Memory Card Strategy for Nikon D7000 - HELP!!!??

ldegreef

New member
I was wondering what memory cards and strategy everyone is using for the two card slots on the D7000. I was thinking of using SanDisk Extreme® HD Video SDHC™ 16GB Card in slot 1 with the SanDisk Extreme® HD Video SDHC™ 8GB Card in slot two. What to you think?

Do you think the Extreme card is needed for this camera?

Thanks - Got mine through Best Buy on 10/17 and consider myself very lucky.
 

Nimrod

New member
Lucky you Idegreef, I'm still waiting for my D7000.
Nikon Sweden has delayed the delivery from 29th of October to 5th of November now!
Nikon Sweden said in a video that you should have up to 50 MB/seek reading speed SD card for the D7000, but since they're hardly on the market yet, I guess he exaggerated.
But I guess the writing speed is crucial when you take 6 pics/sec or film in 1080p.
I think I will buy SD card with writing speed 30MB/Sec to be on the safe side.
 
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AfterImage

New member
Hey there Ide- I'm a lucky 10/17 owner as well... currently running 2 SD cards. First is a Class 10 Delkin and the second a Class 6 PNY. Both are 4gigs. I tested both in "machine gun mode" and noticed the Class 6 PNY card seemed to buffer sooner then the Class 10. When I reviewed the shots I really couldn't find where the Class 6 fell short.
That being said I really want to pick up some quality cards for both slots and use the 2 I have as back up cards. The Delkin I had before I bought the D7000 and I picked up the PNY as a cheapy second-slot card on my way to a photoshoot in Gettysburg...
 

ldegreef

New member
Thanks for the tips. I'm taking a two week trip over seas and will be bringing my Mac Pro to download photos and videos. I'm still wondering if I need the Extreme cards that SanDisk makes. Thanks.
 

AfterImage

New member
2 weeks over seas? Yeah, I'd buy the biggest fastest dang card I could afford... never know when you'll be away from your laptop and have the need to shoot lots of video or snap tons of pics. In a case like that it's far better to be safe then be disappointed!
 

manuel val

New member
I used a 8GB HC sandisk card but recording stops when in full hd 24 fps after 10 seconds. this does not happens when i record at 1080x720 at 30 fps with the same card.
I use a 2 gb sandisk card and i can record full hd with no problem, can anyone explain why with the same brand card but different sizes this problem is happening.

thanks
 

AfterImage

New member
It, more then likely, has to do with the class rating of the cards. I would bet that your 2GB card is rated higher then your 8GB card. I think that Class 6 is the minimum you can use for full HD video. Any slower then that and your card just can't write the information fast enough.

Here is a nice break down of the Class Ratings for SD cards you might find helpful:
Secure Digital - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I hope this helps and good luck!
 

ldegreef

New member
Thanks for all the input on the Memory Card Strategy. For my two week trip I decided to go with relatively inexpensive cards. I bought a 2 pack of 8 GB cards for $57.00. As you can see on the pic below the cards are SanDisk, 8GB, 15MB/s, SDHC, class 4. I shot over 1000 pictures and shot some videos at 1080p and never had a problem. I never needed to max out the shots per second so I'm not sure if these cards would hold up to very high rates, but for my purpose and for this trip they were perfect. I brought my laptop and downloaded the pics each night - took just a few minutes. There may be some reasons to go to Extreme cards and higher class cards, but for my two week Pilgrimage this was a cost effective solution. Thanks again for all the information.

8GB_SanDisk_15MB-S_4_HC_1627.jpg
 

MileHighAko

New member
I have been using 8gb class transcend cards I picked up from Amazon for less than $15 each. Berry happy with them.

I use them in overflow mode.
 

bluenoser

Banned
I love my UHS-1 (Sandisk EXTREME PRO SDHC) - very snappy performance. The D7000 is one of the few cameras that can take advantage to the UHS-1 tech. Plus they can be had for a pretty reasonable price too! :)
 

FarOut

New member
I was wondering what memory cards and strategy everyone is using for the two card slots on the D7000. I was thinking of using SanDisk Extreme® HD Video SDHC™ 16GB Card in slot 1 with the SanDisk Extreme® HD Video SDHC™ 8GB Card in slot two. What to you think?

Do you think the Extreme card is needed for this camera?

Thanks - Got mine through Best Buy on 10/17 and consider myself very lucky.

I got the Sandisk Extreme 16gb and I've taken 500 raw images and it worked great, if anything I would get a 8gb to shoot jpeg too while still shooting raw
 

Sgt Preston

Senior Member
I just got my 64 GB sandisk sdxc card and im doing something wrong or im disappointed. I can only seem to get 11 pic burst before it freezes up and i have to wait to take more :(
 

Patrick M

Senior Member
I have a Sandisc 32g that saves at 45b/s and a 64g that runs at 1/3 of this...so it might just be that your 64g card is slower than the time it takes the camera to clear the buffer.
If that's the case, get a faster maybe smaller, card for pics, leaving the big one for movies...which is what I do (D5100)
 

Marcel

Happily retired
Staff member
Super Mod
Are you sure that shooting jpeg is faster than RAW? I know raw files are bigger, but they are not processed by the camera to fit your preferences. I read somewhere there was a slight difference between raw 12 and raw 14 bits. I'd try this out with different cards until you are able to fill your needs. If nothing works, you're in for a D3S… $$$$$
 

Browncoat

Senior Member
Yes, shooting JPG is faster than RAW. There is not a huge difference, perhaps 1-3 fps, which typically isn't important unless you're shooting sports. And really, the D7000 isn't a high fps capable camera anyway.

And the difference between RAW 12 and 14 is fairly significant. Expect to see a very noticeable drop in performance. There really isn't any need to use 14-bit in the first place, as the tradeoff in speed vs. quality is hardly worth it.
 

Sgt Preston

Senior Member
i am going to use mine to shoot nascar so if i can maintain 8 to 10 shot bursts for a prolonged period i will get some great shots. the 64gb card will do this shooting jpeg with 1/2 sec breaks. am still playing with it to get the timing down . but with both slots active is dismal :(


Thank you all for the comments and information am learning and enjoying this site
 
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Browncoat

Senior Member
The memory size (64GB) has nothing to do with the card's write speed. See my guide to memory cards.

If you're using both card slots, and writing to both cards, this is going to slow down your burst as the buffer will fill twice as fast. If it is important that you have 2 copies of each photo, then you're kind of stuck. But if you change your second card slot to overflow instead of backup, you will notice a marked improvement.
 
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