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[gessman]

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.

[PapaJon]

Impressive!!!!!

[OriginalCyn]

I visited the website. I also found an app on the iPad for Nikon or Canon users. I wasn't clear whether or not you had to be camera specific...in other words, could I use one or the other if I purchased the one app. Anyway, thanks for this, the possibilities just grew exponentially!

[gessman]

I visited the website. I also found an app on the iPad for Nikon or Canon users. I wasn't clear whether or not you had to be camera specific...in other words, could I use one or the other if I purchased the one app. Anyway, thanks for this, the possibilities just grew exponentially!

Morning Cyn.  I guess it would have been more considerate of me to have included that there are other devices and apps out there that will operate with Nikon units too but I was already way too wordy with the excitement of passing that info on to Canon users and trying to emphasize it in a way that would generate some interest for others which seems to have failed given the response.  I may need to post it in another category so it can be seen better.  I have looked at other apps that will work with Nikon as well, but I don't think I've seen anything quite as comprehensive as the one I focused on for Canon.  You're sure right about the "growth in the possibilities" and with your recent fortunate acquisition of a Nikon, albeit under perhaps unfortunate circumstances, and please accept my sincere condolences, you should be able to avail yourself of the best of what's on either side of that Canon/Nikon fence.  Bully for you.  I don't think I'll be using my droid tab and the DSLR Controller app for doing HDR or focus stacking while chasing down 'birds in flight' in Florida anytime soon but then who knows what's coming.  I'm amazed almost every day by that to which I'm introduced, good and bad.     

[Admin Jim]

Some cool info in there Gene - thanks for the extensive write-up.  This is the place for things like that.