Peterff Loc: O'er The Hills and Far Away, in Themyscira.

Boy, I appear to have got your attention!

First, the OP's question was I'm trying to find out the best way to format my sd cards....I am using a d7200 with 2 cards....please help

The general consensus appears to be "format the card in the camera" which I and others have repeated 'ad infinitum'. So the advice to format in a computer is mostly irrelevant and unhelpful, unless people actually really do know what they are doing.



The point, Sir, is to suggest that SD card types need to be matched to the intended end use device, and formatted appropriately. Taking a latest tech SD card and putting an exFAT file system on it may work on the appropriate PC, but may not work on the target camera, which is the essence of the OP's question.



There are two situations I will offer as examples. The first, exFAT, I have already addressed. If you have multiple cameras with differing SD file system support levels, then you need to format the cards appropriately. FAT32 seems to be widely adopted, but with a 4GB file limit may not be the default for all cameras, especially newer models. Some newer cameras support exFAT but are still restricted to 4GB files as a result of import restrictions limiting still cameras to less than 30 minutes of continuous video. It gets complicated.

The second is the use of runtime camera software, namely Magic Lantern on certain Canon cameras. Reformatting on a PC will remove the ML software. Reformatting in the camera will reformat the SD card and then restore the ML routines to preserve the desired functionality. ML can also overide the 30 min video restriction, but something like exFAT is required to make that seamless. Not all cameras support exFAT. So, formatting in camera is the simplest and most efficacious option.



Well, clearly you need a vacation after all that hard work. May I suggest one including both sex and travel!

35 years puts you at starting out in 1982. You are more than a decade late to the game. If I'm a twit, you're a twit to at least the power of two, maybe an order of magnitude. How's your RPN - reverse polish notation? Smalltalk? Ada? Pascal? Algol?

More seriously, you appear to be more of an admin mentality or developer, rather than an engineer or system architect. I do not care about any of your personal indulgences, and you are correct that it is none of my business, but shouldn't we focus on the OP's request and needs, rather than get down into the weeds of computer technology? From your experience you should know that there are always exceptions and reasons to keep environments as simple as possible to reduce unwanted problems. Formatting in the camera makes things simple and functional.



I disagree. There are times when a card needs to be reformatted, and when it is desirable to do so. Does the same card used in the same camera need to be reformatted regularly? No. Transferring to a different camera, possibly. It does no harm, and it may resolve or prevent some potential issues. File systems do sometimes become corrupted, and reformatting can isolate some problems. Reformatting is certainly not an indication of imminent disk failure. It may be, but it equally well may not be.

However, this is a discussion that is down in the weeds, and most people do not need to go there. The OP's question has been addressed. Format the card in the camera, and enjoy photography!

rehess Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA

I always get nervous when someone starts enumerating experience. It means s/he is going to take the parental "because I said so" approach in one way or another - and that simply doesn't work here. In most cases that parental approach means the person will try to drown us in words. I remember when my mother would say something like "That preacher is really smart", followed by words indicating she hadn't understood a word he said; drowning us in words is conceptually that same idea.
But "best approach" is specifically what was asked for. There are various definitions of "best"; I choose to use a conservative "do no harm" approach. As you know, software developers, like I was, can develop very flexible software for computers, able to address various circumstances; however, camera processors have very limited memory, so by experience I can say that embedded software must much more limited to one right way. Thus, I would not make here your statement This is not a useful or relevant statement. The relevant statement is "can memory formatted by a win computer be written to by a camera?" and to my way of thinking that is too inclusive a statement to stand by. Formatting in camera is the safest way to be certain that the camera can write to it.


I agree with all three of your sentences.

BigDaddy Loc: Pittsburgh, PA

You got my attention when you disagreed with Jim's post. Jim was not wrong. You also got my attention when you stupidly, and ignorantly called me a neophyte, and asked what I was smoking.
That my friend, ID's you as a twit.

General consensus among all Win computer literates is if WIN can read your camera card, it can also format and write to it.

You appear to be babbling. Reformating certainly is NOT an indication of imminent disk failure, particularly when done for no reason other than to delete files. No one ever said that, anyway. However, if you actually NEED to reformat your drive, SD, PC or otherwise, chances are good, really good, that your drive is on it's way out.

[/quote]
Well then you shouldn't have gone there when you told JamesCurrin his post was nonsense, greatly misleading everyone without a clue, because his post was not nonsense. Since the OP original question (that you suddenly seem worried about) was about a D7200, which I don't own, but I'll bet WIN can format the card w/o a problem, regardless of what WIN File system it uses, which almost certainly is FAT32.

BigDaddy Loc: Pittsburgh, PA

In this case the guy stupidly called me a neophyte, which I could ignore, but chose not to in this case. All the words used are extremely common in today's world of computers, and have been for many years.


It is both useful and relevant. James made cognizant statements on the subject of formating cards which some one felt the need to call nonsense. His statements were not nonsense and that needed pointed out so some people didn't get the wrong idea. If the info was more than people want to know is not an issue. Knowledge is good, misinformation not so much.

Peterff Loc: O'er The Hills and Far Away, in Themyscira.

BigDaddy, I don't want to fight with you, but James began the problem by calling most other people's posts nonsense, which mostly they are / were not. I just countered him.
Also, it was you who instigated things by calling me a twit and citing your experience. Well some of us on UHH have more experience and a longer history with computers than you do. James demonstrated a degree of ignorance, and you appear to be wanting to go down the same path to defend him.

The OP's question was "I'm trying to find out the best way to format my sd cards....I am using a d7200 with 2 cards....please help."

One could argue the possible interpretations of 'best', but for the majority of UHH users, and for the OP, if we interpret best as 'simple and effective' then the majority consensus was that formatting in the specific camera - as recommended by most camera manufacturers - was the 'best' way. Anything else adds unnecessary interpretation.

The OP did not ask for the most flexible or comprehensive method of formatting all types of SD cards. Nor did the OP state what kind of computer he had. James merely added confusion to the situation, combined with a disrespectful attitude to other posters, and in his post demonstrated considerable ignorance, which is especially unhelpful to people with limited computer experience. I'm surprised that someone with your experience would defend him. It is reasonable to assume that the camera manufacturer's have some knowledge of computer technology and operating systems, and also which file systems are optimal for their devices. Hence formatting in the camera. I have some devices that are quite picky about the file system used to format cards for them if they are going to be readable.

As for you, Sir, you are the one that started throwing insults in my direction, and you are still demonstrating some lack of knowledge yourself. This whole discussion has become a rat hole, which is not helpful to anybody. You called me a twit, I called you a neophyte in return. Nan-na-na-nana! Where does that get us? Certainly not anywhere productive.

Since I use Magic Lantern software in two of our cameras, runtime software that adds significant functionality to some Canon cameras, formatting in a PC removes that software. Formatting in the camera performs the format without removing the software. There are nuances to this that James certainly does not understand, and frankly I am surprised that you appear not to.

So if you wish to throw insults around feel free, but always expect me to call you on it. James was wrong, plain and simple. You should know better.

charles tabb Loc: Richmond VA.

=========================================================
I have looked at all the messages in this forum and have learned a lot.
First and most, I have learned not to ever call people names on UHH.
I really enjoyed all of the hints and tips that I have learned here.
Now and here after I plan on the following.
Not cutting and pasting my PIC Files from SD Chip to HD.
I will now copy and past them to my HD.
I will leave all pictures taken in my camera SD memory in case I have an accident and loose one on my HD.
When I go out on another photo trip I will then and only then format the SD in my camera if necessary.
I feel that this is a lot of good advice that I have picked up here.
I hope all this makes sense.

marki3rd Loc: Columbus, Indiana

Absolutely incorrect. Formatting in a PC is just as effective as formatting in a camera.
The SD Association (SD Card Mfg Association) has a free utility to format SD Cards on your computer. The only difference, and the real reason camera manufacturers recommend formatting in camera is that the camera creates folders on the card that are specific to the given camera. A camera will create these folders automatically when a card is first used whether the card was formatted in that camera or not. If a card is switched from a different camera, say from a Canon to a Nikon for example, the new camera will create it's own folders and you then end up with 2 (or more) sets of folders on that card. Doing a format in camera will remove foreign folders and create it's own.

Google "SD Formatter" and you will find the SD Association web site where you can get their white papers and formatter. As a learnong exercise put your SD Card into a card reader and go into "File Explorer" on a Windows PC and click on the drive letter assigned to the card. You can then examine the folders i mentioned.

JamesCurran Loc: Trenton ,NJ

As far as I know, all major camera brands use the same DCIM folder structure, based of the standard "Design rule for Camera File system" specification.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Design_rule_for_Camera_File_system

marki3rd Loc: Columbus, Indiana

Yes, but the file names of the folders will be different so you will end up with two sets of folders. Read what I said and think about it. I said you would end up with two sets of folders which does imply that both cameras could write their folders normally.

JamesCurran Loc: Trenton ,NJ

And read what I said. The folder names are standardize in a industry specification. If each camera used it's own folder names, then 3rd-party tools (like Photoshop) wouldn't be able to find the photos on the card to download.

marki3rd Loc: Columbus, Indiana

No No NO!!! I have both Canon and Pentax DSLR Cameras. If I put an SD card in the Pentax that was used in the Canon, I get two sets of folders as I can clearly see with File Manager. Pentax will put its images in its file folder and Canon will put its images in its file folder.

JamesCurran Loc: Trenton ,NJ

Well, I have a Pentax DSLR and a Canon digital point-n-shoot. Both use the standard DCIM folder.

What folders do your cameras use?

charles tabb Loc: Richmond VA.

===========================================
I have always wondered what "DCIM" stands for.
Anybody know?

It's not necessary needed info, but I am curious.

Earworms Loc: Sacramento, California

As has already been eluded to, Format them in camera. However, the SD Association has their own official format utility that you may download and use on your PC or Mac. The ubiquitous FAT (VFAT) file system is very wasteful, especially with larger volumes, so the official SD Card Format Utility adjusts the sector size so as to not waste a lot of card space.

Earworms Loc: Sacramento, California

I was always curious too! Digital Camera IMages.