How to Format SD Card in Canon Camera

sd-card-canon-camera

Share This Post

Cameras have been a part of our lives throughout the ages and have evolved. They serve as the best means to capture fleeting but momentous moments in our lives, allowing us to freeze these moments for later viewing, which are extremely soothing and satisfying. This article specifically focused on the Canon Camera and the variety of methods users can use to format the memory card. We have gathered useful information you may require to format an SD card Canon camera.

Whether you are a professional photographer or a random user, the Canon SD Card is an essential prerequisite. Occasionally, your SD card may experience non-functional issues, like any other gadget or appliance. For instance, one of the most common errors you may encounter in your work is the “operation could not be completed error” in the printer.”

We will explore every possible piece of information that a user should be aware of about an SD card. This includes how you can format it using different methods and what precautionary measures can help prevent data loss.

So, let’s initiate exploring right from scratch.

 

How to Use a Canon Camera?

Here is a step-by-step guide to learning how the Canon camera works:

  • Locate and press the “On/Off” button on your Canon camera
  • Insert a fully charged battery in the provided slot
  • Alternatively, you can also connect the camera to a power source using an adapter
  • Place a compatible lens in the designated spot by aligning the white dot on the camera with a white dot on the lens
  • Once aligned, twist it clockwise
  • Set your preferred shooting mode, such as Auto, Manual, or a specific scene mode
  • Compose your shot using an LCD screen
  • Alternatively, you can also use a viewfinder for this purpose
  • Focus on your subject whether a person, scene, or object, by half-pressing the shutter button
  • Once focused, fully press the shutter button to take the picture
  • Access the menu to view the image quality, including ISO, white balance, and more
  • You can also review your photos by using the playback button
  • This process will enable users to navigate through your shots using the arrow buttons
  • If you want to record a video, take the following steps:
  1. Go to the mode dial
  2. Select the video mode
  3. Press the video record button
  • Now, after completing the rolling and clicking adventure, turn off your Canon camera by using the “On/Off” button

 

Do You Need to Format A New SD Card for Canon Camera?

Yes, you definitely need to initialize your Canon camera SD card, by going through the formatting process. To serve this purpose, the Canon camera offers two types of formatting:

Low-Level Formatting

  • Deep cleaning
  • Takes a few minutes

General Formatting

  • Takes a few seconds
  • Offers standard benefits

Why Do You Need to Format a New SD Card?

New Canon camera SD Cards also need to be formatted. Here are the compelling reasons why:

  • Crucial for an SD card’s health and performance
  • Eliminates error messages
  • Fixes camera not working glitches
  • A new SD card is formatted for easy data storage
  • Formatting an SD card fixes video not recording problems
  • Plus, formatting drastically improves the read and write speeds of the memory card
  • Format your SD card in the exFAT for SDXC and FAT32 for EOSR format

 

What are the Potential Reasons For Canon Camera Not Reading an SD Card?

If your SD card for Canon is not being read by the Canon camera, there can be the following reasons causing this issue:

  • Dirty card slot
  • Incompatible or corrupted
  • Write-protected
  • Improperly inserted
  • Faulty card reader
  • Software or firmware issues
  • Hitting your card’s capacity
  • Incompatible format
  • Battery-related issues
  • A card or card slot is materially abused
  • File system errors

 

How Long Does it Take to Format a Memory Card?

Formatting Canon camera SD cards is not an intricate and time-consuming process. However, the time required entirely depends on a few of the following aspects:

  • SD card’s capacity
  • SD card type
  • Camera device, and more

 

How Do You Format a Memory Card Without Losing Data?

Here are the precautionary measures to format an SD Card for Canon camera to prevent data loss:

  • Create a backup beforehand because formatting an SD card means no data will be left on the card
  • Save a copy of your files on your:
  1. Computer
  2. External hard drive
  3. Another card
  4. Cloud storage system
  • Once you have secured your data, initiate the formatting of the SD card
  • After formatting, copy the data back to the SD card if desired

 

How to Format an SD Card That is Write-Protected

Formatting memory cards for Canon is possible if they are not write-protected. Here is how you can remove your SD card’s protection to allow an SD card formatting:

  • Use a physical switch to unblock your memory card
  • If there is no switch, plug it in again
  • Use a memory card reader
  • If the above-provided solutions do not work, try using antivirus software
  • If an antivirus software does not work either, try using a write protection removal tool to remove your SD card’s protection

 

How to Format an SD Card in Canon Camera

Canon SD cards allow easy and straightforward formatting. Here are multiple ways to perform the process:

 

1- Formatting an SD Card Using Built-in Options

Format SD cards for Canon using built-in options.

Follow these steps to do it:

  • Uncover the Canon camera’s SD card slot
  • Insert a compatible SD card into the card slot
  • Turn on your camera by clockwise rotating the dial counter to the ON position
  • Press the “MENU” button
  • Employ the “INFO” button, and navigate to the “Wrench” tab
  • Press the “SET” button to reach the “Format card” option
  • Navigate and select the “Low-level format” option
  • Confirm your action by pressing the “OK” option
  • Press the “SET” button
  • This process will start the formatting process

 

2- How To Format an SD Card On Canon Powershot?

Here is the formatting system on Canon Powershot that perfectly formats SD cards for Canon camera:

  • Turn on your Camera
  • Choose the data that you want to delete
  • Navigate and select “Erase” by pressing <FUNC. /SET> button
  • Select “Erase all” by pressing the previous format
  • Hit OK by pressing <FUNC. /SET> button to start formatting

 

3- How to Format an SD Card Using CMD

CMD is a Windows built-in tool that can be used to format a memory card for Canon cameras.

Here is a step-by-step guide to doing it:

  • Select Run as Administrator
  • Type ‘diskpart’

Press Enter

  • Type ‘list disk’

Press Enter

  • Type ‘select disk’ Along with the disk number of your card

Press Enter

  • Type ‘clean’

Press Enter

  • Type ‘create partition primary

Press Enter

  • Type ‘ format fs=fat32’ or ‘format fs=exFAT’ depending on the system
  • Press Enter to initiate formatting

 

4- How To Format an SD Card Using a Phone

Here is how you can format an SD card Canon camera using mobile devices:

Android

  • Insert an SD card into your phone
  • Launch the Settings app on your Android device
  • Tap “About Phone”
  • Click on “Storage”
  • Tap “Format SD card”
  • Hit “Accept” to start formatting

iPhone

iPhone only allows users to access and copy files, photos, and videos by using the Files app.

Here’s how they can do it:

  • Connect the card reader to your iPhone
  • Alternatively, connect the Lightning USB Camera Adapter to your iPhone through the charging port
  • Now, connect the power cable to the adaptor
  • Afterward, connect the card reader with the card inserted
  • Launch the Files app
  • Go to Browse
  • Navigate and select the SD card
  • It will be in the Locations section

Samsung Galaxy

  • Launch the Settings app
  • Tap on “Battery and Device Care”
  • Click on “Storage”
  • By swiping left you will be on the SD card screen
  • Tap the three-dots menu, located at the top left corner of the interface
  • Select “Advanced”
  • Navigate and Tap the SD card
  • Tap Format
  • Confirm your action by pressing the Format SD card option

 

5- How To Format an SD Card For Canon Camera On PC?

Follow the below-mentioned instructions for the formatting of Canon Cameras memory card on PC.

  • Insert the SD card into the PC’s slot
  • Launch the file explorer
  • Select PC
  • Navigate and select the SD card
  • Press “manage”
  • Choose the format option
  • This process will open the SD dialog box
  • Select the dropdown arrow of the file system
  • Click on FAT32
  • You will be notified once the formatting is completed

 

6- How To Format an SD Card For Canon Camera On MAC

Memory cards for Canon Cameras on MAC are formatted in the same manner as they do on PC. Follow these steps to learn the formatting procedure.

  • Using a card reader connect MAC with an SD card
  • Once the utility card is opened, select the SD card option
  • Navigate and select “erase system”
  • Select FAT32 file format which is good enough for a 32GB file
  • Press the erase button to initiate the formatting process

 

7- How To Format an SD Card For a Canon Camera On a Chromebook

Here are the instructions for formatting a Canon memory card on a Chromebook:

  • Connect the SD card to the Chromebook
  • Navigate to “Apps”
  • Go to Settings
  • Then, head to “Files”
  • Right-click on the memory card
  • This will display a pop-up menu
  • Select “Format Device”
  • Click OK on the warning message, which tells you that this process will delete all your data
  • It is always a good practice to create a backup first and save your files elsewhere
  • You will see a notification at the bottom of the interface once the formatting is completed

 

8- How To Format an SD Card For Canon Camera On Windows 10

To format Canon memory cards on Windows 10, you need to follow these steps:

  • Insert the SD card
  • Launch the File Explorer
  • Alternatively, press Windows + E on the keyboard
  • In the left-side panel, click “This PC”
  • Navigate and select the memory card you want to format
  • Once selected, right-click on the SD card and select the format
  • Select your preferred file system
  • Click Start

 

SD Card Canon Camera Data Recovering System

The Canon Camera provides two options to restore your data after SD card formatting.

Disk Grill

  • Reliable and straightforward
  • Uses USB to recover multiple photos and videos quickly

Stellar Photo Recovery

  • User-friendly
  • Enables easy and swift data recovery
  • Recovers a large amount of data in no time via a USB cable

 

Final Words

Hopefully, you have learned various formatting ways of an SD card Canon camera. Before stepping into the formatting process, take a safe ride and create a backup beforehand to prevent data loss. TECHBYTEX provides a wide array of methods including formatting an SD card using CMD, on Android and iPhone devices, on PCs, and more. If you are experiencing any other issues on your devices, visit the platform to resume convenience.