Camera switches from RAW to JPEG and back to RAW

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Viathelens

Viathelens

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I shoot RAW. My cameras, both Z8s, are always set to RAW. I just checked both of them to be sure they were still set on RAW and they are. I'm looking through images just taken on a trip. I look at the type of file and it says JPEG! I go back through the images where it happened. At one point I'm shooting in RAW, 16 minutes later I'm shooting, unknown to me, several thousand images in JPEG. Then yet later the file format switches back to RAW. I've set nothing on any button to make this happen as I don't shoot in JPEG. It looks like a small JPEG file. If I were to shoot in JPEG it would be large, fine, not small. Anyone have an idea how this may have happened? It's never happened to me. before with these cameras. I know someone will say I did something to have this happen but I've shot thousands of images with these cameras, I'm not new to photography, and have never experienced this before. It's a mystery. It could be something I did somehow, but I definitely did not change any setting or have any button set to change to JPEG. Something to do with a card, perhaps being full? I'm stumped.

Added: I shoot in manual mode and set ISO as needed.
 
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Another thing to check beyond what Karen mentioned… Check your primary and secondary slot selections. I assume your primary is set to CFexpress. If your secondary is set to RAW primary - JPEG secondary, that might be a clue. Then check Image quality. If you’re set to one of the RAW + JPEG options, that could confirm what’s happening.
 
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JAJohnson said:
Another thing to check beyond what Karen mentioned… Check your primary and secondary slot selections. I assume your primary is set to CFexpress. If your secondary is set to RAW primary - JPEG secondary, that might be a clue. Then check Image quality. If you’re set to one of the RAW + JPEG options, that could confirm what’s happening.
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Overflow.
Butlerkid said:
Perhaps you were shooting with the pre-capture feature? The camera automatically switches from raw to jpg during pre-capture...........
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I'm checking this out. Could be what happened somehow. But there is so much to set with auto capture I don't see how it could be that. I've never used it at all before. It was a large card, a 1T Angelbird card so there was enough space on the card, so not that. Still looking at settings.
 
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It's a mystery. I'll look at it more when I get home. Stuck in Toronto, Canada right now due to flight delay and getting ready to head back to airport. Any insights welcomed.
 
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I had the exact same thing during my trip to BC earlier this year. Got home and started looking at my images and was SHOCKED to see hundreds/thousands of jpgs. Then I remembered that I had switched to pre-capture to get BIF shots as the bird left the nest. DUH!

But at first, having jpgs on my cards really confused me!
 
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Similar happened to me recently with my Z9. Not sure it applies to your situation as others have pointed out other possibilities.

After the second time I realized I had been adjusting fps setting through mode dial. On the top control panel when you adjust fps through the mode button you only see the numbers, in the setup menu the 'limit release node selection' option shows continuous low, continuous high, C15, C30, C60 , C120 and self timer. The C prefixed options are all for high speed frame capture which throws you into jpeg. I had these all checked.

I was changing fps speed as the animals changed (sitting birds and active monkeys), not paying enough attention, I spun through the fps option looking at top panel control. When I got to 15 I stopped and starting shooting again, only to find out later I was now shooting jpeg. So after the second time this happened I went into the menus thinking I was messing things up by changing speeds and discovered the inconsistent numbering convention. I unchecked the C15 option and my issue was solved.
 
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Eldon said:
Similar happened to me recently with my Z9. Not sure it applies to your situation as others have pointed out other possibilities.

After the second time I realized I had been adjusting fps setting through mode dial. On the top control panel when you adjust fps through the mode button you only see the numbers, in the setup menu the 'limit release node selection' option shows continuous low, continuous high, C15, C30, C60 , C120 and self timer. The C prefixed options are all for high speed frame capture which throws you into jpeg. I had these all checked.

I was changing fps speed as the animals changed (sitting birds and active monkeys), not paying enough attention, I spun through the fps option looking at top panel control. When I got to 15 I stopped and starting shooting again, only to find out later I was now shooting jpeg. So after the second time this happened I went into the menus thinking I was messing things up by changing speeds and discovered the inconsistent numbering convention. I unchecked the C15 option and my issue was solved.
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Excellent point!
 
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Viathelens said:
It's a mystery. I'll look at it more when I get home. Stuck in Toronto, Canada right now due to flight delay and getting ready to head back to airport. Any insights welcomed.
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Hope the rest of your travels home go smoothly! I had trouble with flights in Vancouver, BC last year.....not fun! Going places is fun - just not the going and coming parts! 😩
 
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