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For Canon Shooters - The Ultimate Remote Control...
May 8, 2012 20:05:31   #
gessman Loc: Colorado
 
I wanted to tell the Canon shooters who want the ultimate remote about a site that exists that I stumbled across. It is for an application that runs on many Android phones and tablet computers and only works with Canons. This app costs around $8.00 and will control all aspects of your camera, depending on the camera, except zooming the lens. It is amazing. I bought a new Samsung tablet that just came out in April strictly to allow me to use this app with my 5D MkII.

The app only works with some Android phones and tablets and it has to do with the version of operating system you are running. I already had an EVO 4G Android phone but it would not run the app because of the version of the operating system. In an effort to update the OS on my EVO, I went through a miserable week long process of trying to figure out all the kinks in what I had to do to make it work. In the meantime, it came to my attention that Samsung had just released a new 7" tablet computer that had the needed operating system on it which is endearingly, for some idiotic reason, known in the industry as "Ice Cream Sandwich" which is version 4.0 and is already in version 4.03 update. It's predecessor, "Gingerbread" will work also on certain devices but only if the version number is 3.1 or higher. All of this was very arcane to me and made very little sense but I knew I wanted to pursue it for the ability to have a larger screen with which to view and focus images. This software supports all the right features to control your aperture, shutter, iso, shooting mode, i.e., AV, TV, P, M, etc., and you can focus anywhere in your view by tapping on the screen where the "focus box" is and moving the box around the image to where you want the focus to be and then tapping on the screen. Your camera hooks to your phone or tablet via the usb cord that came with your camera but there are different adapter cables depending on the device you're going to use for control.

What I have found is that there is complete chaos in the phone and tablet industries with so many different units running so many different operating systems and the various versions, and firmware, etc. It's maddening to try to figure it all out but the people who programmed this app has a list of all the cameras that will and will not work with the app and have listed all the control devices that do and do not work with those cameras. This app does so much that it's not feasible to list all of them here but it does time lapse, HDR, focus stacking for macro, exposure compensation, and on it goes... It not only takes your camera to a whole new level but you along with it by making it so easy to branch out and do new things with your camera. With an extension usb cord you can rock back in a lawn chair and do everything to your camera except change your subject, pan, and zoom the lens that you will ever need to do with your camera and you don't have to get on your belly and break your fat lil' neck to shoot at or from ground level. For those of us who are older and perhaps not in the best of shape, it answers most of your questions when you consider your physical abilities or inabilities. The new Samsung 7" tablet I bought does a beautiful job and is selling for $249, about as good as it gets. You will want to add a microSD card of 16 or 32 gig, the latter preferably, which will add about $25 or so to your cost. www.tigerdirect.com has the new Samsung 7" tablet with a 16gb card for $249 and free shipping. They'd probably have the necessary usb adapter which you will also need to buy to plug n your cord that came with your computer, or, with some of the other tested phones and tablets, in some cases you will need a stub cable that has come to be known as an "on-the-go" cable. It is a special usb cable and not an ordinary one. The OTG cable can be bought on ebay for $2.00 while the Samsung usb adapter is around $15. You can also control the video with this app as well as stills. Since the app is still in beta, documentation is sparse but if you know your camera, you will have no problem figuring it out.

The url for the site of the developers of this app is http://dslrcontroller.com/. There, under "Devices" you will find all the different units and cameras that have been tested and that work and under what circumstances that happens. If you don't have an Android phone already, and want something to run the app, I strongly recommend the new tablet I bought. It provides a quick and effective entry into these marvelous capabilities at a reasonable price and with the assurance that the combination works well together. What you don't want to do is try to put together a pairing of something other than what is on this list or you'll find yourself in a nightmare of confusion. This app DOES NOT work with Nikons nor with Apple devices like iPad, iPhone,etc.

While the app developer's site does not have a demo video, there is one on another site where you can get an idea of a few of the capabilities available for controlling your camera. Cut and paste the following url into a browser - the whole thing up to the period before "I'm really..." https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=eu.chainfire.dslrcontroller&feature=more_from_developer#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEwMiwiZXUuY2hhaW5maXJlLmRzbHJjb250cm9sbGVyIl0. I'm really enjoying it and cannot recommend it enough for you other folks who may need to compensate for an increasing lack of flexibility and mobility.

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May 8, 2012 20:29:17   #
TNmike Loc: NW TN
 
Gessman, thanks for the info. But I'm way too old to understand any of this. I don't use my camera to call someone and don't use my phone to take photo's. All of this sure sounds interesting and glad it all works for you!! Resident member of the 'Old Pharts and Still Learning Club'.

:D Mike

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May 8, 2012 22:16:56   #
gessman Loc: Colorado
 
TNmike wrote:
Gessman, thanks for the info. But I'm way too old to understand any of this. I don't use my camera to call someone and don't use my phone to take photo's. All of this sure sounds interesting and glad it all works for you!! Resident member of the 'Old Pharts and Still Learning Club'.

:D Mike


Let me see if I can help you out a little here. Like with computers, which you seem to understand fair enough, there is Apple and PC Windows. With phones there is Apple and Android a Google operating system. Those are the big two with phones and tablet computers. Android equates to a Windows-like system and has several versions like Windows does going back in time and you can only do certain things in certain versions.

We're not talking about taking pictures with your phone here, or talking on your camera - we're talking about using a very sophisticated computer to control your camera and allow you to do things you would have a hard or even impossible time doing without it. Now, I don't know how old you are and don't really care but reviewing some of your posts, I'd say that you sure do seem to be willing to make an excuse here and there for what you can't do. Now, I'm originally from Arkansas so I know how folks in that neck of the woods like to down-sell themselves so others won't expect too much of them but I'm 75 and suggesting that you might want to take a look at the two url's I offered up to you and see what I'm talking about before you decide it's something you don't want or can't use. If you're dead set on not availing yourself of the next level of knowledge and utility in your photography, I'm not sure why you would have bothered to read all that stuff I wrote about it. Do yourself a favor... Go look and then give it some thought. If you're as old as you want me to believe you are, that's all the more reason you should look at it. If you don't need it now, you may in the near future. I ain't buying the "old pharts and still learning club" stuff. I'm seeing "old pharts and head in the sand club."

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May 8, 2012 22:55:47   #
TNmike Loc: NW TN
 
Well you have me correct on most counts. At 75 you have me on age by about 15 yrs. As I'm still willing to try to learn the, new to me, skill/ art of photography and other things I don't think the 'head in sand' comment quite fits. If I ever get everything down to where I can take great photographs with my camera in hand I'll look closer at the newer technology. Not that the information you provide was not interesting it is just many steps down the road for me. Thanks for posting the information. Mike

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May 9, 2012 14:58:32   #
bludogge Loc: Planet Earth
 
TNmike wrote:
Gessman, thanks for the info. But I'm way too old to understand any of this. I don't use my camera to call someone and don't use my phone to take photo's. All of this sure sounds interesting and glad it all works for you!! Resident member of the 'Old Pharts and Still Learning Club'.

:D Mike
Amen brother where do I sign up. Get some T-Shirts.

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May 9, 2012 17:34:28   #
ttlthor Loc: Grapevine, Texas
 
I figure if I have to be tethered to the camera, I may as well use the camera. When they come out with a wi-fi/bluetooth dongle I can plug into the camera and then use my android phone as a remote, I'll be standing in line.

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May 9, 2012 18:56:49   #
gessman Loc: Colorado
 
TNmike wrote:
Well you have me correct on most counts. At 75 you have me on age by about 15 yrs. As I'm still willing to try to learn the, new to me, skill/ art of photography and other things I don't think the 'head in sand' comment quite fits. If I ever get everything down to where I can take great photographs with my camera in hand I'll look closer at the newer technology. Not that the information you provide was not interesting it is just many steps down the road for me. Thanks for posting the information. Mike
Well you have me correct on most counts. At 75 yo... (show quote)


Hey Mike, I apologize for that 'head in the sand' remark. I was just hassling you a little bit with that, my friend. I could probably have gone a long time without saying it and I totally agree - when us older folks are willing to take on new and complicated ideas, we are pushing ahead, no question. And, while I do hear what you're saying, let me share something with you, having been messing with photography as an amateur for about 40 years with still a long way to go, and that is this, if you wait 'til you know everything about your camera, the skill and the art of photography before you take on new stuff, it'll likely never happen. You're already taking on a mountain of stuff and a few more shovels of dirt won't hurt much. I didn't take the time to write all that stuff to cause you to waste your time but on the contrary, to share with everyone what my experience has just been to save them that amount of time in stepping up their skills to a higher level with very little effort. With the stuff I brought to you in this diatribe, you do not do anything new or different with your camera - you just push all the same buttons on a tablet or phone screen instead of on your camera. Now, I'll leave you with it. Good luck with your journey.

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May 9, 2012 19:28:10   #
gessman Loc: Colorado
 
ttlthor wrote:
I figure if I have to be tethered to the camera, I may as well use the camera. When they come out with a wi-fi/bluetooth dongle I can plug into the camera and then use my android phone as a remote, I'll be standing in line.


Hmmmm. It hasn't been long, couple of months, since you were having an issue with doing 3 exposures for HDR with your newish 60D. This DSLR Controller has a menu that asks you, after you make the 'HDR,' selection, how many shots you want to make, 3, 5, 7, 9, 21... and how many stops you want between them. Not interested, huh? This software lets you very simply do stuff you can't do with your camera no matter how well you know and can handle it. You don't have to touch your camera or change from single shot to multiple shots, or anything like that. How are you doing with pushing that shutter button several times or even once, for that matter - are your images good and sharp? I can't tell - you haven't started any threads showing us your images. If you're that good, you probably don't need any help. I will tell you though, that many of the best professional photographers on this or any other forum have their cameras tethered to control it without touching it all in the name of "improved images" which seems to fit into the "still learning" idea that some folks on this thread are talking about.

As for bluetooth, that may very well be part of this software before this program becomes full blown. Right now, it's still in beta, or did I say that. I would love a little bluetooth myself so I could go set my camera up where the elk are going to be grazing but right now, we don't have it. For that, I'll use my 1000 meter remote trigger but will sure hate to watch the sun go down on my camera and not have the ability to compensate for it. You may have read above where I said I'm 75 and have developed slight tremors in my hands. I'm also a 37 year diabetic so my eyes aren't what they could be. I welcome anything that will help me, tethered or not. Good luck and continued enjoyment with your new photography adventure. I hope it all goes as you wish.

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May 9, 2012 20:50:31   #
TNmike Loc: NW TN
 
gessman wrote:
TNmike wrote:
Well you have me correct on most counts. At 75 you have me on age by about 15 yrs. As I'm still willing to try to learn the, new to me, skill/ art of photography and other things I don't think the 'head in sand' comment quite fits. If I ever get everything down to where I can take great photographs with my camera in hand I'll look closer at the newer technology. Not that the information you provide was not interesting it is just many steps down the road for me. Thanks for posting the information. Mike
Well you have me correct on most counts. At 75 yo... (show quote)


Hey Mike, I apologize for that 'head in the sand' remark. I was just hassling you a little bit with that, my friend. I could probably have gone a long time without saying it and I totally agree - when us older folks are willing to take on new and complicated ideas, we are pushing ahead, no question. And, while I do hear what you're saying, let me share something with you, having been messing with photography as an amateur for about 40 years with still a long way to go, and that is this, if you wait 'til you know everything about your camera, the skill and the art of photography before you take on new stuff, it'll likely never happen. You're already taking on a mountain of stuff and a few more shovels of dirt won't hurt much. I didn't take the time to write all that stuff to cause you to waste your time but on the contrary, to share with everyone what my experience has just been to save them that amount of time in stepping up their skills to a higher level with very little effort. With the stuff I brought to you in this diatribe, you do not do anything new or different with your camera - you just push all the same buttons on a tablet or phone screen instead of on your camera. Now, I'll leave you with it. Good luck with your journey.
quote=TNmike Well you have me correct on most cou... (show quote)


Gessman, no apology needed. My reply to your original post was kinda' a Newbie 'tongue in cheek' comment and was really not needed for the info you were sharing. Just keep posting and sharing. Mike

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May 10, 2012 00:18:38   #
ttlthor Loc: Grapevine, Texas
 
Never said I was a pro or that I don't use a remote. In fact I do when required. It's just not tethered. Just my opinion on this particular app. Didn't say it was bad or useless, just not for me at this time. Didn't mean to ruffle anyones feathers.

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