Luis Lopes Photography

How to Identify and Test Fake SD Cards

luislopes — Mon, 17 Feb 2020 00:58:57 +0000

Beware of fake SD cards and avoid Being Scammed!

First of all, I felt the need to write this article, mainly to share my experience on this topic. I was really scammed and I want to help the readers of this post not to fall into the same mistake as me. The last thing you want in the middle of an important shoot is to lose all your work. Or, worse, your client’s work. Well you can think that the price was with a big difference from the normal prices, but actually it wasn’t, maybe around 10€ less. Anyway, in the announcement they only had original SanDisk photos and the seller’s raking (registered as a company) was normal, so I didn’t suspect it and made the purchase on the ebay.

FAKE SD CARD ISSUES

So what happens when you have a fake / counterfeit memory card? Well, the issues can range from getting very slow speeds all the way to data loss and unusable memory cards. Out of all the potential issues, data loss is the biggest risk, especially when a large capacity memory card is used.

The problem with fake memory cards, is that many photographers might not understand that once they go over a certain capacity, all data from that point on will be corrupt, because the cards where “cracked” to show the total capacity that you purchase, but in reality, they have much less storage capacity than advertised.

So everything might appear to be working great at first, until the troubles show up later. This is especially problematic when photographers plan expensive trips where memory cards fail after a few days of use. So the biggest risk one might run into, is loss of data – that’s where you don’t want to end up! This is why it is especially important to identify fake memory cards.

How to Identify a Fake Memory Card

If you have already purchased a memory card, there are a few things you can inspect and basic tests you can run in order to identify a fake memory card:

1. Inspect Product Packaging

First, start by inspecting the packaging of the memory card, if you still have it. If it looks very cheap with odd, inconsistent printing and no seals, that could be the first sign of a fake card.

As soon as I received the order the first red flag came out! The SD card packaging was a universal plastic box like as shown in the image on the right.

Also make sure that the back of the package contains information about the product such as its specifications and card speed, as well as all the appropriate labels, warranty info and a proper UPC, as shown below:

Keep in mind that if the package looks fake, the product itself is most likely fake.

2. Inspect Memory Card

If you don’t have the product packaging anymore, the next step is to visually inspect the memory card itself. Start with the front side of the memory card – Does the lettering are properly printed? Does the scales look coherent? Does the material seems with a good finished? Those are all signs of potentially fake memory cards. However, If you cannot find any long strings containing numbers or letters with numbers related with the serial number, the memory card is most likely fake.

In my case, the fake card was so closely to the original, that I only really was able to discover the aesthetic differences side by side with the original one. From the back side we also can see a lot of diferences, especially in the materials and in the location of the serial numbers, as I show in the image below

The location of the serial number will vary depending on memory card type and manufacturer. If you have a SanDisk card, take a look at this article, which details the possible location of serial numbers on its storage products.

Some manufacturers will include specific watermarks and other markings to differentiate their genuine products. For example, Kingston Technology uses “Colorshift Verification” to identify genuine vs fake products. If your Kingston memory card does not have such a feature, it is fake.

3. Test Memory Card

If still there is any doubts, this will be the litmus test and the most important from all, actually you can skip the first two, as this test will quickly reveal, in two minutes, if the memory card you are dealing with is real or fake.

In first hand you can start with a simple test on your PC, without the need of any software. Since most fake cards has a significantly bad performance compared to genuine ones, you can do a quick file copy test and observe if the performance is the expected, but before you start, make sureto either use an inbuilt SD card reader in your laptop OR use a good quality SD card reader plugged into a USB 3.0 or Type-C port, otherwise your test could be compromised.

Writing a 2GB file from the PC to the Fake SD card

Writing a 2GB file from the PC to the Genuine SD card

Copying a large file shows that the memory card is capable of sustained 60 MB/sec write speed, which is a good indication of a fast UHS-I SD card. If you don’t get more than 10-20 MB/sec on a memory card that promises up to 90 MB/sec write speeds, you probably have a fake card. In this case it’s evident!

If you for any reason, still want to perform a speed test directly in the card, you will need to use third party software. There’s a plenty of them on the web, but I will mention only two, for windows and Mac, that does a decent job in the read/write speeds reporting:

Windows Speed Test Software (SpeedOut)

Speed Test on the Fake SD card

Speed Test on the Genuine SD card

Download: SpeedOut for Windows – Free (thanks to MBentefor)

Mac Speed Test Software (Blackmagic Disk Speed Test)

This software shows that the same memory card was able to achieve up to 74.4 MB/sec write and 85 MB/sec read speeds

Download: Blackmagic Disk Speed Test for Mac – Free

4. SD Card Buying Tips

To conclude this article, I leave here a summary of the four most important tips to take into account when buying a memory card:

- Do not buy used or refurbished memory cards
- Be careful about cheap memory cards
- Order from trusted sources and if you intent to buy from a re-seller such as Amazon, always make sure that the memory card is sold and shipped by the same company
- Always inspect and test each memory card to make sure that it is genuine

Here I leave a trusted link from Amazon, where I bought the Genuine SD card that I present in this test

I hope this article is helpful and in the future will help you to identify fake memory cards. If you have any questions or concerns, please let me know in the comments section below!

How to Identify and Test Fake SD Cards

How to Choose and Buy a Tripod

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The post How to Identify and Test Fake SD Cards appeared first on Luis Lopes Photography.

How to Choose and Buy a Tripod

luislopes — Tue, 28 Jan 2020 00:48:09 +0000

A good tripod makes all the difference!

Choosing a tripod can be a stressful event, given how many different types and choices we are presented with. In this article I will give you some advantages of using one, go over some of the features available, and help you wade through the myriad of choices to make your decision making a little more stress free. Let’s start with why you’d want a tripod in the first place. Before getting into the intricate details about tripods, I would like to go over the advantages and disadvantages of tripods and why you might need one for your DSLR or mirrorless camera.

Advantages of using a tripod

A tripod steadies the camera for long exposures to avoid camera shake from hand holding
You can use a lower ISO and very small aperture to get maximum depth of field
Keeps the camera steady for long exposures when shooting things like waterfalls and flowing water
Forces you to slow down and put more time and thought into composition, often resulting in a better image aesthetically
Helps keep the images better aligned when doing bracketed exposures for HDR photography
A tripod is pretty much essential for night photography
Gives you a rest when using heavy equipment
You’re able to shoot panoramic shots to be stitched together
You can create self portrait and get in the photo yourself
Key for shooting macro or close up photos and getting them tack sharp

the tree

Technical details:

Sony Alpha A7RII | 16mm | 25s | f/9.0 | ISO 50 | Tripod | Manual focus

Location: Bahia – Brasil

Disadvantages of using a tripod

They are heavy, especially when you choose a solid one and add a good tripod head
They are somewhat inconvenient to carry around and travel with
It can be costly for a good one
Difficult to use in crowded places
Cumbersome to set up quickly, you might end up missing a shot
If you get one that’s too small or flimsy you risk damaging your equipment if it collapses or sinks

What to look for when selecting a tripod

There are so many factors involved in choosing a tripod it depends on what you want to use it for, and what equipment you own. I personally use a tripod for one main reason – landscape photography. Shooting sunrises and sunsets can be quite challenging, especially when the light conditions are far from ideal.

Example of a low cost tripod and what NOT to get. Ones with support from the center column to the legs are usually very flimsy and not suitable for an SLR camera and lens. They’re also mostly plastic and prone to breaking easily.

Thanks to image stabilized lenses and now cameras with excellent built-in image stabilization, the use of a tripod for most types of photography is not necessary when shooting in daylight conditions. However as in most of my work I always use ND Filters I necessary have to have I good tripod. I actually own 2 tripods, and use each for a different situations.

I use one, lighter and smaller for short photographic trips, for example a visit to a city for 3 days in which it’s great to handle, fits in my cabin suitcase easily and most locations will allow it’s use and another more robust and long only dedicated to photographic trips such as photo tours from 5 to 10 days.

There isn’t a perfect tripod, but regardless of its use I would say that there are always three main factors to take into account, size, weight and robustness

Which features are important? How do you choose?

Weight capacity (load) rating

The very first, and most important, thing you need to look at is the maximum weight load the tripod can bear.

Make sure it will hold more than your heaviest camera body and biggest lens combination. 1.5 to 2 times more than your camera weight is a good place to start.

Keep in mind you may lean on the camera, add a flash, a heavier lens, or battery grip at a later date so allow for some room to expand your system. Web sites for tripod makers are a good resource for this information, and a good camera specialty store should be able to provide this information for any of their tripods in stock.

Tripod legs

When choosing a tripod there are generally two types. Ones that come as a one piece package with the legs and head combined, and ones that you can select the legs and head separately.

I recommend the latter as you can mix and match (even from different manufacturers), or buy multiple parts and change the legs or head for different types of photography.

Within the legs alone there are also several choices: tubular legs with a twist lock vs ones with lever locks; how many sections are the legs composed of; maximum height of the tripod fully extended; and what material the legs are made from (steel, aluminum, carbon fiber or basalt).

Let’s look at each choice individually.

Leg Locks

This is basically a personal preference, but if you choosing one with the lever locks take a good look at the construction of them.

If they are light weight plastic they may be easily damaged or broken off, or come loose frequently and need tightening.

Most of the times the lever locks are faster and more lock precise than the twist locks, although you will note that most professional photo tripods use twist locks, while professional video tripods often use dual post leg systems with lever locks. If your use case includes planting the tripod in mud and water, go with twist locks because they are easier to keep clean and working properly.

Leg Diameter and Tube Wall Thickness

This is simple math, all other things considered. A larger diameter leg section will be more stable and less inclined to flex than a smaller diameter leg section. The smaller the diameter, the thinner the tube walls and the thinner the walls, the less stability and the more flex that there is. While carbon fiber as opposed to aluminum is a help here, there is a law of diminishing returns at work. A tube that is narrower in diameter than your ring finger is not going to be stable when fully extended.

Number of Leg Sections

This will usually vary between three and five.

The greater the number of leg sections, the shorter the collapsed tripod will be. If seeking a travel tripod that can go in a carry-on bag, this can be very useful, but if collapsed length is not a consideration, fewer leg sections mean greater stability and faster set-up and teardown. Every time a leg section is added, it means another tube of smaller diameter and potentially thinner walls, and that means less stability.

Look at the options and see which is the best fit for you taking all the factors into consideration.

Height

A tripod needs to work at, or very close to eye level. In a perfect world, this height is achieved by the height of the leg set, along with the tripod head itself. Most professional tripods do not have a centre column at all, because they are basically posts that wobble, some a lot, some hardly at all, but they all wobble. Consider a tripod with a head that will extend to about ten centimeters below the top of the head, without engaging the centre column. Bending over all the time is not a lot of fun and it will soon cause fatigue.

If you are buying one with a head included make sure it comes up to at least your chin.

Otherwise if you are buying the legs separately look for them to reach shoulder level or higher (legs only, not including extending the centre column which reduces stability).

Factor in the folded size of the whole unit as well if you intend to travel with it.

Measure your luggage or bag in advance so you know the maximum length that will fit.

For example, this 4-section carbon fiber tripod will fit diagonally in my suitcase, it’s a great tripod for short trips.

You may find the ones with more sections fold down smaller, but you give up a little in stability with more sections because each one gets successively smaller inside the other. You need to decide on the balance and what’s most important for your needs right now.

Travel tripod from K&F Concept

Weight and construction material

Once again you will want to choose the legs based on what you will do with this tripod most often.

If you do a lot of hiking into the bush, you’ll probably want to look at legs made of carbon fiber as they will are much lighter than the other options. It’s also extremely durable and doesn’t rust. Carbon fiber however, does come at a premium price and they are usually the most expensive options and will weigh in somewhere between 1.2-1.8 kg. Aluminum is next most popular but heavier than carbon fiber, averaging 2.2-2.8 kg. Basalt is becoming more common and popular as it weighs in between the other two but carries a lesser price tag than carbon fiber usually. Shop around, but go to the store and feel the difference for yourself by picking a few up to compare. Get the one that is best suited to your needs and your budget.

Note: as a mechanical engineer this is always a very important point for me, the construction and the materials are essential for the life time of the equipment, especially if you intend to put your tripod into the salty water of the ocean, so here I leave this extra tip, even if you are dealing with a carbon tripod, which we already assume that it’s a superior equipment and more expensive, when you are making an analysis to the tripod, grab a magnet and pass closely through all metallic components, if the magnet become attracted in any screw or other metallic part this is a very bad sign. All materials including screws must be corrosion free, that means they shouldn’t have ferrite in their constitution and as such they don’t become attracted by the magnetic field of the magnet. If I’m tell you this, it’s because some times we get surprises, but again, it all depends on how you want to use the tripod.

Here are a few different styles of tripod legs and combo that you can choose from, click on each to see them on Amazon

Centerpost

Most tripods we find include a centerpost that allows you to increase or decrease the height of the camera by simply moving the centerpost in upward or downward direction. While they introduce instability when fully extended, they can be a minor convenience. If you are looking at a tripod with a centerpost, look for a hook on the bottom where you can hang the camera bag as a stabilizing agent and avoid using it in fully extended position, I really don’t recommend it, at most one use up to 1/3 can be safe if you use mostly wide-angle lens, however for long telephoto lens you can forget it.. Some centerpost are reversible to let the tripod head get low. This is handy for macro, but often awkward for the photographer. It’s a nice feature, but only a benefit if the person owning the tripod will actually use it more than twice. If you still want to get a centerpost for whatever reason, make sure that it can fully decline to the same level as where the tripod legs meet. The centerpost should never wobble at its lowest level.

Tripod head

If you are opting for a module system choosing a tripod head can be overwhelming with the number of choices available. Make sure that it can hold the same weight as the legs you have selected (they are NOT added together, they each need to be able to bear the same load). The tripod head is the weakest link, so please don’t go cheap on this element because disaster can strike if the head fails or crashes your entire set up.

The three most common styles of tripod heads are:

3-way tripod head

ball head – using a ball in the centre and one mechanism for tightening it, they are flexible, easy to use and one of the most popular all purpose tripod heads. Make sure it will tighten enough and hold the weight of your camera and not “creep” (loosen and fall)
3-way or pan/tilt head – one with separate controls or handles for horizontal and vertical tilts, as well as rotation. Common in low cost tripods and old style ones. This is what I use on my old beast of a heavy tripod.
gimbal head – made for super long and heavy lenses to keep them balanced and for ease of motion. Often used by bird and nature photographers.

Here are some of the best options for tripod heads for you, click for more info on each one, through Amazon:

Other options

Gorillapod tripods – these small tripods have flexible arms that can be bent to wrap around almost anything such as: fence posts, table legs, your own leg, etc. Great for travel, and putting your camera in hard to reach places. Just make sure you get the biggest one made for SLRs and a ball head for it.

Summary and bonus tip

choose from either a one piece tripod or modular first
decide what kind of tripod head you like best
choose the legs and get the best you can afford (light weight, sturdy, max height, min height) that fits your shooting style and needs

Flexible mini tripod Gorillapod by Joby

ensure both the legs and head will easily hold the weight of your equipment and then some
bonus tip – get a tripod head with a quick release plate system. For still heads, the Arca-Swiss specification is the most widely accepted mounting system in the world. It has more or less become a standard among manufacturers and it has proven to be a very effective solution for quick and easy operation.

Download “Rotate Your Phone Template”

luislopes — Tue, 07 May 2019 22:03:53 +0000

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