Formatting memory card alternative method

[katbel]

I read around that formatting your memory card will shorten its life.
When I transfer my photos to Photos (or to any other program I use) and I choose to delete after transferring, it does not completely delete the photos on the card and on my camera it leaves a ghost file unreadable .
I figured out that there is an invisible folder that I copied back to my computer when the card was just formatted.
Then I just delete manually- on computer- all the photos and folders and then copy back the ones it created after the proper formatting
This way I have the card ready and the camera seems happy to use it as it new. I have a Sony A6400.
Hope it can be helpful.

 

[bunnspecial]

FWIW, I always format in-camera as soon as I install a fresh one.

In-camera makes sure your camera is absolutely, 100% happy with the file system. I also do this any time the card has been read by my computer.

Shorten its life? Maybe, but memory cards are a consumable and they're pretty darn good now. If one goes, it goes...that's also why I prefer my cameras to have two card slots, and one of the reasons why I tend to prefer carrying multiple smaller cards rather than one huge one.

 

[Slartibart]

While there are cameras out there which offer low level format for e.g. a SD card, for most there isn’t a difference between format and delete.

Neither deleting nor formatting erases the contents of the card (okay, as written - there is a low level format in some cameras which is a different beast). In fact, it just removes the references to the image files to prevent the system or camera from reading it (as a matter of fact, the erased images only get completely inaccessible when new data is added to the card).

Modern SD cards&Co. are solid state devices, any process you use will have no effect on its lifespan compared to any other process. Nowadays they are rated in time-before-failure in hours, not cycles, but anyway: if your card lasts somewhere between 10,000 - 100,000 read/writes that equals roughly a time between 5 - 10 years before physical failure.

 

[Clix Pix]

I never format in the computer! I always format in-camera. When I get a new card, I stick it into the camera and format it immediately so that it is ready to go. When and/or if I decide to use that card in another camera, I format it in that other camera before using it, too.

After I return from a shooting session, I put the card into the card reader and transfer the files to the desktop on my computer. I don't use Photos. I prefer to keep things simple and the files in Finder. After I've looked at the files and maybe processed an image or two, so that I know everything is fine, then I put the card back into the camera and format it before putting the camera away. I also use both card slots in the camera so that in the event that for some reason I forget to return a recently-used card to the camera I'll still have a card in there with which to shoot.

It was back in the days when I was using a camera with just one card slot that I had developed the habit of keeping the camera out on the table rather than putting it away until after I've run the card through the card reader as a reminder that, hey, there's no card in the camera right now. A couple of incidents some years ago when I went out shooting only to realize, too late, that, oops, no card in the camera or the battery died on me and I didn't have a spare with me convinced me to a) always check the camera before leaving the house, and b) always carry a spare battery and spare memory card in a small pouch even when just taking a stroll around the lake.

 

[OldMacs4Me]

I too am in the in camera camp. The camera may or may not be happy with the way the computer writes to the card. This way I am safe.

 

[stillcrazyman]

I always format the cards in camera. Usually when they‘re full. I have a dual card camera that’s easy to manage.

 

[mollyc]

yes, I was always told best practice was to format in camera.

 

[Slartibart]

formatting in camera becomes possibly additionally important if you use cameras from different companies. Anectdotically my Pentax K1 complained about and offered to format a SD card I had taken out of a Sigma DP2 quattro - as result I always format a card when inserted into one of my cameras.

 

[katbel]

To clarify : I don't format the card on the computer, I just delete the "used folder" and substitute it with the original folder created by the camera at the moment of the fresh formatted card .
Thanks for all your tips: always learning.

 

[bunnspecial]

Little side note too...

Going back again to my multiple small card philosophy(I still primarily use CF cards, and most are 32 or 64gb), after I've imported into Lightroom I do "card dumps" onto a an external(spinner) that sits at my computer for that very purpose.

Even if that card is intended to go back into my card wallet for later use, I still format it in a camera I have there handy-usually either my D810 since that's my most used camera.

If I pull a card out of the wallet and I formatted it in the camera I'm using, I will sometimes just go ahead and shoot with it, but formatting also takes all of 30 seconds if that and I KNOW I have a freshly formatted card immediately before sticking it in the camera.

Little side note too-I usually keep my Macs to "show hidden files". If you pop a card into a card reader in a Mac, or are using an older Nikon where the camera mounts as a readable drive, Spotlight will index it. That means that if you are looking at hidden files, you will see one or two new folders pop up within a short amount of time of putting it in a card reader. Not sure if Windows does something similar.

Yet another reason why an in-camera format immediately before use is, to me, a good option. If you're going to just delete rather than format(which as other have mentioned unless you're doing a low level format-at least on Macs on way to do it is to do "secure erase" from Disk Utility, assuming they haven't killed that function, or otherwise you'd do it from terminal) be sure you're grabbing the hidden files/folders also.

 

[Slartibart]

To clarify : I don't format the card on the computer, I just delete the "used folder" and substitute it with the original folder created by the camera at the moment of the fresh formatted card .

which equals it to in camera format of a SD card in almost all cameras available. I think that Canon’s G10 offers low level format besides format (?) and there others for sure - but format in (probably all) a camera just marks the space as available and deletes the file table.

EDIT: this is different to (low level) formatting the SD card when connect to a computer.

 

[jwolf6589]

I read around that formatting your memory card will shorten its life.
When I transfer my photos to Photos (or to any other program I use) and I choose to delete after transferring, it does not completely delete the photos on the card and on my camera it leaves a ghost file unreadable .
I figured out that there is an invisible folder that I copied back to my computer when the card was just formatted.
Then I just delete manually- on computer- all the photos and folders and then copy back the ones it created after the proper formatting
This way I have the card ready and the camera seems happy to use it as it new. I have a Sony A6400.
Hope it can be helpful.

Why format the memory card in the first place? Why insert the card in the computer when a USB cable will do? I have had a 64GB memory card in my Canon Camcorder since 2018 and it still works great! Everything is backed up of coarse.

FWIW, I always format in-camera as soon as I install a fresh one.

In-camera makes sure your camera is absolutely, 100% happy with the file system. I also do this any time the card has been read by my computer.

Shorten its life? Maybe, but memory cards are a consumable and they're pretty darn good now. If one goes, it goes...that's also why I prefer my cameras to have two card slots, and one of the reasons why I tend to prefer carrying multiple smaller cards rather than one huge one.

Why do you insert the card in a card reader when a USB cable will work just fine?

I never format in the computer! I always format in-camera. When I get a new card, I stick it into the camera and format it immediately so that it is ready to go. When and/or if I decide to use that card in another camera, I format it in that other camera before using it, too.

After I return from a shooting session, I put the card into the card reader and transfer the files to the desktop on my computer. I don't use Photos. I prefer to keep things simple and the files in Finder. After I've looked at the files and maybe processed an image or two, so that I know everything is fine, then I put the card back into the camera and format it before putting the camera away. I also use both card slots in the camera so that in the event that for some reason I forget to return a recently-used card to the camera I'll still have a card in there with which to shoot.

It was back in the days when I was using a camera with just one card slot that I had developed the habit of keeping the camera out on the table rather than putting it away until after I've run the card through the card reader as a reminder that, hey, there's no card in the camera right now. A couple of incidents some years ago when I went out shooting only to realize, too late, that, oops, no card in the camera or the battery died on me and I didn't have a spare with me convinced me to a) always check the camera before leaving the house, and b) always carry a spare battery and spare memory card in a small pouch even when just taking a stroll around the lake.

You don't use Photos????

yes, I was always told best practice was to format in camera.

True

 

[bunnspecial]

Why do you insert the card in a card reader when a USB cable will work just fine?

Why this same argument again? I know you have a vendetta against card readers. There's nothing wrong with importing directly from your camera but for many of us it works better.

1. I cycle through cards while shooting, and often am importing photos from multiple cards. I'd rather not have to worry about making sure my camera battery is charged, etc, and popping cards in and out of the camera unecessarily and instead just stick them into a card reader

2. If I'm working with SD cards(ugggh), all of my cards are UHS-II but not all of my cameras support that. A card reader that supports UHS-II also is faster at import. Even with CF cards, my cameras vary in their max write speed, while my good Lexar card reader can take advantage of the maximum read speed of any CF card on the market. Most of mine are the fastest currently available.

3. Some of my cameras only support USB 2.0. My card readers are USB 3.0. Import, needless to say, is much faster over USB 3.0 than USB 2.0

4. Further to that point, in my side-by-side tests, even with a camera with a 1066x CF card that can write at 1066x speeds and connect over USB 3.0, I find the card reader is still faster

5. A worn/broken USB port on a card reader is much easier and cheaper to fix than one on a camera. Micro-USB-3 doesn't feel particularly sturdy to me.

You don't use Photos????

I personally use Photos for photos from my iPhone mostly for iCloud integration, but for most editing purposes it's not a very capable program. Apple use to have two photo management/editing programs-iPhoto for casual use and Aperture.

A lot of of people who use ILCs/shoot RAW/etc don't find the cataloging capabilities of Photos sufficient or a good match to their workflow. There are several programs used for both cataloging and editing photos. Lightroom is the one I personally use and is one of the popular options(although not the only one). Aperture competed directly with Lightroom. There are several others all with their ups and downs.

More to the point, though, many of the programs have been around for a while. Photos came about I think in OS X 10.10 in ~2014(maybe it was 10.9-don't remember exactly). For me, with Lightroom, I have enough experience that I can use it quickly and efficiently. Even if I could do everything I do in Lightroom in Photos(I can't, especially on RAW files) it's not as intuitive and Photos also requires a lot more button clicks to access even basic editing controls like exposure, contrast, and even cropping. In Lightroom it's assumed you want to adjust these things and as soon as you pull up a photo all of those controls(and a lot more) are just there rather than having to click a separate button even to bring up the limited editing controls in Photos.

 

[r.harris1]

Why format the memory card in the first place? Why insert the card in the computer when a USB cable will do? I have had a 64GB memory card in my Canon Camcorder since 2018 and it still works great! Everything is backed up of coarse.


Why do you insert the card in a card reader when a USB cable will work just fine?


You don't use Photos????


True

I use a card reader because I prefer it, it’s faster and honestly, that’s what most of us do. Feel free to use a USB cable, there’s no one stopping you. In general I don’t use Photos, though it’s good for what it’s meant for.

 

[jwolf6589]

Why this same argument again? I know you have a vendetta against card readers. There's nothing wrong with importing directly from your camera but for many of us it works better.

1. I cycle through cards while shooting, and often am importing photos from multiple cards. I'd rather not have to worry about making sure my camera battery is charged, etc, and popping cards in and out of the camera unecessarily and instead just stick them into a card reader

2. If I'm working with SD cards(ugggh), all of my cards are UHS-II but not all of my cameras support that. A card reader that supports UHS-II also is faster at import. Even with CF cards, my cameras vary in their max write speed, while my good Lexar card reader can take advantage of the maximum read speed of any CF card on the market. Most of mine are the fastest currently available.

3. Some of my cameras only support USB 2.0. My card readers are USB 3.0. Import, needless to say, is much faster over USB 3.0 than USB 2.0

4. Further to that point, in my side-by-side tests, even with a camera with a 1066x CF card that can write at 1066x speeds and connect over USB 3.0, I find the card reader is still faster

5. A worn/broken USB port on a card reader is much easier and cheaper to fix than one on a camera. Micro-USB-3 doesn't feel particularly sturdy to me.



I personally use Photos for photos from my iPhone mostly for iCloud integration, but for most editing purposes it's not a very capable program. Apple use to have two photo management/editing programs-iPhoto for casual use and Aperture.

A lot of of people who use ILCs/shoot RAW/etc don't find the cataloging capabilities of Photos sufficient or a good match to their workflow. There are several programs used for both cataloging and editing photos. Lightroom is the one I personally use and is one of the popular options(although not the only one). Aperture competed directly with Lightroom. There are several others all with their ups and downs.

More to the point, though, many of the programs have been around for a while. Photos came about I think in OS X 10.10 in ~2014(maybe it was 10.9-don't remember exactly). For me, with Lightroom, I have enough experience that I can use it quickly and efficiently. Even if I could do everything I do in Lightroom in Photos(I can't, especially on RAW files) it's not as intuitive and Photos also requires a lot more button clicks to access even basic editing controls like exposure, contrast, and even cropping. In Lightroom it's assumed you want to adjust these things and as soon as you pull up a photo all of those controls(and a lot more) are just there rather than having to click a separate button even to bring up the limited editing controls in Photos.

I see. So in your situation it makes perfect sense to use a card reader. In my situation it does not. Also importing photos takes like no time. It’s just videos that can take time. I am talking about over USB.

 

[jwolf6589]

I use a card reader because I prefer it, it’s faster and honestly, that’s what most of us do. Feel free to use a USB cable, there’s no one stopping you. In general I don’t use Photos, though it’s good for what it’s meant for.

Do you import video? Or just photos?

 

[mollyc]

@jwolf6589 can you please use the multiquote instead of continually replying????

 

[jwolf6589]

@jwolf6589 can you please use the multiquote instead of continually replying????

How do I do that?

 

[bunnspecial]

I see. So in your situation it makes perfect sense to use a card reader. In my situation it does not. Also importing photos takes like no time. It’s just videos that can take time. I am talking about over USB.

My photos are 80mb each give or take. I can tell you importing 100-200 of them(which is not really that many) takes a not insignificant amount of time by any method.

As I said there's nothing wrong with using your camera if it works for you, but thank you for acknowledging that it makes sense for many of us.

 

[mollyc]

How do I do that?

how does multi-quote work?

Tip 1: As a shortcut, for the last post you want to quote you can press the Quote button rather than the multi-quote button button and the Post Reply button. Tip 2: You can select posts to multi-quote across the pages of a thread. Tip 3: You can select posts to multi-quote in any order...

forums.macrumors.com

Forum rules encourage multi-quote rather than individually quoting and making multiple new messages within a thread.

 

[jwolf6589]

how does multi-quote work?

Tip 1: As a shortcut, for the last post you want to quote you can press the Quote button rather than the multi-quote button button and the Post Reply button. Tip 2: You can select posts to multi-quote across the pages of a thread. Tip 3: You can select posts to multi-quote in any order...

forums.macrumors.com

Forum rules encourage multi-quote rather than individually quoting and making multiple new messages within a thread.

Did it work? I hit the button.

 

[jwolf6589]

My photos are 80mb each give or take. I can tell you importing 100-200 of them(which is not really that many) takes a not insignificant amount of time by any method.

As I said there's nothing wrong with using your camera if it works for you, but thank you for acknowledging that it makes sense for many of us.

I see this makes sense given your situation. My photos are usually up to 3 megabytes each.

 

[AlaskaMoose]

I see this makes sense given your situation. My photos are usually up to 3 megabytes each.

The faster way from me to transfer my photos to the computer is by the use of a card reader, and I accomplish it as follows:

a. I create a new folder on the desktop, and name it so I can easily identify it. For example, "2022SledDogRaces." In this case the ID refers to the sled dog race photos in 2022, and inside of it I create subfolders with names and dates of each dog sled race.

b. I select all the photos in the camera card's folder, and drag them to the appropriate subfolder.

c. Then I eject the card, remove it from the reader, insert it in the camera, and format it. If you don't format the card, sooner or later it will get corrupted.

The Do's and Don'ts of Memory Cards: Tips for Photographers

My name is Jeff Cable, and I'm a photographer based in the San Francisco Bay Area. I previously spent many years of my life as Director of Marketing at

petapixel.com

 

[AlaskaMoose]

I see this makes sense given your situation. My photos are usually up to 3 megabytes each.

It doesn't matter if your photos are 1MB or 300MB. The fastest way to transfer them to your computer is by the use of the card reader of your computer (or a fast card reader), and dragging them to your computer. You can transfer the photos from the camera to the computer using a cable, but that is more involved than just popping the card out of the camera and using the card reader on the side of your MacBook.

 

[r.harris1]

Do you import video? Or just photos?

Photos mostly.