How do you download from a card reader?

John from PA wrote in post #14652058
Be aware that there have been bent pin issues in the camera body because of removal/reinsertion of CF type cards.

But only with a big enough hammer.

Tsmith wrote in post #14652184
I now I've seen this come up before and not saying its a trivial issue but they are designed to be removed. In the six Canon bodies I've owned over the years I have preformed countless card swaps in the field without never experiencing this. That includes on rugged hiking trails to city streets and the usage of a Card Reader I've about wore out.

Maybe some try and force the CF cards in backwards somehow -

As for that I routinely use the EOS utility. Just select the images in the Preview Screen and select the ones to transfer from Card Reader to the assigned folder. Its pretty straight forward and simple.

Getting bent pins can certainly happen with cheap card readers that have sloppy or shallow guide rails. It might also happen with extremely cheap cards from fuzzy sources that don't have accurately placed holes with proper guide bevels.

But Canon cameras are not cheap card readers, and nobody should be using cards from fuzzy sources for a number of reasons.

light_pilgrim wrote in post #14651594
Folks, I was always downloading from the camera to PC and so I was using EOS Utilities. When images were downloading, there was a small preview icon and I could follow what is currently being downloaded.
I now have a card reader and understood that the way to download is to use the Zoom Browser. There is no preview available though.

What do you use? Is there a way to download via card reader and have a preview?
Thanks.

Why do you need a preview? I import directly into Lightroom and then do my sorting there. I never felt a need for a preview.

Preeb wrote in post #14652880
Why do you need a preview? I import directly into Lightroom and then do my sorting there. I never felt a need for a preview.

I go away and do something else during that time. Like you, I'll do my sorting in an application that thoroughly sorts, scores, does a bit of mass editing, et cetera, at the same time.

Preeb wrote in post #14652880
Why do you need a preview? I import directly into Lightroom and then do my sorting there. I never felt a need for a preview.

The reason I do is previews is that when my files are loaded into Lightroom, they are all renamed. So when I import, and want a continuous numbering system, not a broken numbering system like what would happen if I imported then deleted.

Raylon wrote in post #14653056
The reason I do is previews is that when my files are loaded into Lightroom, they are all renamed. So when I import, and want a continuous numbering system, not a broken numbering system like what would happen if I imported then deleted.

That wouldn't help me much because I'm culling all the way to the final selection going to the client. The point of downloading would only be the first cut.

Raylon wrote in post #14653056
The reason I do is previews is that when my files are loaded into Lightroom, they are all renamed. So when I import, and want a continuous numbering system, not a broken numbering system like what would happen if I imported then deleted.

I guess like RDKirk, I really don't care what my photo numbering system looks like, as long as I know the event and date, I can find the photo. My download is just the very first step. From there I get down to just a few keepers and several possibilities that I will work on longer.

I installed the plug in to be able to see RAW files in windows natively. Then I just drag them from the card reader to the drive.

I have a camera I got back in 2000 that I still use and it has no bent pins, that's 12 years of abuse!
My 10D from 2003 doesn't have bent pins either.

John from PA wrote in post #14652058
Be aware that there have been bent pin issues in the camera body because of removal/reinsertion of CF type cards.

But you have to be pretty hamfisted to do it. It normally happens when somebody puts the card in wrong way around and when they feel the extra resistance (because it doesn't really fit that way around) give it a really good shove to force it in. So long as you just slide the card in, and don't force it if you feel resistance, then the pins will be fine.

I must have performed several thousand card removals and insertions by now, and never had a bent pin yet. I know several other photographers who do frequent CF card swapping and none of them have bent a pin either.

Yes, it can happen, but you would have to really force it to do so.


To answer the OPs question, I just slip the card into the computer and open it as a drive, then drag and drop the images where I want them. To see what is what, I just select "large icons" for my view option.

Tsmith, sure they are designed to be removed and reinserted and yes there have been about a 1/2 dozen cases reported in the last 4-6 months of pin damage. Having said that Canon recommends doing the transfer by cable with a direct to computer connection. It remains the users choice.

John from PA wrote in post #14653317
Tsmith, sure they are designed to be removed and reinserted and yes there have been about a 1/2 dozen cases reported in the last 4-6 months of pin damage. Having said that Canon recommends doing the transfer by cable with a direct to computer connection. It remains the users choice.

That seems pretty specific. Reported where?

And where does Canon make that as a recommendation of operation (as opposed to merely stating how to operate the camera function)?

Raylon wrote in post #14653056
The reason I do is previews is that when my files are loaded into Lightroom, they are all renamed. So when I import, and want a continuous numbering system, not a broken numbering system like what would happen if I imported then deleted.

That means nothing to me. I import, cull, apply keywords. Then the file names don't really even matter any more. I can find what I want with a keyword filter.

RDKirk wrote in post #14652470
I wuuuv this program soooooo much!

After having used Downloader Pro for several years, it's clearly the most usefulvautomation program available. Th software takes a little work to figure ut its system of tags, but after that's reasoned out, it takes little effort. It's been in use here with several cameras thst have used several type s of memory cards and several card readers. The software lets you automate the choice of directories and subdirectories and file names. For those who want to control these factors, the software is as good as you can find and is very reasonalby priced.

Let me add: You can set it to create folders and forward images to them on the fly as it downloads. It can also merge the output from several cameras, meshing them by time sequence and still identifying each frame by its camera.

John from PA wrote in post #14653317
Tsmith, sure they are designed to be removed and reinserted and yes there have been about a 1/2 dozen cases reported in the last 4-6 months of pin damage. Having said that Canon recommends doing the transfer by cable with a direct to computer connection. It remains the users choice.

So out of many millions of camera users out there, about 12-15 people a year manage to damage pins? That's a very, very tiny number. I would actually think it is quite a bit higher than that, but still an incredibly insignificant amount, considering the millions of cards that will be removed and reinserted every single day.

Personally, I find the transfer by cable to be far more risky, not to mention a lot slower. It is way too easy to accidentally catch a cable whilst working at your computer, and yank the camera off the desk and onto the floor. I know two people who have done that with cameras, and have managed it myself with an external drive plugged into a USB (yes, it was destroyed - fortunately I had everything backed up properly).

On top of that, there is also the "eggs in one basket" issue, if you never remove cards, as everything is stored on one big capacity card and if that is lost, everything is lost. It happens more often than you might think, it's not just a corrupt card to worry about, but if somebody steals your camera at the end of a weeks vacation and the whole weeks images are on it, you lose the lot. If you use several cards, you lose that days shots at worst, the rest of your vacation memories are safe. I remember doing a shoot a couple of years back on the Farne Islands, one guy I met there was there on the bird photography trip he had been planning to do for years. as we were waiting at the jetty for the boat to come and pick us up, he was dived on by a tern and dropped his camera in the sea - it was lost. His entire days shoot was still in it. If it had happened to me, i would have lost some shots sure, but the several cards in my pockets would still leave me with plenty of great shots.

There is a (very, very small) risk of bending a pin swapping a card, yes. But there are much bigger risks associated with not removing cards.

I have never seen Canon recommend transferring by cable though, simply giving instructions on how to do so if you wish to, using their software package.