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Ahhh got it — they’re all .jpg, nothing weird. i guess the bad eject just messed with the file structure. I’ll try a trial first on the cloned image, see what previews show before spending anything. thanks for the tip about thumbnails — that could save a lot of headache.
I’d also check the file extensions — sometimes cameras write temp files or slightly different extensions. I once recovered 10 files by renaming .jpg to .jpeg after previewing them in a repair trial. weird but it worked.
For Windows, something like Win32DiskImager works. it’ll make a full image of the SD card. then you can run recovery on the copy. just make sure the destination drive has enough space — the image will be the full card size.
Thanks all. I’ll clone the card later today. didn’t know previews could show thumbnails — that sounds super useful. anyone know a reliable free tool for making an exact image of a card on Windows? i’m not great with command line.
Also, keep in mind some cards just start failing over time. 16GB Sandisk isn’t huge, but if it’s a few years old and had a bad eject, those grey bands could be unrecoverable. Always work on a clone first. Even a free trial that lets you preview recoverable images can tell you fast if anything is salvageable.
I had the exact grey band issue once after a bad copy. Cloned the card and ran a recovery tool that had a preview mode — the preview showed thumbnails for some images even though the full file wouldn’t open. That made it obvious which files were salvageable. Saved me from buying a full license for a tool that wouldn’t have worked. Worth trying a trial before paying.
Agree with Jace. also: try opening the files in irfanview or gimp — sometimes they can read images other viewers choke on. but if those show nothing, you’re probably dealing with file-structure corruption from that ejection.
Don’t use that card anymore — seriously. any write action can overwrite what’s left. clone the whole card to an image file first (dd or a Windows tool) and work on the copy. chkdsk can sometimes make things worse. If you want, upload one small sample so people can see what type of corruption it is.
I went out to shoot at a small gallery opening last month with my Canon point and shoot. Most of the shots are fine, but about 30 pics on the SD card are messed up — some show large grey bands, others open as totally black or with big pixel blocks. The card is a 16GB sandisk, been using it for a couple years. I didn’t drop the camera or anything, but I did accidentally eject the card once while copying files to my laptop (win11). I tried chkdsk and Windows Photo Viewer, and a free ‘repair’ website that only gave me previews with huge watermarks. I’m a freelancer on a tight budget, so I can’t just throw cash at every paid tool.
What should I try next? Is this likely recoverable, or is the card toast? I can attach sample images if that helps. Any step-by-step advice appreciated — I don’t want to make things worse.
Agreed. If budget allowed, I’d probably use both — Hasselblad for stills, Nikon for video. Best of both worlds.
True, if video was my main focus, I’d consider Nikon. But for high-end client photos, Hasselblad is still king.
Exactly — Hasselblad equals pure artistry, Nikon equals pure utility. It comes down to priorities: chasing perfection in images or maximizing overall performance.
Honestly, I see both sides. Hasselblad is perfect for stills, Nikon is better for video. If you want one camera for both, Nikon’s versatility makes it the safer choice.
I get that, but for anyone serious about video, Nikon ZR is on another level. 6K video, RED codec, clean audio — it’s a filmmaker’s dream. Performance over perfection in motion.
Yep, that’s the way to do it. preview mode = biggest sanity saver. if the thumbnails come up in the trial, you know the repair is worth trying. if nothing shows, don’t waste money. I always test the 2–3 worst files first, then borderline ones.