reliability of current memory cards

[alight]

I would like to ask you what your experience is in regards to reliability of

the current crop of memory cards. Just recently I got rid of all of my film

stuff and got into digital 100%. I already lost several pictures, SW unable to

open the jpg's and showing 0 KB size for them. When I put the SD card (2GB)back

in the camera, it also couldn't show anything. I never lost any picture

shooting film (though I got some scratches made by the lab). Thanks for your

answers.

[byronlawrence]

I, with memorycards for the camera. format them (in the camera) after every use) and don't use them for anything other than for the camera. don't write to the cards with the computer, ever. there is no need.

[jcuknz]

I have only re-formatted one card once when I thought I was having problems way back. I use Windows Explorer to make transfers, either directly from the camera or with card in reader. I suggest you look to your procedures becuase I cannot see how a file can get lost unless one makes a wrong click with the mouse.

 

First I copy all files to my 'archive' folder on a second hard drive, and then move each file to an appropriate folder in my 'working' HD. The few bytes left occupied on my CF/SD cards is not worth bothering about ... but I rarely fill a card up before downloading to computer.

 

I have swopped CF cards between cameras in ignorance :-) without any problems but do believe in formattting in the camera to start with, not a computer etc.

 

I do think it is your fingers not the card that is your problem. Sorry :-)

[chuck_c_charlottenc_]

This is a comment for Byron, too.

 

I agree with you that you should never write to the card other than by using THE camera that you use the card with. It's not worth the risk to have the camera think that the card might be corrupted because it finds something that it didn't expect because you write to it using the PC. There is no reason to even format the card on the PC unless it's one of the "Last Ditch" options when you're having serious problems with a specific card.

 

But, I do copy my photos from a hard drive photo

folder "PicturesToPrint" to a 256MB CF card that I then take to the photo store to have printed. I found a great deal on four 256MB CF cards for a $1 each. And I only use these cards for that specific purpose. This saves me from burning CDs... No bid deal, but every dime counts.

 

To get back to Michael's question... I've never had a problem with the camera creating the photo files and I've never had a problem reading all of my photo files from the card through a card reader. I also always use Windows Explorer to copy my photo files to the hard drive. And I use Windows Explorer to totally manage all of my photo folders and files on the hard drive.

 

Only format the card on the camera that you use the card on.

 

All of my Compact Flash cards for my Canon 20D are SanDisk Extreme III or Ultra II's.

 

My SD cards for my Point and Shoots are a mixture of Toshiba, PNY, Lexar and SanDisk... but all of them are less than high speed cards.

 

//Chuck

[brucecyr]

For the record, when I informed SanDisk my recently purchased Ultra II card was constantly getting corrupted files, they advised me to first format in the camera, and then on the computer if the first step didn't solve the problem.

 

I told them I don't make frivolous complaints, that I always format a card when I insert it into the camera and that I wanted an RMA without further mishmash -- which I got.

[byronlawrence]

Chuck C,, yea, you make valid points, and my statement was a little blankety,, but it was made in the spirit of an ideal.

 

as a side note personally I burn all my jpegs (the processed raw files) to a disc with a sequential file naming (I go through and batch process all my photos for the last several months) and create a folder with (usually hundreds) of photos, then i burn them to a cd and take that to the photo store.. we also have a 1 gig jump drive that we could use, but the reason we use cd is so that we can put it into the photo album and hopefully some future person might find use of it., anyway that is how we do it here

[Spearhead]

Reliability is a statistical measurement, not a collection of anecdotes. Talk to the manufacturer for reliability information.

 

FWIW, I have been using cards for six years, including the original IBM microdrive, and have never had a single failure. That's after at least 15 cards. But, like I said, that's not an indicator of reliability.

[chris_newkumet]

While all the above is true, be aware that there is a known problem with Lexar cards in Canon cameras shooting RAW. Neither company has fully fessed up to it yet, but it's real. It's happened to me twice, and to two other photographers in my studio. This is not user-error stuff...there's a bug in the works somewhere. My advice, DO NOT use Lexar cards in Canon on RAW, particularly if someone is paying you to shoot. Stick to Sandisk Extreme IIIs.