Very new and very lost on getting started! Memory Card Issues

[HannahB]

Hello! I feel very out of my element trying to figure out my new camera. I got married this past year and we are expecting our first baby girl in February. I told my husband I wanted to research, save up and buy a decent camera to start taking photos of our little one, vacations, etc. I read up that Nikon's and Canon's are good for beginners. I had cheap digital cameras in high school and college that did not take good pictures and broke - so once I got the iPhone I just started using that for all my picture taking.

Well for Christmas my husband surprised me with a Nikon D3300. I'm not sure he did much research on if this was a good camera for someone who knows basically nothing. I read over the manual and feel that I can get started with basic settings, but needed a memory card to start taking any picture.

I went today and bought a SanDisk Ultra Plus 16GB MicroSDHC UHS-1 memory card. When I insert this into the camera, I get a message stating "This memory card cannot be used. Card may be damaged. Insert another card." The card is brand new. I read in the camera's manual that I may need to format the card, but when that error is up on the camera, the Menu will not come up, therefore I can't format from my camera. I've tried inserting the card into my laptop's SD slot, but nothing shows up. I don't have another computer to try this on.

Does anyone have any advice? I feel very stupid right now. Should I just go buy another memory card and try that? Return this one if I can get another memory card to work? Thanks for any help/advice!

 

[SquarePeg]

You need a SD card, not MICRO SD.


MicroSD vs SD Card - Difference and Comparison | Diffen

 

[HannahB]

You need a SD card, not MICRO SD.


MicroSD vs SD Card - Difference and Comparison | Diffen

The microSD won't work even with the adapter?

 

[tirediron]

It should work with the adapter, but using the micro SD with the adapter is adding another point for failure. It's very likely that you bought a bad card; new or not, they have been known to be duff right out of the package. Beg, borrow, buy or steal a "real" SD card and try it.

 

[fotomonkey]

I've never had any issue whatsoever using microSD with the adapter. I have at least a dozen of them. Not a single issue after years' of use.

I'd try another card like John suggested. Sometimes (though rare in my experience) they just fail.

 

[HannahB]

It should work with the adapter, but using the micro SD with the adapter is adding another point for failure. It's very likely that you bought a bad card; new or not, they have been known to be duff right out of the package. Beg, borrow, buy or steal a "real" SD card and try it.

Buying a regular SD card sounds easy enough. I'll definitely try that. Thank you!

 

[sashbar]

It is a great camera, your husband made the right choice. Probably the vest choice for your needs.

 

[Rob Powell]

You could also try formatting that card in another device for example your old digital camera. This will at least identify if the card is at fault. I would guess that if it is faulty you should be able to exchange the the card as I think do they not give a lifetime guarantee.

One other factor to take into account when buying an SD Card is the speed. This will affect the speed the image or images are transferred from the camera buffer to the SD card. Unless you are planning on shooting burst of images, this will not be to much of a issue, but thought id point it out for you interest.

Happy Snapping Hannah!

 

[jaomul]

Yip just try another card, and enjoy your new camera which was a great choice

 

[Tailgunner]

I've heard nothing but good things about the D3300. As for memory cards, it's probably over kill for chasing the kids around the house with but I strongly suggest professional grade SD cards. Their just better made quality wise in my opinion and offer faster read/write speeds. They have come down in price over the years as well.


1# Choice

SanDisk 32GB SDHC Memory Card Extreme Pro Class SDSDXP-032G-A46

2# Choice: If money is tight, these work great as well.

SanDisk 32GB Extreme UHS-I Speed Class 3 SDHC SDSDXN-032G-G46

Also, I would seriously consider making 2-3 copies. A lot of us keep extra copies on multiple external hard drives or CD-Rom/DVD disc and or Memory cards. This is done so that we don't loose anything if/when a computer crashes or memory card fails for example.

Here is some storage device suggestions.

Cheap 128gb memory card for storing copies.

SanDisk 128GB SDXC Memory Card Ultra Class 10 SDSDU-128G-A46 B&H

External Hard drives

WD 1TB Elements Portable Hard Drive WDBUZG0010BBK-NESN B&H Photo

 

[Buzzlightyear]

I have a nikon d3200 and a nikon d7100. When I put one of my ad cards in my d3100 I get that same message but if I put it in my d7100 it works fine. It seems like it might be a Nikon problem with there lower end cameras.

 

[sm4him]

I have a nikon d3200 and a nikon d7100. When I put one of my ad cards in my d3100 I get that same message but if I put it in my d7100 it works fine. It seems like it might be a Nikon problem with there lower end cameras.

There should be somewhere in the manual (for the 3200 as well as the D3300 that the OP has) that has a list of "approved" memory cards. As long as what you get falls within the parameters of that list, you shouldn't have an issue. If you do, as the OP apparently did, it's almost certainly simply a faulty card.

 

[fotomonkey]

It doesn't state SD or Microsoft, though. Just a general brand/size.

 

[I Shoot Raw Photos]

Also Try to get a class 10 too

 

[deftone]

I shoot with a 3300. It's a great camera. Never had issues with any cards I've used, but like previously mentioned I consider a micro adapter to be a point of failure so only use SD cards and I never go bigger than 32gb so I change regularly, meaning if I have a failure I don't lose a full days shooting.


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