[zedex99]

I'm using a *istDL which I bought used. XnView will show the shutter count for Nikon in EXIF info. For Pentax, the shutter count line is there but the count is not shown. I used Check shutter count online - My Shutter Count.com and was told that my count is 888. That jibes with a query with same camera a couple of days ago. So all that looks good, except that I think I read somewhere that Pentax only counts to 10000 and rolls over starting again at 1. Does anyone know at what point Pentax makerware shutter count reverts to zero?

[deejjjaaaa]

I'm using a *istDL which I bought used. XnView will show the shutter count for Nikon in EXIF info. For Pentax, the shutter count line is there but the count is not shown. I used Check shutter count online - My Shutter Count.com and was told that my count is 888. That jibes with a query with same camera a couple of days ago. So all that looks good, except that I think I read somewhere that Pentax only counts to 10000 and rolls over starting again at 1. Does anyone know at what point Pentax makerware shutter count reverts to zero?

you are mixing the files naming (those IMGPnnnn.xxx) w/ shutter count.

[hcc]

To know your camera shutter count, use the freware software Photome (PhotoME - Exif, IPTC & ICC Metadata Editor). Photome read all the EXIF data of your photographs including the shutter count.

Highly recommended.

Hope that the comment will help...

[zedex99]

It appears that Pentax makerware precludes easy reading of the shutter count. That's pretty much what the forum at imatch said. If the shutter count rolls over at 10,000 then the reading of 888 could be 888; 10888; 20888 and etc. so in effect the shutter count is useless as the shutter should go 100,000 actuations before replacement. Right?

[hcc]

It appears that Pentax makerware precludes easy reading of the shutter count. That's pretty much what the forum at imatch said. If the shutter count rolls over at 10,000 then the reading of 888 could be 888; 10888; 20888 and etc. so in effect the shutter count is useless as the shutter should go 100,000 actuations before replacement. Right?

You misunderstand and confuse filenames and shutter counts.

"the shutter count rolls over at 10,000" ???? - This is UNTRUE.

Please read carefully the earlier posts and learn the differences between filenames and shutter counts.

[zedex99]

OK - so what is true? Does the shutter count go to 99,999?

[twitch]

I've clocked my K-x having taken about 17k pics with it. From memory at 10k images it went from something like IMGP9999.DNG to _IMG0001.DNG. I'm not sure though if that is Aperture adding an underscore to the file name to make it unique, or the camera, but definitely you only get 4 digits not 5 in the image count file name.

[Scottnorwo]

using photome (free download) my shutter count is 62461. My file names have rolled over 6 times during the life of my K10D. Use photome and you will find your shutter count

[noblepa]

It appears that Pentax makerware precludes easy reading of the shutter count. That's pretty much what the forum at imatch said. If the shutter count rolls over at 10,000 then the reading of 888 could be 888; 10888; 20888 and etc. so in effect the shutter count is useless as the shutter should go 100,000 actuations before replacement. Right?

As deejjjaaaa said, you seem to be confusing shutter count and image name. THEY ARE TWO COMPLETELY DIFFERENT THINGS.

The image file name begins at IMGP0001.jpg and continues until it reaches IMGP9999.jpg, at which point it rolls over to IMGP0001.jpg again. However, the filename can be changed or reset at will. Put a memory card with a filename that is NOT the next one in sequence and your camera will pick that name up and begin sequential numbering from that point on.

The shutter count is an internal counter that is not accessable from the menu of your camera. There is absolutely no way for you to reset this internal counter, either deliberately or accidentally. It is recorded in the EXIF data of each image, along with a lot of other information, such as shutter speed, aperture, time, date, ISO setting, etc. The EXIF data can be viewed with several different programs, such as PhotoME, Exiftools or Opanda. Many photo editting software will display some or all of the EXIF data, as well.

To repeat, the image file name is ABSOLUTELY NOT TIED TO THE SHUTTER COUNT. AS I said, the image name automatically resets after 9999 and you can reset it at any time you want. The shutter count never, ever, ever, ever, ever resets.

Your statement above is backwards. The image name is useless for deteriming the "mileage" on your camera. The shutter count is absolutely reliable. Its sort of like the difference between the odometer (shutter count) and the trip odometer (image file name) on your car. The odometer is not resetable, while the trip odo is.

And, BTW, this naming convention is not of Pentax' invention. It is some sort of industry standard.

[zedex99]

Hello Paul

I am not confusing shutter count and image name. I can read the shutter count of each of my four Nikon cameras in the EXIF info in XnView. It appears that Pentax has not chosen to share the makerware which decodes the shutter count with either XnView or IMatch as neither will read the count. The EXIF line is is there but is filled with special characters like you get with Alt+numlocks, and does not show a shutter count. What software do you use to determine the shutter count on a used camera when you buy one?

In any case I'm dropping this, I have determined that the last three digits of my shutter count were 888 a day and a half ago. myshuttercount.com supplied the info when I uploaded a photo.

[TomK]

What software do you use to determine the shutter count on a used camera when you buy one?

Perhaps if you read post #3 in this thread by hcc you would get your answer.

[noblepa]

Hello Paul

I am not confusing shutter count and image name. I can read the shutter count of each of my four Nikon cameras in the EXIF info in XnView. It appears that Pentax has not chosen to share the makerware which decodes the shutter count with either XnView or IMatch as neither will read the count. The EXIF line is is there but is filled with special characters like you get with Alt+numlocks, and does not show a shutter count. What software do you use to determine the shutter count on a used camera when you buy one?

In any case I'm dropping this, I have determined that the last three digits of my shutter count were 888 a day and a half ago. myshuttercount.com supplied the info when I uploaded a photo.

Sorry. However, it appears to me that you are using the terms incorrectly. The SHUTTER COUNT on a Pentax camera never, ever rolls over or resets, EVER. There is no way to do it even if you wanted to. You keep referring the the shutter count rolling over. That is simply wrong.

FILE NAMES **DO** roll over after reaching 9999.

I have never used Xnview, so I don't know anything about it. In fact, I've never even heard of it.

I like the freeware program called exiftools, but it is for Windows PCs only. I don't believe there is a Mac version. There are quite a few freeware programs that can read the shutter count from the exif data.

I've been in the IT business since 1972 and I've never heard the term "makerware", so I'm not sure what you're talking about. From the context, you seem to be referring to the camera's firmware, but again, I'm not sure. You seem to be claiming that Pentax has not made the internal format of the exif data available to third-party software developers. I don't know if exif data is proprietary or not. I don't think it is. I believe that exif data is defined by an industry standard. In any event, there are a lot of third-party programs that can display or ever modify the exif data from Pentax cameras.

[rfg]

I've been in the IT business since 1972 and I've never heard the term "makerware", so I'm not sure what you're talking about.

I assume he is referring to the "Maker Notes" section of the exif data: this is proprietary camera specific data and, as mentioned above, some exif utilities can read it. My k-r writes an impressive amount of data to this section.

[jorgemarmo@K100D]

.... let's see.....
my experience with my k100d it that:
- the files number has not already reached the 99999999.... but this number doesn't take into account things like manual WB and "digital preview" (yeah.... kind of a useless first approach to live view...) and cleaning sensor (which I'almost sure is taken into account for the shutter count)

about XnView (great program! IMOHO) under the exif/Maker Notes/Shutter Count appear some unreadable characters.... for me is like " é?âg " however on Ubuntu XnViewMP (for linux and mac) has the same "exif" tab, but also a second one called "ExifTool" in there I can read the shutter count! same number that appears on PhotoME and slightly higher than the file number

[boriscleto]

I have never used Xnview, so I don't know anything about it. In fact, I've never even heard of it.

I like the freeware program called exiftools, but it is for Windows PCs only. I don't believe there is a Mac version. There are quite a few freeware programs that can read the shutter count from the exif data.

about XnView (great program! IMOHO) under the exif/Maker Notes/Shutter Count appear some unreadable characters.... for me is like " é?âg " however on Ubuntu XnViewMP (for linux and mac) has the same "exif" tab, but also a second one called "ExifTool" in there I can read the shutter count! same number that appears on PhotoME and slightly higher than the file number

XnView is a free cross-platform image viewer. I hadn't ever heard of it before this thread either.

exifTool on the other hand is not a Window$ only program. exifTool is an application and Perl library written by Phil Harvey. There are command line versions available for Linux and Mac OS X. The exifTool GUI is Window$ only. Besides the XnView implementation of exifTool, Graphic Converter has one as well. The command line version is very powerful.

XnView - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

ExifTool by Phil Harvey

ExifTool by Phil Harvey