How to Perform Photo Recovery from Camera Memory?

How to perform photo recovery from camera memory? This post with solutions to help you recover deleted photos from SD cards will be worth reading.

By @Lora Last Updated December 11, 2024

How do I recover photos from my camera memory card?

Artists and ordinary users will take pictures using cameras for work and life. With a click of the shutter button, a picture is taken, and then it will be stored on the SD card.

After a long time, a great load of photos will be gathered on the SD card. Users could view, check, and decide which to keep or give up.

After getting deleted from the camera, those unwanted photos will be permanently removed from the memory, and users cannot access them generally as usual.

And problems come out. Users have accidentally deleted photos from SD cards. But there is no going back.

   
   
   
       

Best Recovery Program for deleted files on SD card

       

A friend of mine deleted the pictures on an SD card BUT has not done anything else to the card since that, so I'm hoping there is a chance for recovery. Can anyone recommend the best AND most reliable program to use for this?

       

- Question from Fredmiranda Forum

   

Apart from this, you may also meet severer data loss issues like SD card deleting files by itself, etc. But, make it easy; these problems are not invincible.

This tutorial aims at SD card data loss and will give feasible methods to help you achieve photo recovery from camera memory. The details are waiting in the next part.

3 solutions for photo recovery from camera memory

The solutions offered here are targeted at data loss resulting from common logical damages, like deletion, formatting, virus attack, etc., and they will be feasible for a healthy SD card.

If your SD card is corrupted, e.g., the corruption forces you to format the device, you might as well check the tutorial and learn how to get photos off the SD card without formatting.

Now, move on and check the 3 practicable methods here.

1. Check if the camera photos are hidden

In addition to deletion, the virus is also a big reason why files get lost from SD cards. Once infected by viruses, your files might be maliciously deleted, hidden, modified, moved, etc.

Firstly, we could check if the wanted files were hidden.

Notes:✎...
Windows 7 users could refer to the exclusive guide to show hidden files in Windows 7.

Step 1. Connect your camera SD card to the PC properly > go to This PC.

Step 2. Click to open the SD card drive > click View > Options > View> Show hidden files, folders, and drives.

Now the hidden files on your SD card will be visible. If the files are not shown, they are likely to be deleted. Check out the following methods.

2. Recover deleted photos from SD card using Windows File Recovery

Files deleted from SD cards, USBs, and other external storage devices will be permanently removed for data privacy (to avoid the data being recovered after deletion and leaking your private data).

But luckily, before overwriting, they are actually recoverable. Then, how to recover deleted pictures from SD cards?

You need a Windows data recovery tool to help you. Windows File Recovery provided by Microsoft is an option.

It is a command-line app that scans healthy/corrupted/formatted hard drives using recovery modes, commands, and parameters.

It offers no user interface, so many users will find it challenging. We will give you a concise guide. Check the guide on how to use Windows File Recovery to get a more detailed one.

β–  Firstly, to decide which recovery modes to use, the File System of the SD card is required.

Carefully remove the SD card from your camera > connect the SD card with a card reader > This PC > right-click the SD card drive > Properties.

β–  Then, choose a recovery mode according to the File System and how the data got lost. Extensive mode is for a non-NTFS drive, e.g., your SD card.

File system Scenarios mode
NTFS Deleted recently Regular
NTFS Deleted for a while Extensive
NTFS Formatted disk Extensive
NTFS corrupted disk Extensive
FAT and exFAT Any Extensive

β–  Next, switches are helpful when you need to narrow the scanning range and target the file type/filename.

Switches Meaning Supported mode(s)
/n Filter the scan range: scans for a specific file with its file name/path/type, etc. All
/y: Recovers specific extension groups. Signature
/k Recovers system files. NTFS Segment​​​​​
/segment Segment mode; recovers files under NTFS drives using file record segments. Segment
/signature Signature mode; recovers files under all file system types using file headers. Signature
/u Recovers undeleted files, for example, from the Recycle Bin. NTFS Segment

Now, follow the steps to recover deleted photos from SD cards.

Notes:✎...
The Windows File Recovery troubleshooting tutorial offers solutions to frequently met problems and errors. 
This app is only available for Windows 10 2004 and above. 
The source drive (the SD card) must be different from the destination drive to prevent overwriting.

Step 1. Go to Microsoft Store > search for Windows File Recovery > click Get.

Step 2. Start the app > enter the command according to the format.

Command format: winfr source-drive: destination-drive: [/mode] [/switches]

E.g., winfr F: D: /extensive /n *.jpg

Thus your jpg files will be recovered to the D: drive. During the recovery, the filenames and the paths will be lost.

3. Efficient & easy photo recovery from camera memory

As mentioned above, Windows File Recovery cannot keep the filename and the path intact while recovering your files. But, users will prefer a data rescue app that can maintain them for better management.

What’s more, Windows File Recovery does not possess any intuitive user interface, which lays a pretty heavy burden on users to learn and use this tool.

In this case, users might as well turn to an easier and more efficient app – MyRecover. As an advanced Windows data recovery app, it restores deleted and lost files from internal & external hard drives in 3 steps.

Keep the original filenames, formats, directories, and quality of the files during recovery.
Recover 200+ types of data from not only a healthy but also a formatted drive. Users could get photos back after formatting SD cards as well. 
Help you restore data with an easy-to-use interface and high recovery rate.
Support Win 11/10/8/7/Server & NTFS/FAT32/exFAT/ReFS, etc.
Download SoftwareWin 11/10/8/7/Server
Secure Download

Step 1. Install and run the program > get the SD card out of the camera > connect the SD card with a card reader > hover the mouse over the SD card drive > click Scan.

Step 2. Find your files and sort them by date modified, type, size, etc., and thus locate your files quickly.

Step 3. Go to Deleted files or Recycle Bin and select the files you need > click Recover x files.

Using this powerful app, you could also recover deleted photos from Recycle Bin after empty in a breeze.

Epilogue

Users who are in need of solutions to photo recovery from camera memory can refer to this article and get help from the detailed solutions and info.

Firstly, they could show hidden files on the SD card to see if the pictures were hidden by human error or viruses;

Second, Windows File Recovery can help recover deleted and missing photos using commands and parameters;

Third, MyRecover is your second-to-none choice for an easier way to get rid of complex commands.