The drone crashed while it was recording. Is the footage gone?

Often not, if it was recording to a removable card. The footage up to the moment power was lost is usually on the card, in a file the drone never got to close. That kind of file can often be repaired. Take the card out before you power the drone on again.

My footage was on the drone's internal storage. Can you recover it?

It depends on what happened. If the files are still there and the drone is damaged, that's a question of getting the drone to hand them over, which I can look at. If they were deleted or the storage was formatted, internal storage is often unrecoverable once TRIM has run. Describe it on the intake form before sending anything.

The app has a low-resolution copy. Can you get the full-quality one?

Only from the card or the drone, not from the app's copy. The low-resolution version can't be turned back into the original. Keep it anyway. If the full recording can't be recovered, it may be the only version there is.

Memory Card Recovery

Remove the card before powering on

Drone footage recovery

Stop using the card. Do not format it. Do not keep shooting.

What causes it

A drone records the way any camera does: the file is finished when recording stops. Drones have more ways for that not to happen.

A crash cuts power or throws the battery out.
The battery reaches its cutoff and the drone shuts down.
The drone is lost, then found later with the recording never stopped.
The card is pulled, or the drone is switched off, before the recording is ended.

In each case the footage up to that moment is usually written, and the file is left unclosed.

Drones add one complication. Depending on the model, footage may go to a removable card, to storage built into the drone, or to either. Which one yours used decides what can be done.

What to do right now

Take the card out before you power the drone on again.
Don’t let the drone or its app format the card or the internal storage.
Work out where the footage was recorded: removable card or internal storage.
Check the app on your phone or controller. Some keep a lower-resolution copy of what the drone recorded. If it’s there, save it somewhere safe.
If the card opens on a computer, copy everything off, including files that won’t play.
Note what happened and when: crash, battery cutoff, water, or a delete or format.

What’s realistically recoverable

An unclosed recording on a card that reads is often repairable. This is a Complex recovery. A short clip recorded by the same drone at the same settings, on a different card, helps as a reference.

A deleted or formatted card that still reads is usually Standard, as long as nothing has been recorded on it since.

Recovered clips can come back with generic names and without their original dates.

When it isn’t

Internal storage after a delete or format. Internal storage on drones is often unrecoverable once TRIM has run. TRIM is the drone telling its storage that deleted space can be erased, and once that’s done there is nothing left to read.
A card damaged in the crash. If it’s cracked, or no reader can detect it, it’s a physical case. Some of these I can do at my bench, quoted after evaluation. The rest I refer out, at no charge.
Footage that was recorded over. Gone.
The drone. I recover footage. I don’t repair drones or get them flying again.

Start a Card Recovery Case

Pricing

What card recovery costs

Standard

$100 flat

A deleted or formatted card that still reads, where the files come back intact.

› Deleted photos or video
› Card formatted by accident
› Card asks to be formatted
› SD, microSD, CF, CFexpress, XQD, USB flash drives

Complex

$150–$250

Quoted after evaluation. The files are there but need rebuilding before they are usable.

› Reconstruction from fragments
› Corrupted video repair
› Very large cards

Rush

Add-on

48-hour turnaround from the day the card arrives. Added to the Standard or Complex price, and quoted with the job.

› Ask for it on the intake form
› Amount confirmed with your quote

Not detected at all

Case by case

A card that no reader or camera can see is a physical case. Some of these I can do at my bench, quoted after evaluation. The rest I refer out, at no charge.

› No capacity, no name, nothing
› Checked in more than one reader
› If it's not one I can do, I tell you and send it back

No data, no charge.

The evaluation is free. I'll show you what's recoverable before you pay anything. If what you're looking for isn't there, you owe nothing.

Recovered files are delivered by Dropbox link. Very large recoveries can cost more, because I need extra storage to hold them. If that applies to yours, it is in the quote. Return shipping is on me, whether or not anything was recovered, unless you ask for rush return shipping. That is quoted with the job.

Common questions

The drone crashed while it was recording. Is the footage gone?: Often not, if it was recording to a removable card. The footage up to the moment power was lost is usually on the card, in a file the drone never got to close. That kind of file can often be repaired. Take the card out before you power the drone on again.
My footage was on the drone's internal storage. Can you recover it?: It depends on what happened. If the files are still there and the drone is damaged, that's a question of getting the drone to hand them over, which I can look at. If they were deleted or the storage was formatted, internal storage is often unrecoverable once TRIM has run. Describe it on the intake form before sending anything.
The app has a low-resolution copy. Can you get the full-quality one?: Only from the card or the drone, not from the app's copy. The low-resolution version can't be turned back into the original. Keep it anyway. If the full recording can't be recovered, it may be the only version there is.