jpegs currupted when connected to pc

MADDSNIPER · 03-23-2013, 09:59 AM

today i took out my sd card and connected it to my card reader on my pc to transfer photos across but ive noticed 4 or 5 of the jpegs seem currupted, they are completly grey! they open ok and give no error but i dont know how this happened. when i put the sd card back into the k-30 it can view them ok. any ideas?

i always 'safely eject hardware' when connecting usb devices so i dont think i damaged them that way.

Na Horuk · 03-23-2013, 11:51 AM

Hey, welcome!
The camera shows you a preview, which is a small thumbnail type photo. So its possible that the thumbnail isn't corrupted, but the rest of the photo is.
Here are the possible errors:
1) during file transfer. If you are using a card reader it could be that. It could also be "Explorer" or whatever software you use if you are using a cable. You can test this by simply trying to transfer those photos using a different computer or different cable/card reader/software. You can also try using an SD card recovery program (like Pandora) to see if the file is on the card or not, and how big it is.
2) SD card. What type of card is it? Some brands are more reliable than others. (my personal experience: Sandisk and Lexar seem to be the most reliable. I have a Panasonic and a Sony card that sometimes give me write errors.) To test if its the card fault you basically need other cards to compare and to see if the errors are consistent or if its just one card. But as far as I know, cards only get worse with time, not better. Sorry for the bad news.
3) Camera. I kind of doubt its the actual camera causing this, but I guess its not impossible. This should be the last thing you check, though. Be sure the camera has the newest firmware, though.

MADDSNIPER · 03-23-2013, 12:58 PM

Hi, thanks for the response. Its a play.com branded card, 16gb class 10. hasnt had much use, mainly just in my car to play mp3s. i have a card reader built into my laptop, i will transferring across to the laptop tomorrow and see if its any different. thanks alot.

Racer X 69 · 03-23-2013, 01:06 PM

Since graduating to digital photography I have come across some anomalies with image files. Sometimes the gray or black files like you mention, sometimes the image loads but is covered with horizontal lines and the colors are screwed up.

As Na Horuk comments, it may be the data getting corrupted in the transfer, or it may be the memory card itself. I tried the file recovery avenue, without success. Whatever happened to the files rendered them totally useless.

I have just chalked it up to something that goes with the process, and moved on. After all, once a digital file gets wanked, there is not much that the average user can do about it. I usually buy the very best memory cards, keep my storage drive in good shape, and burn at least two copies of file backups onto high quality DVD's.

Other than that what can a person do?

**ramseybuckeye** · 03-23-2013, 03:37 PM

Also make sure you have formatted the card in the camera. I had that happen once when I forgot to format a new card. I finish every transfer to the computer by formatting the card. And as Na Horuk stated, some brand's cards are dependable, some are suspect.

**Kerrowdown** · 03-23-2013, 09:58 PM

Originally posted by ramseybuckeye

formatted the card in the camera

This step can really be important, otherwise you sometimes get some really strange happenings, don't ask me to explain why.

When I've transferred my images to other media, I always reformat the card in camera so as I'm ready to go.

MADDSNIPER · 03-24-2013, 04:39 AM

I never did format the card while it was in camera, ill do that today. My thinking was i would always leave all my photos on it as well so it would be another place of backup as such in case i lost them on my pc but ill just start copying them onto an external hd as well as my pc i think.

Anyone use any free online backup solutions? (im not gonna use the phrase 'cloud storage' i hate apple inspired buzz words to sell things to people)

**ramseybuckeye** · 03-24-2013, 05:38 AM

Originally posted by MADDSNIPER

I never did format the card while it was in camera, ill do that today. My thinking was i would always leave all my photos on it as well so it would be another place of backup as such in case i lost them on my pc but ill just start copying them onto an external hd as well as my pc i think.

Anyone use any free online backup solutions? (im not gonna use the phrase 'cloud storage' i hate apple inspired buzz words to sell things to people)

I don't know that I would trust any free online backup service. I use Carbonite, but it's about $60 a year, and it I ever need to restore I hope it works. I've had too many quirky usb drives to trust them. You can burn a few photos to DVDs, it's just time consuming.

MADDSNIPER · 03-27-2013, 11:42 AM

thanks guys, just to update i was able to copy the photos to my laptop no problem so it seems the problem is my cheap card reader that im using on my desktop, not what i expected but easy to replace..

03-23-2013, 09:59 AM	#1
MADDSNIPER Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2013 Photos: Albums Posts: 108	jpegs currupted when connected to pc today i took out my sd card and connected it to my card reader on my pc to transfer photos across but ive noticed 4 or 5 of the jpegs seem currupted, they are completly grey! they open ok and give no error but i dont know how this happened. when i put the sd card back into the k-30 it can view them ok. any ideas? i always 'safely eject hardware' when connecting usb devices so i dont think i damaged them that way.

03-23-2013, 09:58 PM	#6
Kerrowdown PEG Moderator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Highlands of Scotland... "Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand" - William Blake Photos: Gallery Posts: 57,864	Originally posted by ramseybuckeye formatted the card in the camera This step can really be important, otherwise you sometimes get some really strange happenings, don't ask me to explain why. When I've transferred my images to other media, I always reformat the card in camera so as I'm ready to go. Last edited by Kerrowdown; 03-24-2013 at 05:31 AM.

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03-23-2013, 11:51 AM	#2
Na Horuk Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Slovenia, probably Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 11,186	Hey, welcome! The camera shows you a preview, which is a small thumbnail type photo. So its possible that the thumbnail isn't corrupted, but the rest of the photo is. Here are the possible errors: 1) during file transfer. If you are using a card reader it could be that. It could also be "Explorer" or whatever software you use if you are using a cable. You can test this by simply trying to transfer those photos using a different computer or different cable/card reader/software. You can also try using an SD card recovery program (like Pandora) to see if the file is on the card or not, and how big it is. 2) SD card. What type of card is it? Some brands are more reliable than others. (my personal experience: Sandisk and Lexar seem to be the most reliable. I have a Panasonic and a Sony card that sometimes give me write errors.) To test if its the card fault you basically need other cards to compare and to see if the errors are consistent or if its just one card. But as far as I know, cards only get worse with time, not better. Sorry for the bad news. 3) Camera. I kind of doubt its the actual camera causing this, but I guess its not impossible. This should be the last thing you check, though. Be sure the camera has the newest firmware, though.

03-23-2013, 12:58 PM	#3
MADDSNIPER Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2013 Photos: Albums Posts: 108 Original Poster	Hi, thanks for the response. Its a play.com branded card, 16gb class 10. hasnt had much use, mainly just in my car to play mp3s. i have a card reader built into my laptop, i will transferring across to the laptop tomorrow and see if its any different. thanks alot.

03-23-2013, 01:06 PM	#4
Racer X 69 Moderator Man With A Camera Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: The Great Pacific Northwet, in the Land Between Canada and Mexico Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 28,074	Since graduating to digital photography I have come across some anomalies with image files. Sometimes the gray or black files like you mention, sometimes the image loads but is covered with horizontal lines and the colors are screwed up. As Na Horuk comments, it may be the data getting corrupted in the transfer, or it may be the memory card itself. I tried the file recovery avenue, without success. Whatever happened to the files rendered them totally useless. I have just chalked it up to something that goes with the process, and moved on. After all, once a digital file gets wanked, there is not much that the average user can do about it. I usually buy the very best memory cards, keep my storage drive in good shape, and burn at least two copies of file backups onto high quality DVD's. Other than that what can a person do?

03-23-2013, 03:37 PM	#5
ramseybuckeye Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Hampstead, NC Photos: Gallery Posts: 17,295	Also make sure you have formatted the card in the camera. I had that happen once when I forgot to format a new card. I finish every transfer to the computer by formatting the card. And as Na Horuk stated, some brand's cards are dependable, some are suspect.

03-24-2013, 04:39 AM	#7
MADDSNIPER Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2013 Photos: Albums Posts: 108 Original Poster	I never did format the card while it was in camera, ill do that today. My thinking was i would always leave all my photos on it as well so it would be another place of backup as such in case i lost them on my pc but ill just start copying them onto an external hd as well as my pc i think. Anyone use any free online backup solutions? (im not gonna use the phrase 'cloud storage' i hate apple inspired buzz words to sell things to people)

03-24-2013, 05:38 AM	#8
ramseybuckeye Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Hampstead, NC Photos: Gallery Posts: 17,295	Originally posted by MADDSNIPER I never did format the card while it was in camera, ill do that today. My thinking was i would always leave all my photos on it as well so it would be another place of backup as such in case i lost them on my pc but ill just start copying them onto an external hd as well as my pc i think. Anyone use any free online backup solutions? (im not gonna use the phrase 'cloud storage' i hate apple inspired buzz words to sell things to people) I don't know that I would trust any free online backup service. I use Carbonite, but it's about $60 a year, and it I ever need to restore I hope it works. I've had too many quirky usb drives to trust them. You can burn a few photos to DVDs, it's just time consuming.

03-27-2013, 11:42 AM	#9
MADDSNIPER Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2013 Photos: Albums Posts: 108 Original Poster	thanks guys, just to update i was able to copy the photos to my laptop no problem so it seems the problem is my cheap card reader that im using on my desktop, not what i expected but easy to replace..