# 32 gb memory card vs 2 x 16 gb memory cards? Opinions please?



## gshocked (Feb 22, 2014)

Hi all,

I just wanted to get people's opinions on which is better: getting 1 x 32gb memory cards vs 2 x 16gb memory cards? 

These cards are compact flash and there about $90 in price difference.

How do you guys have your workflow set up? What are people's opinions? 

Thanks in advance!

Whats


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## neuroanatomist (Feb 22, 2014)

How many images do you need to capture in a session/day/whatever? Personally, with cameras that have a single card slot, I have two equal-sized cards, when one is full I swap them, transfer the images to the computer, and leave them on the second card until they're backed up from the computer. That means have two copies of each image from the time I first transfer them. I format each card when it goes back in the camera. That way, I also have an emergency extra card. 

So, if 16 GB covers a shooting period, IMO 2 x 16 GB is better.


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## TexPhoto (Feb 23, 2014)

My 2 main cameras have 2 card slots, one CF and one SD. I have 64GB CF cards and 32GB SD cards, and one back up set. RAW goes onto the CF, jpeg goes to SD. This lets me shoot a ton and download/switch when I want, not when I am forced to. Having the RAW and jpeg on 2 different cards also makes it faster to dump photos into the right folders. 

Some photographers like having 2+ smaller cards and switching during the shoot so if one card is bad there is not a loss of everything. To me this leads to lost cards, but for some it might work. 

So I'd say one 32GB, or better yet one 32 and a 16, or 32 as a back-up. But that is just me.


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## agierke (Feb 23, 2014)

Never put all your eggs in one basket...it's a bad idea. Go with 2 smaller cards.

Not sure if you are shooting for fun or for jobs. I shoot jobs and maintain 12 8gb CF cards and 4 16Gb CF cards currently. They get rotated out as I shoot a job, download it, and post images. The shot cards don't get rotated back into service until the job is done and backed up on external drives. Redundancy = Security.

I also purposefully use smaller cards so that I have to change cards more often. I hate to have too many images on a single card....makes me nervous. I prefer to break up a long day/shoot over several cards just in the case of disaster.


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## AUGS (Feb 23, 2014)

neuroanatomist said:


> How many images do you need to capture in a session/day/whatever? Personally, with cameras that have a single card slot, I have two equal-sized cards, when one is full I swap them, transfer the images to the computer, and leave them on the second card until they're backed up from the computer. That means have two copies of each image from the time I first transfer them. I format each card when it goes back in the camera. That way, I also have an emergency extra card.
> 
> So, if 16 GB covers a shooting period, IMO 2 x 16 GB is better.



+1
As Neuro said, it really depends on what you shoot, its "value" to you and how much you shoot between download opportunities.

I have only ever had one card issue, but multiple cards means you can still get on with your shoot even if it means being a bit more conservative with your shots. Only after I have multiple "off-card" copies do I even consider re-using the card.


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## eli452 (Feb 23, 2014)

Sorry to make things harder for you...
No card had failed on me, but on my 400D the eject lever did. I had to use a multitool to jerk the card out.
So for me, a bigger card and eject it as little as possible.


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## gshocked (Feb 23, 2014)

Hi all,

I shoot a range of things from events, weddings and at times sports. 
I recently shot a wedding and loved that I had a 32gb card in my rental second body.
Hence my question about the memory cards. Before I got my 5d3 I use to only have SD cards and only went with 16gb to "play it safe" but have the ability to shoot double was great... Didn't change cards once on my wedding shoot.
It was nice to just shoot and not worry that I would run out any minute...


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## Mt Spokane Photography (Feb 24, 2014)

I no longer buy anything smaller than 64GB. I have a CF and a SD that I use in my 5D MK III. I do use a 16GB card in my old 40D. That way, I can shoot a entire evenings worth of images plus a few short video clips without worrying about card space. I typically use about 40Gb..


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## Orangutan (Feb 24, 2014)

gshocked said:


> I just wanted to get people's opinions on which is better: getting 1 x 32gb memory cards vs 2 x 16gb memory cards?



Choose whichever allows you to pay attention to your photography rather than worry about your memory cards. If this is high-value (e.g. paid) work, use a body with two card slots, and have all files written to both, or possibly use WiFi as a backup if the situation allows. If this is for personal use then it gets a little murkier; however, I always give one piece of advice related to choosing memory cards: test before you trust. Don't use a newly-purchased card in a high-value situation until you've tested it thoroughly. Here's my previous post on a similar topic.

http://www.canonrumors.com/forum/index.php?topic=5444.msg105529#msg105529


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## dolina (Feb 24, 2014)

I had 15 memory cards that spans 1 decade. I have started to sell all of them to consolidate my cards to one 64GB capacity per body.

Reliability has improved so much that mishandling and misplacing these cards are more of a problem to me. Another problem is missing out on the decisive moment due to the memory cards filling up too fast or due to clearing the buffer.

My preference are 128GB cards but no one sells them for under-$150.


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## pwp (Feb 24, 2014)

agierke said:


> Never put all your eggs in one basket...it's a bad idea. Go with 2 smaller cards.
> I also purposefully use smaller cards so that I have to change cards more often. I hate to have too many images on a single card....makes me nervous.


This line of thinking belongs to another era. Some cards and particularly the dreaded Microdrives used to deliver dubious reliability. But that's way in the past. Back when CF cards hit a massive 1Gb, the Nervous Nellies freaked saying they'd much prefer the safety of four 256Mb cards. When 8Gb cards started shipping the Nervous Nellies were out again saying they'd much prefer eight 1Gb cards...it's safer. And so on. Shooting daily onto CF since 2001 I've never lost a card to corruption or damage. I routinely retire them every couple of years and get the latest...


Mt Spokane Photography said:


> I no longer buy anything smaller than 64GB. I have a CF and a SD that I use in my 5D MK III. I do use a 16GB card in my old 40D. That way, I can shoot a entire evenings worth of images plus a few short video clips without worrying about card space. I typically use about 40Gb...


...and like Mt Spokane, I no longer buy anything smaller than 64Gb. Next year that might read _smaller than 128Gb._ So gshocked, I'd just get the biggest high quality card you can afford. Personally I'd be nervous about missing an important shot because my tiny card was full, not to mention the avoidable logistics of managing of a pocketful of filled-up cards AND the increased potential of over-writing a card you haven't yet downloaded. 

Come to think of it, gimme the 128Gb.

-pw


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## TexasBadger (Feb 24, 2014)

I have two 16 GB CF cards and 1 64 GB SD card. I only shoot raw and change out the CF cards when full. I write all images to both cards so that my SD card is my redundant backup. So far I havent't had any issues with the SD card's slower write speed. If I was shooting something where I needed more fps, I would remove the SD card and backup the CF cards on my colorspace.


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## justaCanonuser (Feb 24, 2014)

gshocked said:


> Hi all,
> 
> I just wanted to get people's opinions on which is better: getting 1 x 32gb memory cards vs 2 x 16gb memory cards?
> 
> These cards are compact flash and there about $90 in price difference.


As others said the answer depends on your shooting style. If you shoot mostly landscape and other more static compositions, 2 x 16 gb will do it perfectly. If you shoot weddings or a lot of action (sports, wildlife), a 32 gb is minimum IMO. If you shoot action, the speed of the card is an important factor to be considered, too. Shooting RAW, my 5D3 loaded with a SanDisk 32 GB 60MB/s slows after a burst of only 13 images, with Lexar Pro 1000x (32 GB) it gets more the 30 images before slowing down (I do not need that speed often, but sometimes when birding). But the Lexar is a sort of Lexus, it requires a lot of bucks for its bang . Like others, I never lost a CF and SD card so far, and I shoot sometimes in quite rugged areas (wildlife) where I do exchange cards.

So the answer really depends on the way you work. Hope this helps you.


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## pwp (Feb 24, 2014)

justaCanonuser said:


> ...Shooting RAW, my 5D3 loaded with a SanDisk 32 GB 60MB/s slows after a burst of only 13 images, with Lexar Pro 1000x (32 GB) it gets more the 30 images before slowing down...


I'll back this observation almost to the letter...The Lexar 1000x cards are hot little performers. 

-pw


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## neuroanatomist (Feb 24, 2014)

I think the key is having two cards, each of which is large enough so you don't need to swap in the middle of your shooting. Changing cards means potentially losing shots. Having one copy of an image puts you at risk, so if you have only one large card, be sure to back up your HDD/SSD immediately after transferring your images.


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## DRR (Feb 24, 2014)

My rule of thumb is, shooting capacity to match battery capacity. Minimizes downtime while maximizing the (admittedly slight) benefits of redundancy.

Buy a brand you trust (Sandisk or Lexar for me) and always buy from a trusted seller. The "Sandisk" cards on ebay for example, may very well be knockoffs.


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## viggen61 (Feb 24, 2014)

If this/these will be your only cards, perhaps buy what's cheapest. As for reliability, I really don't think there is much of a problem with either, so long as you stick with established brands, and buy from reputable sellers.

My kit consists of 4 32GB 1000x, 3 16GB 400x, and an 8GB 400x. With my 7D, each 32GB allows me to take about 1,200 RAWs, or over 5,000 JPEGs (something I rarely do), for a potential total of almost 7,000 RAW images. I shoot wildlife, and it's often that I shoot 8FPS bursts, particularly with small, fast-moving subjects. In a day's shooting, I can fill a 32GB with RAWs, and come close to filling another.


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## Orangutan (Feb 24, 2014)

DRR said:


> Buy a brand you trust (Sandisk or Lexar for me) and always buy from a trusted seller. The "Sandisk" cards on ebay for example, may very well be knockoffs.



Let me repeat my previous comment: *test *your cards before you use them, regardless of brand or trustworthiness of the seller!


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## gshocked (Feb 24, 2014)

justaCanonuser said:


> gshocked said:
> 
> 
> > Hi all,
> ...



I honestly don't think I could have shot a wedding without a 32gb card in the two bodies I had on the day.
Thanks for your feedback


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## Deleted member 91053 (Feb 24, 2014)

Some time ago I was taking sunset shots of Ogmore Castle (in South Wales). While were waiting for the perfect light I was chatting to a fellow photographer about the merits/pitfalls of larger capacity cards (8GB was pretty big at the time). We were discussing the pros/cons when his card was full, so he had to change it. I should say that he was standing waist deep in the river to get a better angle on the Castle at the time. The timing was perfect, the Golden moment of light had arrived and he was changing cards as his (small) card was full he dropped it! With my (then) large 8GB card I just kept shooting while he went diving for his card. The net result was that he lost his card and missed the best light - though he did have the bonus of a swim in February! I should say that I just managed not to fall about laughing as he had just completed his tirade against large capacity cards when this happened.
The moral is get a card that has a bit more capacity than you need + a smaller card in reserve - Just in Case.


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## ClayStevens (Feb 26, 2014)

Convenience is the first principle to my while buying acceessories. 32GB to me. I have two 32.


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## RustyTheGeek (Feb 27, 2014)

neuroanatomist said:


> How many images do you need to capture in a session/day/whatever? Personally, with cameras that have a single card slot, I have two equal-sized cards, when one is full I swap them, transfer the images to the computer, and leave them on the second card until they're backed up from the computer. That means have two copies of each image from the time I first transfer them. I format each card when it goes back in the camera. That way, I also have an emergency extra card.
> 
> So, if 16 GB covers a shooting period, IMO 2 x 16 GB is better.



Ditto. For most cameras, (not including video) 16GB is sufficient for a typical day. If anything goes wrong and you have shot enough to be on the 2nd card, you won't lose ALL of your pictures from the calamity. Tragedies include camera theft of loss, card corruption, accidental issues or whatever could possibly kill your card and its contents. I always try to use multiple cards if possible for longer trips or larger shoots. Think one per day or two per wedding, etc. Better to have a few pictures survive on one card than none at all!

And then there is also the process *nuero* discusses. Have enough cards to be able to leave pictures on them a while in case something happens to them on your computer. Unless your pictures aren't important to you, cards are much cheaper than lost pictures. If the pictures aren't important enough to value more than the cost of a few memory cards, then just buy a point and shoot, stick a 32GB card in it and fill it up over a year or two and hope for the best. Which is exactly what I see often as an IT guy, people that come to me with a corrupted SD card in their camera hoping I can somehow perform a miracle on 2 years of pictures they never got around to offloading onto their computer, which itself hasn't ever been backed up either!


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## pwp (Mar 1, 2014)

RustyTheGeek said:


> neuroanatomist said:
> 
> 
> > How many images do you need to capture in a session/day/whatever?
> ...


True for you Rusty! But ask a dozen different photographers what a typical (busy) day is and you'll likely get a dozen completely different responses, all the way from a 4Gb card lasting all day with room to spare, to days that I sometimes have where a 16Gb card will be filled in the first hour or so. It depends on the project.

Whatever your particular usage patterns are, just leave plenty of headroom. It's insurance. If I anticipate the potential for a 50Gb+ day, then I'll be packing 100Gb+ of CF cards. It's not a nice feeling running low and having to reluctantly trim your shooting, switch to mRAW or even switch to (_errrrgh :-\_...) JPEG. 

Cards are cheap.

-pw


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## Richard8971 (Mar 1, 2014)

I have both. 2 16gb cards and a 32gb. I find when I go out shooting for the day I fill the 16 more often than not. The 32gb cards are getting cheaper and more reliable. My wife has 2 64gb cards in her D7000 and that is totally overkill. She doesn't think so but it mainly comes down to how much you trust your cards. Full 32 and 64gb cards are a lot of photos to lose if they fail. More people choose to keep fewer pics on more cards just in case one fails. 

I think we all take an acceptable risk using digital cameras and related equipment and things can and do happen. I have had Lexar cards fail but so far no Sandisk problems but I'm sure they have had their share of problems as well. 

D


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## optikus (Mar 1, 2014)

Hi,

in general - chose the memory-device you use so, that it can take that volume of data you produce during a half day, then change to the next medium. I maximally use 16 GB cards this time. Using good pro brands reduce the risk of data loss additionally. I expect 32GB and 64 GB to be safe today, but for me this would mean to risk the results of more than a day when a card fails. Dividing up the data of improtant shootings on more than one volume is a good strategy. The incovenience of changing the memory-element is unimportant compared with the risk of loosing data. Therefore I store the data from the cam as often as possible on a laptops harddisk and copy it instantanously on a second hard disk.

J.


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## jdramirez (Mar 1, 2014)

I have a fast 8gb cf card and a 32gb sd card. When the card fills or when there is a break in the action... I transfer the images to the sd card. 

I'd lean towards 1 32gb if it is SanDisk or lexar... there are reliable.


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## Chris Geiger (Mar 2, 2014)

Wedding Photographer here. I don't like removing cards on a shoot. I load each camera (5DIII) with a pair of 64 Gig cards. I write raw files to both cards. I can shoot all day without the need to change cards or batteries. I don't even think about either any more. Day before a wedding, I wipe down each camera, recharge batteries and format the cards. While at the wedding I never remove or format cards.


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## eml58 (Mar 2, 2014)

It sounds like your using a Camera Body with a Single CF Slot ??

So my advice would be similar to others in that you should look at what a normal days Imaging is going too be, then get 2 Cards. I'de suggest a minimum of 2 x 32GB Sandisk CF Cards.

You might then look down the track at getting a Camera Body that has built in back up, i.e.. 2 Cards, I can't imagine going on a trip to say Africa with a Camera that has only a single Memory Card.

Unlike some, I've had a couple of bad experiences with CF Cards, in particular Lexar 128GB Cards, I purchased 4 of these about 18 Months ago, had one dead on arrival, another corrupted after a full days shoot in Botswana, around 1500 Images on the Lexar lost (I did eventually save about 70% of the Images with "San Disk Rescue Pro", a great piece of software.

What that experience taught me was to always set up my Cameras so I have both Cards saving at the same time (so I have 2 copies of everything I shoot, hence the requirement in my case for 2 x 128GB Cards), this is fine on the 1Dx as they are both CF Cards, the 5DMK III you run intro the issue of the Canon Software built in bottle neck of the SD Card, ridiculous software limitation still not fixed by Canon (Nikon doesn't have this issue where they use a mix of CF/SD Cards) on the 5DMK III the write speed of the Cards is governed by the speed of the SD card & Canon's limitation on SD write speed.

Another heads up on Memory Cards is the recent release of OSX 10.9 Mavericks, I have 3 Card readers, the Sandisk CF Card reader (works fine still), the Lexar HR1 Hub Reader (reads up to 4 cards at once in a stacked hub) works fine still, and an older Lexar Card reader that reads a CF card & SD card in a pop up head, this reader no longer works under OSX 10.9.

I hope this helps, my experience with Lexar CF Cards doesn't appear to be widespread, but I no longer buy Lexar Cards, I stick now to 128GB Sandisk CF & SD Cards.


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## YuengLinger (Mar 2, 2014)

This is a good discussion to prompt thinking things through. I agree pretty much with those here who say losing or dropping a card while changing during the action is more of a risk than a card failure. I heard this first at a workshop given by Arthur Morris (wildlife photographer).

On the other hand, if some particularly priceless moment has just been captured, and I have a quiet pause in the action, I might put the card with those images in a hard case and put another card in the camera for the rest of the shoot...But not if I were standing in a stream!

In any event, you have to carry spares.

As for brands, I've been shooting Transcends for two years without any problems, and on my 5D3, they are as fast as I need--because if I am in an important situation, I'm using the SD slot too, which then becomes the limiting factor for speed.


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## Zv (Mar 2, 2014)

It's all down to personal preferences and your workflow. I have mostly 32Gb cards (2 are Sandisk Extreme Pro and one Transcend - which doesn't work with my CF reader). They allow me to shoot over 1000 RAW images in a day. For weddings, and other events I don't want to be fumbling about with cards. However I also have one 16Gb Sandisk Extreme Pro CF card that I bought first when starting out with CF cards (damn they were expensive!). It gets used now as a back up or ready to shoot card while the others are full and uploading to the PC. The 16Gb is a good size too, gives me just over 500 shots. I could make do with a bunch of 16s but I prefer to keep things simple. 

There is always the risk of a card failure but also a risk of just straight up losing / misplacing a card. At my friends wedding the second shooter lost an SD card. All pics lost. Frequently swapping out cards could potentially lead to losing one. I prefer to just have one in camera all times. I upload and back up as soon as possible. Safest place for a card is in your camera - unless you format it by accident! That was my greatest fear when shooting my first wedding!


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## JPAZ (Mar 2, 2014)

I'm not pro. I just shoot photos for me. But, I want to decide what I'll delete and what I'll keep, not have that determined by a card/technical failure. I've accumulated lots of cards over the years. I use Sandisk, but that's only because they have always worked for me. +1 on buying from a reputable retailer. 

At this point I shoot a 5diii and have a 64 gb SD in the second slot as a jpeg backup. If I ever really need faster fps or have buffer issues, I can always pull that card out. At this point I carry a collection of 8 and 16 gb CF cards with me. I get hundreds of RAW on each and rarely need to change out a card during a day. If I know I will be taking lots of photos tomorrow, I'll swap out a partially full CF card tonight with a fresh one. And, since I am a "belt and suspenders" kind of person, I back u to a portable HDD I carry with me and do not delete any CF cards until they are downloaded onto my pc and backed up. The size of the CF cards depends on what you think you realistically need for a day of shooting.

So, original RAW on a CF, backup jpeg on an SD, backup CF on a HDD, then keep all originals after loading onto my pc and backing up that drive. Hmm. Maybe I am a bit OCD about this.


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## dickgrafixstop (Mar 2, 2014)

You can put so many pictures on a card, and cards are so cheap these days, that I buy whatever sansdisk is on 
sale and use them. I keep two or three empty cards in a little case on the strap and changing the card is never a 
big deal. After I transfer the images to a computer I just file the card away just like I used to do with negatives.
They're stored by date with keywords/events in regular envelopes in a plastic box near my computer.


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## sulla (Mar 2, 2014)

I use only one 32GB CF card, and when I transfer the images to my computer, I don't remove them immediately from the CF card, to give the computer enough time to make - automated - backups. This works well, as the computer (or is it the camera?) remembers which pictures have already been transferred and only transfers new ones each time the camera is connected to the computer.

Only when the CF gets full I format it in camera.

So, 2x16GB doesn't make sense to me. The bigger, the better.


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## gshocked (Mar 2, 2014)

eml58 said:


> It sounds like your using a Camera Body with a Single CF Slot ??
> 
> So my advice would be similar to others in that you should look at what a normal days Imaging is going too be, then get 2 Cards. I'de suggest a minimum of 2 x 32GB Sandisk CF Cards.
> 
> ...



Hi,

I mainly shoot events and the occasional wedding. I have a 5d3.
Im more tossing up between a 32gb cf vs 16gb cf... I am more swaying towards the 32gb cards, I'm unsure about going to anything bigger, well till the cost come down.


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