Any computer savvy folks out there?

How many pictures are we talking about here? If you've only copied them from your camera once, you might be able to recover them from the flash drive they were taken on, using a file recovery program.

Your best luck would to be to walk outside and look for the nearest 13 year old... unless your made of money, then just bring it to some place.

I haven't personally done this, and am not a geek, but did do some searching online. Here are a few things to try:

http://www.softwaretipsandtricks.com/forum/windows-xp/32844-i-did-system-restore-i-lost-all-my-photos-music-how-can-i-get-them-back.html

http://en.kioskea.net/faq/5347-lost-documents-and-media-files-after-system-restore

Hope this helps!

Depending on what version of Windows you are running you can hit Start then Search. This should either:

1. open a new window with several options across the top. Choose "Other" to drop a list of options and choose pictures.

or

2. open a new window with a list of options that includes 'pictures, music, video'. Choose that, then choose Pictures and Photos and hit Search

This will search your hard drive for pictures.

And next time don't buy an HP.

Your system automatically creates restore points anytime something gets installed or changed to the base operating system (windows system files). It will affect everything that is not either a document (made using MS WORD or the like programs) or stored in your 'My Documents" folder.

That being said, if you installed something new to the computer BEFORE you downloaded the pics from your camera (and if you saved them to say the desktop) and you reverted back the system back to that time and date, then definitely the pics would be gone and the only way you can recover them is to use a file recovery program. I would not recommend doing this yourself if you do not know a lot about computers. Call in to a computer repair shop and find out how much they will charge.

Best of luck!

how do i do that?

If you're using Windows 7 just click the bottom left Start Menu and in the search field type *.jpg
This should bring up all the JPEG files which is more than likely the type of files your camera used. Click See More Results 'cause it'll be a long list probably.

it gave me the option to restore to a date before the download of a program, which is what i did.

Then you will have anything you saved on your computer before that date.

System restore should only affect Windows files/registry etc. If you can't find them maybe they're in a hidden folder? Anyone else have access to the computer who may have moved them?

I think this too... I wouldn't think that a system restore affects your photos. With Windows 7 isn't there a search feature? If you remember what they are named maybe you can find them through that. I have done a system restore on my computer before and never lost pictures.

I'm not sure what you are used to doing, but a system restore does exactly that, it restore the system to it's original state. wiping all non-essential data (files, malware, viruses) off of the hard drive leaving the base system intact. You then have to reinstall your program files and most of the time reset your settings. No files would be saved. That would defeat the purpose.

You're thinking of formatting! System Restore does nothing to the harddrive what so ever it just changes the registry

that worked! however, i dont know the names of all the folders i had photos in. some werent named, just numbers. do you know how i can pull up all folders with images?

THANK YOU SO MUCH!

Glad it worked

As far as I'm aware the is no quick way of doing this! You'll just need to search .jpg as you have, right click the image and click go to folder. Click on the top one then hold shift and click on the bottom one to select all and then right click and copy/cut then paste into another folder if you want them all in the same folder


EDIT

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looks like you've done it! So glad you got them back!

YAY!!!! Followed this post like a soap opera!! UH!! I have been loading mine onto Walgreens.com since my daughter was born 5 years ago! If I ever lose pics...I just go there! Plus you can upload them from their iPhone app and order prints!! :)I highly recommend them!!

If you have an android based phone, any photos you take with the phone will automatically be uploaded in a private folder with your google account as well! TOP TIP!

To all those people saying System Restore wipes the harddisk, it doesn't you're thinking for formatting

Even with a formatted disk you can still usually get it back. My Nana accidentally formatted her SD card and I used http://www.piriform.com/recuva which is completely free, and it brought every picture she had taken for the last 4 years back. Most of which she couldn't even remember she had taken anymore.

Heck, my mom's Hard Drive had faulty firmware that fried the drive, HP wanted $3450 to get her all the files back, and we did it with a few $0.50 wires.

And as for photo uploading sites, I don't trust them. I've had a lot of my photos deleted simply because I hadn't logged in for more than 30 days. I prefer just having a secondary internal hard drive to back everything up on.