How to reset and wipe your camera before you sell it

Do these in order. The last step - resetting everything - comes last on purpose, because some of the earlier steps need menus that a reset would put back to defaults or hide behind a language screen.

1. Save your photos

Copy everything off the card to a computer or cloud storage, and check that the copy opens before you go further. If the camera has internal memory or a second card slot, check those too.

2. Keep your memory card

The card is yours, and it is the one thing most likely to hold something private. Take it out of the camera and keep it. If you do want to sell or give away a card, a quick format in the camera does not truly erase it - files can often be recovered afterwards. Use a full format or an erase tool on a computer that overwrites the card.

3. Unpair your phone and apps

Most recent cameras pair with a phone app over Bluetooth or Wi-Fi - Canon Camera Connect, Nikon SnapBridge, Sony's Creators' App or Imaging Edge Mobile, Fujifilm's app, GoPro Quik, DJI Mimo, the Insta360 app. Do both sides:

• in the camera, find the wireless or network settings and reset or delete the saved connections;
• on your phone, remove the camera inside the app and forget it in the phone's Bluetooth list.

If the camera was set up to upload automatically to a cloud account, switch that off in the app as well.

4. Remove your name from the files

Several brands let you store an owner or copyright name that is written into every photo the camera takes - look for "Copyright information" or similar in the setup menu. If you ever filled it in, clear it. Otherwise the next owner's photos carry your name.

5. Reset all settings

Every brand has a full reset, but the name and place differ by model and firmware. On Canon look for a "Clear all camera settings" or reset option in the setup menu; on Nikon, "Reset all settings"; on Sony, "Setting Reset" or "Factory Reset"; on Fujifilm, a "Reset" option in the user settings, which on some models includes "Initialize". Action cameras usually have a factory reset under Preferences or System. If you cannot find it, the manual for your exact model will have it - search for the model name plus "reset".

6. Charge it and gather what came with it

Charge the battery so the camera can be tested properly. Put the charger, cables, strap, caps and the box together if you still have them. Clean the outside with a soft dry cloth, but do not try to clean the sensor yourself - a mark from a bad sensor clean costs more than dust ever will.

7. Write down the shutter count

If your camera lets you read it, note it before the reset. Here is how, brand by brand. A buyer will ask, and having it ready saves a round of messages.

Forgot to do it?

With us, the camera stays in your hands until you are paid, so you can still do these steps at the meeting before you hand it over. What else happens at that meeting is in what happens when we check your camera at pickup. When you are ready, find your model and see the price.