It is hard to digest when crucial photos from an SD card disappear all of a sudden. There are multiple reasons why your SD card shows an empty folder. But it doesn’t mean that your disappearing pictures captured on Nikon/Canon camera or mobile phone are lost forever..
In this article, find out how you can recover pictures that disappeared from SD card using proven methods. Also, learn common reasons for missing SD card images on a computer, camera, or android phone.
Table of Contents
- Why Have My Photos Disappeared From My SD Card?
- Methods to Recover Missing Pictures From SD Cards
- Steps to Recover Missing Photos from SD Card using Remo Recover
Why Have My Photos Disappeared From My SD Card?
- Memory card is corrupt or damaged
- Unintentionally deleted photos from SD card (failing to notice)
- SD card photos are hidden
- Abrupt removal of SD card from a camera, Android phone, or laptop
- Bad sectors or damaged file system
- Taking photos when the camera battery is low or the SD card is full
- Interruptions while transferring photos from camera memory card to another device
- Virus infection to the card such as “System Volume Information” and “Shortcut virus”
There are scenarios where your SD hasn’t lost the pictures and some minimal tweaks can bring back the photos, you can try the solutions listed below to get access to disappeared photos on your SD card
Methods to Recover Missing Pictures From SD Cards
1. Insert SD card Properly
One of the reasons why an SD card won’t show up files on a computer or camera is an improper connection between the system and the card reader or SD card. Therefore, the first thing to perform is to properly reinsert the memory card into the respective SD card slot in the PC as shown in the below image.
If the issue is not related to the improper SD card connection, then you can scroll down below to fix the issue with other relevant methods.
2. Use Working Card Reader
Irrespective of your working SD card, if your card reader is faulty or damaged, then photos from SD card will not be shown.
Therefore, make use of a working card reader to access all your disappeared photos from SD card. In case, if the problem still persists then move down to the next method.
3. Restart your device
Due to temp files, logs, or cache on your device, photos saved on the SD card might not be visible to read or write. Be it a camera, or an Android phone, restarting or rebooting the device can get back your disappeared pictures from SD card.
4. Delete Nomedia files
A Nomedia file hides photos, raw images, videos, and other media files from an Android smartphone. If you find .nomedia files on File Manager of your Android phone, delete them to access your SD card photos on Gallery.
5. Unhide disappeared Pictures
Sometimes, your SD card might show the size of the data saved in it without actually showing the files. This could happen if your SD card photos are hidden. Follow the below steps to unhide the photos disappeared from the SD card.
- Connect the camera SD card to Windows
- Open Control Panel and select the File Explorer Options
- Click on the View tab and check Show hidden files, folders & drives
- Now, click OK. This will make all your disappeared photos from SD card visible
In various data loss scenarios, manually recovering pictures disappeared from SD card is not easy without the use of photo recovery software. At times, if you have accidentally deleted SD card files, lost photos due to SD card corruption or interruptions while transferring memory card files, or missing dir files use Remo Recover.
Note: Do you know how to verify if your SD card is corrupt or not? Check out this article to know how you can find if your SD card is corrupt.
6. Use Remo Recover software
The software is capable of recognizing and recovering disappeared photos and other data from your corrupt or damaged SD card.
An efficient recovery tool is the last hope of retrieving missing photos. If it's simple to use and can retrieve lost SD card files, there is nothing better.
Steps to Recover Missing Photos from SD Card using Remo Recover
- Download and Install Remo Recover and connect the SD card to the computer via a suitable Card reader or USB Port.
- Now, Launch the software on your system, select the memory card from which you want to recover disappeared photos, and click on Scan.
- Download and Install Remo Recover and connect the SD card to the computer via a suitable Card reader or USB Port.
- Now, Launch the software on your system, select the memory card from which you want to recover disappeared photos, and click on Scan.
- After completion of scanning process, a list of recovered files is displayed under the Lost and Found folder or Lost Partition folder.
- Now go to Filter and select the Advanced filter from the drop down. In Advanced Filter, choose the file type as images and click on Apply button to view all the recovered photos in one Place.
- Double-click to preview all the recovered files using Preview option for free.
- If you are satisfied with the recovery results, select the files which you want to restore and hit the Recover button to save them at your desired location.
Note: If you are unable to find the SD card, click on the Can’t Find Drive? option.
Steps to Recover Missing Photos from SD Card using Remo Recover
Note: If you are unable to find the SD card, click on the Can’t Find Drive? option.
NOTE: Make sure you choose a different and safe location to avoid losing the photos again.
BONUS: Tips to Avoid SD Card Issues
Here are some tips to avoid issues where photos keep disappearing from an SD card:
Quality SD Cards: Purchase branded SD cards and ensure they are not counterfeit to avoid issues with SD card failure because fake SD cards have a higher chance of failure and corruption.
Don’t Fill the SD Card: Avoid completely filling the SD card, as this can lead to fragmentation and other errors. Ensure there is sufficient space for the SD card to function properly.
Backups: Remember that SD cards are not the ultimate data storage device. Take backups of important photos and files on cloud storage or an external hard drive to preserve your data at all times.
Scan SD Cards: Regularly use an updated antivirus tool to scan SD cards for viruses and malware to prevent attacks.
Conclusion:
If you have cherished and preserved pictures that are now missing, losing them would be a disappointment. This article aims to address your question, (How do I find my pictures on my SD card?) by providing the most effective and proven solutions. Whether you choose to utilize specialized software like Remo Recover or follow manual recovery techniques, you'll find the guidance you need to recover your missing pictures.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. How to get back data from a dead SD card?
To recover data from a dead SD card you will need to use data recovery software.
2. Why are my SD card photos not showing up on the gallery?
If photos are not visible on the gallery then it could be due to:
1. SD Incompatibility
2. Hidden attribute
3. Deleted files
3. How to recover data from a broken SD card?
Try consulting a professional data recovery service to recover data from the broken SD card.