Traveling Digital Questions.....

[DeepDog]

1) My first choice is to bring laptop to share and edit with others. If you don’t have one or the space when traveling, then . . .

2) 1GB chips are finally under $100 or

3) I-Pod or similar. You can get a 10-30GB MP3 Jukeboxes that can function as a portable HD for around $150. This carries the added advantage of allowing you to bring your favorite tuneage.

 

[Gilligan]

I just returned from a three week trip and took 2400 photos with my two digital cameras (Olympus C4000Z). They use the Smart Media cards. I have three 128MB cards. I shot all my pics in the HQ mode so as to be able to get 130+ shots on each card.

I took along an X's Pro storage device with a 20 GIG hard drive in it (cost under $200.) I downloaded the Smart Media chips at the end of every day. The X device has a built in battery but I used it with the wall adapter all the time.

I bought a Storm Case, Model iM2400 (hard case) and in it placed my cameras, two Olympus housings, tray/arm, strobe, wide angle lens, close-up lens, 6 sets of rechargeable AA batteries, two chargers, all necessary cables, the X's Pro device and some miscellaneous items.I used bubble wrap in place of the pluck foam, which I did not order with the case. The case was carry-on and was with me at all times.
I used a soft beverage cooler for the set-up camera gear when on dive boats so as to insulate it from the heat as well as pad it.

I used two cameras and two housings on the two tank boat dives so all I had to do was change out housings between dives as well as the batteries in the strobe. I didn't do that once and sure enough I did not have enough power in the camera to complete the second dive.

Having at least 4 sets of batteries left me with charged batteries all the time.

The storage X's device is small in size and serves it's purpose well for just storing your photos to free up your memory chips. I had no desire to do any editing while on the trip so this inexpensive device was perfect.

I downloaded photos to the X's device then used the camera cable to view photos directly from the camera to a TV at places that had TV's with input jacks. I then deleted them from the chip.

I had no snags or problems with this setup and procedure at any time during the trip.

 

[mjh]

Bought and travel with a unit called Flashtrax. Have taken in on 3 international trips from 1-2weeks long. Up to this point I have shot a mix of jpeg fine and RAW and have found the 20gig drive holds a lot of shots. I like the unit because it's internal screen is good enough to allow you to delete obviously bad shots. It is easy to hook up to just about any TV for viewing and editing. Bellow is a link to my initial report on the unit. Only concern for long term, +2-3yrs, is how durable the unit will
be.

http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=62835&page=1&pp=10

Good luck!

 

[onbelaydave]

I would feel comfortable on a 1 week trip with just the 4 GB's of CF cards. But for anything longer or if you're really "trigger happy" I take my Nixvue. It's slightly larger than a pack of playing cards but holds 30GB of files.

 

[Randall]

Thank you all for your replys. I'll be carrying all my equipment in my carry-on baggage, since this makes the most sense and was the concensus of your expertise. I'm also looking into the storage units y'all suggested. In my search for a solution to these problems I found a website I thought answered many of the problems we all face in this catagory. Here is the link: http://travelsnapz.tripod.com/digitaltravel.html

Thanks to you all and happy diving!!

Randall