Noob having issues with E-m5 memory cards

[a_hit_of_meth]

Got my e-m5 today took some shots and after I transferred the images to my pc I put the card back in without any indications of any problems. Took a few more shots but when I pressed the play button to review the images in camera I get this "no picture" or no image" prompt and it goes back to regular shooting mode. The remaining values don't change either so there's nothing being recorded. I had to format the card to get it to work. Again the same thing happens when transferring images but there is no error message which is what is confusing.

Another card has similar results only the other card gets an error message and cannot be formatted in camera like the first. Both cards are class 10 Kingmax and Trancend cards which have been in use on my compact canon and GF-3 without any problems.

I'm hoping I'll be able to rule out the camera. My PC has been running slow because it's near full capacity on the hdd and I'm using an external card reader plugged into a usb, not sure if those are factors. I've done a quick search to see if this is a common problem with the body and I'm still going through the results. Hopefully I can rule out the body since this was the last one they had at the store.

 

[Tinderbox (UK)]

Have you tried write protecting the SD card before copying the photo`s to your computer, as it might be altering your SD cards files without you knowing it.

Be sure to un-protect the card before using it in your camera again.

John.

 

[hazwing]

My em5 sometimes gives me error messages about missing photos if I delete the photos on the SD card, via the computer. If I delete the photos via the camera, it's fine. I think it is because it still has some hidden data about the delete files, and thinks it should be there? It shouldn't stop you from taking new photos though...

I usually just leave the photos on the SD card, after I've transferred them. When the card starts getting full, format the card after transferring them to the PC.

 

[a_hit_of_meth]

Have you tried write protecting the SD card before copying the photo`s to your computer, as it might be altering your SD cards files without you knowing it.

Be sure to un-protect the card before using it in your camera again.

John.

Haven't thought of that yet, I'll try in the morning. Does that mean if it works and I don't get the errors, it may be from the pc?

I've also noticed I get memory card error messages sometimes when I put the card in the camera but taking it out and putting it back in again works for that. I really hope this isn't camera related, this was one of the last two in the shop and the other one had a small ding on the side of it and blotching/staining type thing in the evf and taking this to the service center is a hassle.

 

[fortwodriver]

I'm thinking, if anything, your cards are what's giving you issues, not the camera. I don't know if I'd trust "Kingmax" and I've certainly had problems with Transcend branded memory in the past.

 

[Tinderbox (UK)]

After having a few memory cards fall apart on me, I now only buy Samsung ones, they are water dust and x-ray and magnet proof and they say you can run an 1.5ton car over them , i musty have a dozen different sizes and types and i never have any problems with them.

http://www.samsung.com/uk/consumer/memory-cards-hdd-odd/memory-cards/sd/MB-SP32D/EU

John.

 

[fortwodriver]

After having a few memory cards fall apart on me, I now only buy Samsung ones, they are water dust and x-ray and magnet proof and they say you can run an 1.5ton car over them , i musty have a dozen different sizes and types and i never have any problems with them.

http://www.samsung.com/uk/consumer/memory-cards-hdd-odd/memory-cards/sd/MB-SP32D/EU

John.

'Magnet proof'? This sounds familiar... and it's BS... All solid-state memory is "magnet proof".

That aside, Samsung memory is generally regarded very well.

 

[Bif]

I don't think it's your camera. I followed card issues closely since 2008, never heard of Kingmax so I'd never put that brand in a camera or video device. Transcend is the best of the low priced bargain brands but I've seen enough problem reports I won't trust them.

I use SanDisk which has had the fewest problem reports I've seen, and most of those were likely counterfeit cards (SanDisk is the most counterfeited card out there which should tell us something.

I had a built in reader start to corrupt media cards before it went out completely so I solved that with an external USB reader on that computer.

Go to B&H and look up SanDisk SDHC cards. They have some fairly low prices on 16GB and a 32GB Class (10), order one and see if that solves your problem (which I think it will). If not then try another external reader.

Every now and then do low level format on the card using a PC (Mac requires special utility for this). Follow that with a format in camera. This will keep a SanDisk card running clean. Some cameras only offer a quick format which only zero's out the FAT but leave "chunks" of files cluttering up the media.

 

[Tinderbox (UK)]

I keep an old canon camera around as they have an low level format option in the menu, for pc formatting i use the app below.

https://www.sdcard.org/downloads/formatter_4/

John.

 

[yakky]

The EM5 is just sensitive to media. I have some Lexar cards that just don't work while shooting raw+jpeg or burst in the EM5, they work fine in other cameras and I've run tests using h2testw and they come up fine after repeated tests on the PC.

 

[Tinderbox (UK)]

I always test new memory cards for error when i first buy them with the app below it can take a while, don't forget to format the card after testing.

http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/chkflsh-checks-your-flash-drives-on-windows/

John.

 

[a_hit_of_meth]

Thanks guys.

I don't remember where the kingmax came from but I was just using it for the test, prior to that I don't recall it ever having any problems. I switched to transcend two years ago because I was growing tired of all the errors in my sandisk cards, never had a problem until now. I've also been dealing with a similar issue with my gf-3 doing the same thing, which no longer presents itself so it's weird all of a sudden something similar happens with my new camera.

I did some shooting earlier this morning and was able to quickly save the images to my computer without problems but when I put the card back into my camera, the same thing happens. There is no prompt or warning but the pictures I take won't save and when I play the review button I get this "no picture" message....

I don't know if this means anything but the video I transferred yesterday is choppy when played on wmp, compared to today's video which runs smooth. I've also noticed the choppy video takes longer to start up and seems to take up more ram or at least slows my pc a bit where buttons don't respond right away when i click or hover my mouse over them.

EDIT: I test all my cards with HDtune. I don't know if it makes a difference testing a formatted card or one where it's showing errors, I might try testing it if i have time later.

 

[Jeff1:1]

I use the usb cable with EM5, haven't removed card since I got the camera. Most USB is 2.0, whether card or camera, so there is little difference using either. If camera is usb 3.0 via cable and pc has usb 3.0 port, then transfer would definitely be faster.

 

[a_hit_of_meth]

It's happened again. I took it out a few times and transferred images three times, each time just a small amount, then it was working fine but all of a sudden i pick it up and start shooting I notice the photo count doesn't change.

One other thing that puzzles me is how there is no error message, it recognizes there is a card it just doesn't save images when i take pics and doesn't show pictures that are already in the card, which do still show up on pc.

 

[Tinderbox (UK)]

If you are having problems with more than one memory card it`s time to get the camera repaired or preferably replaced.

John.

 

[a_hit_of_meth]

I mentioned earlier that something similar happened with my GF-3 which I have not experienced for a few months now, well it just happened again but a little differently. The GF-3 cards that I use develop these weird new folders but still work for a while until the point i get the error and formatting is required.

I use the card reader in the same usb as I've been using for my external hdd without any problems for years. I also use the cards from our other camera's, (ixus 155, ixus 860, 500d, d90), without any problems. One thing I have noticed with the cards using the gf-3 is that they seem to heat up noticeably more than the others when I first remove them.

Don't know if that gives any indication of cause other than the camera body but I'll keep an eye on it for a bit longer.

 

[Tinderbox (UK)]

All the heat is wasted battery life meaning less photo`s you can take on a full charge, but all flash memory cards do get a little hot especially when videoing or continues shooting.

John.

 

[fortwodriver]

At this point, if it is the same card having problems, I think it's time to just deep-six it and invest in a real Sandisk or Lexar as a replacement. It's completely useless to keep fiddling with a card that has these sorts of random gremlins.

It sounds like the controller in the card just can't allocate the space to save the image. Some cards are actually "stupid". The controller will report back a successful write, but no actual data will be saved. Essentially the memory portion of the card has failed and you're lucky if you manage to get an image saved.

 

[Bif]

This solved my problem of a built in media reader on a desktop began corrupting cards and then quickly failed. Price is "pocket change" and even though I no longer use that machine much I keep the USB external reader handy.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...evices_DDREADER_41_Universal_Card_Reader.html

Latest Panasonic and Olympus cameras often require a bit better quality media cards. These two are more than worth giving a try:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/828326-REG/SanDisk_SDRX3032GA21_32GB_SDHC_Memory_Card.html

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/828325-REG/SanDisk_SDSDRX3_016G_A21_16GB_SDHC_Memory_Card.html

With GH3s, a GH4, GX7, and an Olympus OMD E-M5 I now use the SanDisk Extreme Pro and never have a media related problem. I'd go for the new reader above and one of the cards I linked to then if that doesn't solve your problem it's time to send the camera in.

However, since you report similar media failures with the GF3, I doubt the camera is your problem, so I'd quit fiddling with what's not working and try out my suggestions.

CAUTION: DO NOT purchase media cards from ebay. A lot of "counterfeit media" is found there, order from B&H, they get good stock.

 

[Growltiger]

The ONLY program I know that will test memory cards properly AND detect ones that lie about their capacity is h2testw.
Other programs fail to write different patterns to every block, so they don't realise they are being deceived.
It works in English, not just German.
http://www.heise.de/download/h2testw.html