What does format do on a camera?

Question

i have a camera and it has the option to format, i know that this formats the sd memory card but in what way does this format it? and does it change the type of images i save on it?

also i had some images on the memory card and formatted it, then the images just seemed to disappear! what happened to those images?

Answer 1

Format will wipe the data from your memory card and then set the allocation table to accept new data  

Answer 2

Those images can be recoverd using specialist software if you really need them.

Formatting is mostly about structuring a directory so that the data for an image can be associated with a file name. It won't change the kinds of files that you can store on it.

Edit: Formatting does not destroy data. Many a person has found that out to their cost when passing a formatted disk onto someone else!

Answer 3

The others are right.  Formatting deletes everything on the card and makes it as if it is a new card.  You can sometimes recover images from a recently formatted card, using a recovery application such as Image Recall http://www.imagerecall.com/

I have used this one and it recovered quite a few lost photos.

If you want to save your old images, stop using this card immediately and use another (they are not expensive) until you have run the recovery software and saved the rescued images on your hard drive.

Answer 4

even if you delete some images,its possible some may be still stored in your camera. when you format it ,it wipes everything off so your camera is technically how you bought it.it wont affect your settings,just wipes everything clean basically.

Answer 5

The images are still on the card and can be recovered with special software.  It does not change the type of images.  It just checks the SD for errors and starts a new file allocation table.

Format sets up the SD or other add on memory to work with your camera. It can also be used to erase all pictures on the SD and make sure it is ready for more.  There are many different formats so your SD might not work in another type of camera. The extra large SD might not be your best choice because it slows down the processing time and may not download to your computer properly if the pictures are over six months old.

The source link will provide you with lots of other information that may be helpful. Most NiMH camera malfunctions are caused by electrical contacts between the camera and battery.

The secret to making digital cameras work better is having good electrical contacts between the batteries and the camera.

Digital cameras require lots of power. If electrical contacts are not really good, this can cause lots of problems so battery and camera contacts must be cleaned properly.  Batteries may have a full charge, but will be viewed by the camera as low if contacts are not really good. The LCD display is a low steady load, but with extending the lens, focus, optical zoom, and flash charging in the capture mode; it is like starting a car.  With bad contacts, cameras can do strange things like making bad pictures or shutting off with the lens out.