DSLR Camera Remote for iPhone – Remote control on steroids!

I admit it: I love gadgets. And the most wonderful gadget I’ve ever had is my iPhone. There are so many apps for so many different tasks that anyone and everyone can find something useful. I’ve checked some of the apps available for photographers, and there are a few now. None I have seen have made my whiskers tingle. Until now!

DSLR Camera Remote is not a new app. It has been around some time, and is now in version 1.2.0. I came across it by coincidence and was instantly impressed. Before I even installed it! It sounded wonderful, and so it turned out as well.

DSLR Camera Remote is, obviously, a remote control for your camera. I already have a remote for my camera:

But all this remote does is release the shutter. This definitely beats using the self-timer, of course, but I have to point it directly at the camera, and not be too far away either. Bright lights (i.e. sunlight) may interfere and reduce the working distance. But the DSLR Camera Remote is a remote control that is both more remote and gives the word “control” a whole new dimension when it comes to operating your camera remotely!

The timing couldn’t have been better discovering this app. I have just started a 52 Weeks project on Flickr, and this app makes this sooo much easier. And more fun!

Basic controls

Alright, enough babble. What does this baby do?

It lets you control your camera’s settings right from your iPhone. You can adjust shutter speed, aperture and ISO (the exposure triangle), white balance and image quality (JPEG, RAW etc). It tells you how many photos are left before you need to replace the memory card, what focus mode your lens is set to (auto or manual), and what exposure mode you are using (manual, aperture priority, shutter priority, auto etc). All this is immediately accessible from the main screen. If your camera is set to manual, you can easily make minor adjustments between shots and see the difference.

See, you say? That’s right. This is the best part:

Immediately view every photo you shoot

Ever positioned your camera on a Gorillapod SLR Tripod and used a remote? Maybe climbed a chair or worse to check the result on the LCD? No more

This feature is wonderful for self-portraits, or any situation where you’re tweaking on your subject. Take the shot, check the result on your iPhone after a couple of seconds, tweak some more, try another shot. Until you’re satisfied. You can even zoom in on your photo to see if it is properly focused.

I’m sure you can appreciate how much easier this makes my self-portrait project as I can immediately adjust my position to better catch the light, create shadows etc.

Intervalometer for series

The intervalometer can be useful in several situations. You can set it to shoot every 1-2 seconds and try different poses, you can set the intervals longer to shoot a series of photos of i.e. a flower opening up with the morning sun, or you can take one every hour for a series of photos documenting a full day and night.

Or set it to take a photo 2-4 times a minute for a few hours and make a QuickTime movie of it later.

Auto-bracketing for safety

Uncertain of your settings because of complex light or reflections? DSLR Camera Remote supports auto-bracketing of up to 5 stops above and below your chosen setting. You can choose if the photos will be 1 full stop apart, or 1/3 stop apart. Bracketing more than a couple of stops is seldom useful, unless you want to do some exposure blending.

You might also use it for a series of photos where you’re planning HDR treatment. But if you do, be sure to check the shots afterwards to ensure you have at least 1 photo without clipping!

What do you need?

Except for the obvious, like an iPhone (or iPod Touch) and a DSLR (most Canon and Nikon models are now supported), you need the DSLR Camera Remote server software (free) installed on your laptop computer. Yeah, that means you need a computer as well.

It doesn’t have to be a laptop, but you really want to use a laptop. I’ll tell you why in a moment. And you’ll need a mini-usb cable to connect the camera to the laptop.

And you need a wireless network. Bummer! “That’s fine in the studio or at home”, I hear you say, “but that means it is useless on location, right?”. Not so.

Using DSLR Camera Remote on location

This is the moment when I tell you why you really want a laptop: Because you can bring it on location, setup an ad-hoc wireless network and you’re up and running just like when you’re in the studio or at home! If you like clicking around like a maniac, bring a Windows PC. If you like it fast and smooth, use a MacBook. I’m going to show you how easy this is using a MacBook right here. It’s a charm. If you want to know how it’s done on Windows, check this little screencast from onOne Software.

I’ve read that some have experienced problems using an ad-hoc network, and that onOne Software is guessing this might be interference with 3G communication. They are recommending setting the phone in Airplane mode and turning wifi back on if you’re experiencing this.

I don’t like the Airplane mode, even on an airplane. I would therefore recommend just going to Settings -> General -> Network and then turn off “Enable 3G”.

I would like to hear if any of you experience this, and whether this helps!

Possible improvements

A review like this should also include some negative points that should be improved. I must admit that there are not many things I don’t like about this app.

One thing I’ve experienced is that while I do have the ability to zoom in on the photo on my iPhone, I cannot pan it around to see different parts of the image. I’m not sure if this is a bug or by design, but I really don’t think the zoom-feature is very helpful if I can only see the center of the photo, as my main subject is often not dead center.

A huge improvement, though, would be the ability to replace the laptop with another iPhone! Imagine connecting an iPhone directly to the camera and then communicate with it from another iPhone! This would be great for those already carrying a lot of equipment out on location. It does involve 3rd party accessories, though, like a custom cable. Maybe someday…

Conclusion

I hope that by reading this, you have become at least a little bit thrilled. If you’re not convinced, no worries! The DSLR Camera Remote also comes in a lite edition, enabling you to use it only for releasing the shutter and getting the shot on your iPhone to view. This version goes for only $1.99, so there is no reason not to try it out! I would love to hear your experiences with this app!

And, for the record: I am not in any way affiliated with onOne Software.