Is there something wrong with my camera?

Neville · 12-29-2015, 07:16 AM

I have a Pentax K-5II camera, which I have been using extensively over the past few years without any issues.

In the past week or so, I have noticed that many of my shots are ruined by some kind of interference (see sample shots below), and I have no idea what is causing it.

I shoot in RAW and the sample shots below were opened in Lightroom. At first I thought the problem was with my memory card, but the problem persists in another card as well. When I review my shots on the viewfinder on the camera, they all look 100% fine. I then thought there might be a software problem with Lightroom, so I downloaded Raw Therapee and the problem exists there as well.

Is there a problem with my camera?

Attached Images

**cpk** · 12-29-2015, 07:41 AM

Originally posted by Neville

When I review my shots on the viewfinder on the camera, they all look 100% fine.

Looks to be a sensor problem. The viewfinder is a separate system. What appears in live view? I would expect to see the problem there.

Imp · 12-29-2015, 07:56 AM

You could create some very interesting images with that effect! Wish you the best of luck, I'll pray for your camera

DeadJohn · 12-29-2015, 08:49 AM

I recall several prior threads with similar pink bands in photos. Memory corruption is the usual cause, mostly bad SD cards but a camera problem could also cause corrupt data. I had the problem once but reformatting my SD card (I did a full format on a PC then in the camera) permanently fixed it.

Try setting your camera to DNG+JPG. If the problem continues, check to see whether it happens in only the DNG or in both files. That can help troubleshoot the problem.

dansamy · 12-29-2015, 08:57 AM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by dcshooter

I know you tried two, but those look like classic samples of file corruption due to a bad SD card. I'd still recommend trying a brand new SD card, formatted in the camera and see if it comes back. If it does, it's probably not the sensor itself, but rather a problem with your camera's main board causing I/O errors on the card write.

Those are definitely corrupt files. If the physical card isn't the problem, bad sector, etc, then writing or reading is the fault. The reason RawTherapee and Lightroom both have the problem is because they're both displaying what they can read. The rest of the data is unreadable, corrupted gibberish.

How are you getting pictures from the card to the PC? A cable? A card reader? Built-in? Standalone? It may not have anything at all to do with your camera. Or it might still be possibly the camera's writing to the SD card.

Work from the cheapest, simplest problem up. Bad card, bad cable, bad reader. Then look at your camera & PC.

**jatrax** · 12-29-2015, 09:18 AM

Originally posted by dansamy

How are you getting pictures from the card to the PC? A cable? A card reader? Built-in? Standalone? It may not have anything at all to do with your camera. Or it might still be possibly the camera's writing to the SD card. Work from the cheapest, simplest problem up. Bad card, bad cable, bad reader. Then look at your camera & PC.

^^^^ This. Eliminate all possible issues through the chain working from cheapest first.

**Crooski** · 12-29-2015, 11:07 AM

Hi Neville

I do not know if this problem is the same as with my Samsung NX20

This was a sensor problem, and this sensor has been replaced by Samsung

See two random photo's

Attached Images

View Picture EXIF

View Picture EXIF

**ramseybuckeye** · 12-29-2015, 09:22 PM

I have seen two things cause this, unformatted SD card or bad SD card.

Neville · 12-30-2015, 07:55 AM - **1 Like**

Thank you for all the helpful advice.

Good news - it's not the camera or the sensor!

I bought a new SD card and the problem persisted, so it's not the SD card either.

My card reader in my computer stopped working recently so I bought a USB Card Reader adaptor, and I think that's where the problem is.

When I plugged in a USB cable directly between my camera and my computer, the photos were all 100% fine.

What a relief...

dansamy · 12-30-2015, 12:44 PM

Great news!

Always, always, ALWAYS work from the cheapest problem up!

r0ckstarr · 01-06-2016, 09:14 AM

I'm having the exact same issue with the pink bands on the photos. It looks identical to the OP's photos. Been trying to figure this out for a couple months now. When I get a pink one, I can delete it from the harddrive, then transfer it again from the SD card back to the harddrive, then back to LR and it will won't be pink. Sometimes takes a couple attempts.

It seems to really happen when shooting at high frame rates, and also when hitting the buffer for the card.

This happens with three K'3s and 6 San Disk Extereme Cards 95MB/s.

All 3 cameras and 6 cards were purchased at different times from 2 different sellers, so I don't want to think that the camera is at fault. Cards were purchased in pairs. 4 of the cards are less than 2 months old, and 2 of those 4 have only ever been used for around 1000 photos each. If replacing them is the solution, then using something other than San Disk cards are also the solution.

Here's everything I have tried and consistently get pink photos:

2 different versions of LR.
2 different card readers, as well as connecting the camera up to the USB3.0 port.
2 different graphics cards.
Different monitor calibration profiles.
When I transfer photos, I drag and drop from the card to an external drive. I have tested this between 2 different external drives (same brand of drive, different model). Same results.

Everything I read says not to format a camera card in the PC. I have only ever formated them through the cameras. Mine have never been formated in the PC. Do I attempt to format them in the PC, ~~and if so which File system (NTFS or FAT) and which allocation size?~~

Edit: Found instructions.
Formatting a Memory Card - Why, When, and How

Neville · 01-06-2016, 09:29 AM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by r0ckstarr

I'm having the exact same issue with the pink bands on the photos. It looks identical to the OP's photos. Been trying to figure this out for a couple months now. When I get a pink one, I can delete it from the harddrive, then transfer it again from the SD card back to the harddrive, then back to LR and it will won't be pink. Sometimes takes a couple attempts.

It seems to really happen when shooting at high frame rates, and also when hitting the buffer for the card.

This happens with three K'3s and 6 San Disk Extereme Cards 95MB/s.

All 3 cameras and 6 cards were purchased at different times from 2 different sellers, so I don't want to think that the camera is at fault. Cards were purchased in pairs. 4 of the cards are less than 2 months old, and 2 of those 4 have only ever been used for around 1000 photos each. If replacing them is the solution, then using something other than San Disk cards are also the solution.

Here's everything I have tried and consistently get pink photos:

2 different versions of LR.
2 different card readers, as well as connecting the camera up to the USB3.0 port.
2 different graphics cards.
Different monitor calibration profiles.
When I transfer photos, I drag and drop from the card to an external drive. I have tested this between 2 different external drives (same brand of drive, different model). Same results.

Everything I read says not to format a camera card in the PC. I have only ever formated them through the cameras. Mine have never been formated in the PC. Do I attempt to format them in the PC, ~~and if so which File system (NTFS or FAT) and which allocation size?~~

Edit: Found instructions.
Formatting a Memory Card - Why, When, and How

Have you tried transferring the photos directly from the camera with the USB cable? That was my only solution.

r0ckstarr · 01-06-2016, 10:08 AM

Originally posted by Neville

Have you tried transferring the photos directly from the camera with the USB cable? That was my only solution.

Originally posted by r0ckstarr

2 different card readers, as well as connecting the camera up to the USB3.0 port.

Yes. That's what I meant with connecting the camera to the USB 3.0 port.

Imp · 01-09-2016, 08:40 PM - **1 Like**

OK, now i've just started having problems... the files are fine, just sometimes the previews look funny like the OP's image, or occasionally the image in RAW processor looks funny, but then it loads and fixes itself. Should I just get a new card?

r0ckstarr · 01-10-2016, 05:54 AM

I'm curious. Imp and Neville, what cards are you using? San Disk? I have a pair of Lexars on order that I am waiting to have delivered. Once delivered, i'll post my results. Formatting my current cards in the PC did nothing.

12-29-2015, 07:16 AM	#1
Neville Pentaxian Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Durban, South Africa Photos: Gallery Posts: 561	Is there something wrong with my camera? I have a Pentax K-5II camera, which I have been using extensively over the past few years without any issues. In the past week or so, I have noticed that many of my shots are ruined by some kind of interference (see sample shots below), and I have no idea what is causing it. I shoot in RAW and the sample shots below were opened in Lightroom. At first I thought the problem was with my memory card, but the problem persists in another card as well. When I review my shots on the viewfinder on the camera, they all look 100% fine. I then thought there might be a software problem with Lightroom, so I downloaded Raw Therapee and the problem exists there as well. Is there a problem with my camera? Attached Images

01-06-2016, 09:14 AM	#11
r0ckstarr Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Texas Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,507	I'm having the exact same issue with the pink bands on the photos. It looks identical to the OP's photos. Been trying to figure this out for a couple months now. When I get a pink one, I can delete it from the harddrive, then transfer it again from the SD card back to the harddrive, then back to LR and it will won't be pink. Sometimes takes a couple attempts. It seems to really happen when shooting at high frame rates, and also when hitting the buffer for the card. This happens with three K'3s and 6 San Disk Extereme Cards 95MB/s. All 3 cameras and 6 cards were purchased at different times from 2 different sellers, so I don't want to think that the camera is at fault. Cards were purchased in pairs. 4 of the cards are less than 2 months old, and 2 of those 4 have only ever been used for around 1000 photos each. If replacing them is the solution, then using something other than San Disk cards are also the solution. Here's everything I have tried and consistently get pink photos: 2 different versions of LR. 2 different card readers, as well as connecting the camera up to the USB3.0 port. 2 different graphics cards. Different monitor calibration profiles. When I transfer photos, I drag and drop from the card to an external drive. I have tested this between 2 different external drives (same brand of drive, different model). Same results. Everything I read says not to format a camera card in the PC. I have only ever formated them through the cameras. Mine have never been formated in the PC. Do I attempt to format them in the PC, ~~and if so which File system (NTFS or FAT) and which allocation size?~~ Edit: Found instructions. Formatting a Memory Card - Why, When, and How Last edited by r0ckstarr; 01-06-2016 at 09:22 AM.

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12-29-2015, 07:41 AM	#2
cpk Site Supporter Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Montreal Posts: 638	Originally posted by Neville When I review my shots on the viewfinder on the camera, they all look 100% fine. Looks to be a sensor problem. The viewfinder is a separate system. What appears in live view? I would expect to see the problem there.

12-29-2015, 07:56 AM	#3
Imp Pentaxian Join Date: Nov 2014 Location: Washington, DC Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,749	You could create some very interesting images with that effect! Wish you the best of luck, I'll pray for your camera

12-29-2015, 08:49 AM	#4
DeadJohn Pentaxian Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: New York Posts: 4,833	I recall several prior threads with similar pink bands in photos. Memory corruption is the usual cause, mostly bad SD cards but a camera problem could also cause corrupt data. I had the problem once but reformatting my SD card (I did a full format on a PC then in the camera) permanently fixed it. Try setting your camera to DNG+JPG. If the problem continues, check to see whether it happens in only the DNG or in both files. That can help troubleshoot the problem.

12-29-2015, 08:57 AM - 1 Like	#5
dansamy Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2013 Location: Alabama Posts: 2,450	Originally posted by dcshooter I know you tried two, but those look like classic samples of file corruption due to a bad SD card. I'd still recommend trying a brand new SD card, formatted in the camera and see if it comes back. If it does, it's probably not the sensor itself, but rather a problem with your camera's main board causing I/O errors on the card write. Those are definitely corrupt files. If the physical card isn't the problem, bad sector, etc, then writing or reading is the fault. The reason RawTherapee and Lightroom both have the problem is because they're both displaying what they can read. The rest of the data is unreadable, corrupted gibberish. How are you getting pictures from the card to the PC? A cable? A card reader? Built-in? Standalone? It may not have anything at all to do with your camera. Or it might still be possibly the camera's writing to the SD card. Work from the cheapest, simplest problem up. Bad card, bad cable, bad reader. Then look at your camera & PC.

12-29-2015, 09:18 AM	#6
jatrax Site Supporter Join Date: May 2010 Location: Washington Cascades Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 12,991	Originally posted by dansamy How are you getting pictures from the card to the PC? A cable? A card reader? Built-in? Standalone? It may not have anything at all to do with your camera. Or it might still be possibly the camera's writing to the SD card. Work from the cheapest, simplest problem up. Bad card, bad cable, bad reader. Then look at your camera & PC. ^^^^ This. Eliminate all possible issues through the chain working from cheapest first.

12-29-2015, 09:22 PM	#8
ramseybuckeye Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Hampstead, NC Photos: Gallery Posts: 17,291	I have seen two things cause this, unformatted SD card or bad SD card.

12-30-2015, 07:55 AM - 1 Like	#9
Neville Pentaxian Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Durban, South Africa Photos: Gallery Posts: 561 Original Poster	Thank you for all the helpful advice. Good news - it's not the camera or the sensor! I bought a new SD card and the problem persisted, so it's not the SD card either. My card reader in my computer stopped working recently so I bought a USB Card Reader adaptor, and I think that's where the problem is. When I plugged in a USB cable directly between my camera and my computer, the photos were all 100% fine. What a relief...

12-30-2015, 12:44 PM	#10
dansamy Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2013 Location: Alabama Posts: 2,450	Great news! Always, always, ALWAYS work from the cheapest problem up!

01-06-2016, 09:29 AM - 1 Like	#12
Neville Pentaxian Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Durban, South Africa Photos: Gallery Posts: 561 Original Poster	Originally posted by r0ckstarr I'm having the exact same issue with the pink bands on the photos. It looks identical to the OP's photos. Been trying to figure this out for a couple months now. When I get a pink one, I can delete it from the harddrive, then transfer it again from the SD card back to the harddrive, then back to LR and it will won't be pink. Sometimes takes a couple attempts. It seems to really happen when shooting at high frame rates, and also when hitting the buffer for the card. This happens with three K'3s and 6 San Disk Extereme Cards 95MB/s. All 3 cameras and 6 cards were purchased at different times from 2 different sellers, so I don't want to think that the camera is at fault. Cards were purchased in pairs. 4 of the cards are less than 2 months old, and 2 of those 4 have only ever been used for around 1000 photos each. If replacing them is the solution, then using something other than San Disk cards are also the solution. Here's everything I have tried and consistently get pink photos: 2 different versions of LR. 2 different card readers, as well as connecting the camera up to the USB3.0 port. 2 different graphics cards. Different monitor calibration profiles. When I transfer photos, I drag and drop from the card to an external drive. I have tested this between 2 different external drives (same brand of drive, different model). Same results. Everything I read says not to format a camera card in the PC. I have only ever formated them through the cameras. Mine have never been formated in the PC. Do I attempt to format them in the PC, ~~and if so which File system (NTFS or FAT) and which allocation size?~~ Edit: Found instructions. Formatting a Memory Card - Why, When, and How Have you tried transferring the photos directly from the camera with the USB cable? That was my only solution.

01-06-2016, 10:08 AM	#13
r0ckstarr Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Texas Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,507	Originally posted by Neville Have you tried transferring the photos directly from the camera with the USB cable? That was my only solution. Originally posted by r0ckstarr 2 different card readers, as well as connecting the camera up to the USB3.0 port. Yes. That's what I meant with connecting the camera to the USB 3.0 port.

01-09-2016, 08:40 PM - 1 Like	#14
Imp Pentaxian Join Date: Nov 2014 Location: Washington, DC Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,749	OK, now i've just started having problems... the files are fine, just sometimes the previews look funny like the OP's image, or occasionally the image in RAW processor looks funny, but then it loads and fixes itself. Should I just get a new card?

01-10-2016, 05:54 AM	#15
r0ckstarr Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Texas Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,507	I'm curious. Imp and Neville, what cards are you using? San Disk? I have a pair of Lexars on order that I am waiting to have delivered. Once delivered, i'll post my results. Formatting my current cards in the PC did nothing.

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