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How to Recover Deleted GoPro Photos & Videos

If your GoPro photos and videos aren’t showing up on your SD card, here are some things to try that might be able to recover them.

GoPro HERO8 Black SD Card

By David Coleman | @havecamerawilltraveldc
Last updated about 8 months ago // Categories: Memory Cards

Quick Plan of Action for Recovering Deleted GoPro Videos & Photos from an SD Card

To cut to the chase, here’s a quick plan of action to try if your photos or videos have gone missing from your GoPro’s SD card, or you’ve accidentally deleted them. You can find a more detailed version below.

  1. Stop using the SD card. This is important because overwriting the data will make it harder to recover deleted files from it. Take it out of your GoPro.
  2. Scan the memory card with the free trial versions of either Stellar Photo Recovery or Disk Drill. Both have Windows and Mac versions. The scan will show you whether any files can be found and recovered.
  3. Recover the files. If the apps can find the files, you can then decide whether to buy a full license to run the actual recovery process.

Help, My GoPro Photos & Videos Are Missing!

It happens. Not just with GoPros, but with any camera or phone. There are a number of different causes, ranging from a damaged or corrupted SD card to accidentally formatting the card. But the good news is that there’s a reasonable chance they can be recovered. It doesn’t work every time, but it works often enough that it’s definitely worth a try.

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The first thing to do is to stop using the SD card. Preferably, take it out of your GoPro. If you continue using the card, there’s a high risk of overwriting the data you’re trying to recover, which will make it much more difficult to recover (or practically impossible).

The next thing to do is to isolate the problem. If you put the SD card in your GoPro and try to see the images or videos and can’t see them, it’s natural to assume it’s a problem with the card. Sometimes it is. But sometimes it can be something else. So what you want to do is confirm that it’s the card misbehaving and not a problem with some other piece of the puzzle.

Can You See the Files Using Your GoPro or the GoPro Mobile App?

If you’re using one of the newer models of GoPro with a built-in back screen (e.g., many of the models since the HERO4 Silver), an initial step I’d recommend is to put the card back in the camera and see if you can view the photos using the camera’s own playback. If you can, you’ll almost certainly be able to recover your photos, and the problem is apparently somewhere else. Ditto if you connect your GoPro to the GoPro mobile app and can see the files in the app’s viewer. Either way, it’s good news if the files are showing up. But still don’t take any more photos or record any more videos—you don’t want to make the problem worse.

You’ll want to try to back up the photos and videos as quickly as possible. There’s a couple of approaches to doing that. One is to use the GoPro mobile app to back up to GoPro’s cloud service (using the Plus subscription), to your phone’s camera roll, or another cloud service such as Dropbox. Another is to take the SD card out of the GoPro and use a computer with a card reader to download the files using the old-school manual method. Whichever method you usually use to get your GoPro files backed up, try that first.

If Your GoPro Can’t See the Files

If the files aren’t showing up in the camera or through the GoPro mobile app, it still doesn’t mean that you can’t recover them. It just means you’ll need to take extra steps and try some more traditional photo recovery steps.

For these, you’re going to need a computer and, preferably, a memory card reader. Take the memory card out of the camera, put it in the memory card reader, and see if the files are showing up normally in your computer’s native file browser (e.g., Finder on Mac or Explorer on Windows). If they are, copy them to somewhere safe on your hard drive.

GoPro SD Card Photo & Video Recovery Apps

If they’re not showing up in the file browser, you’re going to need to use some specialized photo recovery software. There are plenty of options out there. I cover them in detail in my more general post on how to recover deleted photos from a memory card. For here, I’m just going to focus on a few of the best and simplest options. For the most part, these aren’t specific to GoPros and microSD cards but will work on any image or video files created with any camera. And some of these can be used to work with most kinds of files on most kinds of storage media—not just GoPro files on microSD cards.

And while there are free alternatives, the catch is that they’re not nearly as user-friendly as the paid versions (as in, they’re command-line tools). So they’re not a good fit for many users.

But don’t dive right in and buy a license just yet. All of these have free trial versions that will scan the SD card. Those detailed scan results will show you whether any of the files, and which ones, are recoverable. If they are, then you can decide whether you want to buy a license to actually recover the files.

If you’re using any of these software apps to recover GoPro video files, the safest option is to restore everything rather than try to pick and choose specific files. That’s because when GoPros write video files, they actually write several types of files at once (a metadata file and a low-resolution version) as well as breaking long segments into chapters. So the safest option is to restore everything to your hard drive, preserving the original folder structure, and then remove unwanted files only after you’ve edited the files in the GoPro app (or Quik).

Disk Drill

Disk Drill is a full-featured data recovery app that can recover photos and videos along with just about any other kind of file format. So it comfortably handles GoPro photo and video files (including .gpr RAW files, which are included in Disk Drill’s image type filter).

There’s a free trial version that will run the scan and show you what it can find—i.e., a preview of what’s possible to recover. If you’d like to go ahead with the actual recovery, you can upgrade to the Pro version.

If you decide to buy a license to run the recovery operation, you can get 10% off with the code HAVECAMERA at checkout. There are versions for Mac and Windows.

I’ve also put together a step-by-step how-to guide for recovering photos and videos from a memory card with Disk Drill.

Stellar Photo Recovery

Stellar Photo Recovery is one of the most user-friendly of the photo recovery apps available, and I’ve put together a detailed guide on how to recover photos with Stellar Photo Recovery separately.

There are versions for Mac and Windows. There’s also a free trial version that lets you scan to see what’s recoverable, with thumbnails, but to actually recover any files you’ll need to buy a license.

PhotoRec

I’m including PhotoRec as a free option, and it’s one I’ve relied on for years in my own photography workflow, but it’s not my top recommendation for most users. While it’s free, powerful, thorough, and reliable, it’s not very user-friendly. There’s no user interface; it’s all controlled through the command line. But if you’re comfortable with using command-line tools, then it’s a very good option.

PhotoRec is available here. And I have put together a guide to using PhotoRec.

Other Options

There are quite a few other options for photo and video recovery software, and you can find more of them in my guide to recovering deleted photos from memory cards.

If None of These Work

If none of these methods are able to recover your GoPro photos and videos from your microSD card, it still might be possible for a data recovery lab service do get them. But that last-resort option only makes sense if you’re shooting for commercial clients, because they’re expensive and time-consuming.

If you’re looking to inquire after some of these services, I have some listed here.

Tips for Keeping GoPro SD Cards Healthy

Memory cards are pretty resilient, but there are some precautions you can take that can save a lot of headaches.

  • Always format the card in the GoPro. Format the card regularly.
  • Never remove the card while data is being transferred.
  • Turn the camera off before removing the card.
  • Have a backup card handy, just in case.
  • Download and backup your photos and videos from the microSD card ASAP.

More GoPro Tips & Tricks:

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    How to Remove the Fisheye Effect from GoPro Videos
By David Coleman
Instagram: @havecamerawilltraveldc

Last updated on May 26, 2020

Categories: Memory Cards

I may earn a commission for purchases using links on this page. Learn more.

GoPro News & Deals

New Smart Remote GoPro will be announcing the new Smart Remote for the HERO9 Black on December 17, 2020. The HERO9 Black isn’t compatible with the previous version of the Smart Remote.

HERO8 Black firmware v2.0 now available. Enables webcam mode; enables Display Mod compatibility; expands HyperSmooth 2.0 High and Boost availability to more video settings; general bug fixes. Update through the mobile app or manually.

GoPro Launches New Live Streaming Service for GoPro PLUS. GoPro has launched their own live-streaming platform for PLUS subscribers. It’s a pretty bare-bones offering for now, with livestreams shared with a dedicated URL. This is alongside their efforts to make the HERO8 Black useful as a webcam when connected to a computer (via USB plug-in-play, not requiring the Media Mod accessory with HDMI out). New firmware adds that functionality for Mac users, and the Windows version is in Beta.

New GoPro Zeus Mini Video Light. GoPro has released released a new video LED light designed to complement their GoPro cameras. It’s tiny, waterproof, and has a built-in magnetic swiveling clip. It’s waterproof down to 33 feet (10 meters), has four levels of brightness, and includes a diffuser to cool the color temperature to 5000K. GoPro claims that the built-in battery lasts up to 6 hours (presumably at the lowest brightness setting, although they don’t specify). It’s available now and priced at $69.99.

DJI Osmo Action firmware update adds live streaming. DJI has released a firmware update for the Osmo Action (v. 01.08.00.10) that adds live streaming support, so you can upload directly to platforms like Facebook and YouTube (it goes through the DJI Mimo mobile app). They’ve also improved the in-camera video stabilization. You can find the new firmware here.

New Underwater Housing for GoPro HERO8 Black from Isotta. Isotta, an Italian brand specializing in underwater housings, has announced a new high-quality underwater housing for the HERO8 Black. It’s an aluminum housing depth-rated to 650 feet (200 meters), has a one-handed open/close switch, double o-rings, and can be used with filters. There’s also a dual-handled tray to go along with it. And like all their housings, it’s in their distinctive red. Priced at $450, it’s only for those who need a highly specialized piece of underwater kit. It’s available for preorder from underwater specialists Backscatter.

Light Mod Now Shipping The Light Mod, one of the three new GoPro accessories, is now shipping. It’s a standalone light that is waterproof, rechargeable and compatible with all GoPro mounts. It was originally announced along with the HERO8 Black, but it hasn’t been available until now. It’s priced at $49.99, and you can find them at GoPro.com.

GoPro MAX Now Shipping. The new 360° camera, the MAX, is now shipping.

GoPro HERO8 Black and Max Unveiled. The new GoPro cameras and accessories have been unveiled. I have a rundown of the highlights of the HERO8 Black here.

DJI Osmo Action vs GoPro HERO7 Black. I’ve posted my detailed hands-on comparison of the Osmo Action and the HERO7 Black. There’s a lot similar between the models, but once you start digging down into the details there are differences that can help in choosing between them. And each has strengths the other doesn’t have. You can find my review here.

GoPro HyperSmooth vs DJI RockSteady. The new DJI Osmo Action also has built-in electronic stabilization to smooth out video. They’re calling it RockSteady (GoPro has HyperSmooth). I’ve been out testing them side-by-side. You can see the results here.

GoPro Deals page. I’ve put together a dedicated page on GoPro deals. So if you’re looking for cheap GoPro deals, check it out.

DJI Osmo action 4K Camera. Best known for their camera drones, DJI has released a new 4K action cam that’s taking direct aim at the GoPro HERO7 Black. It shoots up to 4K60 video and 12MP stills, includes electronic stabilization, has high-dynamic range video at 4K30, voice commands, a touchscreen on the back and another smaller live view screen on the front, and is waterproof down to 36 feet (11 meters). It’s priced at $349, and they’re now available at B&H Photo.

SD Cards for GoPro

SanDisk 256GB Extreme microSDXC UHS-I...
SanDisk 256GB Extreme microSDXC UHS-I...
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Samsung Electronics EVO Select 256GB...
Samsung Electronics EVO Select 256GB...
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About Me

I’m a professional travel & location photographer based in Washington DC and traveling all over. Seven continents. Dozens of countries. Up mountains. Under water. And a bunch of places in between.

I’ve owned and used every GoPro since the HD HERO and particularly like finding new and different ways to use them to capture photos, video, and time-lapse.

You can find my main site at havecamerawilltravel.com.

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