fotografz Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 People may disagree as to how to avoid such problems, sometimes vehemently, but it ends up providing a wealth of information to consider ... and people do tend to be shaken out of complacency and listen when it is connected to a real life scenario ... which may, just may, save someone else from experiencing the same thing. IMO, that is the greater good this forum serves to provide. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
felipe1 Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 Hi I perfectly know how you feel. I do few weddings and have not ever had such problems, but, after covering a UEFA Champions League match between Sevilla FC and Fenerbahce SK, a 4 Gb card containing most of the pictures got corrupted and I had a really bad experience. But even if I was still able to recover 90% of the files (I did NOT format the card nor wrote anything else into it), and even if I was covering the match only for my own pleasure (I am a big Sevilla FC fan!) and for expanding my stock collection, I was totally desolated, because that night I felt like you (free, creative, relaxed) and I remembered well how good pics I had taken... I tried several programs and only a recovering utility by Sandisk (you can download it from their website and it's freely distributed with most of their cards) did the work. It was kind of magic! But, as others said, your case is really hard, after having formatted and written into the card... A friend of me, wedding photographer, only uses 1Gb cards, he hates to put all the eggs onto the same basket... It's a smart, cheap solution. Just remember how many film rolls we used to carry... 1 Gb cards are still much lighter and cheaper, and let you take more pictures than a roll... And regarding your customers, well, supposing you cannot recover the files (let's hope you can!), as others have also said, sincerity and discounts (if not doing the entire job for free) are the better way to deal with them. Best of lucks!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin_elliott Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 Marc, You offer such valuable pedagogy ; borne from experience and common sense. I and others I'm sure, are deeply indebted for that. . Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kate callahan Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 I'm so sorry ... I know how horrible this kind of thing can be. I got muddy at one of my sessions and quickly threw my pants -- and memory card -- in the washer when I got home. You just feel like such a dope. A recovery service actually did get my pictures back, though. I know that your situation is different, but I hope that someone might be able to help you recover something. If it were me, I'd tell them the truth, give them a full refund, and then offer them a free "day-after" session. Of course, they may be so angry that they don't want anything more to do with you ... but hopefully not. Perhaps you can shoot some really amazing portraits of them that they'll love so much it will lessen the pain. The one positive thing is that you'll never, EVER do this again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timberwulf Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 OP: I saw your message about not reformatting the card. That's great news. So long as the file system corruption from deleting the older images manually (by the way folks - NEVER EVER use that little trash can button on your camera for any reason - I've repeatedly heard of it causing issues like this) didn't result in new images going in over other new images that you wanted to keep, I'd place some good odds on you getting a good recovery. As to used vs. unused cards - the card wallet that goes on my belt has little red flaps that you can put over top of used cards. When I put a used card into a slot, my finger automatically yanks the little flap out and it provides a visual and tactile indicator that the card/battery isn't to be used again. As with others, I don't format cards at the event, and no card gets reformatted after the event until the images on it are dumped to 2 hard drives and a DVD, and all three copies are verified for completeness. If, during event preparation, I see files on a card, I verify that those files are all on my two backup drives before getting my fingers anywhere near a format button. Best of luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vic_. Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 Sorry to hear of your situation, but glad that you are on the way to recovery. What backup systems do you use? Assuming that you haven't lost anything in the CF or SD cards. I'm not a WF, but I have three separate external hard drives, and back up all the pics onto them, when I remember, which is not often enough. They are in different locations in the home, so I feel reasonably safe from loss. What's your foolproof plan? (Since you're professionals, it should be more robust.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vic_. Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 WF = Wedding Fotog. (Spelling is not my forte!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonj Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 Tell them the truth and refund a percentage of the money. I once missed a bridal shoot due to a misunderstanding I felt the same way she drove over an hour had her hair done and I was a no show. I told them the truth and they where very understanding. Good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
er1 Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 I believe a full refund is in order. I would also offer to revisit the church with as many of their friends as they choose at no charge. This may soften the blow somewhat. Honesty is the best policy and without that you have no ethics... it will also allow you to sleep again. I believe your odds are beyond slim for your card recovery but every member of this forum would love to hear that you make a full recovery of your missing images. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john fleshin Posted August 28, 2008 Share Posted August 28, 2008 My very techy friend tells me he has rarely heard of accidental loss from cards, but that it should be possible to corrupt cards with static electricity. Has anyone here lost any data from flash memory this way? Many errors can likely be avoided or reduced by careful procedures, but storage of filled cards may require specific treatment to protect the contents, and they are small enough for any number of unpleasant things to occur in pockets. I have a couple of Canon wallets for cards, they seem well made. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james_barnaby Posted August 28, 2008 Share Posted August 28, 2008 I did this same thing over the weekend but luckily realized it immediately so I was able to re shoot the formals and haven't touched the card since. I'm not a pro and this was a gift. It worked out except for having to tell everyone about it, which had to be done so I could re shoot. I got lucky to say the least. I knew better and I have no excuse for the screw up. It wont happen again. Unfortunately I use Oly gear and have been told that once the card is re formatted all images are lost, not that I wont try anyways. If anyone knows of a way to recover from a card re formatted by a Oly cam. I sure would like to know. Someone asked about the E 3 and it'd dual card slots. The xd card slot is good for additional space but there is no means of writing to both cards at once that I know of. You could copy the images to it as a back up but it takes forever and is limited to 2 gig cards. I do hope to continue on the way to shooting weddings, aside for the above, I really enjoyed it. I'll wait till I have taken more classes and put in some time as a second/ assistant before I'd ever charge someone. BTW This is my fist post here, I was directed to this thread after discussing my issue on another forum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james_barnaby Posted August 28, 2008 Share Posted August 28, 2008 Well, it looks like I was told wrong, at least in part. So far one program has pulled the JPGs off but none have found the raws. I shoot both in case raw editing isn't required, in this case it may have just saved my butt. lol I still hope to get the Raws back but 157 formal shots are better in jpg than nothing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james_barnaby Posted August 28, 2008 Share Posted August 28, 2008 One more update A program called ZAR was able to get all but the grooms formals off the card in both Raw and Jpeg. In fact none of the programs tried could find the grooms shots, which were the last shots taken. In any event, thanks to the forum for inspiring me to try recovering anything at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
savagesax Posted August 29, 2008 Share Posted August 29, 2008 Send me your phone number and I'll call you. I just saved 400 plus shots from Judes wedding a few weeks ago. savagesax at aol dot com. Prices vary from $10 to $600, but I've never charged $600 yet. If I can't get the files back most likely no one can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
savagesax Posted August 29, 2008 Share Posted August 29, 2008 Sorry for not responding sooner, I've actually been away doing photography and also doing hard drive data recovery for a local hospital. It's kept me awake all night and away from photo.net. I actually just photographed some Playboy models! It was a hard job, but someone had to do it! Hopefully it will be an on going job, which I will hate. <joking of course> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imagesbylori Posted August 30, 2008 Share Posted August 30, 2008 oh my god, im so sorry. that sucks so bad. i have nightmares about doing that. But, it happened, theres nothing you can do now. Are you a member of the PPA? you might be covered to re-shoot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve_crist Posted August 31, 2008 Share Posted August 31, 2008 "I would really consider the use of much larger cards (Sandisk or Transcend 16gb are my preferred flavors) as you will not have this issue and therefore can likely leave the card in cam from leaving your office till you DL the images to you computer." Having an entire wedding on only one card would be risky at best. Maybe I'm nuts but I subscribe to the mentality that anything can break so I use multiple 2 gig cards in my Canon 5D. I number the cards and shoot with card 1 first and work up to the highest numbered card. Weddings are fast paced and can get confusing if you don't have a good method of operation. I've never had a card go bad but I'm very cautious with my handling of all my equipment. Additionally I never re-format a card until I have 2 copies of the data stored on DVD (not just hard drive - they can break too). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bpearl Posted August 31, 2008 Author Share Posted August 31, 2008 AFTER ALL: All images have been recovered! The card was jammed up due to my deleting of 100 RAW (with corresponding large/fine JPEGs) during the wedding shoot. Thank to those who offered feedback, support and all the information and opinions. I'm sure other "humans" will learn from this mistake. Some will refund 100% and offer costly re-shoots, maybe even get punched in the nose or cry themselves to sleep for a month....and the others will send their card to Tallyn's and get it all back and wake up from the nightmare. Thank you times one million to Scott Tallyn of Tallyn's.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ilkka_nissila Posted August 31, 2008 Share Posted August 31, 2008 Congrats! I sort of expected this after you noted that you'd just deleted some files and the system had gotten confused (instead of the original explanation). Post some of the best shots if you can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
y_cryotan Posted August 31, 2008 Share Posted August 31, 2008 If you google it there are lots of software allows you to recover some files even after you formatted your card. I have used it personally and they are magically good. Tan [Moderator note: Website link removed - No signature links allowed] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sam_ellis Posted September 1, 2008 Share Posted September 1, 2008 B. Pearl- THANK GOODNESS!!! You have a happy ending and can save face to your client. You learned a valuable lesson and shared it with the rest of us. There is a lot to digest from the 100 posts generated here and each reader will take away something different. Thank you for sharing your heartache and allowing others to learn from your experience as well as everyone else's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
annie_goldman Posted September 1, 2008 Share Posted September 1, 2008 I'm so glad to read that you recovered your images... congratulations!!! Any chance of you sharing one of those pub shots with us! :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joshloeser Posted September 1, 2008 Share Posted September 1, 2008 Hooray! Many congratulations to you, and I'm glad everything has been recovered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imagesbylori Posted September 1, 2008 Share Posted September 1, 2008 oh yay! i was having sympathy anxiety for you! =) So, you hadnt written over the card in the first place? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonj Posted September 1, 2008 Share Posted September 1, 2008 After reading this I just backed up everything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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