Micro SD Card Compatibility (1 Viewer)

[PaulCountyDurham]

Hi all,

Would someone be kind enough to help me out with the following, please.

I'm going through Graham Houghton's modules on the FZ330, and he mentioned two SD cards that can be used and that a micro SD card is fine but he didn't specify which one. I've put a micro SD card in, which I formatted. Everything seemed fine at first except today I took a photo and received the message - write error please check card. I then checked the card and reinserted and it's fine again.

I've been looking around on the internet for information and can't find much to do with micro SD cards.

My question is - do I have the potential to damage the camera by continuing with a micro SD card and are there certain ones I should be using.

'Any help appreciated.

 

[DJRWhittle]

Hi all,

Would someone be kind enough to help me out with the following, please.

I'm going through Graham Houghton's modules on the FZ330, and he mentioned two SD cards that can be used and that a micro SD card is fine but he didn't specify which one. I've put a micro SD card in, which I formatted. Everything seemed fine at first except today I took a photo and received the message - write error please check card. I then checked the card and reinserted and it's fine again.

I've been looking around on the internet for information and can't find much to do with micro SD cards.

My question is - do I have the potential to damage the camera by continuing with a micro SD card and are there certain ones I should be using.

'Any help appreciated.

Hi Paul,

Sorry for the late reply but I only just spotted your post. The Panasonic Lumix FZ330 uses SD cards. If you want to use a micro SD card you will have to use an adapter to make it fit your camera's SD card slot. Unfortunately not all SD cards, micro SD cards and adapters are created equal. As with just about everything, there are good and bad. Try to stick to the better known names, have a couple so that if one fails you have another.

When I transfer my pictures from camera to computer I don't clear the card in the computer, I copy the files over and when I put the card back in the camera I always re format it rather than just deleting the images. When you format the card in the camera the camera sets the card up the way it needs it. When you put the card into a computer there is the potential for that set up to be disturbed, re formatting the card makes sure it stays the way the camera needs it.

One last thing, using a micro SD card in an adapter doubles the chances of things going wrong (two sets of contacts) and the error message you mention is often because the card or the adapter are not seated properly. As you've discovered, removing and re seating the card/adapter will often clear the fault.

It is highly unlikely that any of this will damage your camera but it could cause you to lose important pictures that you can't replace.

Hope this helps.

Derek

PS. Following Graham Houghton is an excellent way of getting to grips with your camera's settings. The best way to get to grips with the camera itself is to go out (or stay in if you like) and play with it. Always remember - if you get stuck and lost in the menus, its easy to 'factory reset' and start again. It can be infuriating but you learn a lot doing it.

 

[PaulCountyDurham]

Hi Paul,

Sorry for the late reply but I only just spotted your post. The Panasonic Lumix FZ330 uses SD cards. If you want to use a micro SD card you will have to use an adapter to make it fit your camera's SD card slot. Unfortunately not all SD cards, micro SD cards and adapters are created equal. As with just about everything, there are good and bad. Try to stick to the better known names, have a couple so that if one fails you have another.

When I transfer my pictures from camera to computer I don't clear the card in the computer, I copy the files over and when I put the card back in the camera I always re format it rather than just deleting the images. When you format the card in the camera the camera sets the card up the way it needs it. When you put the card into a computer there is the potential for that set up to be disturbed, re formatting the card makes sure it stays the way the camera needs it.

One last thing, using a micro SD card in an adapter doubles the chances of things going wrong (two sets of contacts) and the error message you mention is often because the card or the adapter are not seated properly. As you've discovered, removing and re seating the card/adapter will often clear the fault.

It is highly unlikely that any of this will damage your camera but it could cause you to lose important pictures that you can't replace.

Hope this helps.

Derek

PS. Following Graham Houghton is an excellent way of getting to grips with your camera's settings. The best way to get to grips with the camera itself is to go out (or stay in if you like) and play with it. Always remember - if you get stuck and lost in the menus, its easy to 'factory reset' and start again. It can be infuriating but you learn a lot doing it.

Hi Derek,

'Very useful, thanks.

I quickly worked out that the micro SD card I had wasn't what I needed and so I bought a sandisk ultra U1, 120 mb/s, card; which as far as I can tell is what I need (I think Graham had said that for still pictures that is fine, but for video U3 will be needed). Like you, I don't clear the card in the computer but what I didn't appreciate was your reformatting point when the SD card is put back into the camera, so from now on I'll do that.

Yes, I'm finding that the IA mode was a perfect introduction to just get out there, take some pictures and get used to being able to get in decent range in order to get decent images (decent images in the context of beginner); but I want to learn a few things on how to use a camera and so I've moved away from that mode and I'm currently trying out a few things, some of which have helped and as you'd expect from someone completely new to a camera there's a bit (well, a lot!) of trial and error going on. I don't expect to pick a camera up and within weeks be able to replicate what others have achieved through years of hard work, so it's a case of slow and steady for me and slowly building knowledge through a mix of theory and practical use. I certainly know a lot more than I did around a month back and over time I'll keep progressing.

I've kept a note of exactly what settings I have changed and as you say I'm aware that the camera can be reset within minutes if need be. I think for someone like me the wide range of buttons and options seems daunting at first, and certainly led me to making a bit of a meal of it, but it feels far less daunting now that I've had chance to read around the camera and learn through a short period of trial and error.

I'm guessing there are a million and one things an advanced user can do with the camera, but in my mind at the moment I have the following: focus (particularly being able to home in on the bird's eyes), finding the balance between ISO/aperture/shutter speed depending on setting and starting to think about angles and light/weather conditions and how that impacts the quality of the picture and it follows how best to adjust the camera settings. I think that is more than enough to be going on with for the next few weeks at least, and I don't want to get swamped in the theory and try to do more than what is reasonable for someone new to a camera: if I tried to do that I'd just end up chasing my tail and not really building knowledge slowly but surely. For example: if the light is bad or birds are in the air, I'm not going to even bother attempting to get pictures for the time being: I think I have quite a bit to learn in good conditions without over-complicating things.

Thanks again,
Paul