Viewing image larger than on camera back

[Manfred M]

Everything is relative, but from my point of view I have absolutely no technical comfort. Yet I had no problem getting the CamFi WiFi to work once I received a unit that was not defective. The plug-and-play characteristic was as effective as anything I have ever used.



That's not my lifetime computing experience. The more functionality that is added to a product the more bugs that are added to the product almost as if it's inevitable that the fixed bugs are replaced by new bugs. As an example, consider the number of bug fixes that are released nearly monthly with Adobe's highly mature products.



Ahhhhhhhhhh. Finally an advantage of using my makeshift studio despite its extreme limitations!

Mike - everything is relative and I had no trouble getting CamRanger going in all three platforms with no issues at all, but I do remember another member here who couldn't. So what is intuitive to one person is a PITA and totally confusing to another. I spoke to a number of pros before heading to CamRanger and while it is not perfect, it is considered the most stable and functional platform out there. If you ask the same audience about radio triggers they will almost always direct you to PocketWizards for the same reason. Us amateurs can live with the hiccups of less expensive / newer products, but those who make money from photography will tend to head to solutions that are relatively problem free and good tech support.

As for bug fixes, I totally agree that new functionality can introduce new problems while one bug fix can create new ones. Having worked in software design and deployment in a previous point in my career, in general, more mature software as fewer "critical" flaws (especially ones that result in stability issues (crashes)) and those bugs are fixed first. More minor ones get fixed later, so a mature protect (in general) will tend to be more stable. While Adobe does roll out monthly fixes, they are often for smaller and non-critical errors, but the big issues are generally related to newer functionality. The same can be said for Microsoft and Apple. A lot of fixes from all three suppliers tend to be security related.

[Manfred M]

This is the standard CamRanger setup I use (minus the tripod). I tend to use the iPad Air 2 because its larger than my Google Nexus (and newer too). The D800 has the USB 3.0 cable attached to the CamRanger and the TetherTools Jerkstopper is attached to the cable and camera to take all the stresses off the connector in the camera.

The CamRanger is fairly small, but I tend to leave it in its pouch when shooting. Unfortunately, they do not ship with a particularly elegant way of mounting it to the camera, so I tend to hang it off my tripod or attach it to me when I shoot without a tripod. The image is a live shot with the camera focused on the CamRanger pouch.

[Mike Buckley]

CamFi provides no pouch. The unit is shipped in a small box that I have put into storage because it's inconvenient to use it the way a pouch would be used. If a pouch is desired, it would be easy to purchase one.

However, CamFi does make it possible to use the unit while hand holding the camera. It ships with a connected lanyard that you can slip onto your wrist. (I think that would drive me crazy, so I would probably prefer to put it around my belt.) Alternatively, there is also a decent attachment that mounts the unit onto the camera's hot shoe. If you need to handhold the camera and also attach a flash unit to the hot shoe, you could buy a double bracket that would hold both the flash unit and the CamFi unit. If it's possible to buy a 1/4"-20 screw that is male on both ends, you could attach the CamFi unit to the bottom of the camera but I couldn't find such a screw at B&H's website.

[CarolC]

Mike - Cam-Fi have kindly replied thus:
'It should be released before the next Friday. The Samsung tablet and d7100 is supported. You may contact Cameraworld to order it.'
'It' is the new version enabling you to see the camera back as well as the tablet. I did mention your name and Mark proved exceptionally helpful. The product was being exhibited in Birmingham at the Photography Show this weekend, but unfortunately this is hundred of miles away from where I live.
CamRanger were also very helpful but just said that all Samsung tablets should work just fine. They also gave me a UK stockist.
Thank you for all your comments on these two products.

[Mike Buckley]

'It' is the new version enabling you to see the camera back as well as the tablet.

That would be a minor convenience that eliminates having to unplug the cable from the CamFi to be able to view the camera's LCD.

Just in case you're not aware, you can check this webpage to determine if you have the latest software version. I suggested to Mark that it would be helpful when the user is not using the latest version that CamFi automatically informs the user that upon loading the software.

[CarolC]

Mike - I am interested to know what your main camera is. I had a D80 and now have the 7100, as you have so kindly been referring to with my tethering questions.

[Manfred M]

Carol - You had posted this under a memory card thread. I suspect it belongs here and I have moved it.

Carol - tethering (wireless or wired) depends on both your camera and the hardware / software solution, so specific camera makes and models are somewhat irrelevant unless you use exactly the same setup and the other person. As an example. I can hard wire tether both my Nikon D90 and D800 (and I can use the CamRanger on both, but the functionality is not identical).

My Panasonic GX7 cannot be tethered or used wirelessly with either Lightroom or Capture One. The CamRanger does not support it either, but it comes with built in wireless tethering to either Apple or Android tablets and phones, but will not work with Microsoft products.

[Mike Buckley]

My main camera is the Nikon D7000 but I also use my wife's Nikon D5100 occasionally because it has the articulating LCD. The two cameras have the same sensor, so that common characteristic simplifies things.

In addition to the details Manfred mentioned, workflow can also affect how one uses a tethered setup. As an example, I use a tethered setup only in my makeshift studio, which is smaller than small. The laptop that displays the CamFi image is off to the side, not easily visible when setting up a scene and in the one and only place there is room to position it. So, I generally set up everything as far along as is practical using the camera's LCD.

When the camera is positioned above the scene hanging from a boom, the articulating LCD on my wife's camera becomes essential. Unfortunately, use of the articulating LCD can be limited by the cable that connects the CamFi unit and the camera. That's because the LCD is hinged very close to the camera's electronic port where the cable is inserted.

Once I have everything setup as much as can be done using the camera's LCD, I then use the CamFi image displayed on my laptop to make final, comparatively small adjustments to the subjects and lighting. I also use the CamFi unit to control the camera settings (though some settings have to be controlled directly with the camera) and to release the shutter. If necessary, I'll use CamFi then to transfer a small JPEG to my laptop so I can view an important detail at 100% using other software on my laptop.

My long-winded point is that your typical shooting situation and thus your workflow may not (probably will not) be much like mine. If so, your considerations may be very different.