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Thread: I'd like to shoot tethered...

  1. #1
    rpcrowe's Avatar
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    I'd like to shoot tethered...

    Although the flip, touch screen on my Canon 6D mark-ii gives me many of the attributes, of a tethered shoot, I would like to tether my 6D mark-ii. Presently, I do not own a notebook computer.

    I absolutely LOVE my wife's Samsung Chromebook Plus and I would like to replace my 11-inch ASUS Chromebook with either a Samsung Chromebook Plus or a Samsung Chromebook Pro.

    The only reason that I would not go this route is if I could not tether either my Canon 7D mark-ii or my Canon 6D mark-ii camera to the Samsung Chromebook Plus or Pro. Tethering a Canon DSLR camera with a Windows or Mac computer via a USB cable and using the Canon EOS Utilities is pretty straight forward. I could even possibly use Wi-Fi or Blue Tooth to do this since the 6D2 has those capabilities,

    The problem is that I believe I need to install a copy of EOS Utilities and researching that software on the Canon Website only gives me options to download EOS Utilities to Windows, Mac or Linux operating systems.

    Is there a way to tether my 6D2 to a Samsung Chromebook Plus or Pro?

    If it is not possible, I "COULD"possibly purchase an inexpensive notebook computer such as this one and keep my present 11-inch Asus Chromebook...

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BMRF8MT...527817622&sr=3

    For a few extra bucks, I might be better off with this (new) Asus computer.

    https://www.amazon.com/Acer-Celeron-...tops+under+300

    Since I have the Photoshop/Lightroom CC subscription, I can have a copy on this unit also. This would suit me quite well when I am traveling. Although it would not be capable of working with many layers, I "think" that this computer might be perfectly capable of working in Lightroom...

    My wife just reminded me that we have an older Toshiba 17" laptop on one of out storage shelves in our RV garage. It doesn't have a power cord but, I found one online. I will experiment with that for tethering. If I remember, it has a lovely bright display but, being 17 inches, is heavy as all get out. Of course, that shouldn't matter in tethered situation.
    Last edited by rpcrowe; 1st June 2018 at 02:59 AM.

  2. #2
    Moderator Manfred M's Avatar
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    Re: I'd like to shoot tethered...

    Richard - the short answer is NO. ChromeOS is highly dependent on Chrome web apps, and unless you can discover one for tethered shooting, you are out of luck. In practice, ChromeOS is actually built on a Linux kernel and people have hacked it to run Linux software on it. I suspect this is unlikely to be something you would want to do. If you are looking to run Windows software, you're stuck running it on a Windows machine rather than a ChromeOS one.

    In terms of using a Windows machine, you'll have to check the requirements of the applications that you aim on running on the machine. Adobe publishes system requirements for its software, for instance Lightroom CC requires the following:

    https://helpx.adobe.com/lightroom/sy...uirements.html

    https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/sy...uirements.html

    You will also need to ensure that the machine has a compatible USB port for data transfer.

    As for WiFi and Bluetooth, neither are blazingly fast, but I do find that if I shoot JPEG Basic, the files are small enough to be transferred wirelessly, but that requires that I still store the raw data on the camera's memory card.

  3. #3

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    Re: I'd like to shoot tethered...

    This link just might answer your questions.

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    Moderator Manfred M's Avatar
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    Re: I'd like to shoot tethered...

    Quote Originally Posted by JBW View Post
    This link just might answer your questions.
    There are several solutions like this one on the market. I happen to use CamRanger.

    The Tethertools wireless solution requires a Windows, Android or Apple product to tether too (much like my CamRanger). ChromeOS is not supported.

    Lightroom CC can be used for tethered capture via a USB cable, which is much faster than any wireless solution, but involves a cable that can be tripped over. Both wireless and wired solutions have their place. I prefer wired for studio shooting and wireless for field work.

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    Re: I'd like to shoot tethered...

    Hi, I use either DSLR Dashboard or DSLRController on an Android tablet or phone (Lenovo or Samsung etc) both apps are really cheap and the Android devices can be found cheap also, I bought a phone from Ebay that would not see a sim card but everything else worked fine. Russ

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    Moderator Donald's Avatar
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    Re: I'd like to shoot tethered...

    Quote Originally Posted by Manfred M View Post
    As for WiFi and Bluetooth, neither are blazingly fast, but I do find that if I shoot JPEG Basic, the files are small enough to be transferred wirelessly, but that requires that I still store the raw data on the camera's memory card.
    That's the way I do it. And you have a JPEG to show the client an approximation of what he/she is going to get. The 5DMkIV gives a good connection, or if there is wifi in the location, use it.

  7. #7
    rpcrowe's Avatar
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    Re: I'd like to shoot tethered...

    I emailed Tether Tools and got this reply...

    "Thank you for contacting Tether Tools.

    I looked at the Chromebook Plus and Chromebook Pro as well as your cameras so I could suggest some tethering options for you.

    Our Case Air Wireless Tethering System would be a tethering solution for your Canon 7D Mark 2. The Canon 6D Mark 2 is not compatible with the Case Air.

    https://www.tethertools.com/product/...hering-system/

    The Case Air creates a WiFi network which allows your camera to communicate wirelessly with your device. The Case Remote software/app allows you to control the camera from your device, preview images, change camera settings, check focus as well as other features.

    We also have cables that would allow you to connect your cameras to the USB-C port on the Chromebooks. There are limited apps which allow tethered shooting, you will want to make sure they are compatible with your cameras."

    I have a reservation to attend a presentation by Tether Tools at a local photo store. Hopefully, I will get more information then...

    https://www.eventbrite.com/e/shoot-b...44168?ref=ecal

  8. #8
    rpcrowe's Avatar
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    My final decision re tethering...

    I got the bug to get a small, notebook computer to support both my Canon DSLR Tethered requirements and to be able to open my RAW images while I am on a trip and to save the RAW images to a pair of small physical size but, relatively large capacity external hard drives...

    I wandered through Fry's Electronics (an electronic firm that probably has the largest number of computers on display) looking for a notebook computer which will support Canon EOS Utilities but, I did not want to spend an arm and a leg on the notebook for that limited purpose. I addition to tethering my cameras with the Canon EOS Utilities, I wanted a unit that I could open RAW images from my SD and CF cards, using a card reader. But, one of my major requirements was a very sharp display.

    Since sharp displays and low prices seem mutually exclusive in the world of lower priced notebook computer, I was very impressed with the display of an Acer SWIFT-1. The price was right also!

    This is not exactly a powerhouse of a computer and it has a small hard drive. However, I don't intend to store my images on this hard drive nor do I intend to do any editing on that machine. The really sharp screen is a big plus when I am using it tethered. The small size is great for tethering also.

    I was wondering what program I was going to use to open my RAW images and save them to the external hard drives. The computer came with a copy of Cyberlink Power Director installed. Since this program, seems to support my CR.2 imagery and since it is already on the computer, I will try this at least for a while.

    At my advanced age, I don't do a lot of extensive travel anymore. If I did travel a lot, I would have opted for a computer with more power to speed-up my nightly downloads. However, this tiny (about the size and weight of my Samsung Chromebook) notebook seems like it will do the job for me and, at a bit over three pounds, it will be a breeze to travel with

    And with apologies for repeating myself, the display is absolutely beautiful!

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    Re: My final decision re tethering...

    please let us know how it works out.

  10. #10
    rpcrowe's Avatar
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    Re: My final decision re tethering...

    I plan on playing with some images today to see how it works downloading from my CF and SD cards (via my USB 3 card reader) and then saving the images to one or two portable hard drives. I am not sure whether I can save to two hard drives at the same time or if I have to save individually...

    NOTE: A few days later...

    I just attended a presentation on tethering given by Yanek and Shasha of Wasio Photography at George's Camera in San Diego CA (we are fortunate that this camera store has an entire classroom dedicated to photo education and presents many programs each month - most of which are free of charge).

    https://tethertalk.com/2018/04/23/sh...era-academy-2/

    Yanek demonstrated the differences between tethering using Lightroom and using On1 Photo RAW. He was not selling software so I don't believe that his comments were aimed at convincing us to select either Lightroom or On1 as tethering software.

    It appears that On1 is a better choice for tethering. It is far faster and can work with a weaker signal over the USB 3.0 cable. Yanek stated that when he used Lightroom for tethering, he had to add a signal booster inline between the camera and the computer. With On1 software, he didn't need to add the booster.

    BTW: although many cameras, like my 6D2, can communicate wirelessly with the computer in a tethering situation, the process is far slower that when using a USB 3.0 (or later) cable. Yanek stated that whenever possible, he will tether using USB cables.

    Speaking about speed, the On1 setup beat the Lightroom setup hands down in actual tests. There were several other considerations which apparently made On1 superior to Lightroom in a tethering situation.

    Yanek stated that he had found no capability in Lightroom that was not duplicated and usually surpassed by the On1 especially the 2018.5 edition of that software.

    Yanek photographed Sasha with one large umbrella and a reflector. He did some really quick editing on the first image (including some skin softening and a bit of color modification which is a feature of On1) and these edits were carried over to his later shots. He was then able to shoot a whole series of portraits and export these to several different places in several file sizes exceptionally quickly with no additional post processing..

    I was so impressed that I am going to install On1 on my computers. The complete On1 editing program uses less memory space on a small computer than does Lightroom. I once user the forerunner to On1 Photo RAW which was called Perfect Photo and I liked its capabilities quite well. I especially liked the masking capabilities of that program but, I never used it for tethering and don't remember if it had that capability.

    Right now, the On1 Photo RAW 2018.5 version is on sale for $79.95. It is a buy it, not subscribe to it, offer and can be installed on up to five computers.

    https://www.on1.com/promo/0618-photo...RoCs30QAvD_BwE
    Last edited by rpcrowe; 21st June 2018 at 02:13 PM.

  11. #11
    rpcrowe's Avatar
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    Another thing that Canon deliberately broke...

    IMO, the Canon 6D Mark-2 is the result of the deliberate mating of full frame camera with the attributes of a point and shoot camera.

    The more I work with this confusing combination, the more I realize that Canon deliberately broke certain portions of the 6D2 technology in order to protect their 5D4. Canon has a history of breaking the technology of their cheaper cameras to protect the sales of their more expensive cameras. I have a hunch that this is going to bite them in the butt

    The latest thing that I realize is lacking in the 6D2 is the USB port... Canon saddles this hermaphrodite full frame/Point and shoot camera with a USB 2.0 connection.

    USB 2.0 is ancient technology and slow as molasses.

    I never download my images straight from my camera so I didn't pay attention to the generation of USB port. But, now that I am set up for tethering, I realize that USB 2.0 is ancient technology.

    No wonder that the 6D2 is the most hated camera of 2017

    There are some things that I like about this camera like the articulating touch screen but, every time I find something I like, it is negated by something I dislike...

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