Things You'll Need:
- Canon SLR digital camera
- Compact Flash card
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Step 1
Save all images from the compact flash card that you wish to format. Back them up on a CD, DVD or other removable storage device. Saving images on your computer’s hard drive, in your photo management software, is also a good storage location.
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Step 2
Turn off your camera. Insert the compact flash card that needs to be formatted. Open the side door on your Canon SLR camera, and gently slide the compact flash card in, with the small holes in the compact flash card facing inside the camera. Shut the plastic door.
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Step 3
Turn on your camera. Press the menu button on the back of your camera. Toggle through the tool menus at the top of the screen. When you find the menu that offers the format function, scroll down to high light the word “Format.”
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Step 4
Push the “Set” or select button on the back of your camera to select the format feature on your Canon camera. Read the warning message that asks you to verify whether you really want to erase all data from your compact flash card. If you want to erase all the data, push the set or select button again to verify your selection.
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Step 5
Watch the task bar on the LCD screen of your Canon camera. This will show the progress of the format. Formatting your compact flash card doesn’t take longer than a few seconds to a minute, depending on the size of card and amount of data being erased.
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Step 6
Notice that after the format is complete, you will return to the menu. Push the menu button to get out of the menu system. Press the triangular playback button on the back of your camera. You should receive a message that says, “no images” or “no data” if your camera correctly completed the formatting.
