formatting memory cards

[quackal]

What's the value of formatting a memory card?

I have been shooting for over a year with an XSi and now a 7D and have never formatted my cards....have never had a problem downloading pictures or operation in the camera.

Just curious, as I get deeper into this great hobby and spend more money on equipment!

 

[KmH]

I only format my memory cards in the camera they will be used in. It is not advisable to format using the computer, because it may not format thecard controller with the correct file structure.

My cards get formatted after each upload to my computer and I have verified my uploaded image files have no upload issues.

My cards get uploaded at the end of each shooting day.

Formatting the card re-writes the FAT (File Allocation Table) so the card controller is aware that all the memory adresses are again available to be written to.

By not formatting your card after each upload, it's possible for the camera to attempt to write an image to a memory address range that is larger than the range specified in the FAT for a previous image (image file size varies by content). When that occurs you wind up with a corrupt file and it's also highly likely that each subsequent image file that is written to the card would also be corrupt.

IMO, you have been lucky - so far.