K-50 doesn't tell you when SD card is full!

**hman** · 08-24-2015, 05:55 AM

Almost had a heart attack when K-50 shutter button was not responsive. Fresh battery; same behavior no matter what lens I tried. Went to the manual, and in trouble shooting section gave full media card as one of the reasons for no action from shutter button. And that's what I had as empty card eliminated anxiety. It's interesting that no message appears. If you have a similar situation, check the/change the card.

**pepperberry farm** · 08-24-2015, 06:16 AM

how many shots did you have on the card?

**hman** · 08-24-2015, 06:57 AM

Looks like 700 shots, in RAW on an 8 GB card

Adam · 08-24-2015, 12:48 PM

Originally posted by hman

Almost had a heart attack when K-50 shutter button was not responsive. Fresh battery; same behavior no matter what lens I tried. Went to the manual, and in trouble shooting section gave full media card as one of the reasons for no action from shutter button. And that's what I had as empty card eliminated anxiety. It's interesting that no message appears. If you have a similar situation, check the/change the card.

A message should normally be displayed on the rear LCD. Was the card locked perhaps?

Adam
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**hman** · 08-24-2015, 12:57 PM

Originally posted by Adam

A message should normally be displayed on the rear LCD. Was the card locked perhaps?

Card was unlocked and no message on the rear LCD. Actual # images was 512 (7 of 8 GB) per Lightroom import from card.

Very interesting...

Harvey

narual · 08-24-2015, 01:53 PM

K3 doesn't say anything to me when card 2 is full. Just stops working. Eventually I notice that there are 0 shots remaining and correct the problem. Mostly ran into it before I shoved the FLU card into a drawer and put a second 64 gig card in. I don't know that I've ever run out of space on card 1 since switching to Pentax.

**RKKS08** · 08-25-2015, 11:06 AM

Maybe the problem is, that the camera does only know how many bytes on the card are still unused.
But it cannot know - not even roughly, as this is highly settings dependend - how many bytes storing of the next (not yet taken) picture will need.

My K200D I set it to show the remaining shots in the VF, and, pressing the center button, also on the top display. But this number is calculated very conservatively and often seems to have no real relation to reality.

I think with at least one of my older Pentax P&S models, the camera just stopped working with a warning, when also the buffer was full. Some or most of these models had a buffer surviving switching off, which was good enough for at least 1 picture in the highest resolution and jpeg quality.

Last edited by RKKS08; 08-25-2015 at 11:07 AM. Reason: Typing

narual · 08-25-2015, 12:38 PM

If you're not screwing around with settings from one shot to the next, it's a pretty accurate count. When you see it go under 100, 50, whatever, switch cards. Simple enough.

But really, 8 gigs? Get a bigger card. You can get a very nice, fast, reliable Sandisk Extreme Pro card for $30 for a 32 gig or $50 for a 64 gig card. Even a $20 16 gig card would double your available space and probably decrease time between bursts, but the minimum I'd consider is the 64.
http://www.amazon.com/SanDisk-Extreme-UHS-1-SDHC-Memory/dp/B005LFT3GG/

pentasonic49 · 08-25-2015, 01:54 PM

What worries me with large cards is if they fail or get lost, you have lost a large number of pics.

**pepperberry farm** · 08-25-2015, 04:06 PM

Originally posted by pentasonic49

What worries me with large cards is if they fail or get lost, you have lost a large number of pics.

unless you pull your pictures off the card after every shoot -- why would keep images on the card?

mee · 08-25-2015, 04:59 PM

Originally posted by pepperberry farm

unless you pull your pictures off the card after every shoot -- why would keep images on the card?

I know someone who claims they never take the photos off their SD cards.. they buy new ones when they get full. They say they have a whole drawer full of them!!!!

I wonder how common is this behavior...

mee · 08-25-2015, 08:51 PM

btw.. doesn't you camera have a counter at the bottom? My K-x, K-r, K-30, and K-5II all have had them.. bottom, right corner of the large LED panel on the back of the camera. And also on the top LCD panel on the K-5II. When one is out of room on the card, the counter should read '0' -- Are you saying you have no counter whatsoever on your K-50?

**Nakedgun** · 08-25-2015, 09:48 PM

Originally posted by mee

btw.. doesn't you camera have a counter at the bottom? My K-x, K-r, K-30, and K-5II all have had them.. bottom, right corner of the large LED panel on the back of the camera. And also on the top LCD panel on the K-5II. When one is out of room on the card, the counter should read '0' -- Are you saying you have no counter whatsoever on your K-50?

Yep, counter display, bottom right corner on my wife's K-50.

**hman** · 08-26-2015, 05:15 AM

Originally posted by Nakedgun

Yep, counter display, bottom right corner on my wife's K-50.

Yes, there is a counter on my K-50. I never noticed it before and I have always "emptied" my cards much sooner- like within days of last image. So, never needed to pay attention. This time I just kept shooting. One learns something new everyday, and I appreciate everyone's replies.

narual · 08-26-2015, 09:06 AM

Originally posted by pentasonic49

What worries me with large cards is if they fail or get lost, you have lost a large number of pics.

Why would you do that?

I don't necessarily format my cards every time I take pictures (and sometimes when I forget, I thank Pentax for allowing you to zoom playback mode out to a calendar view and delete entire days worth of images at a time), but I do download the photos from them at the end of every day. Sometimes two or three times in one day, when I'm on vacation and have downtime between outings (my wife likes to nap a lot).

Cards are for temporary storage of images.

08-24-2015, 05:55 AM	#1
hman Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: WEST CHESTER, PA Photos: Gallery Posts: 299	K-50 doesn't tell you when SD card is full! Almost had a heart attack when K-50 shutter button was not responsive. Fresh battery; same behavior no matter what lens I tried. Went to the manual, and in trouble shooting section gave full media card as one of the reasons for no action from shutter button. And that's what I had as empty card eliminated anxiety. It's interesting that no message appears. If you have a similar situation, check the/change the card.

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08-24-2015, 06:16 AM	#2
pepperberry farm amateur dirt farmer Join Date: Dec 2014 Location: probably out in a field somewhere... Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 41,781	how many shots did you have on the card?

08-24-2015, 06:57 AM	#3
hman Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: WEST CHESTER, PA Photos: Gallery Posts: 299 Original Poster	Looks like 700 shots, in RAW on an 8 GB card

08-24-2015, 12:48 PM	#4
Adam Administrator Site Webmaster Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Arizona Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 51,609	Originally posted by hman Almost had a heart attack when K-50 shutter button was not responsive. Fresh battery; same behavior no matter what lens I tried. Went to the manual, and in trouble shooting section gave full media card as one of the reasons for no action from shutter button. And that's what I had as empty card eliminated anxiety. It's interesting that no message appears. If you have a similar situation, check the/change the card. A message should normally be displayed on the rear LCD. Was the card locked perhaps? Adam PentaxForums.com Webmaster (Site Usage Guide \| Site Help \| My Photography) PentaxForums.com server and development costs are user-supported. You can help cover these costs by donating or purchasing one of our Pentax eBooks. Or, buy your photo gear from our affiliates, Adorama, B&H Photo, KEH, or Topaz Labs, and get FREE Marketplace access - click here to see how! Trusted Pentax retailers:

08-24-2015, 12:57 PM	#5
hman Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: WEST CHESTER, PA Photos: Gallery Posts: 299 Original Poster	Originally posted by Adam A message should normally be displayed on the rear LCD. Was the card locked perhaps? Card was unlocked and no message on the rear LCD. Actual # images was 512 (7 of 8 GB) per Lightroom import from card. Very interesting... Harvey

08-24-2015, 01:53 PM	#6
narual Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: South Bend (Notre Dame), Indiana Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,988	K3 doesn't say anything to me when card 2 is full. Just stops working. Eventually I notice that there are 0 shots remaining and correct the problem. Mostly ran into it before I shoved the FLU card into a drawer and put a second 64 gig card in. I don't know that I've ever run out of space on card 1 since switching to Pentax.

08-25-2015, 11:06 AM	#7
RKKS08 Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Frankfurt am Main Posts: 1,241	Maybe the problem is, that the camera does only know how many bytes on the card are still unused. But it cannot know - not even roughly, as this is highly settings dependend - how many bytes storing of the next (not yet taken) picture will need. My K200D I set it to show the remaining shots in the VF, and, pressing the center button, also on the top display. But this number is calculated very conservatively and often seems to have no real relation to reality. I think with at least one of my older Pentax P&S models, the camera just stopped working with a warning, when also the buffer was full. Some or most of these models had a buffer surviving switching off, which was good enough for at least 1 picture in the highest resolution and jpeg quality. Last edited by RKKS08; 08-25-2015 at 11:07 AM. Reason: Typing

08-25-2015, 12:38 PM	#8
narual Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: South Bend (Notre Dame), Indiana Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,988	If you're not screwing around with settings from one shot to the next, it's a pretty accurate count. When you see it go under 100, 50, whatever, switch cards. Simple enough. But really, 8 gigs? Get a bigger card. You can get a very nice, fast, reliable Sandisk Extreme Pro card for $30 for a 32 gig or $50 for a 64 gig card. Even a $20 16 gig card would double your available space and probably decrease time between bursts, but the minimum I'd consider is the 64. http://www.amazon.com/SanDisk-Extreme-UHS-1-SDHC-Memory/dp/B005LFT3GG/

08-25-2015, 01:54 PM	#9
pentasonic49 Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: weston-super-mare Posts: 395	What worries me with large cards is if they fail or get lost, you have lost a large number of pics.

08-25-2015, 04:06 PM	#10
pepperberry farm amateur dirt farmer Join Date: Dec 2014 Location: probably out in a field somewhere... Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 41,781	Originally posted by pentasonic49 What worries me with large cards is if they fail or get lost, you have lost a large number of pics. unless you pull your pictures off the card after every shoot -- why would keep images on the card?

08-25-2015, 04:59 PM	#11
mee Veteran Member Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 7,403	Originally posted by pepperberry farm unless you pull your pictures off the card after every shoot -- why would keep images on the card? I know someone who claims they never take the photos off their SD cards.. they buy new ones when they get full. They say they have a whole drawer full of them!!!! I wonder how common is this behavior...

08-25-2015, 08:51 PM	#12
mee Veteran Member Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 7,403	btw.. doesn't you camera have a counter at the bottom? My K-x, K-r, K-30, and K-5II all have had them.. bottom, right corner of the large LED panel on the back of the camera. And also on the top LCD panel on the K-5II. When one is out of room on the card, the counter should read '0' -- Are you saying you have no counter whatsoever on your K-50?

08-25-2015, 09:48 PM	#13
Nakedgun Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: Southwest Posts: 1,366	Originally posted by mee btw.. doesn't you camera have a counter at the bottom? My K-x, K-r, K-30, and K-5II all have had them.. bottom, right corner of the large LED panel on the back of the camera. And also on the top LCD panel on the K-5II. When one is out of room on the card, the counter should read '0' -- Are you saying you have no counter whatsoever on your K-50? Yep, counter display, bottom right corner on my wife's K-50.

08-26-2015, 05:15 AM	#14
hman Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: WEST CHESTER, PA Photos: Gallery Posts: 299 Original Poster	Originally posted by Nakedgun Yep, counter display, bottom right corner on my wife's K-50. Yes, there is a counter on my K-50. I never noticed it before and I have always "emptied" my cards much sooner- like within days of last image. So, never needed to pay attention. This time I just kept shooting. One learns something new everyday, and I appreciate everyone's replies.

08-26-2015, 09:06 AM	#15
narual Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: South Bend (Notre Dame), Indiana Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,988	Originally posted by pentasonic49 What worries me with large cards is if they fail or get lost, you have lost a large number of pics. Why would you do that? I don't necessarily format my cards every time I take pictures (and sometimes when I forget, I thank Pentax for allowing you to zoom playback mode out to a calendar view and delete entire days worth of images at a time), but I do download the photos from them at the end of every day. Sometimes two or three times in one day, when I'm on vacation and have downtime between outings (my wife likes to nap a lot). Cards are for temporary storage of images.