memory card deleted all pics. Won't store. help?

[NWgal65]

Hi...Sailing soon and my youngest wanted to bring her Fuji Finepix point and shoot (A345). A while back she said she lost all her pictures and all of her pics (lots!) were deleted from her memory card. She can only take 4 or 5 pictures now. I do not know anything about digital cameras. The manual section on troubleshooting insinuates it is likely the memory card that is the problem. Should I just go buy a new memory card and try it or does anyone have any other ideas? Any way it is the camera?

Thanks in advance! Looking forward to our Mexican Riviera Cruise!

[NWgal65]

I investigated further. It has 13 pics on it and if I try to take more it pops up a message "card full." If I delete a pic, I can take another and save that one. The card is a Fuji card I bought when I bought her the camera...about 3 or 4 years ago. It's a 512mb.

[DGSFlorida]

Save the photos elsewhere and then format the card using the camera. Take a bunch of test photos and see how many will fit before you get the "full" message. Chances are that your problem will be fixed. If not, it is possible that the card is either damaged or has files in locations the camera cannot use. In that case, reformat the card using a computer with card reader to clear it and then re-format it in the camera. Don't forget that deleting all pictures is not the same as formatting the card. It is possible that re-using the card and just "deleting" instead of "formatting" will leave erased entries which fill up the area of the card where file names are stored.

[pierces]

In that case, reformat the card using a computer with card reader to clear it and then re-format it in the camera. Don't forget that deleting all pictures is not the same as formatting the card. It is possible that re-using the card and just "deleting" instead of "formatting" will leave erased entries which fill up the area of the card where file names are stored.

 

Formatting in the camera uses the same commands as a PC and will perform a complete wipe of the card and create a new folder structure. If you format the card on a PC, the camera will re-format and create the folders it when it is inserted anyway.

 

Deleting all wipes the file location from the allocation table that is created when the card is formatted and allows new files to be written over the old data locations. There is no volume "used" by a deleted file even though the data is still there and can be recovered. A new image will simply use the same memory addresses that the old image occupied.

 

Just thought I'd clear that up. :D

 

The advantage to checking the card in a pc is that you can use the disk fools that the camera doesn't have to check the volume for corruption or bad sectors.

 

NWgal65: It is likely that there is a physical failure on your card or a corrupted file or directory that is limiting the amount of space that is usable. With the price of memory these days, I wouldn't spend a lot of time figuring out hoe to repair the card. Just buy a couple of new 1GB or 2GB cards and put your mind at ease.

 

Happy shooting!

 

Dave

[c-to-sea]

Before you buy a larger capacity card, check the manual to see what the maximum is.

A write-up on this camera suggests a possible 512mb maximum. My old Sony (2003 model)

was limited to 128mb and would not accept anything larger. As Peirces says, cards are

pretty inexpensive these days and 512mb is dirt cheap.

[NWgal65]

Dsmeryage and Dave:

 

Thank you!

Not only did I learn alot, but the camera works now. I looked up in the manual how to format the card. Did that! It then showed that I had 259 pics available and I took 20 and it correctly counted down, past the 13th pic, where it would not store pics before.

Yes, Dave, you are right on, I was not going to spend hours messing with it, was just going to get a new card, but since this worked, no need and she can take pics of all of the fun things we hope to do. I am sure the horses at our horseback riding excursion will be well-photographed :)

Thank you both for your time.

[NWgal65]

c-to-sea: Thanks for adding that. I was wondering about that (I surprised myself :eek:) and was either going to get another 512mb or ASK someone who would know! Thanks for your advice :)

[pierces]

Dsmeryage and Dave:

 

Thank you!

Not only did I learn alot, but the camera works now. I looked up in the manual how to format the card. Did that! It then showed that I had 259 pics available and I took 20 and it correctly counted down, past the 13th pic, where it would not store pics before.

Yes, Dave, you are right on, I was not going to spend hours messing with it, was just going to get a new card, but since this worked, no need and she can take pics of all of the fun things we hope to do. I am sure the horses at our horseback riding excursion will be well-photographed :)

Thank you both for your time.

 

BTW if you do shop for a new card (you should never take just one card), don't worry about capacity, The A345 uses xD picture cards which are, by design, limited to a maximum of 2GB, so any of them will work in your camera. Personally, I would get a new one and use the old one for ba spare.

 

Enjoy your trip!

 

Dave

[c-to-sea]

You can check card compatibility at this Fujifilm site:

 

http://www.fujifilm.com/products/digital_cameras/accessories/card/a/

[NWgal65]

C-to-sea--Thanks for that link. That was very helpful!

Dave--excellent advice to not take just one. I will stop and pick her up another one.