Retrieve files from buffer?

Ok, I realize that I am going to sound like a complete moron here and I'm sorry. Early in the morning, before coffee, my 5-month-old suddenly discovered that she could reach her toes and I grabbed my brand-new D600 to capture the moment. I'm upgrading from a combination of a Canon PowerShot S3is and an Olympus OM-1, so while SLR isn't new to me, Nikon's controls and display are unfamiliar. I read the manual when I got the camera (yesterday), but I'm still getting used to everything. Each image flashed on the LCD after I took it, and I was able to flip through the series of images on the LCD to show my husband. The moment over, I went back to sleep. When I woke up I hit the playback button and discovered that there had been no memory card in the camera at the time - it was still in the card reader on my computer. D'oh!

So my question is this: is there any way to retrieve files from the buffer? I assume that the buffer is what allowed me to flip back through the shots right after taking them, but are they gone now or is there a way to get them onto a memory card? It's entirely my own fault, but I would hate to have lost those pictures.

Also, if I insert a memory card into slot 2 and have the camera set to use slot 2 as overflow, will that protect me from this kind of under-caffeinated mistake? In other words, if there is no memory card in slot 1 but there is a card in slot 2, will the camera write to the card in slot 2?

Sorry for such a dumb question, and thanks to anyone who is able to help!

I'm thinking they're not retrievable and were flushed out with the next image.

Oh, and to your second question, yes. Having a second memory card in, regardless of how you designate it, will accept the images if the first card is missing.

If there is no memeory card in both slots, would the camera allow you to shoot?
Guessing there is a setting to not allow taking pics if there is no memeory card.

Secondly, buffer is a volatile memory, or temporary storage...
It will not save anywhere

WhiteLight said:

If there is no memeory card in both slots, would the camera allow you to shoot?
Guessing there is a setting to not allow taking pics if there is no memeory card.

Secondly, buffer is a volatile memory, or temporary storage...
It will not save anywhere

Click to expand...

Sadly, it will allow you to take photos and will even show them on your LCD. I know this because I once did the same thing. Took a set of images once only to find I didn't have a memory card in. Fortunately, I caught it after only a few so it wasn't a complete loss.

It probably will fill up the buffer than start overwriting the oldest images once it fills up. When you turn the camera off I am pretty sure the buffer is cleared. That is part of the reason they tell you to never turn the camera off if the memory card access light is blinking. Sorry, but I think you are out of luck.

To prevent this from happening you can "Lock" the camera when the card slot is empty. On the my D800 it's custom setting f11 and on the D7000 it's f8. I imagine it's somewhere close to that on the D600. I always make sure this setting is set to Lock on all cameras.

I can't speak to the '600 but my '7100 has the "Slot Empty Release Lock" which prevents you from being able to pop the shutter if there is no memory card in either slot. It's F7 in the Custom Menu settings.

Does the '600 not have this?

Yes... It's F7 on the D600

bluebird said:

Also, if I insert a memory card into slot 2 and have the camera set to use slot 2 as overflow, will that protect me from this kind of under-caffeinated mistake? In other words, if there is no memory card in slot 1 but there is a card in slot 2, will the camera write to the card in slot 2?

Click to expand...

Yes, if either card is in the camera, it will use it (overflow). But do enable the Release Lock, so that shutter refuses, and you can check it out.

Thank you all so much! I set the release lock and will grab the memory card from my point-and-shoot for slot #2.

Dave_W, I'm glad to hear that I'm not the only one who has done this! It never occurred to me that the camera could show me the pictures on the LCD (and even let me scroll through them) without a memory card.

I really appreciate how helpful everyone has been. I'm totally new to this community and you have been amazing. Time to start reading the other threads and see what else I can learn!