Windows 7 Trying to figure out what folder my pictures are really in

rlucas

New Member
I am running windows 7 on a HP Pavillion Elite m9040n PC. My first drive is saying it is full. With all of these folders (my pictures) showing up with pictures in them does that mean I have several duplicates on my hard drive? Are all of these picture icons in the items folders really pictures or icons? If they are just icons where's the actually picture folder so I can move the link to my second partition? Should some of those be eliminated? When I start my computer I have two options to enter at startup. The first one is the family icon on the screen in which it loges into automatically at startup. Or I can click the RICK icon and log into as an administrator. The * will represent a triangle at a 45 degree angle pointing down to the right from the folder.

*Favorite
Recently changed
Public
Desktop
Downloads
Recent Places
Recorded TV
*desktop
*libraries
*documents
*music
*pictures
*my pictures with 632 items (Looks like folders with pictures in them
Homegroup
*family
*my pictures with 632 item folders
*computer
*users
*family
*my pictures with 632 item folders
*rick
*my pictures with 572 (?) items in folders "I have to log in as an administrator to do anything with these pictures"
>Factory_Image "D"
>HP Pavilion "E"
>DVD RW Drive "F"
>Removable Disk "G"
"H"
"I"
"J"
"K"
*network
*RICK-PC
*users
*family
*my pictures with 632 items in folder
*RICK
*my pictures with 572 items in folder
Recycle Bin
Is this kind of screwed up? Am I wasting a lot of hard drive space? Can you tell mehow to figure out where my original files are? Can some of those folders be aliminated?

Thanks

 
I would say you only actually have the one folder, or combination of folders, where your pictures are located. You can check the properties of the pictures to see where they are located, or you could make a test folder to see how it behaves.

Anytime there is a question concerning possible loss of data, we have to be very careful.
 
Hi

Personally I don't let it just default and save my photos where ever it wants to.

I created a folder, D:\Photography. (I have two internal hard drives, hence D).
Under this I place sub folders for each category, i.e. Dog Pictures, People, Vintage Cars, Race Photos etc.

It makes it a lot easier to keep track of where things are and what you have.

If you want to take the time to reorganize your images you will find out what you have duplicates for.

Then I recommend that you back them all up either to a external hard drive or DVDs.
Having them on only one drive is asking for trouble, sooner or later something is going to go wrong and you will lose data.

Mike
 
Here's what I got (I think)

Desktop
Libraries
Pictures
My Pictures
Folders with pictures in them, I click on one pictures properties and it says; C:\users\family\pictures\folderxxx
Desktop
Libraries
Homegroup
Family
My Pictures
Folders with pictures in them, I click on picture and then properties and it says; C:\users\family\pictures\folderxxx

Desktop
Libraries
Homegroup
Family
Computer
HP (C:)
Users
Family
my pictures
Folders with pictures in them, I click on properties and it says; C:\users\family\pictures\foldersxxx
Rick ( I have to log in as administrator to do anything with this folder)
My pictures
folders with pictures in them, I click on pictures properties and it says; C:\users\Rick\Pictures\folderxxx
Network
RICK_PC
Users
Family
My Pictures
folders with pictures in them, I click on pictures properties and it says; \\RICK_PC\users\family\pictures\foldersxxx
Network
RICK_PC
Users
RICK
My Pictures
folders with pictures in them, I click on picture and then properties and it says; \\RICK_PC\users\Rick\pictures\folderxxx

I hope this all makes since. So are the pictures all in the folder C:\users\family\pictures\foldersxxx and the rest of the pictures icons? Except for the ones in the C:\users\Rick\pictures and \\RICK_PC\users\family and Rick\pictures?

Thanks for any advice
 
So how would I get started. Looks like the real folder that has the pictures stored is the C:\users\family\pictures? Maybe start sending my picture folders in the Desktop Library My Pictures and Desktop Family My Pictures to the Recycle Bin? And maybe the Network RICK_PC Users My Pictures folder to the Recycle Bin? If I lose them I can under in the Recycle Bin? Thanks
Hi

Personally I don't let it just default and save my photos where ever it wants to.

I created a folder, D:\Photography. (I have two internal hard drives, hence D).
Under this I place sub folders for each category, i.e. Dog Pictures, People, Vintage Cars, Race Photos etc.

It makes it a lot easier to keep track of where things are and what you have.

If you want to take the time to reorganize your images you will find out what you have duplicates for.

Then I recommend that you back them all up either to a external hard drive or DVDs.
Having them on only one drive is asking for trouble, sooner or later something is going to go wrong and you will lose data.

Mike
 
If you only have one hard drive start by creating a folder names C:\Photography.
Under that create a folder for each Category.

Then start copying the photos from your present Pictures Folders to the new ones.
Once every thing is transferred you can delete the originals, be sure they are all moved.
Here's an image of just part of my photos directory.

Photo Organization.JPG

As you can see I have my images divided in to sub categories like what camera they were shot with etc. The Nikon Folder has many more sub folders and a zillion images in it.

I really recommend that any one who shoots a lot of photos get an external hard drive to back all their photos up to. It just isn't safe having them on the C:\ drive alone.

Don't use a back up utility for your photos, just copy the whole Photography folder to it and then update it at regular intervals.

It's fine to still have your images go to your my Pictures folder by default but move them to the correct folder for their category soon afterwards.

Mike
 
I do have another drive that I am going to setup when I get these picture folders figured out, or maybe it's called a partition. So my actual pictures are in C:users\family\pictures\mypictures corrct? So I make up a folder called C:pictures and copy all the pictures from my C:users\family\pictures folder in to the C:pictures folder? Then can I delete the folder C:\users\family\pictures folder or just the contents of that folder? Then can I delete to the recycle bin Desktop Library My Pictures and Desktop Family My Pictures and the other my pictures folders or just delete the contents (icon?) of those folders? I think I have all my pictures backed up on my simplesave device. Then, I think I know how to move them to my other drive D:. If not i will address that issue at that time. Thanks
 
Hi

I'm pretty sure that Windows won't let you delete the C:\users\pictures folder.
By default my pictures would go into C:\Users\Pictures, i'm not sure where the Family folder comes from.
It must have been set up that way at some point.


It will still move new photos that you load from your camera to that location unless you tell it where to put them at the time you import them into your computer.

If you have a second partition on your computer then I would set up my Photographs folder on it.

If something happens that crashes Windows beyond repair, like a virus, then the images on the other partition should be reasonably safe. Even if you have to do a clean install of Windows which wipes everything on you're C:\ partition.

I don't put any of my data on my C:\partition only software.

Once you have everything safely moved to your new drive and have checked them to see that they open etc, you can empty all the other folders that they appear in and have them in an organised location.

The icons on your desktop may just be shortcuts to the folders, that the photos are in.

But once you have them all safe in one location you can remove them and empty the recycle bin.

Just be sure that you have copied everything you want to keep to the new Pictures Directory before your remove them from the other locations. And I would still back them up to an external hard drive, nothing else will protect them from a hard drive failure or lightning strike. I got hit by lightning just a few weeks ago, fortunately my computer survived but my router got toasted.

Mike

Ps. a good way to find out where all your photos are at it to run a search for the file type.
I.e. search the entire computer for *.jpg, *.tif etc.

You should come up with a list that shows every jpg file on your computer and it's location.
A lot of these may be things that are installed with software or part of Windows but it will show where your personal images are.
 
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Question about your last message. You talk about icons in paragraph number 7. If you were refurring about my comment on icons, I was talking about when I'm in a my pictures folder and all the icons that looks like a small family photo and you click on it and it opens a large window with the picture. Thats the icons I talking about. They are not really picture files just a link to my actual picture in C:\users\family\pictures\folderxxx with several pictures in it?
You said to type in the search options *jpg and *tiff, are these the only files used in a canon SD card? Would this be the best way to actually find out where my original picture files are. Or can I relie on the right click properties method where it sends me back to the C:\users\family\pictures folder?
Thanks
 
Last edited:
Hi

What format the images are saved in by the camera can be optional and set by you.
But is probably restricted to .jpg, .tif or .raw it depends on the camera.

It sounds like you should make some charges in the way that your computer is set up.
Windows Explorer can be set to show a thumbnail image for each photo instead of a icon.

That would probably help a lot, then the photos won't all look the same when you see them in the folder.

Thumbnail Previews - Enable or Disable - Windows 7 Forums

You also need to set your computer to show the extensions for files.
Then you will be able to see what type of file you are looking at.

File Extensions - Hide or Show - Windows 7 Forums

And yes once you find out what format your images are saved in a search for the file i.e. *.jpg will show you where all your photos are.

Mike
 
I was rereading your message this morning and got to thinking about icons and thumbnails. I guess I don't know the differenices. Maybe their thumbnails. Thanks
Hi

What format the images are saved in by the camera can be optional and set by you.
But is probably restricted to .jpg, .tif or .raw it depends on the camera.

It sounds like you should make some charges in the way that your computer is set up.
Windows Explorer can be set to show a thumbnail image for each photo instead of a icon.

That would probably help a lot, then the photos won't all look the same when you see them in the folder.

Thumbnail Previews - Enable or Disable - Windows 7 Forums

You also need to set your computer to show the extensions for files.
Then you will be able to see what type of file you are looking at.

File Extensions - Hide or Show - Windows 7 Forums

And yes once you find out what format your images are saved in a search for the file i.e. *.jpg will show you where all your photos are.

Mike
 
Hi

An Icon is just a placeholder showing the type of file.
They all look the same for a particular file type.

A thumbnail is a small image of the photo...

Thumbnails.JPG

This is how I have my saved 3D images organised.
Not that it says .jpg after the name denoting what the file type is.

Mike
 
I moved my pictures and videos from C:\users\family and C:\users\family to C:\My Pictures and C:\My Videos. That removed the thumbnails from all the other Pictures folders that was showing thumbnails,GREAT. Defraged drive. Can go into C:\My Pictures and open up any thumbnail, GREAT. But now when I open up Windows Photo Gallery it doesn't recognize the pictures now. How do I make Photo Gallery find the pictures? Thanks
 
I'm wondering if maybe before I get Windows Photo Gallery to recognize my C:\Pictures and C:\Videos that maybe I should go ahead now and move those two folders to my E: drive and/or partition? Could you help me do that and is that a good ideal? Then figure out how to get Windows Photo Gallery to recognize pictures?





I'm running Windows 7 on a HP Pavillion Elite m9040n PC. My C; drive is just about full. I have an E: drive/partition that is not being used. Thanks
 
Hi

Just copy the folders to the new Partition. E:\Pictures etc.
Don't cut and paste! If something goes wrong you could lose data.

Right click on the Main Folder select Copy, select the E: dive right click and select Paste.
If there are a lot of files it may take a while. The main folder and all the sub folders will move.

Once they are all copied to the new location then it's safe to delete the originals.
You could have just set the folders up on the E: drive and moved the photos there to start with.

I still recommend that you buy an external hard drive that plugs into a USB port and back all you Photos, Music and personal files to it.

Hard drives do fail some times and every thing on both partitions would be lost.

Something like this...

Link Removed - Invalid URL

Mike
 
If I just move them to my E: drive, will an thumbnail stay on drive C: so I have something to click on to open them? How does that work?
 
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