File Numbering Issue

[jagstang]

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I have two M11 bodies that I use in tandem for work, so I changed the initial letter in the filename to "A" for one body and "B" for the other one to be able to differentiate the files easily. Now, I now that initially, only the first character of the filename could be change, but after a firmware update, you can change the first three. I changed them to "A00" and "B00" (as I see no sense in the first folder being "100" instead of "000").

I finally reached the 9999 file limit for the folder, and it the sequence seems to have reset. The problem is, it went e.g. from "B009999" to "B000001" instead of "B0010001" as I expected. When I check the card in my computer it shows that the camera did create a new folder (100LEICA, 101LEICA).

I'm wondering how I can set up the camera so the folder number DOES change in the filename? There's nothing in the instruction manual about what happens when you change the first three characters, because there's an overlap between the editable characters and the part indicating folder number.

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[Photoworks]

12 hours ago, jagstang said:

"B009999" to "B000001" instead of "B0010001"

The numbering is limited to 4 digits, you won't want it to be 5?

[jagstang]

1 hour ago, Photoworks said:

The numbering is limited to 4 digits, you won't want it to be 5?

Yeah, the last 4 digits correspond to the photo number, but the 3 digits after the initial letter are supposed to change according to the folders number once the last digits reach 9999.

So in its default mode it would go from L1009999 to L1010001. I tried resetting the camera to factory settings, changed the file name of a photo in the SD Card (in my computer) so it ends in 9999, but the file name resets to L1000001 without changing the folder number to L1010001. Hope that makes sense! It’s just that it’s not working how the manual says it should, and I want to avoid overlapping file names.

Edited August 10 by jagstang

[Robert Ardinger]

I wanted to reset the image number back to L1000000 after taking a few "test" images that I tossed out so used the "Reset Image Numbering" menu command and it did reset the last 4 digits to 0001 but it also advanced the folder to L101 which seems to be what you might want to do.

From the manual:

CREATING A NEW FOLDER
▸ Select Camera Settings in the main menu
▸ Select Reset Image Numbering

A relevant prompt is displayed.

▸ Confirm the creation of a new folder ( Yes ) or cancel the new
folder ( No )

 

I actually wanted it to go back to L100 so I followed this next set of instructions:

 

Notes
When using memory cards that were not formatted with this
camera, the file numbering will begin with 0001 again. Should the
memory card already contain a file with a higher number, then
numbering will be continued from that number.

A relevant message will be displayed on the LCD panel once folder
number 999 and file number 9999 are reached, and all numbering
must be reset.

Format the memory card and reset the frame number right after
to reset the folder number to 100.

 

Of possible interest is that when I tried this with a card that I formatted in the camera it really did not work, the folder stayed at L101.  I then did a full  (not-quick) reformat of a card with the program "SD Card Formatter" and then formatted that card in camera and it worked, File number reset so the next picture taken was again L1000001.

[jagstang]

5 hours ago, Robert Ardinger said:

I wanted to reset the image number back to L1000000 after taking a few "test" images that I tossed out so used the "Reset Image Numbering" menu command and it did reset the last 4 digits to 0001 but it also advanced the folder to L101 which seems to be what you might want to do.

My problem though is that it is NOT advancing to L101. The filename goes from L1009999 to L1000001 (instead of L1010001). But when I see the SD Card in my laptop, the new L1000001 file is in the 101LEICA folder, so it is inside a new folder, but the folder number is not changing in the filename.

I'm referring to this part from the manual: "The first letter can be selected, the “L” from the factory settings denotes the camera brand. The first three characters signify the folder number (numerals). The next four digits denote the sequential file number"

I'll try formatting the cards with SD Card Formatter, though, maybe there's a bug somewhere....

EDIT: Just tried formatting the card with SD Card Formatter and the filename is still not changing to reflect the folder sequence... this is using the Default profile by the way, so it can't be a setting issue.

Also, I tried this with both of my M11's and it's the same for both. So either the manual is wrong, or both my M11's are defective (highly unlikely), or I'm doing something wrong.

Edited August 10 by jagstang

[adan]

The manual does not accurately describe what the firmware actually does, as regards individual photo numbering. Same for my M10s.

The camera will create a new folder with a new number (folder 101, 102, etc.) when the picture number passes L1009999 - but the individual picture number will only roll over to L1000001.

I use the camera's own "File Numbering" menu to manually change the 3-digit prefix when the final 4 digits reset to 0001.

Since I also have two M10s, I do that to make the cameras "odd" and "even."

My chrome M10 is currently titling pictures as L116xxxx, and my black M10 is naming them L117xxxx.

When the chrome camera (most recent picture now is L1164387) reaches L1169999 in a few months, and rolls over to L1160001 again, I will manually reset it to L1180001. Similar for the black body, which I will "leap-frog" to L1190001.

[didier]

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I have taken the habit to rename all my pictures, just after importing them. All my pics are named after the same method : YYYYMMDD - HHmin - camera name - picture number 

That gives for example : 20250813 - 22h20 - M10M - 025001 (25001 being the 25001th picture I shot with the camera) or 20250814 - 22h21 - SL - 012004
With this renaming, I have an easy way to classify all my pics, and follow the shutter count of my bodies.

[jagstang]

On 8/13/2025 at 4:35 PM, adan said:

The manual does not accurately describe what the firmware actually does, as regards individual photo numbering. Same for my M10s.

The camera will create a new folder with a new number (folder 101, 102, etc.) when the picture number passes L1009999 - but the individual picture number will only roll over to L1000001.

I use the camera's own "File Numbering" menu to manually change the 3-digit prefix when the final 4 digits reset to 0001.

Since I also have two M10s, I do that to make the cameras "odd" and "even."

My chrome M10 is currently titling pictures as L116xxxx, and my black M10 is naming them L117xxxx.

When the chrome camera (most recent picture now is L1164387) reaches L1169999 in a few months, and rolls over to L1160001 again, I will manually reset it to L1180001. Similar for the black body, which I will "leap-frog" to L1190001.

Thanks for this, I thought I was going crazy! I'm surprised I haven't seen this mentioned anywhere else. Seems a bit odd that the manual is not accurate, and also strange that they would allow for duplicate file names (what if a long-term project has more than 9,999 photos?).

I'll do like you and change the file name manually as I don't really feel like editing filenames on import.

[Photoworks]

On 8/13/2025 at 4:23 PM, didier said:

I have taken the habit to rename all my pictures, just after importing them. All my pics are named after the same method : YYYYMMDD - HHmin - camera name - picture number 

That gives for example : 20250813 - 22h20 - M10M - 025001 (25001 being the 25001th picture I shot with the camera) or 20250814 - 22h21 - SL - 012004
With this renaming, I have an easy way to classify all my pics, and follow the shutter count of my bodies.

Do you really keep all the spaces in between?

[marchyman]

I have gone through a bunch of image naming schemes through the years.  All seemed to serve a purpose at the time.  Now I don't care so much. When I look for an image I'm inside of Lightroom where all the data I used to encode as a file name exists as searchable metadata.  Plus, I get to see the images with edits applied, something I otherwise wouldn't see.

I still organize my imports by date, though.  My "photos" drive has a folder for each year and images from each "event" within the year are in a folder named "mm-dd event name".   This order makes it easy to find a set of images related to some event.  Yes, I keep the spaces in between.

While that works for original images I do use a different naming format when exporting edited images for the web.  To match web creation scripts created decades ago all exported images start with "p-".  The scripts will generate a thumbnail image replacing the "p-" with "t-" and web site code knows how to display the appropriate full size image when a thumbnail is clicked.  The text following the p- varies.  It is usually selected to control image ordering.

[didier]

7 hours ago, Photoworks said:

Do you really keep all the spaces in between?

Yes. All the pics named after the same structure, with same spaces. Easy to read and classify.