Cameras · Leica exFAT photo card
Leica JPEG photos missing from the card
How do I recover missing Leica JPEG files?
Short answer
First search the import destination: an incomplete import looks exactly like deleted files at first glance. If the JPEGs are really gone from DCIM and from your computer, keep the Leica card unused, scan it read-only for JPEG and keep only images with complete start and end markers that open fully.
The situation
JPEG assets are absent from DCIM or the import destination.
Two situations look identical at the card reader: an import that stopped partway, and JPEG entries that DCIM no longer lists. In the first case the originals are still on the Leica card; in the second the image data sits in unallocated space until the camera writes again.
01 / Diagnose
Work out what actually disappeared
Leica bodies write JPEG into numbered DCIM folders on an exFAT card. When an import aborts, the transfer software counts files it never copied, so the destination looks short while the card still holds everything. When frames were deleted or the folder index was damaged, exFAT releases the directory entry first and the JPEG bytes stay readable until new pictures land on them.
Directory loss and incomplete import must be distinguished before raw scanning.
Check the last known path, trash and backups without writing to the original device.
02 / Protect the source
Preserve the best recovery chance
- 1
Switch the Leica off, take the card out and put it in a reader; do not shoot another frame and do not let the camera rebuild its index.
- 2
Search the import destination, its subfolders and the trash of the transfer software for the missing frame numbers before assuming anything was lost.
- 3
Scan the card read-only for JPEG, letting the scan bound each image by its start marker and its terminal marker rather than by file name.
- 4
Export the results to a different drive, then match the recovered frame numbers against the shot count the Leica display reported.
Do not let the camera format the card to make it readable again, and do not copy the surviving images back onto it. Both write into the same free space that still holds the missing JPEG data. Repair tools that fix the exFAT directory also write to the card.
03 / Choose the method
Match the tool to the source
For stable, readable exFAT, NTFS and FAT16/FAT32 or uncompressed IMG, DD, RAW and BIN images.
Unconfirmed exports are marked .UNVERIFIED.
File Recovery Hero reads the exFAT card only, and only while the reader delivers stable blocks; it recovers whole JPEG files but repairs none. Frames already overwritten by later shots are gone, and a card the operating system cannot address at all belongs in a data-recovery lab.
04 / Verify
Check the recovered content, not just its name
A frame counts as recovered when it opens at the full sensor resolution of the Leica body, shows no grey bands where the decoder ran out of data, and carries its capture time. Compare the number of usable images with the folder numbering to see which frames are still missing.
Keep the source until two verified copies exist. One working preview is not enough.
Sources and technical references
FAQ
Questions about this recovery case
Can Leica exFAT photo card be recovered in this situation?+
Two situations look identical at the card reader: an import that stopped partway, and JPEG entries that DCIM no longer lists. In the first case the originals are still on the Leica card; in the second the image data sits in unallocated space until the camera writes again. The result still depends on what remains readable on the source.
What should I avoid before scanning?+
Do not let the camera format the card to make it readable again, and do not copy the surviving images back onto it.
Does scanning write to my memory card?+
Your memory card is only read. Nothing is saved to it.
How do I know whether the result is complete?+
A frame counts as recovered when it opens at the full sensor resolution of the Leica body, shows no grey bands where the decoder ran out of data, and carries its capture time.