Any digital camera experts around?

[Buckeye33]

I'll just go ahead and start this off by saying I'm about 95% sure I'm screwed.

Now, on with the question/story.

In the drunkness that was St. Patricks Day, the memory card on our digital camera somehow seems to have been erased.

We were not smart and never made CDs or put all the pics on the computer. We have about 200 pics that I had loaded onto the computer but that was over 9 months ago so we've lost about 500-600 pictures.

If someone knows some weird thing I can't think of I'm pretty resigned to think we've lost them forever. I hate that because there were many important pictures on this card. I am kicking myself quite a bit because my wife and I both said many times how we needed to load them to the computer or take them and have them burned on a CD.

Anyways, I'm getting more upset as I type this up.

If anyone has any ideas or would just like to end the very very slight hope I have that something could be done, please just tell me. I will not be angry with you

Thanks

[George Anderson]

I'll just go ahead and start this off by saying I'm about 95% sure I'm screwed.

Now, on with the question/story.

In the drunkness that was St. Patricks Day, the memory card on our digital camera somehow seems to have been erased.

We were not smart and never made CDs or put all the pics on the computer. We have about 200 pics that I had loaded onto the computer but that was over 9 months ago so we've lost about 500-600 pictures.

If someone knows some weird thing I can't think of I'm pretty resigned to think we've lost them forever. I hate that because there were many important pictures on this card. I am kicking myself quite a bit because my wife and I both said many times how we needed to load them to the computer or take them and have them burned on a CD.

Anyways, I'm getting more upset as I type this up.

If anyone has any ideas or would just like to end the very very slight hope I have that something could be done, please just tell me. I will not be angry with you

Thanks

Take your card to a camera store and see if they can retrieve the pics for you. If you just erased them then its likely they can retrieve them, if you reformatted them you may be in trouble.

We accidentally reformatted pics we took in Russia. The camera store was not optimistic they would retrieve them but by some miracle they did.

[WVPacman]

I'll just go ahead and start this off by saying I'm about 95% sure I'm screwed.

Now, on with the question/story.

In the drunkness that was St. Patricks Day, the memory card on our digital camera somehow seems to have been erased.

We were not smart and never made CDs or put all the pics on the computer. We have about 200 pics that I had loaded onto the computer but that was over 9 months ago so we've lost about 500-600 pictures.

If someone knows some weird thing I can't think of I'm pretty resigned to think we've lost them forever. I hate that because there were many important pictures on this card. I am kicking myself quite a bit because my wife and I both said many times how we needed to load them to the computer or take them and have them burned on a CD.

Anyways, I'm getting more upset as I type this up.

If anyone has any ideas or would just like to end the very very slight hope I have that something could be done, please just tell me. I will not be angry with you

Thanks

Sorry to hear about that man,or should I say im sorry I read this?? b/c I just got a dgital camera and don't know crap about it.So your post is getting me ready for what is going to happen to me lol.

Seriously im sorry to here about your lost pictures!!

[halcyon]

When your camera is connected to your computer via usb cable, the camera probably acts as just another drive, correct? You can click on the new drive and view your pics one by one. If you can do this, then I would imagine that you could run a recovery program on the drive and see what turns up. I've accidentally deleted data on a thumb/flash drive before and recovered it, so you might still have a fighting chance.

Look into some of the free (or trial) programs that recover deleted files. I used one that simply scanned whatever folder or drive you told it to for deleted files. It gave you a list of the files and allowed you to recover whichever ones you choose. Good luck!

[LawFive]

On most cameras, if the card is in the slot, it takes several very deliberate steps to erase the card...not sure if it could/would have truly been erased in a drunken stupor unless you were really trying or just really unlucky. Take it to a techie and I bet they can retrieve something...

[oneupper]

You can recover photos from a memory card much in the same way you can recover files "erased" from a hard drive. The files are usually not really "erased", but removed from the directory.

I have a program called "Picture Rescue" which allows me to do just that.
(and has saved my butt a couple of times).
However it is not freeware. I would look for something similar in the freeware/shareware sites.

[RedsMan3203]

You shouldn't be in trouble... I've done some work in data recovery... So it can be done.... Just look around for some software....

[Buckeye33]

I've taken everyones advice and checked out some free software but it seems that when my camera contects it does not come up as a "removeable drive" so I think this means I need to go purchase a memory card reader.

I'll probably be going to purchase one of these tomorrow and trying again.

[Red Leader]

I've taken everyones advice and checked out some free software but it seems that when my camera contects it does not come up as a "removeable drive" so I think this means I need to go purchase a memory card reader.

I'll probably be going to purchase one of these tomorrow and trying again.

You may want to take it to a camera store like Click! (if those are still around), MotoFoto, etc. They might be able to recover the data for you for free so you wouldn't have to spend money to fix your problem. Also, while you are there they can then burn your photos onto a CD. Prices are pretty reasonable for that.

[George Anderson]

You may want to take it to a camera store like Click! (if those are still around), MotoFoto, etc. They might be able to recover the data for you for free so you wouldn't have to spend money to fix your problem. Also, while you are there they can then burn your photos onto a CD. Prices are pretty reasonable for that.

Exactly, I took mine to a camera store and they retrieved the pics for like $80.

[zombielady]

Is your camera turned on when you have it connected. That was my problem... The husband fixed it for me... I know I know! Seems like a stupid mistake, but it happens. And if my husband tells you anything about that week that I cried because my camera was broken... and all the time it was just a dead battery- don't believe him, he's full of lies... lies I tell ya!

[zombielady]

Is your camera turned on when you have it connected. That was my problem... The husband fixed it for me... I know I know! Seems like a stupid mistake, but it happens. And if my husband tells you anything about that week that I cried because my camera was broken... and all the time it was just a dead battery- don't believe him, he's full of lies... lies I tell ya!

No.. I'm a brunette...

[WebScorpion]

No.. I'm a brunette...

...and apparently, a MIND READER!