Read the shape of the missing area.
A grey or black block that begins at a precise row is different from underexposure or lens shading. The upper part may look normal while everything below a line becomes flat grey, repeated or displaced. This often means the decoder stopped understanding the compressed stream at one damaged segment.
If the defect moves or disappears in another application, investigate the viewer or graphics system first.
Rule out display and preview problems.
Some catalogues display a damaged preview while the full image remains intact. Open the original file directly in a second viewer and on another device. Compare the embedded thumbnail with the full-size image, and never overwrite the source while testing.
A screenshot of the visible area is not a repair because it discards the full-resolution data that may still exist.
Truncation and loss of synchronisation.
An interrupted transfer can leave a JPEG shorter than the source. A bad storage sector can instead alter a few bytes in the middle. In the first case, the missing tail may not exist anywhere in the copy. In the second, valid image blocks may remain after the break and can sometimes be decoded again.
How to inspect a repaired version.
Compare the complete frame, not only a small preview. Look for restored subjects, coherent colours, repeated rows and thin residual lines. PixMedic preserves the source and produces a separate result so both can be checked side by side.
The first photo can be tested online at no cost. You decide whether the recovered content is useful before paying for any additional repaired photos.
A blank region can represent absent data.
Repair can reorganise bytes that still exist; it cannot reconstruct a faithful scene from data that was never transferred. The honest outcome may therefore be a partial image. An irreparable photo remains free, and artificial detail is not presented as recovered evidence.
Frequently asked questions.
Why is the lower half grey?
The decoder may have lost synchronisation or the file may end before the remaining image data.
Can another viewer fix it?
A viewer can rule out a display issue, but it cannot restore missing file bytes.
Will PixMedic alter my original?
No. Repair works on a copy and creates a separate output.
Test your own photo.
Your first photo is free to test, with no card required. See the result before deciding, and an irreparable photo costs nothing.
Test one photo freeNo subscription · original preserved