How to Backup Flickr Photos to an External Hard Drive?

Flickr is one of the most popular photo sharing services, allowing users to store photos online and share them with others. However, it is always a good idea to have a backup of your Flickr photos on an external hard drive in case something happens to your Flickr account or the photos get deleted accidentally. Backing up your Flickr library to an external hard drive gives you full control over your photos and serves as an additional protection against data loss.

In this comprehensive guide, we will discuss step-by-step how to download your full Flickr photo collection and save it to an external hard drive.

Prerequisites for Backing Up Flickr Photos

Before starting the backup process, make sure you have the following:

• A Flickr account with photos you want to back up.
• An external hard drive with enough storage space for your Flickr photo collection. A 1TB or larger hard drive is recommended.
• A computer with an available USB port to connect the external hard drive.
• A stable internet connection.
• The latest version of the Flickr desktop app installed on your computer.

Tips for Choosing an External Hard Drive

When selecting an external hard drive for backing up your Flickr library, go for a reputable brand like Western Digital, Seagate, LaCie, etc. Consider the following factors:

• Storage capacity: Choose a hard drive that can accommodate all your Flickr photos with room to grow.
• Durability: Pick a durable and shock-resistant portable hard drive to protect your data.
• Compatibility: Make sure the hard drive is compatible with your computer OS.
• Portability: Select a compact and lightweight hard drive that's easy to carry around.
• Security: Some hard drives have built-in password protection and encryption.

Step 1 - Install and Open Flickr Desktop App

The first step is to download and install the latest version of the Flickr desktop app on your Windows or Mac computer. The Flickr desktop app gives you access to your entire Flickr library and lets you export photos easily.

To install it, go to Flickr website and click the download button for your operating system. Once installed, open the Flickr desktop app and log in using your Flickr account credentials.

The app will sync and display all your Flickr albums and photos. You can now export photos from here.

Step 2 - Connect the External Hard Drive

Plug your external hard drive directly into your computer using the USB cable. Most hard drives don't require a separate power connection.

Once connected, the hard drive will appear as a new storage drive under "My Computer" or "This PC" on Windows or on the desktop on Mac.

Check that the hard drive has enough free space for storing all your Flickr photos. If needed, delete any existing files on the drive to make space.

Step 3 - Select Photos to Export

In the Flickr app, browse your photo albums and select the photos you want to back up to the external drive. You can select individual photos manually or multi-select several photos using Shift/Ctrl.

Or you can simply select all photos in an album or your entire Flickr library for backup by choosing "Select All".

Tip: To estimate the size of your photo selection, see the total count of items selected displayed at the bottom.

Step 4 - Export Photos from Flickr

Once you've selected your photos, click the "Export" button in the top menu bar of the Flickr app window.

This will open the Export window. Under the Storage dropdown, choose the external hard drive.

For Format, select "Original files (JPEG, PNG, etc)". Keep the Size as "Full size".

Finally, click the "Export" button to start exporting your selected Flickr photos to the connected external hard drive.

Step 5 - Organize and Store Photos

The Flickr app will create a new folder named "Flickr-Backup" on your external drive and export full size JPEG versions of all your selected photos into it.

Once the export is complete, eject the external drive safely from your computer.

You can leave the backup as is or organize the photos into subfolders based on albums, dates, or other criteria. Store the external drive in a safe place for future retrieval when needed.

Quick Tip to ensure your videos never go missing

Videos are precious memories and all of us never want to ever lose them to hard disk crashes or missing drives. PicBackMan is the easiest and simplest way to keep your videos safely backed up in one or more online accounts. 

Simply Download PicBackMan (it's free!), register your account, connect to your online store and tell PicBackMan where your videos are - PicBackMan does the rest, automatically. It bulk uploads all videos and keeps looking for new ones and uploads those too. You don't have to ever touch it.

Accessing Flickr Photos from External Hard Drive

To access your Flickr photos from the external drive on a Windows PC, simply plug in the drive to a USB port and open it in File Explorer like a normal storage device.

On a Mac, re-connect the drive and click it on the desktop to view the files. Browse to the "Flickr-Backup" folder containing your photos.

You can view the photos, edit them, print them, or use them in other projects directly from the hard drive. Leave the original photos on the external drive as your archived Flickr backup.

Tips for Ongoing Backup

• Periodically connect the external drive to update your Flickr backup with any new photos.
• Use backup software like Time Machine on Mac or File History on Windows to automate ongoing backup.
• Store a copy of the Flickr backup on a second external drive or cloud storage for redundancy.

Troubleshooting Flickr Backup Issues

Slow export speed: This could be due to large photo sizes, slow internet, or USB 2.0 drive. Try exporting smaller batches.

Missing photos: Export may fail due to connectivity issues. Retry and export in small batches.

Not enough disk space: Delete unnecessary files on drive or get a higher capacity drive for the backup.

Disconnected drive: Eject and re-connect external drive if it gets disconnected during export. Resume from last session.

Corrupted files: The backup files may get corrupted if the export is interrupted. Delete and re-attempt the backup.

Conclusion

Backing up your treasured Flickr photos to an external hard drive gives you complete control over your images and a reliable backup if something happens to your Flickr account.

Follow the simple steps in this guide for smoothly exporting your Flickr library and organizing the photos on the external drive. Stick to reputable hard drive brands and handle the drive with care.

Regularly update your Flickr backup and keep both the online and external drive copies in sync. Store the portable hard drive in a secure place when not in use. With proper care and maintenance, your Flickr photo backup will be available for many years.

So safeguard your priceless memories and don't wait any longer to backup your Flickr library! Let us know if you have any questions.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I download my entire Flickr library for backup?

On the Flickr desktop app, go to Library > Select All to select your entire Flickr collection. Then click Export, choose the external drive as location, and export original files to backup everything.

Does Flickr limit how many photos you can export?

No, there is no limit set by Flickr on how many photos you can download or export for your personal backup. You can export your full Flickr library.

What image file format will my Flickr photos be in after backup?

The Flickr desktop app exports your photos as JPEG files by default, preserving all image metadata. The JPEG format is ideal for photo backup.

Can I export photos to an external hard drive on mobile?

Unfortunately the Flickr mobile app does not allow exporting directly to an external drive. You need to use the Flickr desktop application on a Windows or Mac computer to backup photos to a hard drive.

What is the best external hard drive format for Mac and Windows?

For external hard drive compatibility with both Mac and Windows, use the exFAT format. This allows the drive to work well on either OS.

How often should I update my Flickr backup on the external drive?

Ideally, connect your external hard drive every 2-3 months to sync any new Flickr uploads and update the backup. Critical photos can be backed up more frequently, such as weekly.