 10 / 250 / 2000 GB (decimal GB). These are planning assumptions, not a measured average per person. 250 GB illustrates 5,000 RAW images at 40 MB plus 50 GB of scans/video; JPEG-only collections are much smaller.
Preparation: No provider queue. At an effective 50 MB/s card-read rate, 250 GB takes about 83 minutes to copy, plus verification. Many small files and old cards can be slower.
For the central 250 GB example, network transfer alone is approximately:
| Connection | Estimated transfer |
|---|---|
| 10 Mbps | 79.4 hours |
| 50 Mbps | 15.9 hours |
| 100 Mbps | 7.9 hours |
Assumes 70% sustained use of the stated connection. Provider throttling, many small files, retries, local extraction and copying add time. For online backup use your upload speed. These are not estimates of the provider’s preparation queue. See calculation and large-file advice.
Store and verify the archive
Use an external SSD or hard drive as the main archive. A USB key is suitable for a selected transfer copy, but capacity and sustained speed can be limiting. Keep a second encrypted copy on a separate drive or in private online backup.
Create camera_archives/YYYY-MM-DD/originals/, preserve the untouched download, and extract a separate working copy when needed. Allow extra free space for archive plus extraction; compressed text can expand far beyond twice its size. Record account/scope, export date, date coverage and missing items in a local README without passwords.
Compare file counts/checksums and open several RAW, JPEG, scan and video files. Keep the card unchanged until a second verified copy exists. Reopen a sample from the second copy before deleting or replacing any source. Storage choices and verification.
Sources and review
Public documentation was reviewed on 27 October 2026. No signed-in export or restoration was performed. Account options and availability can change; follow the current provider instructions.