More of a topic for discussion I guess. I never used to download from my Powershots till I misplaced my card reader once and then I stopped taking the card in and out and got into the habit of plugging the camera into the computer as opposed to taking the card out and using a card reader. Canons EosUtility comes with the camera which makes me think that maybe they might recommend plugging the camera into the PC but am just curious as I know people swap cards for different projects and also carry a spare card just in case you might fill one up ( easy to do if you shoot RAW ) So, not so much for my education but a matter of finding out what others do and why, do you used a card reader or do you plug the camera into the computer? Battery life is less of a concern than what it was with my Powershot so I am assuming that is not really in the equation. Just wanting to kick off some discussion and give the forum some life.
I think you can edit now, they were flagged for moderator by the filter, likely as your a new member and had minimal posts.
Thanks for the explanation , stilll want to see what others prefer, Plug the camera vis USB or remove card and use a reader. Just curious
I originally only transferred from camera via the utility. back in the mid 2000's when I started digitally. I began using a card reader more often a few years later. I think if your careful with the cards it doesn't matter. I always have a few pretty good size cards, transfer all shots and then back up the computer copies and reformat the card in camera so taking it out was not a necessity it just saved some transfer time on larger transfers. The other nice reason to connect to computer is that you can shoot in the studio tethered and see the shots on screen right away.
I use two cameras. My other brand camera uses two SD cards. So you are doing well to fill two cards, plus carrying a spare card or two is not a problem. My Canon camera uses a single CF card. I am yet to need a second CF card. As with both cameras, once I get home, I download, and create a back up copy of my images. I have one of those multi format card readers that lives with the rest of my camera gear. I remove the cards from the camera, and use the card reader. I use Windows to transfer the files from the card to my laptop. Once done, and I have checked that all of the files have been transferred, I return the cards to the camera. Delete the images and start again. It maybe not the best way, but it works for me. A while, pre Canon, I used to use a usb cable to connect the camera to my laptop and transfer the files. I honestly can't remember why I changed the process. To quick view images, I use Windows, and to process the images, I use Elements. I tried Pentax's software that came with the camera once I brought my first camera, and was not that impressed. My 7D was brought second hand, so no software came with it, so I can't comment on Canon's effort. Gary
I typically use the wireless transfer from my camera to my phone for photos. Otherwise I use a USB cable.
AS I said just for conversation, in fact I do both according to time etc. On another note I saw a camera yesterday that had the rubber door missing that covers the jack for the USB cord to plug into, I wonder just how fragile that part is
I used to go through the procedures listed here but I find my SD card plugs directly into my laptop. I then create a folder in Window with the place, month and year on it. The card is then returned to the camera and formatted. This way I do not fill the card too quick and the photos are easily found when I need them. Every so often I back up my hard drive on my computer, that way if the computer crashes the photos are not lost. This is not the initial discussion but should be considered, I found that my photography students usually had their photos all over the place, once they developed a routine, finding what they want is a lot more convenient.
Good point, I belong to Amazon Prime and one feature they give members is unlimited cloud storage of photos, they do limit video though. I have a folder on my hard drive that backs up to Amazon Photos on a regular basis.
I've run into a few problems downloading from older Canons (300D and 350D) under Windows 10, whereas they were fine under Windows 7, really not sure what that's about - when I sell them now I always include a CF card reader. But my 400D is working well, I just download via the USB port. Ditto the other digital cameras I use. One reason not to use card readers with the older Canons is that it's possible to damage the fine pins that connect to a CF card when you keep swapping the cards in and out, and it's a difficult repair. Not a problem with SD, of course. Oddly the last two Canon DSLRs I sold had this problem, but it's one I've never seen before. The "hinge" of the rubber flap is fairly thin and I suppose it can snap if forced back too far, but it's never happened to me.
I run with a 5D Mark IV, and added a battery grip, so power to run long enough to transfer via USB is no issue. Since the 5DmarkIV has USB3, transfer speeds are not blazing, but thats no problem for me. I'm old, and therefore patient. I'm also a computer geek, and I tend to think that several hundred flash card removals and replacements back into my camera can not have negative wear and tear consequences eventually. So I never remove the cards. It's all moved via USB.
Re battery life - I keep a lot of different DSLRs on the go because I'm testing lenses for resale, the main ones are a Canon and a Nikon; the Canon because a lot of 2nd hand canon lenses turn up, also because I have a dozen or so adapters for manual lenses and use it a lot, the Nikon because it's my main camera generally, the one I use when I'm just taking photos. I have three batteries for the Nikon and two for the Canon - the Nikon ones sit in a double charger next to my PC, the charger and spare battery for the Canon is also there. And my Pentax uses 4 rechargable AAAs, and I have another set in my bridge camera. This makes it fairly easy to avoid running flat in mid-transfer. I don't have reserve batteries for my other DSLRs etc. but rarely take more than a couple of dozen shots at a time with them, it's easy enough to avoid problems.
Depends if I'm using Pentax or Canon or the iMac. With my Canon I can download directly from the camera to my laptop or phone. But am I working behind my iMac I need to remove the SD card to put into the iMac. For PentX I need to remove the SD card to use a cable to plug it in the laptop or phone. My iMac has a special SD card reader. Which my phone and laptop don't have. It really depends the possibility of the camera with wifi or not. My Pentax doesn't have wifi, while my Canon does have wifi possibilities. So I need to remove it from the Pentax. Not sure the working process between Pentax and Windows. But with Pentax and iMac a cable from camera to computer isn't really necessary. But that depends what your requirements are. I always needed to remove the SD card and put it into mac, but cable was a possibility, not the best I had when I was using the K200, so with the K5 I automatically removed the SD card.
My digital work is via Pentax K 5. I seem to recall reading, perhaps about my earlier DSLR, a Pentax K 10, that a camera battery failure during a transfer via a USB cable might well corrupt the images. Thus I've always used a card reader. Of course as in so many photographic matters, YMMV, of course!
welcome to the Forum, mistryzop, I have a 350D which uses a single CF card. If you use a single card regularly as with most things eventually it will fail so a second one on hand is useful, plus you are limited to the capacity of the card so again a second will be useful.
I shoot with a 5D Mark III, a 5D Mark IV and a 1Ds Mark III, they all have dual slots for CF & SD cards. As I shoot using both cards I remove the SD card and use a Lexar USB.3 card reader, which has not let me down, this does avoid the need to remove the CF card which it is possible to cause damage to the pins if not correctly re-inserted. I also find that using the card reader is quicker than directly from camera to computer via the USB cable to my Mac. The only time I use a USB cable is when I shoot with my old 5D. Incidentally I cannot connect my 1Ds MkIII via the USB cable as it requires the older v.2 EOS utility software which I cannot run on my mac running OS 12.6 Monterey, so card reader it is.
