How to Recover Permanently Deleted Photos on Windows?

Permanently deletion of photos on your Windows device can be a distressing experience. Such a situation usually occurs when you’ve emptied the Recycle Bin or used Shift + Delete to delete the files, including photos. Whenever you encounter that your photos are lost forever, don’t lose hope! There are several photo recovery methods available that you can apply to recover permanently deleted photos. 

Here, in this article, we will explore various methods, including manual workarounds as well as via photo recovery software, to help you know how to recover permanently deleted photos on Windows, ensuring your precious memories are not lost forever.

Is it Possible to Recover Permanently Deleted Photos on Windows?

Many of you must be wondering if it is possible to recover deleted photos that are permanently deleted from your Windows device. The answer is YES! But before you apply any manual method or use any photo recovery software to restore your lost photos, it is important to understand what happens when any file is permanently deleted on Windows. 

When you delete any file using Shift + Del or emptying the Recycle Bin folder, the Windows OS removes the file’s reference but doesn’t immediately erase the data from the storage drive. This means that the deleted photos remain intact on the disk until they are overwritten by new data. Therefore, it is important to immediately apply the methods to recover deleted photos to increase the chances of successful photo recovery.

Quick Photo Recovery Methods to Recover Permanently Deleted Photos on Windows 

Now that you understand the importance of immediately applying the photo recovery workarounds to recover deleted photos on Windows, it’s time to proceed for the same. Here are some commonly used photo recovery methods that you can apply to recover deleted photos on your Windows device:

Method 01: Use File History Backup

Windows OS provides built-in feature, known as File History, which allows you to back up your files automatically. If you’ve enabled the File History backup option before your photos deletion, it will create their backup and allow you to restore them from a previous backup easily. Here’s how to recover permanently deleted photos on Windows using File History backup:

• Type CP in the search box of your desktop and then launch the Control Panel. 
• From the Control Panel, go to “System and Security” > “File History.”
• Now, from the left navigation pane, select Restore your files with File History. 
• Go to the folder where your pictures were stored before deletion. 
• Select the photos you need to restore and click the “Restore” button to recover them to their original location. 

Method 02: Recover Deleted Photos Using Backup and Restore Option

Another backup alternative to recover deleted photos on Windows devices is the in-built Backup and Restore option. This Windows OS option allows you to create backup of files and to restore them when data loss occurs. To recover deleted photos using the Backup and Restore option, you need to enable this option on your device and follow the below-given steps:

• Launch the Control Panel and click System and Security. 
• Now, select the Backup and Restore (Windows 7) option and from the top-up wizard that appears, click the Restore my files button. 
• Click the Browse for files or Browse for folders button and then tap the Next button.
• Select whether you want to restore recovered files back to the original location or a new location. Tap the Restore button to start the recovery process. 
• Lastly, click the Finish button.

Method 03: Check Cloud Backups to Recover Deleted Photos 

Along with the above Windows’ in-built backup utilities, you can use cloud-based storage applications like Google Drive, Google Cloud, or Google Photos to recover deleted photos on Windows. If you have synced your Windows device with cloud backups, then you can easily restore your lost files. Follow the below to recover deleted photos using Google Photos:

• Launch the Google Photos app on your device or visit the Google Photos website. 
• Enter Google account credentials; click the “Menu” icon (three horizontal lines) located at the top left corner.
• Now, click on the Trash or Bin icon from the menu to view deleted photos. 
• Go through the deleted photos in the Trash (Bin) folder to locate the picture you need to restore. 
• After selecting the deleted photos, click the Recover button to restore the selected photos back to your device.

Method 04: Recover Permanently Deleted Photos on Windows Using Photo Recovery Software

If the above-mentioned manual photo recovery methods fail to recover deleted photos, you can try using professional photo recovery software. There are many third-party photo recovery software available online that you can try to recover your lost or deleted pictures. Stellar Photo Recovery is one of these specialized tools which is mainly designed to scan your storage drive for deleted files and restore them to a safe location.

Here are some amazing features which make Stellar Photo Recovery software best for your deleted photo recovery:

• Supports recovery of photos deleted due to multiple reasons, such as accidental deletion, formatting, corruption, virus attacks, etc. 
• Supports recovery of photos deleted from many internal or external storage devices, including hard drives, USBs, memory cards, etc. 
• The software is compatible with both Windows and Mac devices. Also, supports the recovery of photos deleted from iPhones and Android devices. 
• It allows you to preview the recoverable files after completion of the scanning process. 

Step-by-step instructions on how to recover permanently deleted photos on Windows using the Stellar Photo Recovery software:

Step 1: Download and install the Stellar Photo Recovery software on your Windows device. Launch the software and from the homepage, select the storage location from where your photo was deleted and click Scan.

Step 2: After successful completion of the scanning process, preview the recoverable files and choose the photos you need to restore. 

Step 3: Click the Recover button to save selected photos at the desired location. 

Wrapping Up

Recovering permanently deleted photos on Windows devices can be an easy and quick process using the above-mentioned photo recovery methods and tools. Whether you choose to recover deleted photos using Windows’ in-built backup option or any third-party photo recovery software, following the step-by-step instructions mentioned in this guide is very important. Moreover, you should make a habit of creating backups of your important photos to retrieve them when data loss occurs on your device successfully.