Importing from Image Capture: where are my photos?

You can recover the files from the Camera Card with an app like MediaRecover

Regards

TD

OK, you’re talking about two different programs, here, so depending on how you did your import, your photos may not be lost!
1. If you use Image Capture, then the photos go into a folder, then
2. You have to open iPhoto, and drag the folder, or all the pictures in that folder, onto iPhoto.
That means that the files are still in that photo you originally imported the photos into. If that's not the case, then you need to use a recovery program like File Recovery: http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/systemdiskutilities/filerecovery.html
Another possibility is using iPhoto without Image Capture, which only deletes the photos that iPhoto successfully has imported. Photos which iPhoto can't deal with aren't imported or touched by iPhoto that way, and you save an extra step inthe import process. iPhoto can be very slow/buggy doing imports that way with some cameras, so some people prefer to use the Image Capture app method I listed above.

Ah perfect, you made me aware of a feature kink I didn’t know about! When you import stuff using Image Capture, it goes into /private/tmp/Image Capture_Import. (string of numbers and letters).
You can navigate there by going to the Finder, hitting Command-Shift-G, and typing in /private/tmp—if the folder still exists, as it usually does for some time, sometimes even until the next restart or so—you can see the folders which should include one or more of thoe Image Capture_Import.something folders and find your files.
Incidentally, if you want to find a “system” file, i.e., one that’s in a location normally hidden by the Finder, you can:
1. Open up a new Spotlight/Find window in the Finder, and start searching by name.
2. Next to where it says Search: This Mac… etc. there’s a + button. Click that, then
3. From the dropdown menu choose Other… and look in the list for “System files” and check the “In Menu” checkbox for it.
4. Hit OK.
5. Choose “System Files” which is now in the dropdown, choose “are included” from the next dropdown.
Be careful what you do with files you find using this method. It will show everything, including files essential to running your Mac properly, so unless you know exactly what you’re doing, don’t just start dragging files off this window onto your Desktop or anything, try to copy them instead by option-dragging (holding down the option key while dragging)—that way, you’re only making copies, not moving a file from where it’s supposed to be, and your Mac can find it.
Hope this helps! If you can’t find your files this way, there are other programs which can undelete and perform other operations to recover data… this happens to everyone, no matter how long you’ve been a user.

Yeah, the only two methodolies are these, in order to avoid data loss:
1. Import directly, using iPhoto. It will only delete what’s been successfully added to the library.
2. Import using “Delete after Import” in Image Capture, into a folder, and then deciding what to do later.
Using either of those two methodolies will save a world of pain!