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(A7CR) How to delete all images from card quickly, without also wiping all settings?

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Nirurin

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The fastest method I have found so far is.... really laborious and badly designed lol. It -can't- be the intended method. I have to -

Go into the playback images.

Go left to change it to dates list.

Go onto dates.

Press 'menu'.

Scroll through options to get to the 'delete' option.

go through a couple options to get to the 'delete all with this date'.

Confirm deletion.

It's like ... 12+ clicks (depending on where in the menu you are when you press menu).

The only alternative I've found (though it seems to no longer exist... not sure when it was removed) was to 'format the SD card' however this also meant all the settings/profiles I had set up were also removed (for some reason, not sure why when camera settings shouldn't be stored on the SD anyway...)

I'm now on v2.0 but I'm not sure if that helps or hinders lol.

I must be missing something obvious!
 
Nirurin said:
The fastest method I have found so far is.... really laborious and badly designed lol. It -can't- be the intended method. I have to -

Go into the playback images.

Go left to change it to dates list.

Go onto dates.

Press 'menu'.

Scroll through options to get to the 'delete' option.

go through a couple options to get to the 'delete all with this date'.

Confirm deletion.

It's like ... 12+ clicks (depending on where in the menu you are when you press menu).

The only alternative I've found (though it seems to no longer exist... not sure when it was removed) was to 'format the SD card' however this also meant all the settings/profiles I had set up were also removed (for some reason, not sure why when camera settings shouldn't be stored on the SD anyway...)
Click to expand...
That's strange. The camera settings is stored in camera internal memory not external SD card. Don't think A7cR is different from other models. I always re-format SD/CFE-A cards after every transfer of photos to external hard drive. Give a try. Backup your settings to a separate SD card first, then format the card with test photos. In case you still can restore settings from the first SD card.
Nirurin said:
I'm now on v2.0 but I'm not sure if that helps or hinders lol.

I must be missing something obvious!
Click to expand...
--
https://www.flickr.com/photos/55485085@N04/albums
 
Last edited:
PWPhotography said:
Nirurin said:
The fastest method I have found so far is.... really laborious and badly designed lol. It -can't- be the intended method. I have to -

Go into the playback images.

Go left to change it to dates list.

Go onto dates.

Press 'menu'.

Scroll through options to get to the 'delete' option.

go through a couple options to get to the 'delete all with this date'.

Confirm deletion.

It's like ... 12+ clicks (depending on where in the menu you are when you press menu).

The only alternative I've found (though it seems to no longer exist... not sure when it was removed) was to 'format the SD card' however this also meant all the settings/profiles I had set up were also removed (for some reason, not sure why when camera settings shouldn't be stored on the SD anyway...)
Click to expand...
That's strange. The camera settings is stored in camera internal memory not external SD card. Don't think A7cR is different from other models. I always re-format SD/CFE-A cards after every transfer of photos to external hard drive. Give a try. Backup your settings to a separate SD card first, then format the card with test photos. In case you still can restore settings from the first SD card.
Click to expand...
It seems to be standard behaviour. I just read through the A7CR online manual and it specifically says that formatting the SD card also wipes settings and the M1/M2/M3 presets etc.

Could be that it is because that option resets everything to factory settings, not just the SD. There's no specific option to just do one and not the other (that I can find).

PWPhotography said:
PWPhotography said:
I'm now on v2.0 but I'm not sure if that helps or hinders lol.

I must be missing something obvious!
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
Nirurin said:
PWPhotography said:
Nirurin said:
The fastest method I have found so far is.... really laborious and badly designed lol. It -can't- be the intended method. I have to -

Go into the playback images.

Go left to change it to dates list.

Go onto dates.

Press 'menu'.

Scroll through options to get to the 'delete' option.

go through a couple options to get to the 'delete all with this date'.

Confirm deletion.

It's like ... 12+ clicks (depending on where in the menu you are when you press menu).

The only alternative I've found (though it seems to no longer exist... not sure when it was removed) was to 'format the SD card' however this also meant all the settings/profiles I had set up were also removed (for some reason, not sure why when camera settings shouldn't be stored on the SD anyway...)
Click to expand...
That's strange. The camera settings is stored in camera internal memory not external SD card. Don't think A7cR is different from other models. I always re-format SD/CFE-A cards after every transfer of photos to external hard drive. Give a try. Backup your settings to a separate SD card first, then format the card with test photos. In case you still can restore settings from the first SD card.
Click to expand...
It seems to be standard behaviour. I just read through the A7CR online manual and it specifically says that formatting the SD card also wipes settings and the M1/M2/M3 presets etc.

Could be that it is because that option resets everything to factory settings, not just the SD. There's no specific option to just do one and not the other (that I can find).
Click to expand...
Interesting. A7cR doesn't have internal memory chip? That something I never experienced in regular A7r/A7-series, A1. I have owned many models in last 10 years. Just never own A7c/A7cR series.

Nirurin said:
Nirurin said:
Nirurin said:
I'm now on v2.0 but I'm not sure if that helps or hinders lol.

I must be missing something obvious!
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
--
https://www.flickr.com/photos/55485085@N04/albums
 
Last edited:
The sony cameras have internal storage and external. The A7CR has "1", "2", "3" and external "M1", "M2", "M3", "M4". They are independent.

In "[MR] Camera Set Memory" you can select the destination and with "[MR] Recall Camera Setting" you can retrieve it. "1", "2", "3" can be retrieved also by simply turning the dial to "1", "2" or "3". These submenus are found in Shooting/Shooting Mode.
 
The issue isn't necessarily that the settings etc are stored on the SD card, they aren't, they're stored internally somewhere (otherwise you'd lose your settings when you swap out SD cards!)

The issue is that the only 'format' option for the SD card, also seems to wipe the internal memory.

This has been true for every Sony camera I've used, as far as I'm aware. But I've only had the A7Rii and A7iii and A7CR.

Though the behaviour may have changed. I'll run a test in a minute, after figuring out how to back up all my saved options!
 
Nirurin said:
The issue isn't necessarily that the settings etc are stored on the SD card, they aren't, they're stored internally somewhere (otherwise you'd lose your settings when you swap out SD cards!)

The issue is that the only 'format' option for the SD card, also seems to wipe the internal memory.

This has been true for every Sony camera I've used, as far as I'm aware. But I've only had the A7Rii and A7iii and A7CR.

Though the behaviour may have changed. I'll run a test in a minute, after figuring out how to back up all my saved options!
Click to expand...
Camera Set. Memory

stl_mov.png


Allows you to register up to 3 often-used modes or product settings per shooting mode (Still/Movie/S&Q Motion/time-lapse movie) to the product and up to 4 (M1 through M4) to the memory card. You can recall the settings using just the mode dial.
  1. Set the product to the setting you want to register.
  2. MENU →
    s_menu_stil_mov.png

    (Shooting) → [Shooting Mode] → [
    cE5C1.png

    Camera Set. Memory] → desired number.
  3. Press the center of the control wheel to confirm.
Items that can be registered
  • You can register various functions for shooting. The items that can actually be registered are displayed on the menu of the camera.
  • Aperture (F number)
  • Shutter speed
To change registered settings

Change the setting to the desired one and re-register the setting to the same mode number.

Note
  • M1 through M4 can be selected only when a memory card is inserted into the product.
  • Program Shift cannot be registered.
 
Nirurin said:
PWPhotography said:
Nirurin said:
The fastest method I have found so far is.... really laborious and badly designed lol. It -can't- be the intended method. I have to -

Go into the playback images.

Go left to change it to dates list.

Go onto dates.

Press 'menu'.

Scroll through options to get to the 'delete' option.

go through a couple options to get to the 'delete all with this date'.

Confirm deletion.

It's like ... 12+ clicks (depending on where in the menu you are when you press menu).

The only alternative I've found (though it seems to no longer exist... not sure when it was removed) was to 'format the SD card' however this also meant all the settings/profiles I had set up were also removed (for some reason, not sure why when camera settings shouldn't be stored on the SD anyway...)
Click to expand...
That's strange. The camera settings is stored in camera internal memory not external SD card. Don't think A7cR is different from other models. I always re-format SD/CFE-A cards after every transfer of photos to external hard drive. Give a try. Backup your settings to a separate SD card first, then format the card with test photos. In case you still can restore settings from the first SD card.
Click to expand...
It seems to be standard behaviour. I just read through the A7CR online manual and it specifically says that formatting the SD card also wipes settings and the M1/M2/M3 presets etc.

Could be that it is because that option resets everything to factory settings, not just the SD. There's no specific option to just do one and not the other (that I can find).
Nirurin said:
Nirurin said:
I'm now on v2.0 but I'm not sure if that helps or hinders lol.

I must be missing something obvious!
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Formatting does not impact camera settings, including the M1,M2,M3 settings from the Mode Dial. Only the M1-M4 settings stored on the SD card are removed.



Format

When you use a memory card with this camera for the first time, we recommend that you format the card using the camera for stable performance of the memory card. Note that formatting permanently erases all data on the memory card, and is unrecoverable. Save valuable data on a computer, etc.
  1. MENU →
    s_menu_stil_mov.png

    (Shooting) → [Media] → [Format].
  2. Select [Enter]. (Quick formatting)
    • If you press the
      s_delete.png

      (Delete) button, a message to perform full formatting will be displayed. You can launch full formatting by selecting [Enter].
The difference between quick formatting and full formatting

Perform full formatting when you feel like the speed of recording to the memory card or read-out from the memory card has become slow, or when you want to erase data completely, etc.

Full formatting takes longer than quick formatting, because all areas of the memory card are initialized.

Hint
  • You can also display the screen for formatting the memory card by pressing and holding the MENU button and then the
    s_delete.png

    (Delete) button on the shooting screen for approximately two seconds.
  • You can cancel full formatting before it is completed. Even if you cancel full formatting in the middle of the process, the data will be erased, so you can use the memory card as is.
Note
  • Formatting permanently erases all data including protected images and registered settings (from M1 to M4).
  • The access lamp lights up during formatting. Do not remove the memory card while the access lamp is lit up.
  • Format the memory card on this camera. If you format the memory card on the computer, the memory card may not be usable depending on the format type.
  • It may take a few minutes to complete formatting, depending on the memory card.
  • You cannot format the memory card if the remaining battery charge is less than 1%.
 
Last edited:
Nirurin said:
The issue isn't necessarily that the settings etc are stored on the SD card, they aren't, they're stored internally somewhere (otherwise you'd lose your settings when you swap out SD cards!)

The issue is that the only 'format' option for the SD card, also seems to wipe the internal memory.

This has been true for every Sony camera I've used, as far as I'm aware. But I've only had the A7Rii and A7iii and A7CR.
Click to expand...
This is NOT true as I never ever experienced in all models I have owned, entire A7r-series (every generation), A73/4, A1. I virtually always re-format cards after transfering photos in the cameras, never ever experienced losing settings :-) But I never own A7c/A7cR-series that would be a big surprise.
Nirurin said:
Though the behaviour may have changed. I'll run a test in a minute, after figuring out how to back up all my saved options!
Click to expand...
 
PWPhotography said:
Nirurin said:
The issue isn't necessarily that the settings etc are stored on the SD card, they aren't, they're stored internally somewhere (otherwise you'd lose your settings when you swap out SD cards!)

The issue is that the only 'format' option for the SD card, also seems to wipe the internal memory.

This has been true for every Sony camera I've used, as far as I'm aware. But I've only had the A7Rii and A7iii and A7CR.
Click to expand...
This is NOT true as I never ever experienced in all models I have owned, entire A7r-series (every generation), A73/4, A1. I virtually always re-format cards after transfering photos in the cameras, never ever experienced losing settings :-) But I never own A7c/A7cR-series that would be a big surprise.
PWPhotography said:
Though the behaviour may have changed. I'll run a test in a minute, after figuring out how to back up all my saved options!
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
You are correct. I own the A7CR and I am able to retain all camera settings despite constantly reformatting SD cards after use.
 
Apart from the camera settings, if you just want to delete the photos, why don't you put the SD card in the computer, go to the folder in question and throw it in the trash and then empty the trash?

You can simply delete the DCIM and the Misc folder. When you put the SD card back into the camera and turn it on, the camera will automatically create new folders.
 
DirkPeh said:
Apart from the camera settings, if you just want to delete the photos, why don't you put the SD card in the computer, go to the folder in question and throw it in the trash and then empty the trash?

You can simply delete the DCIM and the Misc folder. When you put the SD card back into the camera and turn it on, the camera will automatically create new folders.
Click to expand...
Exactly. To OPer, you also can easily cut and paste all photos from SD card to your external HD :-)
 
Nirurin said:
It seems to be standard behaviour. I just read through the A7CR online manual and it specifically says that formatting the SD card also wipes settings and the M1/M2/M3 presets etc.
Click to expand...
The basic Memory settings 1, 2 and 3 are stored in the camera. These settings are not affected when formatting cards.

Additional memory settings, M1, M2, M3, M4, are stored on the memory card and need to be backed up before formatting the card and copied back.
 
Nirurin said:
PWPhotography said:
Nirurin said:
The fastest method I have found so far is.... really laborious and badly designed lol. It -can't- be the intended method. I have to -

Go into the playback images.

Go left to change it to dates list.

Go onto dates.

Press 'menu'.

Scroll through options to get to the 'delete' option.

go through a couple options to get to the 'delete all with this date'.

Confirm deletion.

It's like ... 12+ clicks (depending on where in the menu you are when you press menu).

The only alternative I've found (though it seems to no longer exist... not sure when it was removed) was to 'format the SD card' however this also meant all the settings/profiles I had set up were also removed (for some reason, not sure why when camera settings shouldn't be stored on the SD anyway...)
Click to expand...
That's strange. The camera settings is stored in camera internal memory not external SD card. Don't think A7cR is different from other models. I always re-format SD/CFE-A cards after every transfer of photos to external hard drive. Give a try. Backup your settings to a separate SD card first, then format the card with test photos. In case you still can restore settings from the first SD card.
Click to expand...
It seems to be standard behaviour. I just read through the A7CR online manual and it specifically says that formatting the SD card also wipes settings and the M1/M2/M3 presets etc.

Could be that it is because that option resets everything to factory settings, not just the SD. There's no specific option to just do one and not the other (that I can find).
Nirurin said:
Nirurin said:
I'm now on v2.0 but I'm not sure if that helps or hinders lol.

I must be missing something obvious!
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
I've formatted cards in the camera and the custom setting have never been affected.

???
 
dmanthree said:
dmanthree said:
Click to expand...
I've formatted cards in the camera and the custom setting have never been affected.

???
Click to expand...
There are in-camera custom settings and there are on-card custom settings.

Read the good answer right above your post:





d0b7e2ba82434228b11f9bb5629eb5c3.jpg





And pay attention to the warning issued by Sony in the (online) user manual:





9217ecf79ab248a3a7747a9b8cb658f6.jpg



The OP raised a valid concern for which there is no “neat” solution provided by the camera firmware.

Most replies to the OP missed the fact that it is possible to have custom settings saved to the memory card (in addition to the usual in-camera custom settings).
 
AshleyMC said:
The OP raised a valid concern for which there is no “neat” solution provided by the camera firmware.

Most replies to the OP missed the fact that it is possible to have custom settings saved to the memory card (in addition to the usual in-camera custom settings).
Click to expand...
The op clearly doesn’t understand this and hasn’t been saying what you are saying. The op claimed that memory in the camera was being erased as part of formatting and even said it made no sense to store this data on the sd card. Clearly they are confused.

As for the elegant solution? First make a backup of the customizations. Then format and restore the backup data. That’s the only rational one. Large mass deletes aren’t recommended as they leave a lot of potential for file table corruption over time. A fresh format is a smarter way to remove a lot of files.
 
RealWorldPhoto said:
Nirurin said:
It seems to be standard behaviour. I just read through the A7CR online manual and it specifically says that formatting the SD card also wipes settings and the M1/M2/M3 presets etc.
Click to expand...
The basic Memory settings 1, 2 and 3 are stored in the camera. These settings are not affected when formatting cards.

Additional memory settings, M1, M2, M3, M4, are stored on the memory card and need to be backed up before formatting the card and copied back.
Click to expand...
Exactly, not sure why some people here just don't get it. I use these 4 additional memory settings and know that they WILL BE LOST when I format the SD card (so I always keep a backup)
 
UncleVanya said:
First make a backup of the customizations. Then format and restore the backup data.
Click to expand...
Obviously.

— Backup = insert card into computer and do a folder copy to a drive on computer

— Format = insert card into camera and do a format using menu

— Restore = insert card back into said computer and do a reverse copy of said folder

— finally, insert card back into camera

Totally manual. Not sure about “elegant” and “rational” solution.
 
AshleyMC said:
UncleVanya said:
First make a backup of the customizations. Then format and restore the backup data.
Click to expand...
Obviously.

— Backup = insert card into computer and do a folder copy to a drive on computer

— Format = insert card into camera and do a format using menu

— Restore = insert card back into said computer and do a reverse copy of said folder

— finally, insert card back into camera

Totally manual. Not sure about “elegant” and “rational” solution.
Click to expand...
This...

The last three answers are the solution. Keep a backup of your custom settings. You can do this with a Camset file.

So the simple solution, in the field, is to keep a copy of your camset file on your cell phone. I use android so this is easy. Format your SD. Connect your camera to your phone, and copy the Camset files/folders to your just formatted card.

Only thing easier is to pre format your cards with the camset files before you go into the field, and then when the card is full, pull it out and put in preformatted card with the camset files.
 
AshleyMC said:
UncleVanya said:
First make a backup of the customizations. Then format and restore the backup data.
Click to expand...
Obviously.

— Backup = insert card into computer and do a folder copy to a drive on computer

— Format = insert card into camera and do a format using menu

— Restore = insert card back into said computer and do a reverse copy of said folder

— finally, insert card back into camera

Totally manual. Not sure about “elegant” and “rational” solution.
Click to expand...
Better than the delete all items method. Less stress on the card. But in my opinion the sd card data for customizations ought to be possible to place in a dedicated partition created by the camera and not formatted unless requested in the menus. Imagine: format card - keep customizations and maybe format completely.
 
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