Delete JPEGs when it misses RAW files

[selo]

I shoot with dual cards CF + SD:

CF card is saving RAW files (CR2)
SD card is saving JPEG files

When in camera i delete an image it only removes the RAW file so the JPEG remains on the other card. After a session I copy both cards to a folder on my harddrive, but obv. it keep having the JPEGs which I deleted on camera.

Is there an easy way to delete the JPEG files if is misses a RAW file? Maybe with photo mechanic or a different software?

 

[ronlane]

Interested to see what answers you get because I have wondered the same thing.

 

[snowbear]

Offhand, if you sorted the files by name (not extension), you'd see the CR2 and JPG listed one after the other. If there's no CR2, you'd have two JPGs listed together.

It's a manual process but, depending on how many orphans (JPG without CR2), it shouldn't take too long. Someone could probably write a script (Python, VB, Javascript, X-Code, etc.) without too much difficulty, that would look for the orphans and delete/move them to temp.

 

[Tomasko]

I think you have basically two options
- manual search & delete
- write a software to do this for you

 

[SquarePeg]

I haven’t found a way around your dilemma yet either. I download the jpeg card and review/cull. It loads faster and I can review on my iPad. It also takes up less space. If there are any shots that I want the raw file for, either because the exposure or WB is off or because it’s a real keeper that I want to print, then I will download the raw files for only those photos. 9 time out of 10 the jpeg is good enough for my purposes. Once I’m sure I have everything I need saved, I format the cards to delete everything.

Are you a pro that needs t save raw files for all your work?

 

[selo]

Yes i do photography for living.

I found a solution... You can use a program like: UltraFileSearch - File Search Utility to seach for files and move them. So you will need to copy a list of all you CR2 files. This can be done with excel. Once you have the list you can just paste that in ultra file search and it will show you all the files with the same filename from the list. Once you move all these files to a seperate folder, in the original you will only have the files which you don't have a RAW file from.

Also using this method i learned you do not need a program which can cull RAW+JPG as a pair. You can just cull RAW or JPG and copy the filenames like above.

I guess i do not need to buy photo mechanic... My trial almost expires but for me faststone image viewer works better and it is free.

 

[Dave442]

My current solution is just to never delete an individual images from the card using the camera.

In the past, the program I used - when I edited on a Windows machine - was XPlorer2. It will find duplicate files (you can do it by name without using the extension and in flat mode, across different directories) - it will then show the duplicates - then just check that those selected are the JPG versions and copy those to a new directory - then erase all the JPG left behind in the initial import directory as that includes those images that were not duplicates because the Raw had been erased in-camera. The program has multiple panes so before you erase just check that the new JPG directory and the Raw directory match for number of images.

 

[Derrel]

I do a "Macintosh thing"...I usually shoot RAW + JPEG, and do a slide show of the JPEG files....and for that slide show, I use Graphic Converter, and when I find a shot I wish to delete, I hit the Trash icon, and that takes the .JPG image and moves it to the trash can. After the slideshow, I color-label all those files that are in the Trash Can, using the Mac OS's basic color-labeling functionality. I then put the color-coded, rejected .JPG files into the folder that holds the .NEF files, and there is then a color-coded .JPG that sits right below its equally reject-worthy RAW parent file.I then manually mouse down the files list, and right click on my mouse, and pull down three commands to Move To Trash on each rejected .JPG and its NEF parent.

If I have many files to cull out, I will highlight multiples files in smallish groups, using the Command Key (*AKA the Apple-icon key) held down while clicking on the files I want to kill-file, and after I have 10 or 15 rejects highlighted, I will do a batch operation for the Move To Trash command, using the mouse and a right-click and a pull-down to the Move To Trash command.

I do not believe in deleting image files while actively photographing; I always wait until I get the images on the computer. With 64- and 32-gig cards, I always have plenty of storage space in the field.

 

[KmH]

My current solution is just to never delete an individual images from the card using the camera.

Good practice - because deleting files in the camera is a known way to corrupt an entire memory card.

 

[selo]

Hmm.. i shouldn't be deleting on camera as well. I will just start doing that. Culling on camera doesn't save me a lot of time anyway.

 

[selo]

I got a response back from Photo Mechanic with a solution:

Hello,

The best way to do this would be to put all of the JPEGs and RAWs together in one Contact Sheet. That should automatically then group together filenames that have both file types, which will display under each thumbnail as filename.RAW+JPEG.

Then, go to the toolbar in the Contact Sheet and change the ‘Sort type’ from ‘Filename’ to ‘Sort by {type}’. Now, all the paired RAW+JPEG files will stay together but any images that are JPEG only (and RAW only) will be grouped together. Phot Mechanic will arrange them alphabetically based on the first letter of the file extension so, depending on what camera you are shooting with, the JPEGs might before the RAW+JPEG pairs, or after (for example, Canon CR2 RAW files will be before any JPEGs but Nikon NEF files will be after).

Now you will be able to see which files are only JPEGs so you can select them all and delete them all in one batch.

Please let us know if you have any questions.

Thank you,

John

 

[jowensphoto]

My current solution is just to never delete an individual images from the card using the camera.

Good practice - because deleting files in the camera is a known way to corrupt an entire memory card.

I never believed (well I did, but experience is the best/worst teacher...) until it happened to me a few weeks ago. Luckily, just personal snaps.

 

[SquarePeg]

Good practice - because deleting files in the camera is a known way to corrupt an entire memory card.

Deleting with a reformat is ok?

 

[Garasaki]

I would love to revisit the file type workflow issue.

Like others, I shoot in jpeg+NEF, then use windows explorer to preview the shots using jpeg. I delete the loser jpegs, then manually select and delete their parent NEF files.

I would love a way to automate the process of manually selecting and deleting those parent NEF files. I was unable to figure out how to do it with the UltraFileSearch utility mentioned earlier. I would prefer a free solution.

Any other ideas?

 

[KmH]

Good practice - because deleting files in the camera is a known way to corrupt an entire memory card.

Deleting with a reformat is ok?

A reformat is a complete delete - in so far as the FAT (File Allocation Table) is flagged that all image file memory locations are again available.
Nothing ever actually gets deleted. All the old data is still there. New data just gets written over the old data.

FWIW - I reformat a memory card every time I put it back in the camera after having verified uploading the image files from the card to my computer was successful.
I do not use gignormous memory cards in my DSLR or action cameras.
Instead I carry multiple memory cards.
Three 8 Gb cards are plenty big enough for me when I record 1080p video all day long on a multi-day train trip using a 10 MP DSLR.