No Laptop? No Problem: How to Back Up Photos in the Field With Your Smartphone

May 11, 2025

Sebastien Desnoulez

A smartphone connected via adapter hub to various devices including an external hard drive, an SSD, and an SD card, all placed on a wooden surface. The phone screen shows a file explorer app.

I’ve been searching for a better way to back up my photos on the road for over two decades — basically since I made the jump from film to digital.

Back then, I tried everything. I remember using an Archos jukebox-style device with a compact flash slot—slow, buggy, and terrifyingly fragile. Later came expensive solutions like Western Digital’s wireless hard drives with built-in SD slots. Those were bulky, battery-hungry, and still not what I’d call reliable.

All I ever wanted was a workflow that was light, robust, and didn’t cost an arm and a leg. Today, that workflow finally exists and it’s built around something most of us already carry: a smartphone.

Whether I’m working on assignment or traveling for personal projects, I now back up my photos safely and efficiently using just a smartphone (or tablet), a USB hub, a card reader, and an SSD drive. No laptop, no cloud, no sketchy wireless drives.

Why This Setup Works

This approach lets me copy full-resolution RAW or JPEG files directly from my memory card (SD or CFexpress) to a solid-state drive using a USB hub connected to my phone.

It works with any modern camera brand — Canon, Nikon, Sony, Fuji, Panasonic — as long as your phone can access the files on the card. The result? A flexible, hardware-based backup workflow that’s fast, secure, and 100% offline.

I’ve used this in remote areas with no electricity, on fast-paced photojournalism jobs, and even on vacation when I didn’t want to babysit my gear. It hasn’t let me down.
Redundant From the Start

My Nikon Z cameras have dual card slots. I always shoot with redundant recording turned on—RAW files saved to both the SD and CFexpress cards. It’s my first layer of backup, right in the camera.

Three camera screen menus show folder settings: selecting "Storage folder" in the menu, choosing "Select folder by number," and entering a three-digit folder number with a preview of the selected folder name.

On travel days, I carry the SD card in my wallet, the CFexpress in the camera. That separation is intentional: if one bag goes missing, I’ve still got a full set of files.

But I add one more layer: I make a third backup to a portable SSD drive, which goes in my checked luggage. The more physical separation, the better.

What You Need

A smartphone (iOS or Android, Lightning or USB-C)
A USB-C or Lightning hub with ports for SD, USB-A, and power input
A portable SSD (Samsung T7, Crucial X6, etc.) formatted in ExFAT
A power bank or wall charger to power the hub
A card reader (CFexpress if needed)
Optionally: a universal USB cable if your battery doesn’t have one built in

The Process (iPhone or Android)

Connect the hub to your phone.
Power the hub using a charger or battery bank.
Insert the SD or CFexpress card.
Plug in the SSD.
Use your phone’s file manager to copy files from the card to the SSD.
Safely eject everything once done.

The interface varies slightly between iOS and Android but the method is essentially the same. It’s fast, intuitive, and doesn’t require any special software. Below are images that will show you the step-by-step process on your phone (iOS):

Screenshot of an iPhone home screen showing various app icons, with a white arrow and text pointing to the Files app icon at the bottom left, saying "Tap on".

A smartphone screen displays the iOS "Browse" menu showing storage locations: iCloud Drive, On My iPhone, Acrobat, Drive, 500 SSD, SD Card, NIKON Z 8, and Recently Deleted. The battery is at 92%.

A smartphone screen showing the "Browse" tab in the Files app, highlighting the "NIKON Z 8" folder under Locations with an arrow and text that reads, "Tap on.

A smartphone screen shows the Files app open to a folder named "NIKON Z 8" with two subfolders, "NIKON" and "DCIM." An arrow points to "DCIM" with the text "Tap on.

Screenshot of an iPhone showing the Files app open to the DCIM folder from a Nikon Z8 camera, displaying several blue folders labeled with dates, with one folder highlighted and labeled "Tap & hold.

A mobile screen displays a contextual menu for a file, highlighting the "Copy" option. The menu includes options like Get Info, Rename, Compress, Duplicate, Tags, Favourite, and Delete. "Tap on" is indicated near "Copy.

Screenshot of a file browsing app on a mobile device showing folders named with dates and codes (e.g., 118SEBZ8), under a storage device labeled "NIKON Z 8". A label says “Tap to browse back.”.

Screenshot of a smartphone file manager app showing two folders, "NIKON" and "DCIM," dated 15/03/2025. At the top, there's a highlighted "Browse" button with an arrow and text, "Tap to browse back.

Screenshot of the iOS Files app's "Browse" screen, showing storage locations. A green arrow and text say "Tap on" next to the Google Drive icon under Locations, indicating where the user should tap.

A smartphone screen shows a file browser app with the folder "500" open. The center displays "Tap & hold" above a circle, and below it a hard drive icon with the text "500 is Empty." Navigation icons are at the bottom.

Screenshot of a phone’s file browser app. A popup menu shows options: New Folder, Paste (highlighted with "Tap on" and an arrow), Scan Documents, and Get Info. Tabs at the bottom include Recents, Shared, and Browse.

A screenshot of the iPhone Files app showing a folder named "118SEBZ8" and the message "Copy started." An arrow points to the info icon at the top, labeled "Tap to display details.

A smartphone screen shows a file transfer in progress. A folder named "118SEBZ8" is being copied, with 193.8 MB of 6.64 GB transferred and about 5 minutes remaining. The options Edit and Done are visible.

Organizing Files in the Field

After each shoot, I create a new folder directly on my Nikon camera’s card. That way, when I’m backing up, I know exactly what to copy. It also prevents overwriting older files or grabbing the wrong set of images.

By the end of each trip, I always have:

One card in the camera
One card on me
One SSD in the checked bag

That’s three separate physical copies, all created without ever opening a laptop.

Why It Works for Me

As a former photojournalist in a motorsports press agency and current digital workflow strategist managing image pipelines for large organizations, I’ve seen all kinds of backup systems—from pro-grade servers to total chaos. This method strikes the perfect balance between simplicity, portability, and peace of mind.

I don’t need the cloud. I don’t need fragile proprietary drives. I just need to know my images are safe and this setup delivers.

Traveling without a laptop doesn’t mean compromising on your backup strategy. With a few inexpensive accessories and a bit of prep, you can protect your images like a pro. It’s not magic: just a lean, smart workflow that actually works.

About the author: Trained as a photographer, Sebastien Desnoulez later expanded his expertise into digital, web, marketing, and communication fields. Today, he combines a business, technical, and creative mindset to design innovative solutions in digital asset management and data workflow optimization. This story was also published here.