Losing photos that hold precious memories or important information can be devastating. With digital photography, it may seem like accidentally deleted photos are gone forever. However, there are various ways to try to recover deleted photos from cameras, memory cards, computers, and mobile devices. Understanding the common causes of deleted photos and learning the available recovery options can help bring your pictures back.
Why are photos deleted?
Photos can become deleted due to:
- Accidental deletion – This is the most common reason photos go missing. You may have pressed delete when intending to delete a different photo or batch of photos. Or you may have clicked delete while the wrong folder was open.
- Formatting memory cards – Formatting or erasing memory cards or other storage devices will delete all data, including photos.
- Device issues – Photos may disappear due to device malfunctions, software bugs, viruses, or other system problems.
- Theft – Having your camera, phone, or storage media stolen will result in loss of photos.
- Hardware failure – Problems with storage media, such as hard drive crashes, can lead to photo loss.
Knowing how photos became deleted or lost can provide clues regarding the best recovery options.
Can you recover photos after deleting?
The chances of recovering deleted photos depends on several factors:
- How the photos were deleted – Simply deleting files sends them to the recycle bin or trash folder, from which they are easily recoverable. However, if the recycle bin was emptied, those files could be overwritten by new data, making them harder to get back.
- Time since deletion – The sooner you attempt recovery, the better. Minimal computer and device use following deletion reduces the risk of overwritten files.
- Storage media type – Photos deleted from memory cards and USB drives have better recovery odds than those deleted from laptops or mobile devices where overwritten files are more likely.
- Photo file format – Uncompressed formats like RAW have the best chance of recovery. JPEG files are more prone to corruption.
- Use of recovery software – Specialized tools excel at finding deleted files that may elude manual methods.
Overall, recent accidental deletions from storage media offer an excellent chance of getting photos back. However, recovery becomes less likely with time, heavy device usage, and no software assistance.
How can you recover deleted photos from a computer?
If you’ve deleted photos from a laptop or desktop computer, these DIY techniques may help get pictures back:
- Check the recycle bin – Recently deleted files sit in the recycle bin, allowing restore options.
- Use backup software – Programs like Apple Time Machine or Windows File History may have copies of deleted files in their backups.
- Try system restore – Reverting your computer system to an earlier state brings back deleted files (except those in the recycle bin).
- Undelete files – File recovery software can scan hard drives to uncover deleted data that hasn’t yet been overwritten.
For best results enlist a recovery app, like Stellar Data Recovery, Disk Drill, EaseUS, or Recuva. These tools dig deeper to locate recoverable photo files. This is effective provided the deleted photos haven’t already been replaced with new files. Using recovery software quickly after deletion offers your top prospect for getting pictures back.
Recuva
Recuva (acronym for recover) is a free deleted file recovery app available for Windows. It restores a wide range of file types from hard drives, external storage devices, memory cards, and CD/DVDs. Recuva has a simple wizard-guided interface suited for beginners. An advanced mode provides more flexibility and control for experienced users. Key features include:
- Ability to undelete files that were removed from the recycle bin.
- “Deep scan” mode finds traces of deleted files.
- Secure overwrite feature to completely purge confidential files.
- Supports all main Windows versions.
Disk Drill
Disk Drill provides free and premium data recovery capabilities for Mac and Windows computers. It recovers 300+ file types from internal/external hard drives, cameras, USBs, memory cards, iPods, Kindles and more. Disk Drill offers several advanced functions:
- Scans and previews recoverable files before restoring.
- Has different levels of scanning capability for finding deleted files.
- Recovers data from formatted or corrupted volumes.
- Performs deleted file protection to guard against accidental removal.
For in-depth scans that uncover maximum deleted photos, upgrade to Disk Drill PRO.
Recovering photos from a memory card or USB drive
Digital cameras and other mobile devices often use memory cards or USB drives for photo storage. If you’ve deleted pictures from removable media, try these steps:
- Don’t take more photos – Taking additional pictures could overwrite deleted files.
- Plug media into computer – Use file recovery software to scan the card and find deleted photos.
- Check your device – Some cameras have built-in undelete functions.
- Avoid reformatting – Reformatting erases everything permanently.
Specialized tools like RescuePRO Deluxe excel at recovering deleted photos from memory cards, flash drives, and other removable media. Its highlighting feature shows the recoverability chance for deleted photos.
How can you recover deleted photos on Android?
For retrieving deleted photos on Android phones or tablets, options include:
- App trash folder – The gallery app’s trash holds recently deleted files.
- SD card – Use recovery software to restore deleted photos saved on an SD card.
- Cloud backup – If photos were backed up automatically, check connected cloud accounts.
- Device rooting – Root access allows data recovery apps to scan deeper.
Android recovery apps like DiskDigger Photo Recovery excel at undeleting images from internal memory, SD cards, and cloud storage. Popular features include:
- Recovery of photos in JPEG, RAW, PNG and other formats.
- Ability to preview found files before restoring.
- QR code device connection for easy setup.
Root access upgrades unlock the full power of DiskDigger and similar software.
How to recover deleted photos on iPhone
Restoring deleted photos on an iPhone or iPad revolves around these options:
- Recently deleted folder – iOS stores recently deleted photos here for up to 40 days.
- iCloud backup – If enabled before deletion, iCloud retains photo backups.
- iTunes backup – Connecting to iTunes may show archived photos.
- iSkysoft Toolbox – This utility recovers photos directly from iPhones and iPads.
All iOS devices have an internal Recently Deleted album inside Photos that holds deleted images up to 40 days. This makes it easy to quickly restore accidentally deleted photos. However, improperly deactivated iCloud accounts could result in permanent loss of cloud-synced photos.
For retrieving photos no longer in the Recently Deleted folder, use iPhone recovery software like iSkysoft Toolbox. It extracts deleted photos from local device storage and encrypted iTunes backups without overwriting existing files. Key features include:
- Photo preview to selectively choose which files to restore.
- WhatsApp message and Instagram photo recovery capabilities.
- accessible deleted photo recovery for many iOS versions.
Preventing photo deletion
Along with understanding recovery methods, you can take proactive measures to prevent photo deletion:
- Enable Recycle Bin – Keep this active so deleted files aren’t immediately removed.
- Back up photos – Create multiple copies on external storage media or cloud platforms.
- Use file protections – Set permissions to restrict ability to delete or edit photos.
- Store photos appropriately – Don’t save important photos in folders regularly cleared out.
- Confirm deletions – Select file deletion prompts requesting confirmation.
Consistently backing up irreplaceable photos provides your best insurance against permanent loss. Storing backups across local media like external drives and remote sources such as cloud storage offers optimal protection.
Professional photo recovery services
For high-value cases requiring in-depth technical expertise, a professional photo recovery service may be warranted. These experts possess advanced data recovery capabilities beyond most consumer software tools. Scenarios where pro services excel include:
- Recovering photos after a system crash, virus, or hardware failure.
- Retrieving photos from severely corrupted storage media.
- Accessing photos on an unresponsive phone, camera, or storage device.
- Recovering photos after a natural disaster like fire or flooding.
Professional recovery specialists have sophisticated equipment enabling tasks like:
- Repairing physically damaged memory cards and hard drives.
- Creating forensic image copies to safely conduct file recovery.
- Using file header analysis to restore corrupt photos.
- Decrypting lost RAID configurations spanning multiple drives.
These advanced capabilities allow recovering photos even after catastrophic data loss. However, costs are higher, ranging from $300 to $2000 depending on recovery complexity.
Recoverit Photo Recovery Service
Recoverit offers professional-grade recovery of photos, videos, documents, and more. With over 5 million customers worldwide, Recoverit provides:
- 95% recovery rate for all data loss scenarios.
- Class 100 cleanroom data recovery labs.
- Free diagnosis and quote for recovery services.
- Quick turnaround time.
- Firm pricing with no hidden or upcharge fees.
Recoverit’s proprietary technology reconstructs lost and deleted files at the byte level. This enables high success rates for even difficult cases with corrupted drives or improperly formatted storage media.
Conclusion
While accidentally deleted photos may initially seem permanently gone, hope still exists. By quickly leveraging the right DIY techniques or utilizing professional recovery services, you stand an excellent chance of getting back lost pictures. Recovery success varies based on how files were deleted, time elapsed, devices involved, and software approaches.
Your best protection against photo loss involves properly backing up irreplaceable images both locally and to cloud platforms. Maintaining rigorous backup practices combined with promptly attempting recovery procedures will provide you with the peace of mind to take, store, and enjoy images capturing life’s most precious memories.
