Lost 650 pictures from the zoo today :(

Not sure if it was card error or my error. Just bought a new Transcend 8gb card from Adorama. Used it today at the zoo. Seemed to write files just fine. Got down to the end of the card and I wasn't paying attention. It blinked or something and the LCD showed 1 image left on the counter so I swapped out a new card.

Come over, put the card in the reader, it showed 650 pictures to download. Takes a real long time, showing no program. Then the downloader closes and when I attempt to download again, the card isn't recognized.

Just installed Sandisk RescuePRO and it's trying to working but it's saying the card is "severely corrupted."

Things don't look good friends...

UPDATE: Looks like Sandisk RescuePRO, despite it giving multiple errors during the card scan saying it was "critially corrupted", has successfully recovered all files. They were recovered in .tif format and not .cr2, but they still open up fine in CS3, so looks like all is ok.

Still don't know what happenend. Not sure if I should ditch the Transcend cards and stick to Sandisk, or if the problem came from getting down to only a few shots left on the card.

Maybe I'm wrong, but aren't you supposed to format the card before using it?

Hope it works out okay, though, I know the pain of losing pictures (lost about 600 from a Vegas trip).

hbdragon88 wrote in post #6041969
Maybe I'm wrong, but aren't you supposed to format the card before using it?

Hope it works out okay, though, I know the pain of losing pictures (lost about 600 from a Vegas trip).

Card was formatted in comp then in my cam before first use.

cowboylife wrote in post #6041816
Still don't know what happenend. Not sure if I should ditch the Transcend cards and stick to Sandisk, or if the problem came from getting down to only a few shots left on the card.

Ditch the card. Well, send it back as faulty. When can you trust that card again? And you shouldn't have difficulty from filling the card up. So, get the card back to Adorama for refund/replacement.

Wow....650 pics from a trip to the zoo....that's a lot of photos. Glad you could recover them

I shoot my cards full frequently, 85-90% of the time usually. One word....Sandisk, that's all I ever use.
Cheap memory cards are just that, cheap.
Glad Sandisk Rescue was able to save you!

The capacity of your card is an estimate of space remaining.

Image sizes vary based on the amount of information in the frame so shooting down to only 1 frame remaining is a huge crap shoot.

I've been told that if you want to be really safe, swap it out with no less than 10 frames remaining...

I know one pro who doesn't use any card over 1gb. Don't put all your eggs in one basket, or something like that. Myself, I use mostly 2gb ultra II.

I was shooting some egrets at a lagoon near my place yesterday when a lady with a d300 and 70-200+TC shows up and we start bantering back and forth. She said she just started this hobby but has already got some NG shots published. Anyway I swapped out 2 cards in out time together and she didn't once, and she was shooting 3 times as many frames a I. The thought of a malfunctioning card came to mind.

Cowboy, let's see some pics!

yonni wrote in post #6048319
I know one pro who doesn't use any card over 1gb. Don't put all your eggs in one basket, or something like that. Myself, I use mostly 2gb ultra II.

I was shooting some egrets at a lagoon near my place yesterday when a lady with a d300 and 70-200+TC shows up and we start bantering back and forth. She said she just started this hobby but has already got some NG shots published. Anyway I swapped out 2 cards in out time together and she didn't once, and she was shooting 3 times as many frames a I. The thought of a malfunctioning card came to mind.

Cowboy, let's see some pics!

Well it could have also been that she was shooting in jpeg.

jra wrote in post #6045955
Wow....650 pics from a trip to the zoo....that's a lot of photos. Glad you could recover them

Used the 6.5 fps quite frequently hoping to capture that perfect facial expression.

Shutterbug Doug wrote in post #6048149
I shoot my cards full frequently, 85-90% of the time usually. One word....Sandisk, that's all I ever use.
Cheap memory cards are just that, cheap.
Glad Sandisk Rescue was able to save you!

I will stick to Sandisk from now on. RescuePRO was a life saver.

FlyingPhotog wrote in post #6048189
The capacity of your card is an estimate of space remaining.

Image sizes vary based on the amount of information in the frame so shooting down to only 1 frame remaining is a huge crap shoot.

I've been told that if you want to be really safe, swap it out with no less than 10 frames remaining...

I usually swap out before it's full but I remember looking down a few times and having plenty of space left. It's harder to keep track when you are shooting in continuous mode. Whether or not the problem was caused by me shooting down to 1 picture left, I won't let it get down that low, since I have more than enough cards to shoot with in one outing.

yonni wrote in post #6048319
I know one pro who doesn't use any card over 1gb. Don't put all your eggs in one basket, or something like that. Myself, I use mostly 2gb ultra II.

I was shooting some egrets at a lagoon near my place yesterday when a lady with a d300 and 70-200+TC shows up and we start bantering back and forth. She said she just started this hobby but has already got some NG shots published. Anyway I swapped out 2 cards in out time together and she didn't once, and she was shooting 3 times as many frames a I. The thought of a malfunctioning card came to mind.

I think I just got lazy and wanted to be able to have an 8gb card and not worry about having to swap all the time. I have learned the error of my ways.

GilesGuthrie wrote in post #6042957
Ditch the card. Well, send it back as faulty. When can you trust that card again? And you shouldn't have difficulty from filling the card up. So, get the card back to Adorama for refund/replacement.

Card went back to amazon.com this morning.

yonni wrote in post #6048319
Cowboy, let's see some pics!

I'm far from anything professional...or even a "photographer" but here are a few highlights...

HTTP response: 404 | MIME changed to 'image/gif' | Byte size: ZERO | PHOTOBUCKET ERROR IMAGE

HTTP response: 404 | MIME changed to 'image/gif' | Byte size: ZERO | PHOTOBUCKET ERROR IMAGE

HTTP response: 404 | MIME changed to 'image/gif' | Byte size: ZERO | PHOTOBUCKET ERROR IMAGE

HTTP response: 404 | MIME changed to 'image/gif' | Byte size: ZERO | PHOTOBUCKET ERROR IMAGE

HTTP response: 404 | MIME changed to 'image/gif' | Byte size: ZERO | PHOTOBUCKET ERROR IMAGE

Very Nice!

Especially the Hibiscus blossom and Meerkat #2.

FlyingPhotog wrote in post #6048621
Very Nice!

Especially the Hibiscus blossom and Meerkat #2.

Thanks! In Meerkat #2, he was looking up at me as if to say, "What the h*ll are you looking at?"

cowboylife wrote in post #6048656
Thanks! In Meerkat #2, he was looking up at me as if to say, "What the h*ll are you looking at?"

Big bonus points for nailing the focus on the eyes and not the tip of the nose.

I think the slobber coming out of that roar made it by far the most powerful photo. Nice job!