The best thing you can do to ensure your tapes, disks and solid-state media are around for years to come is to strictly regulate your storage environment. Ideally, that means not letting the temperature swing much below 60 degrees Fahrenheit and not above 75. Also, keeping the relative humidity below 30% (but not so dry that static electricity becomes an issue) will greatly extend the integrity of the data on your media. The best location for all media is in a windowless room on grounded metal racks. Store tapes on edge, not lying flat. Avoid adhesive labels and non-water-based markers for optical discs. Hard discs and solid-state media should always be stored in anti-static bags or containers.

Setting aside manufacturer claims of "archival quality," some touting 300-year durability, you may have heard more practical estimates of 5 to 10 years for tapes and discs, and even a larger window for solid-state and hard discs. But these are still guesses, and we really can't say for sure. If you need to ensure that your data remains intact for the long haul, re-record your material every few years and stick to that schedule.

Some people have become religious about using particular media, based on their experience or the strong recommendation of a trusted colleague. If you are new to video, or you have a new camcorder that uses a different type of media, you may simply need to experiment with brands. Certainly start with any recommendations from your camcorder manufacturer, but then try other brands with similar or improved characteristics. Soon, you'll be able to answer the question, "what are the best media?" for yourself.

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While they are not considered traditional "media," there are several types of portable hard drives that are designed to record the signal directly from your camcorder. These have become popular with videographers shooting both HD and SD video. For those camcorders that use only tape, this can be a great way to save time transferring your shots to your computer: simply edit directly from the hard drive. If you also roll tape at the same time, you have an instant backup of your raw footage. And, if your new camcorder records to solid-state or optical media, these external HDDs can greatly expand the length of your recording time.