Step-by-Step: Recover Deleted Photos with Tenorshare Data Recovery StandardLosing precious photos—whether from accidental deletion, a corrupted memory card, or a formatted drive—can be heartbreaking. Tenorshare Data Recovery Standard is a user-friendly tool designed to help retrieve lost images and many other file types from Windows PCs, external drives, memory cards, and USB flash drives. This detailed guide walks you through the entire recovery process, best practices to maximize chances of success, and tips for safe future photo management.
Before you start: important precautions
- Stop using the affected device immediately. Continued use (especially writing new files) can overwrite deleted data and reduce recovery chances.
- Check where the files were stored. Recovery steps differ slightly depending on whether the photos were on an internal HDD/SSD, external drive, camera SD card, or USB stick.
- Have a destination drive ready. Recovered files should be saved to a different drive than the one you’re scanning to avoid overwriting data.
What Tenorshare Data Recovery Standard can recover
Tenorshare Data Recovery Standard supports recovery of photos in common formats such as JPG/JPEG, PNG, GIF, BMP, TIFF, and RAW formats from many camera manufacturers (CR2, NEF, ORF, etc.). It also retrieves other file types—documents, videos, emails—so if your photos were bundled with other data, this tool can help recover them too.
Step 1 — Download and install
- On a working PC (not the affected device if possible), go to Tenorshare’s official website and download Data Recovery Standard.
- Install the program, following on-screen prompts.
- Launch the application. If prompted by Windows User Account Control, allow the program to run.
Tip: If your photos were on an external device (memory card, USB), connect it to the computer before launching the software so it appears in the device list.
Step 2 — Select the device or location to scan
- The main interface shows available drives and common locations (Desktop, Recycle Bin, specific folders).
- Choose the exact drive or folder where the photos were lost. For memory cards or USB drives, select the corresponding removable device.
- If you’re unsure where the files were, choose the whole drive to scan for a broader search.
Step 3 — Choose a scan mode
Tenorshare typically offers two scan modes:
- Quick Scan: Faster, and can find recently deleted files.
- Deep Scan (or Deep Search): More thorough, scans file system structures and raw data; takes longer but finds more files and formats.
For deleted photos, start with Quick Scan. If you don’t find your pictures, run Deep Scan next.
Step 4 — Run the scan
- Click the Scan (or Start) button.
- Wait for the scan to complete. Scan duration depends on drive size and scan mode—deep scans on large drives may take hours.
- You can usually preview files while scanning; this helps verify whether your photos are recoverable before the scan finishes.
Step 5 — Preview and filter results
- After the scan, results are organized by file type and folder path.
- Use filters to show only images (choose JPG, PNG, RAW, etc.).
- Click thumbnails to preview photos. Previewing confirms integrity (at least partial) before recovery.
Step 6 — Select and recover photos
- Tick the photos you want to recover. You can select individual files, entire folders, or use Select All.
- Click Recover.
- IMPORTANT: Choose a recovery destination that is NOT the original drive/device. Save to a different internal drive, external drive, or network location.
- Wait for the recovery process to complete and then verify the recovered files open correctly.
Troubleshooting common issues
- Recovered photos are corrupted or won’t open: Try a Deep Scan if you used Quick Scan. If files remain damaged, specialized photo repair tools (e.g., JPEG repair utilities) may help.
- The device isn’t recognized: Reconnect the memory card/USB with a different reader or cable. Ensure the card is not physically locked (SD cards).
- Very long scan times: For large drives, let Deep Scan run overnight. Pause/stop only if necessary.
- Files aren’t found: If the drive was heavily used after deletion, data may be overwritten and unrecoverable. Consider a professional data recovery service for critical images.
Best practices to maximize recovery success
- Immediately stop writing to the storage device after deletion.
- Use read-only mode or a write-blocker when possible for forensic preservation.
- Save recovered files to a separate drive.
- Back up recovered photos to at least two locations (cloud + external drive).
- For future protection, enable regular backups (Windows File History, macOS Time Machine, or cloud services).
Alternatives and complementary tools
If Tenorshare doesn’t find your photos or they’re corrupted, consider:
- Recuva (free basic recovery for Windows)
- PhotoRec/TestDisk (powerful open-source recovery)
- Professional photo repair tools for corrupted images
- Physical data recovery services for damaged media
Final checklist
- Device disconnected/unused after deletion?
- Correct drive selected for scan?
- Deep Scan used if Quick Scan failed?
- Recovered files saved to different drive?
- Backups created for recovered photos?
Recovering deleted photos is often possible if you act quickly and follow safe recovery procedures. Tenorshare Data Recovery Standard provides a straightforward workflow—select, scan, preview, recover—but always prioritize not writing to the affected device and saving recovered files elsewhere.
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