HELP! SDHC Card. My Nikon Camera says: Card is not Formatted. Format the Card. The card has pictures

[astroNikon]

Ok so I went to Sandisk website and ran a scan of pics that can be recovered. They all showed in the preview. If I want to get the pics back with Sandisk software, I have to pay $40. Is there any other software that can do this for free or at least cheaper?

I think you found one that works.

Apparently the free one's didn't work.
Now is it worth $40 for you ?

 

[beckylynne]

I paid $2,000 once to have images pulled off a fried hard drive.....$40 bucks is a steal. If you are not willing to pay that then they aren't important.

 

[sec]

Ok I don't want to hijack somebody else's thread, but reading all this has got me worried.

I have never formatted a card nor would I know how or even what it means. I know my 6D told me to do it when I first got it, and possibly the T3i, but I don't remember. As is typical for me, if it isn't necessary (meaning I can take pictures without doing it) or I don't understand / know how, I just don't bother with it. So far I've never had a problem. I even take the card out of the 6D and put it in a point and shoot from time to time.

I would ask if I should format my card, but I already know the answer I will get to that question. So I will ask is it absolutely necessary? I don't understand why I have never had a problem and the OP and others, who clearly know more than I do have. Just trying to avoid this problem in the future.

 

[Dave442]

I just checked the bitmart.net site where I bought the Restorer Ultimate program, it still goes for $30, but the Pro version if $50 and the Network version is $70. So $40 from Sandisk seems perfectly reasonable.

 

[Designer]

Ok I don't want to hijack somebody else's thread, but reading all this has got me worried.

I have never formatted a card nor would I know how or even what it means. I know my 6D told me to do it when I first got it, and possibly the T3i, but I don't remember. As is typical for me, if it isn't necessary (meaning I can take pictures without doing it) or I don't understand / know how, I just don't bother with it. So far I've never had a problem. I even take the card out of the 6D and put it in a point and shoot from time to time.

I would ask if I should format my card, but I already know the answer I will get to that question. So I will ask is it absolutely necessary? I don't understand why I have never had a problem and the OP and others, who clearly know more than I do have. Just trying to avoid this problem in the future.

I was under the impression that most, if not all, cameras required a new card to be formatted for their operating system. It is possible that you either did this by following simple setup instructions or the camera did it on its own. And as for using the same card in two different cameras, are they both the same make?

Formatting a card is nothing more than telling the card and camera to play nicely together.

 

[DarkShadow]

Ok I don't want to hijack somebody else's thread, but reading all this has got me worried.

I have never formatted a card nor would I know how or even what it means. I know my 6D told me to do it when I first got it, and possibly the T3i, but I don't remember. As is typical for me, if it isn't necessary (meaning I can take pictures without doing it) or I don't understand / know how, I just don't bother with it. So far I've never had a problem. I even take the card out of the 6D and put it in a point and shoot from time to time.

I would ask if I should format my card, but I already know the answer I will get to that question. So I will ask is it absolutely necessary? I don't understand why I have never had a problem and the OP and others, who clearly know more than I do have. Just trying to avoid this problem in the future.

Yes you should format if your using the card In a different camera manufacture or every so often In the Camera your using it in..You do this in your 6D menu system you scroll to the first wrench Icon and you will see it at the very bottom.There is also a option to low level format which Zeros the memory Card erasing all data.This info can be found in the user manual,if you don't have one,you can download it PDF from Canons website.

 

[astroNikon]

I never formatted my cards for my d7000 until I had a problem.

I've read on the internet to format it from the PC but this was on much older cameras.
Newer stuff states to use the camera for format the card

Canon 6D ==> How to Format an SD Card in Your Canon EOS 6D - For Dummies

To format an SD card:

1. Insert the card into the camera.
2. Press the Menu button. ...
3. Press the Multi-controller to navigate to the Camera Settings 1 tab.
4. Use the Multi-controller or the Quick Control dial to highlight Format. ...
5. Press the Set button. ...
6. Rotate the Quick Control dial to highlight OK and press Set.

 

[sec]

Ok I don't want to hijack somebody else's thread, but reading all this has got me worried.

I have never formatted a card nor would I know how or even what it means. I know my 6D told me to do it when I first got it, and possibly the T3i, but I don't remember. As is typical for me, if it isn't necessary (meaning I can take pictures without doing it) or I don't understand / know how, I just don't bother with it. So far I've never had a problem. I even take the card out of the 6D and put it in a point and shoot from time to time.

I would ask if I should format my card, but I already know the answer I will get to that question. So I will ask is it absolutely necessary? I don't understand why I have never had a problem and the OP and others, who clearly know more than I do have. Just trying to avoid this problem in the future.

I was under the impression that most, if not all, cameras required a new card to be formatted for their operating system. It is possible that you either did this by following simple setup instructions or the camera did it on its own. And as for using the same card in two different cameras, are they both the same make?

Formatting a card is nothing more than telling the card and camera to play nicely together.

All my cameras, including the point and shoot, are Canon.
Maybe the camera does it automatically? It's possible I did it in initial set up the first time I used the camera, but there has been several different cards in the camera since then and I have not formatted any of those.

 

[Dave442]

My usual workflow is:
Card to card reader, copy photos to computer, back up photos to other location, card back to camera, Format holding down the two buttons.
I don't delete photos from the card either in the camera or in the computer, only use the format in camera. So far no problems.

I have only used my Recovery software a few times in the last few years, one harddrive for me, one for my daughter, and a couple friends that thought they had lost data on memory cards.

 

[jcdeboever]

Ok I don't want to hijack somebody else's thread, but reading all this has got me worried.

I have never formatted a card nor would I know how or even what it means. I know my 6D told me to do it when I first got it, and possibly the T3i, but I don't remember. As is typical for me, if it isn't necessary (meaning I can take pictures without doing it) or I don't understand / know how, I just don't bother with it. So far I've never had a problem. I even take the card out of the 6D and put it in a point and shoot from time to time.

I would ask if I should format my card, but I already know the answer I will get to that question. So I will ask is it absolutely necessary? I don't understand why I have never had a problem and the OP and others, who clearly know more than I do have. Just trying to avoid this problem in the future.

I was under the impression that most, if not all, cameras required a new card to be formatted for their operating system. It is possible that you either did this by following simple setup instructions or the camera did it on its own. And as for using the same card in two different cameras, are they both the same make?

Formatting a card is nothing more than telling the card and camera to play nicely together.

All my cameras, including the point and shoot, are Canon.
Maybe the camera does it automatically? It's possible I did it in initial set up the first time I used the camera, but there has been several different cards in the camera since then and I have not formatted any of those.

I format card in camera and keep that one in it. Never format on PC.

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

 

[480sparky]

We haven't heard from the OP whether any other software has or hasn't worked, nor what was tried.

 

[astroNikon]

We haven't heard from the OP whether any other software has or hasn't worked, nor what was tried.

Yes we did ...

Ok so I went to Sandisk website and ran a scan of pics that can be recovered. They all showed in the preview. If I want to get the pics back with Sandisk software, I have to pay $40. Is there any other software that can do this for free or at least cheaper?

She's just deliberating on whether it's worth $40 or not.

 

[sec]

I never formatted my cards for my d7000 until I had a problem.

I've read on the internet to format it from the PC but this was on much older cameras.
Newer stuff states to use the camera for format the card

Canon 6D ==> How to Format an SD Card in Your Canon EOS 6D - For Dummies

To format an SD card:

1. Insert the card into the camera.
2. Press the Menu button. ...
3. Press the Multi-controller to navigate to the Camera Settings 1 tab.
4. Use the Multi-controller or the Quick Control dial to highlight Format. ...
5. Press the Set button. ...
6. Rotate the Quick Control dial to highlight OK and press Set.

Thanks. If I format the card in the 6D, will I still be able to use it in the point and shoot?

 

[480sparky]

She's just deliberating on whether it's worth $40 or not.

But has she tried any other freeware besides Recuva, like the MjM that's been suggested?

 

[Designer]

If I format the card in the 6D, will I still be able to use it in the point and shoot?

I don't know why you wouldn't format the card for the camera in which it is being used. It is fast and simple to do, and probably will minimize any errors.